This page lists our postings from May

For an index to all our reports from the
Witherspoon conference on global mission and justice >>

And for all our reports
from the Ghost Ranch Week of Peace (2007) >>

How about suggesting:  No rewards for lying about war.

Yesterday we mentioned the new book by Scott McClellan, former White House Press Secretary, What Happened -- Inside the Bush White House and Washington's Culture of Deception.  In the book he acknowledges the part he played (perhaps a bit innocently?) in the deceptions that led the U.S. into an endless war in Iraq.

Today MoveOn.org is encouraging people to call on McClellan not to take all the profits from his book (and they'll likely be fairly vast) for himself.

MoveOn is encouraging people to sign a petition, calling on him to donate the proceeds of his book to a group that helps Iraq veterans--like IAVA.  They note that McClellan's going to be on all the news shows this weekend, and if there is enough noise about this, he will probably be asked about it.

Just click here to sign the petition.

Presbyterian News Service reports that the Rev. Clifton Kirkpatrick, stated clerk of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) General Assembly, has issued a statement commending the church-backed Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) on its recent deal with hamburger-giant Burger King Corporation (BKC).

See our earlier report on the agreement >>

In his statement, Kirkpatrick says:

On behalf of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), I write to commend the Coalition of Immokalee Workers and the Burger King Corporation on their recent agreement to dramatically improve farmworkers wages and working conditions in the tomato fields of Florida. The agreement stands as a plumb line of justice, granting a needed wage increase, establishing zero tolerance for illegal acts, and involving farmworkers in the creation and enforcement of a strong code of conduct for suppliers.

The Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) led a principled campaign in the face of attacks to their integrity and accomplishments. Their courage and dedication have inspired millions of consumers across the nation to demand a new era of accountability, transparency and human rights within the retail food and agricultural industries.

The Presbyterian Layman recently called attention to a “correction” offered to the Witherspoon Society by the Rev. James Berkley, Director of Presbyterian Action, a part of the Institute on Religion and Democracy (IRD). Mr. Berkley thoughtfully advised that a column of theological reflection which appears regularly in Witherspoon’s Network News, authored by Dr. Douglas Ottati, deserves to draw the attention of the Internal Revenue Service.

In his column, Ottati dares to speak as if Presbyterian progressives might lean toward either of the two contending candidates for the Democratic nomination for President, rather than the sole surviving Republican. Witherspoon, says Berkley, is “beating the drum for a political party in the election of president.”

Read Berkley’s blog >>          Ottati’s essay is online, too >>

The Layman, having been alerted by Berkley to his revelation of Witherspoon misdeeds, repeats substantially what he wrote in his blog. And it quotes Berkley as saying in addition that “the Witherspoon Society has shown its true colors: It's a Democrat interest group.”

But the Witherspoon Society is in good company. The Layman has also chosen this week to scold the Presbyterian Peace Fellowship for holding a retreat on dealing conscientiously with military service – and scheduling the event (gasp!) on Memorial Day weekend. Held at Ghost Ranch, Abiquiu, NM, the event was designed to provide training “for young adults who are interested in countering the military recruitment efforts on their high school and college campuses.”

The Layman apparently called Rick Ufford-Chase, former PC(USA) moderator and now Executive Director of the Peace Fellowship, to ask the reason for this choice of dates. He is quoted as saying, “This is in no way intended to dishonor the valuable service and the great service that has been offered by so many people, Presbyterians and others, who have served in the armed forces, but to create alternatives for students who may not know that there are other, non-military options for living out a life of service to the Church. I understand that there's some conversation going on out there, but no one's called me about it.”

See the Peace Fellowship announcement of the event >>

Read the Layman’s article >>

You might also be enlightened by reading some of the comments that came in response to the Layman’s exposé of the wicked peace people. Click here, and go to the archive for May, 2008.

Well, it’s refreshing to see our friends at The Layman concerned about something besides sex. Now we can worry about war, politics, and taxes, too.

The media are all over the story, and indeed it deserves our attention when one of President George W. Bush’s former top aides speaks out on the deceptions and illusions (and self-delusions, perhaps) at the heart of the U.S. misadventures in Iraq and elsewhere. Scott McClellan, former White House Press Secretary, has just published What Happened -- Inside the Bush White House and Washington's Culture of Deception, in which he describes the President as making momentous decisions on the basis of “gut feelings” rather than facts, and of deliberating setting out to deceive and manipulate the American people.

