wfn.org | Call For Sabbatical on Ordination Standards

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15-June-1998 
GA98034 
 
    Call For Sabbatical on Ordination Standards Sparks Lively 
    Debate in Church Orders And Ministry Committee 
 
    by Jerry Van Marter 
 
CHARLOTTE, N.C.--The 210th General Assembly may or may not heed the call by 
some denominational leaders for a "sabbatical" on further amendments 
regarding standards for ordination in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), but 
there certainly was no sabbatical on discussing the matter during open 
hearings conducted by the Assembly Committee on Church Orders and Ministry 
June 15. 
    At issue in the committee was Overture 98-37 from Milwaukee Presbytery, 
which asks that G-6.0106b -- the "fidelity and chastity" provision of "The 
Book of Order" -- be deleted from the church constitution.  More than 20 
speakers filled the 90-minute time allotted for the hearing. 
    "Don't send anything to Lackawanna Presbytery," pleaded the Rev. Carl 
Batzel, a member of that presbytery.  "So far our differences on this issue 
[ordination standards] have been secondary to the mission of our 
presbytery, but we are perilously close to dividing over this issue and 
another debate (a proposal to delete would have to be voted on by the 
presbyteries) on this would surely divide us." 
    But the Rev. Tim Hart-Anderson, a member of San Francisco Presbytery, 
urged that the Milwaukee overture be approved.  "The reality of the vote on 
Amendment A is that it only failed by a 54-46 percent vote of all 
commissioners in all presbyteries," he argued.  "Such a vote on a candidate 
for a pastorate would result in withdrawal of the nomination -- that is 
what should be done with [G-6.0106b]." 
    Several speakers talked of the weariness of repeatedly addressing the 
ordination standards issue.  "For 20 years we have reaffirmed the historic 
standards of ordination," said the Rev. Paul Leggett, a member of Newark 
Presbytery.  "The church has consistently said it does not wish to change 
the standards....Let's continue to discuss this issue, but more attempts to 
change `The Book of Order' will accomplish nothing." 
    The Rev. Harold Brockus of Tampa Bay Presbytery, calling G-6.0106b 
"divisive and disingenuous," said the provision is "a nightmare for 
sessions and nominating committees."  Noting that more than 200 behaviors 
are called sin by various of the church's confessions, he asked, "How are 
we supposed to deal with this -- it's hypocritical selectivity." 
    But like a marriage, where the partners sometimes fight but stay 
together, noted the Rev. Brad Caldwell of Philadelphia Presbytery, the 
church "needs to step back and let the air clear.  We have to say to each 
other, `I love you, but to talk about this more tonight will only cause 
more pain -- let's wait till morning.'" 
    The Rev. John Gregg, a member of Milwaukee Presbytery, said removing 
G-6.0106b will "allow us to get back to a point where we can talk to each 
other without having an axe hanging over our head." 
    The Rev. James E. Mead of Olympia Presbytery, one of the three 
moderator candidates who endorsed the sabbatical, acknowledged that any 
decision on ordination standards will cause someone pain.  "You will have 
to choose who you will make unhappy and who you will cause pain," he said. 
"But please don't choose to cause the whole church pain." 

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