Rick Hume – A PREREFORMATIOIN CALL FOR REREFORMATION -or- HELLO, THIS IS EZEKIEL ON THE LINE

The following are some observations people have shared about General Assembly along with a few of my observations.

“General Assembly seemed……..

…more like a political convention than a gathering of Christians going about the Lord’s business.” – - In many ways it was a sort of political convention, but I suppose this is the ‘decently and in order’ way for Presbyterian’s to go about doing the Lord’s work.

…unnecessarily drawn out, resulting in conflicting compromises.” – - The process may have seemed to move slow but to me, it often sped along like a fast paced auto auction.  As for compromises, sometimes the final product was better than either alternative.  Other compromises resulted in simply accentuating the conflict.  Someone told me, “If you came here to win, you are going to be disappointed.”  Progress is measured in increments and wholesale change, for better or worse, takes time.

…like the events and decision were manipulated by powerful voices at the expense of less organized or less powerful concerns.” – - Indeed, there were advocates on at least two sides of most issues, poised like cats to pounce on every opportunity to influence a decision.  It seems as though those with purpose, persistence and parliamentary skills had a distinct advantage at General Assembly.

…to make decisions that were total and complete disasters.” – - Before traveling to Minneapolis, I reread several of the Old Testament prophets.  Perhaps that is why the following thought was always in the back of my mind during the assembly, “we serve a longsuffering God.”  He has seen it all before and he patiently waits a long, long time for his people to return from their better ideas and wandering pursuits.

…to be going in the same direction.  Nothing seems to change.” One of the most memorable experiences for me was a short “greeting” from Archpriest Siarhei Hardun of the Orthodox Church in Belarus, one of the ecumenical Advisory Delegates to our General Assembly.  Some were shocked and offended by his brief speech.  I thought he looked and sounded like a modern day Ezekiel.  If you haven’t seen the video of his speech, you can view GA’s short 6 1/2 minute recording on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fVOEeQYhX7k .

BHFLM, Rick Hume

Rick Hume – WILL BE, ARE or WERE

We WILL BE, ARE or WERE commissioners to the 219^th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (USA)?  Fact is, those of us that were commissioned to serve in Minneapolis last week, will remain commissioners for two years, until the 220^th General Assembly in 2012.  For the most part, this is just a technicality, but a factoid nonetheless.

I look forward to sharing my recollections and dialoguing about General Assembly with you.  It may take a while though to synthesize my thoughts.  Perhaps the other attendees feel the same way.

This experience has been a whirlwind.  Right now it seems calm, like we are in the storm’s eye, catching our breath and remembering the events gone by.  This is a welcome lull and necessary break.  But like all twisters, the wind will begin to blow again and it will be time to revisit the issues and events gone by.

After returning home last weekend, Juliette and I quickly repacked and headed to Mammoth to celebrate our 35^th wedding anniversary and to unwind after General Assembly.  Since arriving at our 9200ft retreat, I have been nursing a cold and practicing what I call, “cranial ventilation” – letting the clear mountain air restore and refresh my mind.

For those who are interested, and I hope there are many, please stay tuned to this blog site.  There is much to talk about as we watch the crimson sky and ponder, is it morning or near night? (Matt 16)

Debra Daly – GA Reflection #1

Well, apologies for not blogging during GA but it was difficult to find the time — so kudos to my Los Ranchos colleagues who did!  As I began my time at GA, with a schedule filled with breakfast, lunch and dinner events and committee/plenary work, I realized that being fully present in the moment to absorb as much as possible did not give me much time to sleep, let alone blog!  Will share a few thoughts today and post a few more in the coming days.

I’m glad Steve has been posting some of the GAMC videos — they tell great stories happening in local congregations.  I like the one about the Riverside church that has developed the idea of empowering church members to hold Christmas Eve services in their homes, inviting their neighbors in to join them.  Lots of energy at GA and encouraging news — such as church members have given $10.5 mill. to Haiti earthquake relief.  New mission workers were commissioned, along with a large number of Young Adult Volunteers.  A $400,000 anonymous gift was announced for worldwide mission, and a Minneapolis church member has given a gift of $250,000 for work in Cameroon.

