PFR stands firm for ordination standard in Book of Order The Layman Online Wednesday, June 6, 2001 LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The issues ministry of Presbyterians for Renewal has issued a statement endorsing the confessional Christology of the Presbyterian Church (USA) and strongly advocating against the establishment of a commission "to consider the possible revision or nullification" of the denomination's ordination standard. The 2001 General Assembly, which will meet in Louisville on June 9-16, will consider more than two dozen overtures calling for watering down the ordination standard or extracting it from the Book of Order. The General Assembly Council is an elected/appointed body charged with implementing the decisions of the General Assembly. The ordination standard – G6.0106b – requires single ordained officers to be chaste and married officers to demonstrate fidelity in their marriages. It precludes the ordination of persons who openly advocate and practice sex outside of marriage. The June 1 statement approved by Presbyterians for Renewal states: "PFR strongly affirms that the orthodox Nicene Christology and Trinitarian doctrine of God which undergird all the documents in our Book of Confessions together form the essential theological and Christological basis for our church's faith and life. "We further hold that the sexual ethic which informs section G-6.0106b of The Book of Order stands in faithful correspondence to the abundant life that God promises to all persons in Jesus Christ. "In light of these convictions, PFR would welcome any effort of the PC(USA) to engage the whole church in theological and ethical reflection that is consistent with its confessional Christology and ethical teaching. "At the same time, PFR strongly cautions against the formation of any commission or study group that would be charged to consider the possible revision or nullification of these existing commitments of our church's Constitution."

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