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

Note #6 from PCUSA NEWS to GA 212 REPORTS:

	This is Jerry Van Marter of the Presbyterian News Service with news from
the 212th General Assembly for Sunday, June 25.

	Following the euphoria of last night's election of Syngman Rhee as
moderator of the 212th General Assembly, more than 9,000 Presbyterians
trooped into the Long Beach Convention Center Arena this morning for the
opening worship and communion service, which included the commissioning of a
new class of Presbyterian missionaries to places of ministry around the
world.

"For Such a Time as This" was the title of the sermon preached by outgoing
moderator Freda Gardner on Jesus' words found in Luke 19: 37-44, in which he
warns the people not to miss the hour of their visitation by God.  "Perhaps
we have been born for such a time as this," Gardner said. "Surely we do not
want to miss the time of our visitation. It could be the time when our sons
and daughters are prophesying, and old women and men are dreaming dreams and
young men and women are seeing visions.  Such has been promised."  Gardner
asked, "Where is God in such a time as this?  At one end of a stretcher
carrying yet another young person lost to the tragedy of lonely, ugly
streets.  Leading a chain of pre-schoolers to safety from gunfire. Standing
next to the one writing a check for disaster relief.  Among the children
climbing a mountain of garbage to search for something that will sustain
life for one more day."

	Meanwhile, on a morning more suited to a picnic in the park, 125 supporters
of fuller inclusion of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered persons in
the life of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) gathered in a palm-lined plaza
outside the Long Beach Convention Center Arena to press their cause.  At the
conclusion of the 90-minute rally -- sponsored by Soulforce, an ecumenical
gay rights group – 81 of the protestors, strolled parade-like into waiting
Long Beach Police vans after symbolically blocking an access road into the
Arena and getting arrested.  The rally and arrests were carefully
choreographed so as not to disrupt the worship service and the event outside
was over and done before the benediction was pronounced inside. This was the
third and smallest Soulforce event this summer.  Nearly 200 were arrested at
the United Methodist General Conference in Cleveland last month.  The group
was met by stony silence when it demonstrated outside the Southern Baptist
Convention gathering in Orlando earlier this month.

	Earlier Sunday morning, an event that created a firestorm of controversy
last year -- the Women of Faith Awards Breakfast -- produced its more
customary celebrative atmosphere as it honored three women for their efforts
to combat economic injustice and oppression.  The recipients are Beverly
Armstrong of Richmond Heights, Mo.; Jerri Rodewald of Corona del Mar,
Calif.; and Artheillia Thompson of Detroit.  Armstrong is hunger action
enabler for Giddings-Lovejoy Presbytery and other community organizations in
the St. Louis area.  Thompson is hunger action enabler for Detroit
Presbytery and other hunger-related organizations in Detroit.  Rodewald is a
founder of the Mary Magdalene Project, a Los Angeles-area program which
seeks to help women wishing to get out of prostitution.

	Sunday afternoon, the race for stated clerk was joined when the Rev.
Winfield "Casey" Jones, a pastor from Pearland, Texas, was nominated to
oppose the Rev. Clifton Kirkpatrick, who has been nominated for a second
four-year term by the Stated Clerk Review and Nomination Committee, which
has been meeting for the last year.  Jones, whose church is withholding per
capita and mission dollars from the General Assembly to protest Assembly
actions with which it disagrees, is running on a campaign that the stated
clerk needs to place more emphasis on the church's "Book of Confessions." 
The stated clerk election is docketed for Friday morning.

	Late Sunday afternoon, moderator Syngman Rhee announced that he has
appointed Rebecca McElroy, an elder from Missouri Union Presbytery, as his
vice-moderator.  Rhee and McElroy have been close friends for more than 10
years and she nominated him for moderator Saturday night.  McElroy is a
member of the Presbyterian Lay Committee, which has often been at odds with
Rhee.

	Sunday evening, the Assembly convenes in its 16 Assembly Committees, which
will process the 900 items of business before this Assembly between now and
Tuesday evening.  The Assembly reconvenes in plenary session Wednesday
morning.

	This is Jerry Van Marter.  Thank you for calling VoiceLine.  For more news
from the 212th General Assembly, call VoiceLine Monday, June 26, after 7:00
p.m., Pacific Daylight Time.  Be sure and call VoiceLine for Presbyterian
pundit Dave Steele's commentaries on the Assembly.  Pray for peace.  Good
bye.

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