Day 6: Split Down the Middle

The Presbyterian Church is deeply divided, and events of Day 6 of the Assembly bear that out.  A series of provocative and controversial proposals were addressed in this first full day of plenary deliberation:

• In the morning, the Assembly received the report of the Mid Councils Committee, for which I was the ACC resource person.  There were some parliamentary maneuvers offered, resulting in a change to one of the principal recommendations. Rather than form a commission to reduce the number of synods, the Assembly referred the entire report to a task force for recommendations about synods and "the composition and organization of the Mid Councils in ways that reinvigorate their capacity to support missional congregations, and advance the ecclesial nature and character of those presbyteries within the unity of the church." The recommendation really doesn't make sense as written, and has the effect of perpetuating the Mid Councils Report and the discussion of presbyteries (as a response to the recommendations on synods) even though the Assembly rejected its recommendations about presbyteries.  Perhaps most disturbing is the requirement that it be made up of only insiders-- members of the Committee on the General Assembly, members of the Mid Councils Commission, and Assembly Commissioners, presumably from the Mid Councils Committee. A lot of agendas there, but not a lot of new perspectives.  The final form of the task force won't be known until Friday, when the Assembly takes up an amendment from our own Sue Spencer to combine three of the four task forces or commissions approved by the Assembly into one. Despite this last minute resuscitation, the commission that worked two years on developing a new vision for the church was crushed by having none of their centerpiece recommendations adopted.
• The afternoon was filled with the report of the Church Polity committee, and focused on fine points of our polity.  Two overtures from our presbytery -- dealing with business at congregational meetings and representation of the session on the congregational nominating committee -- were defeated (with the exception of one provision).  But the real battle was a discussion on administrative leave for pastors accused of sexual misconduct with another adult. The overture, from Baltimore Presbytery, would seek to amend the Book of Order to allow the presbytery to place a pastor on administrative leave, pending an investigation, upon a written allegation of sexual misconduct against anyone, not merely minors. While some of the "teeth" of the overture were extracted, ultimately, the intent of the overture was adopted. Also in the Polity report was the seemingly innocuous bit about the "compliance report" from the Presbytery of Redwoods.  As predicted, it generated floor discussion, which was rather inartfully handled by the Office of the General Assembly.  I have received private assurances, however, that a process of administrative review will be conducted regarding the publicized refusal of the presbytery to carry out discipline against a minister as ordered by its own judicial commission and upheld by the General Assembly Permanent Judicial Commission. We will be hearing more about this one.
• Even the usually placid report on the Board of Pensions, Foundation, and Presbyterian Publishing House was the focus of controversy around a commissioner's resolution to require the Stated Clerk to solicit communication with other denominations -- including the Evangelical Presbyterian Church and the new ECO splinter denomination -- to share in our Pension and Benefits program.  Unbelievably, this passed by a 339-331 margin (with 8 abstentions).  This is one of the most absurd action items I can ever remember in the history of my involvement in the PCUSA.  I am praying for reconsideration tomorrow.
• But the big brawl on Thursday was the battle over the recommendation to divest stock holdings from three U.S. Corporations lending material aid to the Israeli military occupation of Palestine.  The recommendation, from the GA Mission Council's Mission Responsibility through Investment Committee, was the result of a process of "corporate engagement" that began in 2004.  The proposal was lobbied heavily by groups both inside and outside the church.  In the end, it was defeated by the narrowest of margins, 333-331 with two abstentions. A substitute motion encouraging "peaceful investment" in the region was adopted.  

It was a long day... commissioners labored from 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.  There is much much more to do tomorrow, including same-sex marriage overtures scheduled for sometime in the afternoon.

No "crying YAADs" yet... but I'm betting we'll see one tomorrow, most likely during the same-sex marriage debate.