An office for collegiate ministries was re-established, and there was considerable debate on the floor in favor of finding funding for college ministries.  The YAADs were in fine form throughout the week, contributing in the committee and plenary — very thoughtful and articulate.  An overture to limit their access to speaking on the plenary floor was defeated.

The plenary debate on the Belhar Confession was surprisingly not as vigorous as I had thought it would be;  Jane Dempsey Douglass made a solid presentation in support (OK, I’m a fan — she was my Reformed Confessions professor   )  She made 3 good points about Belhar — it is a powerful theological statement that addresses racism and its challenges — and also addresses diversity.  It recognizes our partnership with the global South and our Reformed family there (which represents 3/4 of the Reformed family of churches).  It passed with 75% of the vote.

I’ll continue to post here with additional reflections — I served on the Civil Unions and Marriage Committee, and the plenary action has not always been clearly reported in some of the news stories I’ve seen.  None of the overtures that passed the committee were debated or voted on — only the final report/minority report re civil unions and marriage were approved to send to presbyteries for study — and that action was approved as a response to the other overtures.  I’ll post on that next time.   With the recent court decision finding parts of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) unconstitutional, a federal judge ready to issue an opinion on Prop 208 any day, and more and more states taking up legislation re same sex marriage, this is a topic that will not be going away any time soon!

When GA adjourned on Saturday morning, I rented a car and drove across western Minnesota and midway through North Dakota up to Bottineau, a small (1 mile sq.; 2300 people in town) farming town near the Canadian border where our sister the Rev. Deb Burger is pastor of a united Methodist/Pres. parish church.   A beautiful drive with rolling fields of corn and canola and flax flowers — even saw a herd of bison — and passed countless small lakes and wetlands.  I spent 2 days there — worshipped with her congregation, heard stories about their recent youth mission trip to Jeremiah’s Crossing, a horse ranch for children with disabilities, broke bread with some of her church members (and also shared some homemade rhubarb wine!)  It was a stark contrast to the bustle of Minneapolis and pace of GA, but it was a good way to end this GA adventure — in the midst of God’s bountiful creation and with a good friend doing creative ministry.

Blessings.

GA Video Story on Diversity

Here’s another fun and inspiring GA Video Story – this one on Diversity at North Avenue Presbyterian Church in Atlanta.

Excerpt from the Pastoral Letter from GA Leaders

EXCERPT FROM THE PASTORAL LETTER FROM OUR GA LEADERS

The assembly also engaged in discussion about significant matters of faith and life – ordination standards, justice and peace in the Middle East, and civil union and marriage, to name just a few.

Information on the more than 300 assembly actions is available. Answers to frequently asked questions about the items that have already garnered media attention are attached to this letter. We commend these resources to you for their accurate and straightforward information.

Civil Union and Marriage FAQ
Form of Government FAQ
Middle East Peacemaking FAQ
Middle Governing Body Commission FAQ
Ordination Standards FAQ

While the content of the assembly’s decisions is important, what may be of equal or greater importance is the manner in which commissioners and advisory delegates did their work. They debated, but did not fight. They tackled tough issues while refraining from tackling each other. They placed great value on finding common ground as they displayed gracious, mutual forbearance toward one another. They sought the will of God within their actions, rather than regarding their decisions as the will of God. One commissioner called the experience of seeking – and finding – common ground truly “miraculous.”

In short, this assembly exhibited to the whole church and, indeed, to our society and the world a way to engage in difficult issues while maintaining respect for one another. To put it another way, they exhibited well what it means for the church to “a provisional demonstration of what God intends for the world” (Book of Order, G-3.0200).

Excerpted from the Pastoral Letter from GA Leaders

A Post-GA “Pastoral Letter from GA Leaders”

Here is a link to the first post-219th GA “Pastoral Letter from GA Leaders“ :

Elder Cynthia Bolbach
Moderator, 219th General Assembly

The Rev. Landon Whitsitt
Vice Moderator, 219th General Assembly

The Rev. Gradye Parsons
Stated Clerk of the General Assembly

Elder Linda Bryant Valentine
Executive Director, General Assembly Mission Council

Steve Yamaguchi – My Favorite GA Skateboard Evangelism Story

At the GA meeting we got to meet many wonderful people doing great ministry. We heard stories of effective new ministries. Here is a link to a video of one of my favorite GA stories. It’s about skateboarders and a First United Presbyterian Church – maybe a church like yours.

