GA Summary - Day Two

The work of the Assembly is now fully underway. Committees met tonight for the first time, first in closed session for group building, after which observers were allowed. Tomorrow begins with public hearings and then the committees will delve into the many items before them.

This morning, the sound of bagpipes guided us to the venues for the gala opening worship service. For the first time in memory, it was held in two different locations, connected by video feeds between them when necessary. In contrast to the PC-Biz issues in the plenary meetings, the technology for the two worship sites worked flawessly. There was less pageantry in the service than others in recent memory (nothing rivalled the choirs from the Congo at Birmingham in 2006, for example), so that it felt more like a typical Sunday service, but with 4000 people spread over two sites. Outgoing moderator Joan Gray preached on John 13 (the command to love one another), and exhorted the Assembly to love even those with whom they disagree. Missionaries were recognized and commissioned, including for the first time I can recall, those serving in military chaplaincy.

The Presbytery held its Assembly luncheon for attenders from Plains and Peaks, and a good time was had by all. We were joined by two special guests, Eileen Grantham (mother of Wray pastor Jennifer Grantham), and Mark Scarberry, moderator of the GA Advisory Committee on Litigation, and a personal friend who had helped lead me to Christ as a college freshman 33 years ago, but whom I hadn't seen since. (This is what I love about GA!) Several of us engaged in a lively debate on sexual ethics that was actually constructive and respectful. I was grateful to be reminded of the work of theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer in his classics Life Together and The Cost of Discipleship, who reminds us that in Christian community ethics are never an abstraction, but must always be considered in light of our obligations to love the "concrete" brother or sister in the messy imperfection of the world as-it-is. Elder commissioner Sylvia Dooling asked for prayers as she serves on the closely watched committee on Church Orders and Ministry that will deal with this year's assortment of pro- and anti- gay ordination overtures.

The moderator's reception was held in the afternoon at the open air rotunda in the new City Hall, about 8 blocks from the convention center. Fortunately the oppressive 100+ degree temperatures we experienced Friday and Saturday broke, and it was delightfully pleasant for the event, which included musical accompaniment from a mariachi band.

As the committees start to look at their dockets, some items rise in significance and others fall. Some of the "sleeper" issues at this Assembly look to include: the ongoinig GAC-Presbyterian Foundation feud over use of donor-designated funds; Israel-Palestine issues; and the issues related to the definition of marriage and same-sex unions. Early bellwether indications are that this could be a contentious assembly, with a sizable anti-Louisville chip on its shoulder. If true, that could have a significant impact on the Stated Clerk election Friday.