wfn.org | Women's Ministries Program Area Review

[PCUSA NEWS <PCUSA.NEWS@ecunet.org>]

Note #5953 from PCUSA NEWS to PRESBYNEWS:

21-June-2000
00243

	Women's Ministries Program Area Review 

Our assignment 

In response to Commissioners' Resolution 99-2, the General Assembly Council,
with the help of
Research Services, has conducted a review of the Women's Ministries Program
Area. This summary serves to report back to the 212th General Assembly, as
requested by the Resolution. The original Comment accompanying the directive
stated "The regular review of the Women's Ministries Program Area [is to] be
completed by the end of February [2000] including a review of the
theological balance of the programs and material."
 
What we did 

We requested Research Services to conduct mail surveys of constituents of
the various offices within the Women's Ministries Program Area (WMPA). The
following actions were taken:

Mail surveys were sent

	* to a total of 2,509 constituents of the various offices within the
Women's Ministries Program Area,

	* to a random sample of 500 female and 500 male PCUSA clergy 

	* to all 189 presbytery and synod executives. 

	* Questionnaires were also sent to 335 members of the special interest
advocacy group
Voices of Sophia, using their own mailing list. 

	* Voices of Orthodox Women, another special interest advocacy group, was
approached to be included in the survey, but declined to participate. They
conducted their own survey of their membership. We received and reviewed
their results.

	* We reviewed all of the correspondence sent to 100 Witherspoon Street
concerning this
review. 

	* We looked at all printed publications of the Women's Ministries Program
Area.

	* We met for two hours with the staff of the WMPA in Louisville on May 8,
2000; additional staff members joined us by conference call.

	* We met with Keith Wulff and with Sarahjoy Crewe of Research Services. 

	* Kathy Lueckert, GAC Deputy Executive Director, served as chief of staff
to our work
group. 
      

Summary of Survey Results 

The Women's Ministries Program Area (WMPA) of the National Ministries
Division of the PCUSA includes the Office of the Associate Director,
Presbyterian Women (PW), the National Network of Presbyterian College Women
(NNPCW), the Women's Advocacy Office, the Societal Violence Network, the End
Homelessness for Woman Office, National Staff in the Synods, and HORIZONS
magazine and Bible Study. Each office provides services, resources, and
information to individuals, congregations, and middle governing bodies.
Primarily focused on the needs of women in all age groups and social
classes, the WMPA is proactive in addressing the needs of women throughout
the United States.

Staff from the offices within the WMPA serve on assorted task forces,
projects, and committees,
including those within the national offices at 100 Witherspoon, churchwide
committees, and those focusing on a specific issue or cause. Examples of
these are the Peace and Justice Committee, various Presbyterian Women (PW)
committees, National Ministries Division task forces, and racial-ethnic
committees. Staff from the WMPA may provide resources, information, advice,
research, and leadership to these committees and task forces.

How was the research conducted?

1. Scientific surveys were sent to:

	* a total of 2509 constituents of the various offices within the Women's
Ministries Program Area,

	* a random sample of 500 female and 500 male PCUSA clergy, 

	* all 188 presbytery and synod executives. 

2. Questionnaires were also sent to 335 members of the special interest
advocacy group Voices of Sophia, using their own mailing list. Voices of
Orthodox Women, another special interest advocacy group, was approached to
be included in the survey, but declined to participate. They conducted their
own survey of their membership; those results are not included in this
research survey because the conditions necessary to produce statistically
valid results could not be guaranteed.

3. A review was conducted of over 120 pieces of correspondence sent in
response to a request for comments from interested parties.

4. A review was done of all printed publications of the Women's Ministries
Program Area.

Who Responded to the Surveys?

	* 1177 of the surveyed constituents responded, which yielded a 47% response
rate. This does not take into account bad addresses or surveys received
after the cut-off date.

	* 267 female clergy (53%) and 221 male clergy (40%) responded.

	* 109 presbytery and synod executives (58%) responded.

	* 212 members of Voices of Sophia (63%) responded. 

What did the Surveys cover?

All respondents were questioned about each of the eight offices within the
WMPA. They were asked how much they know about the work, mission, and goals
of each, and how well each office works, fulfills its mission, and meets its
goals. Program constituents were asked about specific offices and programs.
Clergy and middle governing body executive respondents were asked questions
which addressed how well the views of the Women's Ministries Program Area
represented various PCUSA groups. All respondents were questioned about how
well each office within the WMPA conforms to the theological and
confessional standards of the PCUSA. They were also asked the extent of any
contact they may have had with this program area.

