“Highlights”
Good news:
An overture to celebrate “Evolution Sunday” was defeated
47-2 in committee.
The mid-east committee recommended rejection of making a
distinction between modern and ancient Israel.
Committee votes to disassociate from the inflammatory
publication “Zionism Unsettled”, which has been
criticized as being racist and anti-Israel.
Bad news:
A committee has opened the door for PCUSA pastors to
perform same-sex marriages.
The same committee also approved an overture that would change the
description of a Christian marriage in the Constitution from being
“between “one man and one woman” to between “two persons”. The
good news for us is that language was included in the overture that
states that “nothing herein shall compel a teaching elder to perform nor
compel a session to authorize the use of church property for a
marriage service that the teaching elder or session believes is
contrary to the teaching elder’s or the session’s discernment of the
Holy Spirit and their understanding of the Word of God.”
The middle east committee voted to divest of investments in Hewlit-
Packard, Motorola and Caterpillar.
The Church Polity and Ordered Ministry committee is also recommending
that the assembly reject efforts to clarify what is meant in the
denomination’s Book of Order by “Essential tenets of the Reformed
faith.”
These issues will now go before the entire General Assembly for a confirmation vote. Please continue to pray that the bad news will turn into good news during the plenary sessions.