This page lists reports and commentary from May, 2007

from Gordon Shull, Wooster, OH (Witherspoon member and former professor of international relations)

As one who has opposed the Iraq war from the beginning, I am frustrated by the tenor of the debate on withdrawal. It is so often presented, even in long stories in the New York Times, as an either-or proposition: either get out or stay in. What we ought to be debating is the strategy of withdrawal, with special attention to the Iraq Study Group's recommendation for involvement of the rest of the world, so that others who have more legitimacy than the United States can lead the way to reconciliation and healing.

For many decades US policy in the Middle East has rendered us illegitimate as a dominant figure in the reconstruction of any Arab country. That alone should have kept us out of the war in the first place – and that alone should prompt the Democrats to focus, not just on getting out, not just on setting dates and benchmarks, but on finding a collective substitute to lead the reconstruction task.

It was a virtue of the Tikkun ad in the NYT that it saw this need, and focused on it.

A war memorial for all the victims

John Feffer writes for Foreign Policy in Focus a reflection on Memorial Day that sees the wider (or deeper) possibilities in such an occasion. It begins:

The rest of the essay >>

June 10 Rally in Washington, DC:

Calling for an End to Israel's 40-Year Occupation of the West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem

Yum! Brands expands deal with tomato pickers to all its restaurants

Taco Bell parent company Yum! Brands Inc. recently announced that it has expanded its agreement with a group of church-backed tomato pickers to cover all of its restaurant chains: Pizza Hut, KFC, Long John Silver's and A&W All-American Food Restaurants.

Establishing ‘super standard’ skirts authoritative interpretation

by Evan Silverstein -- Presbyterian News Service

LOUISVILLE — May 29, 2007 – A church court has concluded that Pittsburgh Presbytery cannot "elevate" language from the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) constitution to make compliance with ordination standards "essential" and that it must apply the guidelines to ministerial candidates on an individual basis.

The May 16 ruling by the Permanent Judicial Commission (PJC) of the Synod of the Trinity followed a two-day hearing in Camp Hill, PA, regarding a resolution that Pittsburgh Presbytery adopted on Oct. 12, 2006.

The presbytery’s resolution called compliance with the PC(USA)’s ordination standards from The Book of Order, which require chastity in singleness or fidelity in heterosexual marriage, an "essential of Reformed polity." It stated that no exceptions would be permitted within the jurisdiction of Pittsburgh Presbytery.

The resolution also said that clergy are prohibited from conducting same-sex marriages within the presbytery.

The resolution became the focus of a synod court case after three Presbyterian ministers in Pittsburgh, along with two of their church sessions, complained that the middle governing body exceeded its authority to interpret the church’s constitution by approving a "super standard" that "supplants" the PC(USA)’s ordination standards.

The synod PJC ruled 8-3 that the presbytery could not call the ordination standards "an essential" of Reformed polity.