Pastor Karen Rogers to her congregation:  You’ve been asking… “Where are the youth? Where are the youth? And the youth are right out in the parking lot. You keep shooing ‘em away, ’cause you don’t want ‘em skateboarding around here.”

You can watch this video and others like it at “Grow Christ’s Church Deep and Wide”

http://gamc.pcusa.org/ministries/evangelism/

Steve Yamaguchi – First Post-GA Post

Thank you for your prayers. Those of us at the General Assembly meeting in Minneapolis sensed the Holy Spirit at work among the commissioners, helping people move through difficult issues with grace and respect. The moderator and vice moderator did an excellent job of maintaining decorum, light heartedness, effectiveness, and efficiency.

Other news headlines are tending to be confusing again. I encourage you to go to one of these two resources to get more accurate news:

• the PC(USA) news source for the 219th GA
• the Presbyterian Outlook online [this is an independent news service, i.e. not officially PC(USA), but desires to serve the church and tries hard to be objective and accurate]

Our commissioners from Los Ranchos were excellent. They provided leadership and good input in committees and on the floor of the assembly. We finally got to enjoy dinner together on Friday evening. They are all tired and rightly so. We are traveling home now so we are in planes, airports, and cars. I am in the Minneapolis airport lobby and I can see Keith Geckeler from here where my laptop is plugged in.

We will be posting more news as we get home and have better access to computers and internet. We are filled with thanks for a good assembly. Nothing cataclysmic happened, and lots of wonderful ministry got highlighted. New friends were made and reunions were enjoyed with old friends.

Thank you for your prayers and comments and notes throughout the week.

Steve Yamaguchi – the news gets it wrong again

The Wall Street Journal leads the way this time in misrepresenting the actions of the General Assembly. You can find a photo of the front page of Friday’s Wall Street Journal here. Just a reminder that after every General Assembly at least some of the news services get the story wrong. It may be that they try to sensationalize because that sells, or it may be that they don’t understand the thoughtful and deliberate process by which Presbyterians do things. My guess is that the process is misunderstood, which leads to the temptation to sensationalize. In either case, those of us who were at the GA meeting urge you to read the news headlines with a grain of salt. We hurried out of the convention center to airports and airplanes. We will be posting more as we arrive home.

Steve Yamaguchi – Grateful & Gracious Response from our Jewish Friends

Kathy Sizer’s work in her committee was excellent (see her post below). My dear friend, Rabbi Marc Dworkin, Executive Director of the Orange County Chapter of the American Jewish Committee, just sent me this information about the AJC’s response to the General Assembly’s action on the Middle East.

Here is a link to the complete response from the American Jewish Committee: AJC Welcomes Presbyterian Church Middle East Stance. I include portions of the response here (underlines are mine):

July 9, 2010 – New York – AJC welcomed the more nuanced stance on resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict adopted by the Presbyterian Church (USA) at its 219^th General Assembly in Minneapolis.

“Despite intense pressure, the Presbyterian Church (USA) General Assembly rejected the calls for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) against Israel,” said Emily Soloff, Associate Director of Interreligious and Intergroup Relations for AJC. “A measured and just approach to this complex conflict cannot allow exclusive blame to be placed on one side. The civility with which Presbyterians reached their decisions in the wake of passionate argument on different sides of each issue is impressive.”

In a joint statement, the Jewish organizations stated:  “In recognizing Israel’s security needs while striving to remain faithful to the church’s Palestinian Christian partners, the 219th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (USA) has embraced a more thoughtful approach to Middle East peacemaking. ….. the General Assembly has modeled a more inclusive voice on the Arab-Israeli-Palestinian conflict.  We fervently hope that the new Middle East monitoring committee will meet the GA’s charge for authentic balance in the study of and teaching about the complexities of the Middle East. We will remain partners in this pursuit.  The parties to the conflict deserve nothing less.”