(The L.A. Times provides one good example of the coverage.)

But columnist Jay Bookman of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution says that’s a little too easy.

The national media, he says (and McClellan acknowledges) served as “complicit enablers” of the Bush strategy. The “liberal media,” it seems, failed miserably to live up to their supposedly bad name.

But, Bookman adds, “here’s the hard part: Much of what is now being said of Bush and his administration can also be said of the nation as a whole. The president was far from alone in preferring to think with his gut, not his brain, in deciding to invade Iraq. If he had not reflected the national mood so well, he could not have led us so easily into such a bad war.”

He concludes: “It is wrong — tempting, but wrong — to try to scapegoat one man for the mistakes of the past seven years, even if that man is as powerful as the president. Our institutions have failed us, and we have failed ourselves. For that failure, we will pay a heavy price for years to come.”

Three ministers, elder stand for election to PC(USA)’s highest post

The Rev. John Mann, formerly a minister in the Presbytery of the Twin Cities Area, has for the past few years been serving St. James' Parish Church in Glasgow.

When Dr. Paul Capetz laid aside his ordination after the addition of the “fidelity and chastity” requirement to the Book of Order, John Mann ceased wearing a stole in worship, “as a sign of solidarity.”  Capetz was restored to ordained standing by the Presbytery in January, 2008.

Paul Capetz recently visited John Mann and his wife, Lindsay Biddle, also a Presbyterian minister, in Glasgow. To welcome him, Lindsay Biddle made two stoles with a rainbow motif for both John and Paul. John Mann surprised Capetz by presenting him with his new stole in worship on Sunday, May 25. Mann adds that “it was somehow fitting that the first time I wore a stole again in worship was in solidarity with Paul.”

Mann concludes his note: “The session at St. James' recently adopted a statement of inclusion, which essentially makes it the first explicitly welcoming and affirming congregation in the Church of Scotland. Paul's sermon was wonderful and perhaps your Witherspoon readers may enjoy it. ... Life here continues to unfold in the most interesting ways.”

For a glimpse of earlier communiques from John Mann in Glasgow, click here >>

What are we to do with a “holiday” such as this?

Camillo "Mac" Bica, a professor of philosophy at the School of Visual Arts in New York City, who served as a United States Marine Corps officer during the Vietnam War, writes:

War has taught us that patriotism has its place as long as it is tempered with reason. And war has taught us that the suffering of children who inevitably do the fighting is so great that everything must be done to ensure that human life never again be wasted on the field of battle. For isn't that why we made our sacrifices and those that we allege to remember and honor gave their lives. And war has taught us that when the frenzy of death and destruction has subsided and the smoke of battle has cleared, amidst the death and suffering that remains there are no winners, only shattered lives and grieving families and loved ones. ...

We must mark this Memorial Day, then, not with parades and air shows that celebrate the instruments of destruction. Nor with picnics or sales at the mall. Rather, we must use it to remind all Americans of the tragedy of war, of its futility and waste. We must make them understand, distasteful though it may be, the true nature and the lessons of war.

The full essay >>

In the forthcoming issue of Network News,  Dr. Douglas F. Ottati, Professor of Reformed Theology and Justice Ministry at Davidson College, Davidson, N.C., surveys the state of the church and the U.S. society, and finds cause for both hope and concern in both.

In the church, he sees steps toward more full inclusion of lesbian and gay Presbyterians in the life and ministry of the church, but he finds also challenges to every small step forward.

In the political life of the nation, he sees hope in the candidacies of a woman and an African-American, both of whom promise to do something toward ending the American war in Iraq. But he expresses concern about the continuing battle between the Democratic candidates.

What to do?? 

On ordination, he suggests that progressives should build a clear theological  case that "committed and mutual gay and lesbian sexual relationships fall within a theologically normative understanding of human sexual relationships, and then to press for changes in church and world that accord with this judgment."