What were the Overall Ratings?

The vast majority of respondents (87%) who expressed any level of
familiarity with the offices in the Women's Ministries Program Area gave an
overall rating of "excellent" or "good" to the WMPA. This is an average for
all eight offices within the WMPA which were evaluated, and includes only
those 65% of respondents who were at all familiar with the program area.
Answers from those who were not at all familiar with the programs could not
be included for statistical purposes. It appears that familiarity has high
correspondence with approval of these programs.

More than three-quarters of respondents to all constituent surveys gave
overall ratings of "excellent" or "good" to: HORIZONS Bible study (84%),
Presbyterian Women (PW) (82%), and
HORIZONS magazine (80%). Three-quarters of respondents (78%) rated both the
End
Homelessness for Women Office and the Societal Violence Network as
"excellent" or "good." More than two-thirds of all respondents gave an
overall rating of "excellent" or "good" to the Women's Advocacy Office (68%)
and the National Staff in the Synods program (62%). A majority of
respondents (60%) gave overall ratings of "excellent" or "good" to National
Network of Presbyterian College Women (NNPCW). The majority of female and
male clergy and middle governing body executives "strongly agree" or "agree"
to the following: the WMPA promotes the equality of women and men in the
PC(USA): (77%), and the WMPA represents the views of most female clergy of
the PC(USA) (64%). Fewer of the same group "strongly agree" or "agree" with
these statements: the WMPA provides services and resources that reflect a
broad range of theological perspectives (48%); the WMPA represents the views
of most Presbyterians (43%); the WMPA represents the views of most female
members of the PC(USA) (43%);the WMPA provides services and resources that
reflect the broad ranges of political perspectives (36%).

Overall, 70% of all respondents stated that WMPA conforms to the theological
and confessional
standards of the PCUSA to "a very large extent" or "a large extent." An
analysis was done to
examine the impact of familiarity on respondents' evaluations of these
offices. Respondents who
reported being "very familiar" with each office or program area were more
likely to also report that each conforms to the theological and confessional
standards of the PCUSA. It appears that those who are less familiar with
each office or program are also less likely to indicate that it conforms to
the theological and confessional standards of the PCUSA.

The issue of balance was of concern to both supporters and opponents of the
work of the WMPA.
On the one hand, some of those opposed to the Women's Ministries Program
Area believe that
"radical feminist" views dominate. On the other hand, some supporters
suggested that the staff in the WMPA are being intimidated by the
conservatives and denominational leadership so that liberals no longer have
a voice. Two areas that were mentioned specifically as being too liberal
were Horizons Bible study and magazine and the Triennium Gathering of
Presbyterian Women. The majority of respondents (90% or more) indicated that
Presbyterian Women conforms to the
theological and confessional standards of the PCUSA "to a very large extent"
or "to a large extent" in all areas. Nearly the same percentage of
respondents also reported similarly about
Horizons magazine and Horizons Bible Study. Research Services has also
evaluated the Triennium Gathering and its predecessor since 1979. Results of
those surveys indicate that the vast majority (97%) of participants have
found the programs offered at the Triennium to be "excellent" or "good."

Our findings 

	* We affirm the personnel and the programs in the WMPA. We find that the
current programs conform to the various GA directives. Our church is highly
politicized, and in recent years several of the WMPA programs have dealt
with controversial subjects. This area has occasioned much debate before the
General Assembly, the General Assembly Council, and in the church press..
Our church, through actions of its General Assembly, has taken stands and
adopted policies that, while supported by many Presbyterians, are deeply
troubling to others. One consequence is that the implementation of
controversial policies has tended to produce controversy. While openness and
widespread criticism characterize our denomination and its policies, we find
that the focus on these programs and their personnel has changed their work
culture. We observe that they operate in a defensive posture because of
mixed signals from the denomination. On the one hand, they have an official
"go ahead" from GA mandates and on the
other hand, they receive intense criticism from those who disagree with
those mandates.

	* We found strong support for the program and staff, but also identified
significant groups who are deeply troubled by activities and programs.

We are a large and complex denomination that is witnessing to our Lord in a
time of rapid social,
economic, and technological change. The various programs were created at
different times, and with different expectations. The largest, Presbyterian
Women, is not technically a program, but rather a separate organization with
deep and historic ties to our church. The programmatic ministries have been
heavily focused on social justice concerns and marginalized groups. The
staff of the WMPA has been under pressure and scrutiny for nearly a decade.
This dates back to the Re-imagining Conference of 1993 and continues through
the National Network of Presbyterian College Women and the 1999 Women of
Faith Awards. We found that the areas that have been controversial tended,
not surprisingly, to be mentioned in the correspondence that we reviewed.

