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[PCUSANEWS] Moderator thrilled to lead wonderfully human church


From PCUSA NEWS <PCUSA.NEWS@ecunet.org>
Date 25 May 2003 20:15:06 -0400

Note #7707 from PCUSA NEWS to PRESBYNEWS:

Moderator thrilled to lead wonderfully human church
GA03017

Moderator thrilled to lead wonderfully human church

Wont criticize Presbyterians who allegedly defy the constitution

by Jerry L. Van Marter

DENVER, May 24  Professing joy and shock at her election, the Rev. Susan
Andrews, moderator of the 215th General Assembly, said during a crowded
late-night press conference, Ive loved the Presbyterian Church (USA) all my
life, and want to share that love with the whole church.

	Andrews, the first woman pastor to serve as moderator in the history
of the 2.4 million-member denomination, fielded questions with the same
pastoral bent that characterized her responses to questions from the Assembly
floor just before her election.

	On the issue of gay and lesbian ordination, she said, The church is
wonderfully human, and were all learning how to reach out and include all
Gods children.

	Following up on her response to a commissioner who had asked what she
would say to his gay son, Andrews said, I feel and hurt with this young man
 by the grace of God therell come a day when hell be welcomed into the
full life of our church, including ordained office.

	Although she supports the removal of G-6.0106b, the so-called
fidelity and chastity provision, from the Book of Order as a matter of
justice, she said: God works in mysterious and sometimes slow ways in
keeping the body of Christ intact. 

	Reiterating her opposition to another effort at this time to persuade
the church to delete G-6.0106b from its constitution, Andrews said, That
provision is unjust, but its more important to keep the church together.

	She also repeated her opinion that the PC(USA) is not in a
constitutional crisis. Insisting that the churchs court system is
functioning properly, she said, We are engaged in painful steps related to
interpretation of the constitution that are slow but necessary.

	She declined to criticize those in the church who allegedly are
defying the constitution. Recalling her own arrest as part of an
anti-Vietnam War demonstration 30 years ago, she said: We have always in
this country believed in the right of people to civilly disobey when they
believe a law or government activity is fundamentally unjust. I believe its
legitimate to ecclesiastically disobey. I went to jail in 1974 for my protest
actions then. If we disobey, we must accept that there will be consequences.

	Andrews, who a dozen years ago chaired a General Assembly task force
on redesigning the churchs call system for pastors, said the current system
of assigning and paying pastors needs to be rethought. 

	More than one-third of Presbyterian churches have vacant pulpits now
 in many cases because they cannot afford to pay a pastor a living wage. 

	The current model wont sustain our church, the new moderator said,
adding that she supports some kind of a central pot from which to pay
ministers to get pastors into churches that cant afford them.

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