On U.S. politics, he urges that the main issue for progressives is not "Hillary or Barack," but "to articulate responsible arguments and positions on the main issues of the day, e.g., Iraq, the economy, and immigration, support the candidate in the fall who will best advance those positions and, in the case that this candidate needs to be pushed further, to go ahead and push him or her both before and after election day."

Read Ottati's essay -- and while you're there, you may want to look at a kindly effort at "correction" from the Rev. Jim Berkley, of the Institute on Religion and Democracy.

“Missional church” –  a slogan or a reality?

Doug King, editor of Network News and manager of this website, reflects on the term “missional church,” which has appeared frequently in recent discussions of the new Form of Government proposal. The use of the term – especially by some evangelical groups – seems to be a positive description of the “FOG” report, indicating what they see as a more flexible structure that serves the primary purpose of the church, which is mission.

Introducing the Witherspoon Awards Luncheon speaker, the Rev. Carol M. Hovis

The 216th General Assembly called for conversations and studies to commemorate the centennial of  the 1908 Social Creed of the Federal Council of Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. That statement engaged churches in advocating for reforms such as an end to child labor, the six-day week, occupational safety, a living wage, and other steps aimed at moving American society closer to what a “Christ-like God” was believed to want for all Americans.

Beyond celebrating the past, the action called for looking forward with “a survey of key Christian principles to guide 21st century Presbyterians and others in addressing major and likely future concerns, such as the lack of health insurance for 44 million Americans, the outsourcing of jobs to countries without human rights or environmental safeguards, and the impact of growing economic inequality on our democracy ...”

Out of that study has come a new, ecumenical “Social Creed for the Twenty-First Century,” which is being submitted to this Assembly for action.

Witherspoon Issues Analyst GeneTeSelle has written a number of essays over the past two years exploring the background of this new statement. Here, to help those preparing to deliberate on it at the Assembly, he lays out some of the distinctively Presbyterian responses to that 1908 ecumenical creed during the past 100 years.

The following four items are all taken from the special pre-GA issue of Witherspoon's Network News, which is also posted here in PDF format.  But for the sake of convenience, you may prefer to read one or more of these articles here, in HTML format.

by Gene TeSelle, Witherspoon Society Issues Analyst
[Page 24 in Network News]

by Gene TeSelle, Witherspoon Issues Analyst 
[Pages 12-13 in Network News]

Jim Atwood, a member of National Capital Presbytery, explains the reasons behind a resolution on gun violence which the Presbytery is sending to the 218th General Assembly.

He describes it as calling on the Church "to repent of the fact that we are as quiet about gun violence as the proverbial church mouse. But repentance in New Testament terms never means hanging our heads in despair but lifting up our heads in faith and trust in God and breaking our silence as we begin to talk about the problem; to talk with one another, to discuss, to argue, to dialogue, to come to some measure of discernment as to what God would have us do in this world so that God’s reign on earth would be as visible as God’s reign in heaven."

Read his short essay >>

The Rev. Mitchell Trigger, who recently moved to a pastorate in New Jersey, writes out of his discovery of the challenges and the growth that come from living in a religiously diverse community, especially when genuine dialogue begins to take place.

Out of that experience has come a overture to the 218th General Assembly, “On Calling for Tolerance and Peaceful Relations between the Christian and Muslim Communities.”

This news just in from the Rev. Noelle Damico, Campaign for Fair Food, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)

Today, the CIW and Burger King Corporation signed an agreement to improve farmworkers' wages and enforce human rights standards in the fields!

With great joy, I write to you from Washington, DC, where a signing ceremony and press conference took place in the US Capitol, just an hour ago, hosted by Senator Bernie Sanders. Excerpts from the joint press statement released by CIW and BKC can be found below. More news will be available soon on www.ciw-online.org and www.pcusa.org/fairfood .

Farmworkers from the CIW and representatives of Burger King Corporation (BKC) were joined by representatives of the PC(USA), the US Catholic Conference of Bishops, the United Methodist Church, the Unitarian Universalist Association and human rights and student leaders at the event. Speaking at the event were Senator Sanders, Lucas Benitez from CIW, Amy Wagner, Sr. VP, Investor Relations and Global Communications, and John Carr, Executive Director of the US Catholic Conference of Bishops.

Your prayers, your participation in marches, the incredible number of signatures you garnered in the petition campaign, and your ongoing letters and emails to Burger King made this victory possible.