The rest of the report >>

~~~~~~~~~~~

Analysis:

Learning to live with G-6.0108 and the Authoritative Interpretation

Before this decision was issued, Witherspoon Society Issues Analyst Gene TeSelle prepared an analysis of different strategies being used by those who are opposing the 2006 GA action, which issued a new "Authoritative Interpretation" that would allow candidates for ordination -- and the sessions or presbyteries that make the decisions to ordain them -- to respect the consciences of the candidates.

He says:

Even before the Assembly took this action, and certainly since this action, opponents have attacked it with various actions. All of these measures are versions of the movement for "strict subscription" that divided the Church of Scotland in the early 18th century and was rejected by Presbyterians in the American colonies from 1729 on. And all of them try, in various ways, to offer interpretations of the Constitution that would have the same authority as the Constitution itself — a move that was rejected by the General Assembly of 1927 in approving the report of the Swearingen Commission.

Small steps toward a just peace
from Shannon O’Donnell

Shannon O’Donnell is a Presbyterian Volunteer in Mission, serving in Jerusalem with the Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Center.     For her earlier reports >>

In this report, Shannon begins:

This past month I’ve had a number of experiences that continue to shape my thoughts, faith, and point of view. I was able to help rebuild some houses that had been destroyed, serve as an Ecumenical Accompanier in Yanoun, and participate in a protest in Bil’in. Each experience taught me something about what it means to work for peace, how to live out my beliefs, how to put actions behind my words, and when to rest within silence.  The rest of the story >>

Dr. Paul E. Capetz is joining Douglas Ottati in the writing of "Theological Musing," a regular column for Network News. He is Associate Professor of Historical Theology at United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities.

In this personal reflection on the events we recently remembered and celebrated in Holy Week, he suggests that the heart of the story is not the cheering story of Easter, but the painfully real story of Good Friday. He writes:

It is not the doctrine [of atonement], but the story of Jesus’ crucifixion that is essential. The gospel is, after all, a story about a messiah whose victory does not look very messianic. It is the story of a faithful Jew, whose fidelity led him to the cross and who calls us to the same fidelity even if it might also lead us to the cross. To illustrate what such fidelity means for modern people we only need remember Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Oscar Romero. The story is as timely today as it was in ancient Palestine.

This announcement comes from More Light Presbyterians

More Light Presbyterians is pleased to serve as a co-sponsor with Presbyterian Welcome; Immanuel Presbyterian Church, Montgomery, Alabama; and other LGBT affirming groups and churches for this special retreat designed for LGBT Presbyterian Seminarians, Candidates and Inquirers.

*For more information, registration or scholarship information please contact the Rev. Mieke Vandersall, Minister Director, Presbyterian Welcome, by phone at (917) 441-8638 or email at mieke@presbyterianwelcome.org

For Memorial Day, you may want to revisit Krista Tippet's 2006 conversation with Chaplain Major John Morris on her respected NPR program "Speaking of Faith." He offers challenging insights into the spiritual aspect of our current conflicts, and the spiritual imprint that war always leaves on soldiers, citizens, and a nation. The War on Terror, he says, presents its own spiritual challenges.

Come to a "cowboy camp meeting" for peace, justice and care for creation at Ghost Ranch

The Week of Peace: co-sponsored by all the coolest organizations working in and around the PC(USA) for peace, justice and environmental sustainability, this will be an old-fashioned "cowboy camp meeting." There will be worship every night in the new worship space. Argentine theologian Roberto Jordan (who co-wrote the World Alliance of Reformed Churches Confession from Accra, Ghana) will preach four of the nights, noted environmentalist/theologian Larry Rasmussen will preach one evening. Sign up for one intensive workshop on a variety of peacemaking concerns, which will meet each morning. Afternoons will be free to enjoy the ranch. An intentional camp culture will be created (led by Rick Ufford-Chase) for those who prefer to rough it and share meal preparation together.

Now's the time to urge your Representative to co-sponsor the bill to investigate the School of the Americas/ WHINSEC. , Click here to send a message >>

More from SOA Watch:

ACSWP is broadening its e-mailing list, and will be sending update notes on its work "several times a year." According to the Rev. Dr. Chris Iosso, Coordinator of the Advisory Committee, "We also welcome suggestions of topics or notice of developments [of] which reflective social justice practitioners should be apprised. We plan to communicate as well with past Church & Society Magazine subscribers on new ways to communicate the ethics work and thinking of the church."

This first memo includes notes on ACSWP’s report to GAC; current work on the new Social Creed; the Ghost Ranch Week for Peace and Justice; globalization; Iraq; the planned fall consultation on Peacemaking, Religion, Violence and Terrorism; environmental concerns; and energy.

To join this e-list, send a blank e-mail message to acswp-subscribe-request@halak.pcusa.org

For more on the Advisory Committee on Social Witness Policy, go to http://www.pcusa.org/acswp/

The recent Congressional votes, allowing continued funding for the US war in Iraq (etc., etc.) have raised many concerns and complaints.  Here are four varied responses for your consideration:

Pat Buchanan says the Democrats "caved" because the didn't have the courage to risk their political fortunes.

Rabbi Michael Lerner says they gave in because they can't offer a morally grounded responses to Bush's push for the war.  And more war.  And more war ....

