 Presbyterian Leaders’ Forum  Sept/Oct, 1997 A Message from the Moderator In the wake of the decision of the moderate majority of the 209th General Assembly to amend the new “fidelity and chastity” law and in anticipation of the percolating protests from the left and the right, I wandered back to the early history of the Presbyterian Church for clues.The first Presbytery was formed in Philadelphia in 1706. In 1729 the Westminster Confession and Catechisms were adopted and by the 1740s there was a disagreement between liberals and conservatives that split the church. It wasn’t until 1758 that we were reunited. So here we are again, caught in a disagreement that has kept us at odds since 1976. It is unlikely that we will ever be in complete accord – yet with our brand of witnessing for Jesus Christ, that’s okay. You see for Presbyterians, debate is the energy that keeps our fires burning and our faith well defined. As long as there is still choice (and there is), we will continue to vehemently disagree on a number of things. The problem comes when the tail starts to wag the dog. Yes, we enjoy a good argument but proclaiming the good news of Jesus Christ is the thing we are really about. Demonstrating what we believe in the depth and breadth of our mission in the world, is what we do best. (And by the way, we still do more mission work than any other faith group!) So here we are again, about to be distracted by the tail that wags us. With no bishop or pope to dictate what we should do, the choice of what happens next is ours. May God give us clarity. – Patricia G. Brown, GA Moderator |
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