We read in Hebrews 11:1 that "faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen." Through faith we know that this agreement is a harbinger of that soon-coming day, when the entire fast-food and grocery industry will embrace these human rights standards, and farmworkers will enjoy a fair wage and humane working conditions. As we celebrate this human rights victory, let us also renew our commitment to keep walking together with the CIW until we see that day dawns.

Please share this good news far and wide! Some details on the agreement may be found below.

Peace,

The Rev. Noelle Damico

Read the news release issued jointly by CIW and Burger King >>

It’s time to speak out for
the Publish What You Pay initiative

We received this note recently from Christi Boyd, a PC(USA) mission co-worker with the Joining Hands Network in Cameroon, who spoke at the Witherspoon conference on mission for peace and justice in Louisville last September. We’re happy to pass it along, with the hope you may want to act on it.

A Bible study on Fair Trade

Fair Trade: Using Our Purchasing Power for Justice and Hope is a six-part Bible study that asks Christians to explore where and how we shop by linking our buying habits to the scriptural mandate to treat poor people fairly. Stories are culled from the work of Partners for Just Trade, a Presbyterian-related network that links more than 200 Peruvian artisans to the U.S. market – and is now expanding its operations to include artisans and farmers from other countries. Learn the principles of fair trade and how to spend our dollars faithfully.  

From Presbyterian News Service

Marsha Mazza, wife of the Rev. D. Carl Mazza, died May 12 in hospice care after a four-year battle with cancer.

In 1981 the Mazzas founded Meeting Ground in Elkton, MD, a ministry to the homeless and other marginalized people. Marsha worked particularly with homeless women and their children as director of the Meeting Ground’s Wayfarers’ House.

Carl Mazza is a candidate for moderator of the upcoming 218th General Assembly in San Jose, CA.

Services for Marsha Mazza were held May 17 at First Presbyterian Church of Chesapeake City, MD.

Annual gathering slated for Nov. 11-13 in Denver

From Presbyterian News Service

The National Council of Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. (NCC) is seeking young adults ages 18-30 to serve as stewards for its 2008 General Assembly, Nov. 11-13 in Denver.

Each year, the NCC and its partner relief and development agency, Church World Service, gather for worship, legislation, fellowship and ecumenical sharing. More than 250 delegates from the NCC’s 36 member churches attend.

"The Stewards Program offers a unique opportunity to encounter one aspect of the ecumenical movement from the inside," says program director Garland Pierce. "Ecumenical formation involves learning ecumenical theology and sharing the excitement and joy of worship and fellowship with others in the ecumenical movement."

Stewards offer support in hospitality, the Assembly office, the Assembly newsroom, on the Assembly platform and with technology.

All expenses, except personal expenses, are paid by the General Assembly.

Applications for the 2008 General Assembly Young Adult Stewards Program must be submitted by Sept. 12, 2008. Those selected will be notified by the end of the month. The application form is available online. PDF icon

At the center of the controversy are questions and answers 19, 33, 55, and especially 87 (Book of Confessions 4.087), one of the few references to "homosexual perversion" in the Book of Confessions. Considering that the Heidelberg Catechism was written in German in 1563 and the word "homosexual" is a term that originated late in the nineteenth century and did not come into widespread use in European languages until the twentieth century, the translation problems are apparent. In fact, of all the many English translations of the Heidelberg Catechism made since the sixteenth century, all but one, the 1962 Miller-Osterhaven translation contained in the Book of Confessions, lack any reference to homosexuality.

This news was posted by More Light Presbyterians on Thursday, May 15, 2008.

This morning, the decision of the California State Supreme Court striking down the ban on same-sex civil marriage was announced. This is a huge victory for marriage equality. This is the simple recognition of same-gender loving couples and that our relationships and families deserve equal treatment under the law and in civil society. 

. . . When the 218th General Assembly meets in San Jose next month, we will be meeting in a state that supports marriage equality and same-sex civil marriage. We give thanks for the opportunity for our General Assembly to adopt the Baltimore Overture on marriage equality.