The Network of Spiritual Progressives (of which Lerner is a founder and major leader) offers what we might call faith-based "talking points" on some of the major social-political issues today:  foreign policy, health,

Finally, Gary Dorrien, the new Reinhold Niebuhr professor of social ethics at Union Theological Seminary in New York City, discusses the apparent tension between Niebuhr’s "Christian realism" and current value-centered approaches to social issues.

What do you think? 
How do you balance political "realism" and moral values?  This is certainly something worth talking about, so please send a note and your voice to the conversation.

Phil Gates has been released from MDC Los Angeles; he is on his way to lunch with his son and some local supporters in LA. He left a message on my phone and sounded great. Welcome home, Phil!
Phil's email address is DrMsG@aol.com

In a related matter, SOA Watch has just announced that Costa Rica will no longer send students to the school. As you know, they have no army but their national police had been going there for training.

Thanks for your continued support of our two Presbyterian prisoners of conscience still in prison. Don Coleman and Julienne Oldfield reported to prison on April 17, so Don has one more month to serve and Julienne will be in for 2 more months.
Joyfully,
Marilyn (White)

ARTHUR D. COLEMAN #92949-020
MCC CHICAGO
METROPOLITAN CORRECTIONAL CENTER
71 WEST VAN BUREN STREET
CHICAGO, IL 60605

JULIENNE OLDFIELD #92954-020
FDC PHILADELPHIA
FEDERAL DETENTION CENTER
P.O. BOX 562
PHILADELPHIA, PA 19106

This weekly bulletin, produced by the Washington Office of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), focuses this week on some issues about which the PC(USA) has stated policies, and which are now wending their way somewhere through the halls of Congress:

• Tell Your Members of Congress to Vote NO on Fast Track Renewal!

• Housing Vouchers: an important support for low-income families

• Stated Clerk's Letter to Congress Opposing Free Trade Agreements

• Clarification of Presbyterian Policy Related to the Supreme Court Ruling on Late Term Abortions

The study is produced under the aegis of Westminster John Knox Press, and is available online for $5.   More – and to order >>

A WEEK FOR PEACE, GLOBAL JUSTICE AND CREATION
July 30 - August 5, 2007
Ghost Ranch, Abiquiu, New Mexico

BECOMING NEIGHBORS:
An Invitation to Global Discipleship
A Witherspoon conference on global mission and justice
September 16 - 19, 2007
Louisville, Kentucky

You can now register online for this conference --
and even pay, too.

The Rev. Jerry Falwell, who died on May 15, was a significant and polarizing figure in American politics and religion during the last 30 years.

For many of us, his death is an occasion for reflecting on the rise of the Religious Right in the United States, and its current role in our society and our political life.

So here’s a survey of some of the commentaries on Jerry Falwell and his significance for us today.

We've included comments from

WASHINGTON REPORT TO PRESBYTERIANS

The 110th Congress has been in session for four months, with little to show for its work in the way of substantive legislative achievements. The budget for fiscal year 2008 has not been adopted, and other major issues await action. This issue of Washington Report to Presbyterians discusses three high priority concerns for the religious community that will be the subject of debate and contention in Congress this year.

One result of the computer problems was my loss of some files, including email and such.  So if you have sent me anything over the past month or two that has not been acknowledged, please let me know!  Just send a note.

For some of our earlier posts on the subject >>

While China's ASAT test is troubling, it is also hypocritical of the U.S. to criticize them for doing something that our country has been doing since the 1980s. The Pentagon today is developing a host of ASAT weapons technologies that would give them the ability to knock out other countries’ satellites. Sadly, the American people don't know anything about this because the corporate-dominated media refuse to cover the story.

More Light Presbyterians recommends ...

OutFront Arizona Conference
Blessing All Our Families
June 1 - 2, 2007, Phoenix, Arizona

More Light Presbyterians is delighted to be one of the national sponsors of this extraordinary 2-day conference celebrating and offering education about LGBT persons, relationships and families within a faith context in Phoenix, June 1 - 2.

This OutFront Arizona Conference is being offered by the Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies in Religion and Ministry at the Pacific School of Religion, and No Longer Silent, Clergy for Justice coalition in Arizona. First Congregational UCC Church, Phoenix, is the host church.

For those of you in the Southwest particularly, we encourage you to participate in this conference. The worship, speakers and workshops are a strong program which includes our Marvin Ellison, Professor of Ethics and Presbyterian minister, Bangor Theological Seminary. The conference flyer follows this invitation. Scholarships are available to students and those on limited income.

For more information on the conference and registration, please go to www.clgs.org or contact me at michaeladee@aol.com  or the National MLP Field Office (505) 820-7082.

Don't forget two major events sponsored (or co-sponsored) by the Witherspoon Society:

A WEEK FOR PEACE, GLOBAL JUSTICE AND CREATION
July 30 - August 5, 2007
Ghost Ranch, Abiquiu, New Mexico

A comment from Berry Craig, who begins:   

I like Naomi Wolf’s books. But if a story posted elsewhere on the Witherspoon
website is an example of how she writes history, she should stick to other topics.
The headline is a grabber: "Fascist America, in 10 easy steps." The story is half-baked.
Wolf claims history proves it takes "10 steps" to turn a democracy into a dictatorship. "... Each of these 10 steps has already been initiated today in the United States by the Bush administration," she added.

Baloney.

Don’t get me wrong. I didn’t vote for the Union-Buster-in-Chief (or his daddy). My candidate in 2000 was Al Gore, whom Wolf worked for.

