Dear Caldwell,
As in our Gospel Choir standard, “He’s an on-time God,” our Creator also sent an “on-time” Holy Spirit, whose entrance into the world we celebrated last Sunday. One of the great gifts of the Holy Spirit is that of reconcilliation, the ability through Christ to find unity amid diversity, whether that is diversity in people, ideas, perspectives or opinions.
That particuilar gift comes just in time this year, it seems, for us Presbyterians. This weekend, thousands of members of the Presbyterian Church (USA) gather in Detroit. They will pray and worship daily and hear reports about the work our denomination does around the world.
Mostly, though, they will attend to important matters of church policy and polity. Dozens of “overtures” (proposals) will be considered, first in committees and then on the floor, just as in Congress. These overtures range broadly in their focus, as you may have read in the insert in last Sunday’s bulletin – from social justice issues of poverty, child safety and gun control to how the PCUSA organizes itself geographically and administers programs to questions of worship to matters of global mission and outreach.
We Presbyterians have been holding these gatherings since 1789 – making this the 221st General Assembly. That’s an impressive witness. But it’s equally true that denominational policy-making is a messy, complex affair that strains relationships and causes everyone involved to think and pray deeply in search of God’s will.
While many of these overtures are important, it seems that a few dominate the general media’s headlines. This year, that is sure to include one that some say isn’t central to the life of most Presbyterians – same-gender marriage. At Caldwell, however, where about 20% of our membership comes from the LGBT community, this IS a central matter. Across our ministries, we have the chance to walk and work with with gay and lesbian disciples who demonstrate the highest standards of commitment and fidelity in life-long partnerships. We walk with other gays and lesbians who demonstrate the courage to live with integrity as God made them and the strength to reconcile their lives to God here, even after other churches have kicked them to the curb.
The witness and disciple-making of our church simply would be far less without our LGBT brothers and sisters. I for one am a far better man and pastor for having practiced my faith alongside them and their allies and I know so many others at Caldwell place an equally high value on the gift of our life together and shared witness to the Kingdom of God on earth.
If you’re interested, you can read more about the depth and breadth of these issues and deliberations at the PCUSA.org website special section here
If you want to understand more about the various views on the specific issue of same-gender marriage, you can read these resources from the “pro” and “con” sides of the debate.
A primary opponent of same-gender marriage is the The Lay Committee, whose views are generally represented in this Q&A, prepared before a vote on this issue in 2012.
Meanwhile, the Covenant Network advocates for full equality for the LGBT community. One of its representative articles is here.
We’ll talk more about this in worship Sunday. Let us pray that our sovereign God will be fully known to those who are on their way to Detroit, that the love and grace of Christ Jesus will prevail and that both peace and justice will be reached through the power of the Holy Spirit.
In Christ,
John