The rest of the MLP statement, with links to news reports from the Los Angeles Times and the New York Times

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

California marriage decision respects boundaries between religion and government, says Americans United

Religious groups remain free to make decisions about marriage in keeping with their theology, says AU's Lynn

About torture, detentions, trials, and all that

Carol Wickersham of No2Torture recommends the blog, FreeDetainees.org

It offers short summaries of news stories from the U.S. and other sources (including the Middle East), links to detainee profiles and action websites, and much more.

A couple examples from the May 17 posts:

Detainees Drugged and Deported
From Washington Post reports:

“Pre-flight cocktails” of dangerous psychotropic drugs were forcefully given to foreign detainees by federal employees during trips back to home countries, The Post’s Amy Goldstein and Dana Priest report today in the last installment of the four-part series into medical treatment provided to immigrants by the federal government.

The drugging of detainees without a medical justification is a violation of some international human rights codes. Included in many of the more than 250 cases the Post identified as improper are instances where detainees were given Haldol, an antipsychotic medication; Ativan, which is used to treat anxiety and seizures and is given to patients before surgery; and Cogentin, a muscle relaxant that works within the brain.

U.S. Has Detained 2,500 Juveniles as Enemy Combatants
By Walter Pincus, Washington Post Staff Writer

The United States has detained approximately 2,500 people younger than 18 as illegal enemy combatants in Iraq, Afghanistan and Guantanamo Bay since 2002, according to a report filed by the Bush administration with the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child.

Although 2,400 of the juveniles were captured in Iraq after the U.S.-led invasion in March 2003, only 500 are still held in detention facilities in that country. The administration’s report, which was made public yesterday by the American Civil Liberties Union, says that most of the detained Iraqi youths were “engaging in anti-coalition activity.”

Our conservative friends may doubt that "liberals" have any sense of moral law at all.  But we're happy to present evidence to the contrary.  Consider these ...

LAWS OF ULTIMATE REALITY

Law of Mechanical Repair

After your hands become coated with grease, your nose will begin to itch and you'll need to go to the toilet.

Law of Gravity

Any tool, when dropped, will roll to the least accessible corner.

This report has been corrected, thanks to information from Elder Manley Olson, of the Presbytery of the Twin Cities Area.  [5-17-08]

In January Dr. Paul Capetz, professor of theology at United Theological Seminary in the Twin Cities of Minnesota, was restored to the exercise of ordained ministry by action of the Presbytery of the Twin Cities Area. As a gay man, he had laid aside his ordination in 2000, in response to the adoption of the “fidelity and chastity” requirement.   Background >>

Three members of the Presbytery filed a complaint against his restoration. The moderator and clerk of the Permanent Judicial Commission of the Synod of Lakes and Prairies denied the appeal.  They ruled that there was no grounds for the appeal, on the basis of D-8.0301d.

We have not been able to obtain the text of the findings of the moderator and clerk, but apparently they determined that the appeal against the Presbytery action did not cite one of the legitimate "grounds for appeal," as listed in the Book of Discipline, D-8.0105.

A greater threat than terrorism

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, writing for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, tells of his many recent encounters with the food crisis around the world, but especially in Africa.

The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) is issuing an appeal through Presbyterian Disaster Assistance to support recovery efforts from the cyclone that struck Myanmar.

PDA is responding in Myanmar in partnership with Action by Churches Together (ACT) International and Church World Service. Both entities have local partners in Myanmar and will have representatives to help in the provision of relief items to cyclone survivors.

Attempts are being made to be in conversation with our partner churches in the area including the Presbyterian Church of Myanmar (located in northeastern Thailand), our PC(USA) regional liaison located in Chiang Mai, Thailand, Christian Conference of Asia, and Myanmar Council of Churches.

UN and Church World Services officials have reported that close to one million people are homeless and priority needs are for water purification tablets, plastic sheeting, basic medical kits, bed nets and food. Power and water supply have been disconnected, and the price of food has multiplied since the storm. Current estimates indicate tens of thousands of lives have been lost, with tens of thousands still missing.

Our church's generous gifts will help us stand with our brothers and sisters in long term recovery efforts as their broken lives and communities begin to heal.

From Presbyterian News Service -- May 9, 2008 --

The Stated Clerk Nomination Committee announced today that three applicants, the Rev. Winfield Jones, the Rev. Edward Koster and the Rev. Dr. William Tarbell have declared to the committee that each intends to stand for Stated Clerk against the committee's nominee, the Rev. Gradye Parsons. The election for Stated Clerk will take place at the General Assembly meeting June 21-27 in San Jose, California.