Wolf’s heart is in the right place. Her head is somewhere else if she thinks "George Bush and his administration are using time-tested tactics to close down an open society."

Bush is not a big fan of the Bill of Rights (except for the Second Amendment).

But that doesn’t make him a Fascist.    More >>

Last Thursday, May 3, the House of Representatives passed the Hate Crimes Prevention Act by a vote of 237 to 180.

People for the American Way suggests that the more difficult challenge will be passing this bill in the Senate. They encourage people to send a message to their Senators, urging them to pass this vital legislation.

They say:

Petition your senators today. PFAW will gather as many signatures as we can with your help, then we’ll compile the signatures from each state and make sure all U.S. senators know that Americans support hate crimes legislation to help ensure the prosecution of violent crime.

The latest human tragedy illustrating the need for this bill is that of Ryan Skipper, a 25-year-old Florida man who was murdered in March for being gay. His assailants stabbed him 20 times, cut his throat and left his body on the side of the road. This level of brutality is painful even to think about, and not remotely acceptable in the America you, I or any of us want to live in.

Passage of the Hate Crimes Prevention Act will send the message that anti-gay violence will not be tolerated in the United States.

Please sign PFAW’s petition to the Senate today, urging passage of the Hate Crimes Prevention Act.

After you sign, help increase the strength and effectiveness of the petition by reaching out to your friends and family and getting them to sign as well. Forward this note or direct them to this link:

http://www.pfaw.org/go/HateCrimesPetition

Family Research Council President Tony Perkins said that the "only effect [hate crimes legislation] will truly have is to gag people of faith and conviction who disagree with the homosexual agenda." Although the Far Right was unable to stop the Hate Crimes Prevention Act in the House, it will surely be targeting senators with the same misleading line about how the bill threatens free speech and freedom of religion – despite the fact that nothing could be further from the truth and that PFAW successfully debunked these claims with members of Congress and the media.

We beat the Right and won a hard-fought victory today in the House. With your help, we’ll do the same in the Senate.

Thank you for all you do for the American Way.

Sincerely,

Ralph G. Neas, President
People For the American Way

This announcement comes from Families USA

We are happy to inform you that we have recently created a new Faith-Based Resource Center on our Web site. This new resource center is intended to empower those in the faith community who wish to advocate for high-quality, affordable health care for all and, at the same time, to help advocates seeking to reach out to communities of faith.

To receive e-mails specifically related to faith-based health care access efforts, click here to sign up.

The tools and resources on the site outline specific strategies for the faith community to use in achieving health care equity. In the days to come, we hope to add additional resources to this list. Some of the resources currently on the Web site include:

We would love to hear from you. If you have suggestions for materials we should post or organizations we should link to, please let us know.

The sixth National Eco-Justice Conference of Presbyterians for Restoring Creation is scheduled at Mo-Ranch Presbyterian Conference Center in Hunt, Texas, Oct. 25-28. At the conference, participants will explore the themes of food and energy choices. Speakers and workshop leaders will focus on several subjects including biblical and theological foundations for eco-justice, social justice, and scientific and political issues.

The Virginia Tech "massacre" generates different lines of reflection

Witherspoon Issues Analyst Gene TeSelle sorts out some of those lines – as a starting point for more reflection   

"Parent Tears" is a poem in which the Rev. Bobbie McGarey transforms the pain of the Blacksburg killings into a prayer.

The Presbyterian Washington Office provides updates on current legislation in Congress dealing with issues of special concern:

This week’s issues are-

We recently passed along a request from the Farm Labor Organizing Committee, AFL-CIO, for support in their campaign to get the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) to press the Mexican government to guarantee the safety of farm labor organizers in Mexico, after the murder of one of their staff members.

Is the US protecting terrorists like Luis Posada, while imprisoning Cubans who have sought to protect their people against terrorism?

The Nation magazine has released a special issue focusing on the future of Cuba. Guest editor Peter Kornbluh writes in this issue:

Perhaps more than any other nation over the past fifty years, Cuba has consistently faced both threatened and real assassination attempts, sabotage efforts, armed attacks and bombings, infamous among them the midair destruction of a Cubana passenger plane in 1976.

Yet even in the post-9/11 world, US soil continues to be used for such purposes.

In fact, the Five are better understood as counterterrorism agents whose goal was to protect Cubans and other innocent victims from the violence of committed terrorists like Luis Posada. The Bush Administration's handling of these two historically inseparable cases is a reminder that, when it comes to Cuba, US policy-makers refuse to recognize the difference between those who commit acts of terror and those seeking to counter them.

Sabeel announces 2nd International Young Adult Conference to be held this summer, traveling through Jerusalem and the West Bank, July 19-29.

Sabeel’s vision for this conference is to gather, network, and further educate young leaders from Palestine and around the world during this 40^th year of the Occupation, so that they may be trained, commissioned, and equipped with the tools to act in advocacy to end the Occupation.

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