Sexism continues to be a major problem within our denomination and our
culture and the presence of safe spaces for feminine voices, continued
advocacy, and a place where women can find support is vital. Many of those
who wrote to us supporting this program area told of their deepening faith
and the importance of having an advocate for women's issues in the national
church offices. For a smaller, but significant group, however, such issues
are less important and, for many correspondents, deeply offensive. We found
that more liberal supporters tended to value the program area, while more
conservative correspondents tended to be critical. It is clear from our
review of the correspondence that both conservatives and liberals see this
program area as more responsive to "liberal" interests.

	* We found that the structure of the WMPA is overly complicated. 

Programs have been created at various times and for various purposes. The
organizational structure was created one program at a time, evolved
differently in the predecessor denominations, and is designed to operate
separate programs with focused objectives. Lodgment is inconsistent. While
most programs for WMPA are housed in National Ministries Division, a
seemingly parallel program, Presbyterian Men, is in Congregational
Ministries Division. The WMPA structure is overly complex and does not lend
itself to a simple explanation. For example, Presbyterian Women is an
independent organization, even though staff persons of WMPA relate to PW.

	* We found that there is no single point of contact for women in the
denomination

The variety of programs, reporting arrangements, and missions means that
while specific needs are addressed that there is no single office charged
with serving all the women of the church. Within the GAC structure there is
no single place where needs of all women are considered.

The existing programs were created to serve particular interests based on
past issues facing the denomination. There is no coordinated and
comprehensive strategy to identify and serve women's needs. In terms of
denominational vitality we feel this is an omission. Involvement of young
women, working women, women in their child-rearing years, single women,
divorced women, and many others, are inadequately addressed. Women
constitute the majority of our members and we cannot grow as a denomination
until we identify, address, and serve their needs in new and relevant ways.
 
	* We are disgusted with the entrenched positions of opposed groups who seek
to      control the church. Holding intransigent positions and failing to
listen to one another is sin. We are commanded to love one another; to do
so, we must first listen to one another. It is time to weave the fabric of a
new community of covenant people.

The current structure of decision-making within our church has become
captive to opposing interest groups, all of whom seek to control the
national offices and their programs. This has resulted in a change in the
temper of General Assemblies into well-financed and well-organized teams
each seeking to gain influence. Such activities characterized the church in
the late 20th Century. In this new century we fear that a continuation of
such politics is destructive, and keeps us from our mission and from living
out servant leadership. In this instance, servant leadership means
developing programs that serve a wide variety of ages, ethnic groups, and
genders. These programs must recognize the theological diversity that
characterizes our denomination. We affirm that we are all Presbyterians.
Instead of fighting for control we believe it is time to establish a 21st
Century model of leadership by re-weaving the fabric of our ecclesiastical
community. In other words, let's develop a new way of relating for a new
century.
 
Our recommendations to the General Assembly Council 

I. That the General Assembly Council take a whole church perspective in its
own deliberations and actions, and model that behavior for staff and for the
entire church.

	* Clarify the organizational relationships among various program areas
involved with women's ministries.

II. That the General Assembly Council affirm the work of the Women's
Ministries Program Area.

	* That the General Assembly Council maintain advocacy programs within WMPA. 
      
III. That the General Assembly Council recognize that women constitute a
majority of our
membership, and that developing programs that are responsive to their
expressed needs
and concerns is essential for denominational vitality and growth. Toward
that end, the
GAC shall: 

	* Seek to minister to and with all women. 

	* Continue advocacy for women. 

	* Develop a process to determine needs that reflects the range of
perspectives within the church.

	* Develop intentional conversations that include the range of views within
our denomination.

	* Develop a process to identify the needs of women who are not currently
involved.

	* Be more inclusive of theological diversity in developing and reviewing
programs.

	* Seek to replace "win/lose" and "either/or" choices with a "both/and"
approach.
      

IV. That the General Assembly Council review, revise, and strengthen its
program
evaluation process. 

V. That the General Assembly Council accept this report as the completed
review of the
Women's Ministries Program Area, and that the work group be dismissed with
thanks.

_______________________________________________
pcusaNews mailing list
pcusaNews@pcusa.org

To unsubscribe, go to this web address:
http://pcusa01.pcusa.org/mailman/listinfo/pcusanews