The Rev. Jones has served since 1979 as pastor in Presbyterian churches in Texas and is currently pastor at the First Presbyterian Church in Pearland, Texas. Jones has served on several presbytery committees and was a candidate for Stated Clerk of the General Assembly in 2000.

The Rev. Koster has served since 1995 as the Stated Clerk of Detroit Presbytery. He was pastor of Calvary Presbyterian Church in Ann Arbor, Michigan for 10 years (1976-86) and is currently parish associate at First Presbyterian Church in Ann Arbor. Koster is also an attorney in private practice since 1992.

The Rev. Dr. Tarbell has served since 1975 as pastor for several Presbyterian churches in South Dakota, Oregon, Wyoming, Missouri, and South Carolina. He is currently pastor of the Saluda Presbyterian Church in Saluda, SC.

Jones, Koster, Tarbell and Parsons were among fourteen persons who applied to the Stated Clerk Nomination Committee to be considered for Stated Clerk of the General Assembly.

From Presbyterian Disaster Assistance:

Situation Report on the Myanmar/Burma Cyclone

May 5, 2008

Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA) is readying to provide emergency assistance to survivors of the devastating cyclone in Myanmar that killed more than 22,000 people and left thousands more missing.

Tropical Cyclone Nargis, a storm with winds of 190 kph (120 mph), hit the Irrawaddy delta over the weekend.  The Irrawaddy Delta is the rice bowl for the impoverished Southeast Asian country of 53 million.

The full story so far -- with links for contributions, and more reports

Presbyterians and farmworkers deliver petitions to Burger King

A May 6 report from Presbyterian News Service begins: A delegation of Presbyterians joined a group of farmworker advocates in delivering 85,000 signatures to Burger King’s Miami headquarters last week urging the fast-food giant to join McDonald’s Corp. and Taco Bell to help increase the wages of Florida tomato pickers and improve working conditions in the growing fields.

The signatures from all 50 states and 42 countries were gathered as part of a national petition campaign launched in February by the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW), a community-based labor rights group in Immokalee, FL that works in partnership with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and other faith-based, human-rights and student organizations.

The Rev. Ralph G. Clingan sent us a sermon he has prepared for Pentecost Sunday, for a congregation that he describes as having been “mortally wounded by a homophobic fundamentalist fellow Presbyterian minister.”

He traces the meaning of the gift of the Spirit as helping us to overcome “Past Hurts, Low Self Esteem, Grudges, and Resentments,” and helping others to do the same.

My Spiritual Pilgrimage toward Universalism:
Finding God’s All-embracing Love in Scripture

I was born, baptized, and nurtured in the Presbyterian Church in the United States (the old “Southern”). My church nurtured me in the faith of my forebears, but it assumed without question the culture of the South: white supremacist, 100% segregated, male dominant and female subordinate, prejudiced against Catholics and Jews, and against homosexuals. My pilgrimage of faith has been a steady growth away from all those cultural presuppositions, one after another. I have been “born again” several times as my growing understanding of Scripture has challenged and impelled me to move beyond. As a Presbyterian I think of my theology and my practical Christianity as being reformed and continually being reformed.

Another element in the Christian religion in which I grew up was the belief that without faith in Christ as Savior, no one could be saved.

His life has taken him through 30 years teaching as a missionary in Japan, travels in China and many other places, study of the Reformed tradition and the Bible, and wrestling with the human experiences of suffering and evil and much more.

Taylor tells of his struggles with the classic issues of free will, human evil, the place of Israel and Judaism in this universal view of God’s grace, as well as the place of other religions.

And his solid conclusion is best summed up thus:

In the light of my life-long study of God’s word in Scripture, and my experience as a preacher, teacher, and missionary, I have reached the deep conviction that God truly does include everyone in the gracious purpose of reconciliation. (p. 25 f.)

For a printable version in PDF format, click here.

He concludes:

The only way to have an agree to disagree answer to this question is to remove discriminatory language and create a level playing field. That is why I support removing the AI at this General Assembly and sending to presbyteries the removal or modification of G-6.0106b.

