wfn.org | Open Hearings on Special Groups

[PCUSA.NEWS@pcusa.org]

16-June-1997 
GA97044 
 
                    Open Hearings on Special Groups 
 
                    by Jane Hines and Bill Lancaster 
 
 
SYRACUSE--"If all Presbyterians believed all is well, there would be no 
special groups.  The groups came into being to enhance the denomination's 
work in certain areas they felt were deficient."  That is one sentiment 
expressed at open hearings scheduled by the task force on relationships of 
General Assembly to Presbyterian groups.  The commitee is chaired by 
Claudette Zobel.   Other sentiments ranging from testimony saying 
everything is working well for them now to the opposite end of the spectrum 
were expressed by as many speakers as the task force could schedule in four 
hours of ten-minute segments on Sunday, June 15 and Monday, June 16. 
 
     Questions of accountability and liability came up frequently.  Several 
group representatives said it is not a question of accountability from 
groups to the denomination that is the problem, but accountability of 
national staff to the Presbyterians in the pew that is the problem. 
 
    In his opening prayer, task force member Dr. William Bryant, director 
of the Presbyterian Outreach Foundation, mentioned that they were looking 
for ways a diverse body can serve as a whole unit.  Diversity was certainly 
a factor mentioned by most of the speakers, but at the same time, they were 
emphasizing the basic Biblical foundation that unites rather than divides 
the denomination.   In the history cited of both the former UPCUSA and PCUS 
denominations there have been positive and negative effects of groups 
organized outside the structures. The task force was looking for new ideas 
and seeking guidance from the groups.  All of the groups and individuals 
were trying sincerely to be helpful and there were signs that communication 
was happening in the atmosphere provided by the open hearings .  The task 
force chair said they are affirming the church's tradition of tolerating 
diverse views. 
 
    One of the speakers was Timothy Hart-Anderson, minister commissioner 
who brought the commissioner's resolution to last year's General Assembly. 
He said he just wanted to know what to tell his congregation about how 
Presbyterian groups function outside the structure.  The task force was 
formed in September of l996 and found it could not bring a report as soon 
as this year's Assembly, but asked for an extension in order to hold 
hearings this year.  They will report in l998 to the 210th GA.  Apparently 
many people are asking the same question that Hart-Anderson heard in his 
congregation. 
 
     Witherspoon Society president Eugene Teselle said that processes of 
consolidation have been accompanied by processes of fragmentation but 
traditional patterns of semi-autonomous agencies have not been completely 
lost.  Robert Howard, vice chairman of the Presbyterian Lay Committee 
(PLC), said that reconciliation comes from mutual dialogue, not regulation, 
and the only true source of unity is the faith we have in common. 
 
    The committee gave special attention to the Lay Committee on Monday, 
devoting a time on the docket after the open hearings to meet with Howard. 
They explored the possibility of beginning another covenanting process with 
the Lay Committee.  Howard said he was disappointed with the outcome of the 
reconciliation committee established after the RE-imagining conference in 
1995.  "Their goal was to have the Presbyterian Lay Committee enter a 
covenant relationship which was  unilateral and therefore rejected," he 
said. 
 
    On the other hand, he also said, "One of the justified criticisms of 
The Layman (the PLC's advocacy paper) is its strident tone.  We've tried to 
correct that.  Eight of us read The Layman before it's printed.  The Layman 
runs a gauntlet it never has before, but there is baggage out there from 
the past." 
 
    He credited renewal organizations like the PLC with keeping many 
evangelical churches within the denomination. 
 
    Asked if the PLC would be open to establishing a covenant relationship 
now, he said they would not if it attempted to censure the Lay Committee. 
He also said they would not initiate a covenant, but would listen.  Later 
in the conversation, he said, "why do we need any kind of covenant?  All 
that's good in the church does not need to come under some judicatory."  He 
said they are accountable through their ordination vows as elders and 
ministers.   

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