Some reflections on crises and conundrums By Robert P. Mills Friday, October 11, 2002 I was puzzled by my doctor's recommendation that I start taking medicine to lower my cholesterol. After all, my levels really weren't that far above the acceptable range. In fact, I knew a couple people already on the drug who still had numbers higher than mine. Did my medical condition constitute a crisis, one that required immediate intervention? Certainly not when compared with someone actually having a heart attack. Then again, many have had heart attacks because their high cholesterol went undiagnosed or untreated. Should I start taking the prescribed medication? Was I facing a crisis or merely a conundrum? Crisis or Conundrum? In a guest editorial in the Presbyterian Outlook, the Rev. Jack Haberer argues that there is no "constitutional crisis" in the PCUSA, only a "connectional conundrum." Those who use the language of "crisis" are, in Rev. Haberer's opinion, engaging in "hyperbole," while those whose view the current situation as merely a "conundrum" comprise "most of us." Exploring his language of crisis and conundrum yields valuable insights into the current situation of the PCUSA. Crisis and judgment "Crisis" transliterates the Greek noun krisis, which derives from the verb krino. The root of krino is "to sunder," from which it acquired the additional meanings of "select, decide, judge" and even "seek justice." In the New Testament, krisis is most often used in the sense of judgment, particularly a judicial decision. A crisis is thus a moment that requires a decision. Haberer's judgment that the PCUSA is not now at such a moment is widely shared. (Whether it is shared by "most of us" is debatable.) But the fact that Presbyterians have made different decisions about our need to decide is evidence that we are indeed at a decisive moment in the life of the PCUSA. Judicial cases underlie the current crisis. Articles available on the Layman Online and the Presbyterian Forum give the gory details of judicial decisions and indecision. In any meaningful definition of the term, such disobedience and defiance by individuals and governing bodies constitutes a crisis for the PCUSA. Far from being hyperbole, open talk about this crisis is long overdue. Had we held such conversations years ago, much of our present internecine conflict might have been avoided. We have now reached a point where delaying decisions, and failing to follow such judgments with decisive action will be catastrophic. Concerning conundrums Webster's second definition of conundrum is, "any puzzling question or problem." This is likely the sense Rev. Haberer intended. However, the term's preferred definition may be more applicable to the situations he describes: "A riddle whose answer contains a pun." A pun, is of course, a play on words. And playing with words aptly describes not only the origins but also the proposed solutions of many of our constitutional crises. Do words like "fidelity" and "chastity" have any have any shared meanings that can be agreed upon by Presbyterians? If not, are they to be defined by individuals, sessions, presbyteries, permanent judicial commissions? If my definition of a term differs from that of my session or presbytery, can I appeal that definition to a PJC? If I don't like a governing body's definition, can I wait until they get new members then try again? And what about words like "Jesus" and "Lord." Does "Jesus" mean a flesh and blood human being who was also fully God? Was Jesus a man who lived and died in ancient Palestine almost 2,000 years and is he also the Son of Man who will return on the clouds in glory? Or is such language, what shall we say, "hyperbole?" Have those of us who think this way ignorantly (or maliciously) confused "Jesus" with "the Christ event," that seminal moment of God-consciousness that can be a model for all human interaction if only we'll get in touch with the spark of the divine that resides within us all? "Lord" is at least equally problematic among Presbyterians. In some it evokes patriarchal paranoia, in others a reverent sense of service and devotion. Even among those still willing to say "Jesus is Lord," does that phrase mean that Jesus rules only in the heart of the individual Christian? Or does he reign supreme over all his creation? As a solution to a conundrum, a pun relies on shared definitions of words. Webster's illustration is a case in point. "What's the difference between a jeweler and a jailer? A jeweler sells watches while a jailer watches cells." If the conundrum's key terms – jeweler, jailer, sells, cells – have no shared meaning, the joke falls flat. If a denomination's constitutional terms – fidelity, chastity, Jesus, Lord v have no shared meaning the denomination falls apart. Without a common vocabulary, that is, without using the same words to mean the same things, conversation becomes impossible. Without conversation, community evaporates. A crisis point has been reached. Separation has become inevitable. All that remains are process questions of when and how. Crisis management My cholesterol is now 30 percent below where it was before I started taking the drug my doctor prescribed. Does that mean I will never have a heart attack? I'm optimistic, but not naïve. Heart attacks can be triggered in many ways. I've reduced my risk in one area, but neither I nor my doctor can say I'll never have a coronary. Still, the first step in dealing with any medical condition is recognizing that the condition exists. High cholesterol can be managed with diet, exercise and medication. Or it can be dismissed, denied or rationalized and left untreated. The PCUSA is facing multiple constitutional crises. Denying their existence is certainly an option. And, admittedly, in the short term, such denial may have no visible impact on the health of the body. But, as with the human body so with the body of Christ, admitting and treating an existing condition is a healthier, and far more faithful, response. The Rev. Robert P. Mills is theologian in residence at the Beall Study Center in Lenoir, N.C., and president of Confessing Christ Today.

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