Then we will be free to agree to disagree in thought and in practice.

The Office of the General Assembly has now posted lists (in PDF format) of:

Gene TeSelle, Witherspoon Society Issues Analyst, views the recent PJC decision on same-sex marriage as a "late-breaking issue" that will doubtless create much heat and, we hope, a bit of light in the coming General Assembly.  Spahr had conducted two same-gender services in 2004 and 2005. In response to a complaint, the PJC of the Synod of the Pacific directed Redwoods Presbytery to issue a rebuke to her.  The GA PJC ruled that, because the Book of Order defines marriage as between one man and one woman, there is no such thing as same-sex marriage. Therefore Spahr's alleged violation was not actionable, because  the act she was accused of doesn't exist.

TeSelle explores some of the ramifications of the decision, some early reactions to it, and possible ways that progressives may want to respond.

For two differing reactions from Bruce Reyes-Chow, who is standing for Moderator, and conservative pastor Bob Davis, click here.

And for earlier reports on the decision >>

What do you think?

Should we approach the 208^th General Assembly seeking ways to “agree to disagree,” or is some more definitive action needed, one way or another?

Grants will support congregation-based community programs
[5-2-08]

From Presbyterian News Service — The Presbyterian Hunger Program (PHP) in partnership with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)’s Small Church and Community Ministry office, recently allocated $214,000 to 39 congregation-based community organizations (CBCOs) in urban and rural areas across the country.

They are among the hundreds of Presbyterian U.S. congregations making a difference in their local communities through CBCOs.

CBCOs are broad-based coalitions of congregations working in partnership with other community organizations that address quality of life issues such as affordable housing, public healthcare for children, living wage and public education.

Grants are provided to support training for lay leaders, pastors, middle governing bodies staff and seminarians to develop the skills for congregational-based community organizing. “Presbyterian congregations and their leaders are working together through congregational-based community organizations with other churches and faith communities to effectively address poverty-related issues impacting their larger communities,” said the Rev. Phil Tom, associate for the PC(USA)’s Small Church and Community Ministry office.

The funds are from the Community Development portion of the One Great Hour of Sharing offering. Recipients were chosen during a March 14 meeting of the Presbyterian Hunger Program Advisory Committee.

Presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama has lifted up the subject of community organizing since he worked as a community organizer on the Southside of Chicago in the mid-1980's. The community organizing movement was pioneered in Chicago in the late 1930's by Saul Alinksy. The PC(USA) has been a supporter of the community organizing movement since the 1950's.

History Will Not Absolve Us

George Hunsinger, professor at Princeton Theological Seminary, founder of the Religious Coalition Against Torture, and author of the forthcoming book Torture Is a Moral Issue, offers sharp reflections on the recent revelations of the Bush administration’s deep involvement in decisions taken beginning in 2002 to approve and further the use of torture.

He begins:

According to an explosive ABC News report on April 9, dozens of top-secret meetings took place in the White House, beginning in 2002, in which the president’s top advisors approved the use of torture. Those involved were members of the National Security Council’s “Principals Committee” — Dick Cheney, Condoleezza Rice, Donald Rumsfeld, Colin Powell, George Tenet, and John Ashcroft. Unfortunately, however, these dramatic revelations have been largely ignored by the media and the public. Yet we now know more clearly than ever before that it is because of these senior officials — and not just Animal House on the night shift — that America is regarded around the world as a Torture Nation.

Noting that “no one up the chain of command has been prosecuted for the torture,” he urges that accountability must be required if the U.S. is ever to recover from this moral stain within its own life.

For an index to all our reports from the
Witherspoon conference on global mission and justice >>

And for all our reports
from the Ghost Ranch Week of Peace >>

A major
Ghost Ranch event this summer!

July 28 - August 3, 2008

Paths toward Peace and Justice:
Spirituality, Earth-Care, and the Prophetic Word in a time of Violence

If you like what you find here,
we hope you'll help us keep this website going ... and growing!

Please consider making a special contribution -- large or small -- to help us continue and improve this service.

Click here to send a gift online, using your credit card, through PayPal.

Or send your check, made out to "Witherspoon Society" and marked "web site," to our Witherspoon  Bookkeeper: