June 2012

Can God Be Glorified in the PCUSA?

4 Comments / 2012th General Assembly (Pittsburgh), The Lord's Prayer, Theological Reflection / By /

Last Sunday I preached a sermon on the last (Protestant) line of the The Lord’s Prayer: For the Kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours, now and forever. Amen. What is “sticking” this week, as I transition to Pittsburgh and await the PCUSA General Assembly opening this afternoon, is the acclamation that God is in charge, God is able, and God deserves the credit. I am praying in advance of opening worship this afternoon that God would be glorified as the King of kings and Lord of lords; that we as a body would submit to God’s power and […]

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“Resistance Is Futile”—Huh?

9 Comments / 2012th General Assembly (Pittsburgh), Board of Pensions, GAPJC Decisions, Moral Authority, New Form of Government (nFOG), Parnell v. San Francisco, PCUSA, Peace Unity & Purity / By /

A Complaint was filed with the Synod of Southern California and Hawaii in response to the action of Santa Barbara Presbytery on June 2 to identify itself as a union presbytery (co-membership in PCUSA and ECO). This “local matter” may seem a bit off-topic as I reflect on General Assembly here in Pittsburgh, but the Complaint is germane because it reveals a strategy for attempting to make the ordination of practicing GLBTQ people mandatory across the church. I am quite sure we will see these arguments come forward in discussions and debates in the coming week. The Complaint cites “reforms,”

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Do Presbyterians Consult the Bible at GA?

2 Comments / 2012th General Assembly (Pittsburgh), GAPJC Decisions, Parnell v. San Francisco, PCUSA / By /

On my flight to Pittsburgh today, I was recalling memorable moments from previous PCUSA General Assemblies. High points and low points abound, of course, depending on one’s point of view. But one particular moment stands out as a commentary on our modus operandi. I was meeting in a hospitality suite with fellow evangelical/conservatives on Monday of the Assembly, probably at lunchtime. On the schedule, this would be in the middle of committee deliberations, so the commissioners are getting to know their fellow committee members, learning how to conduct business, and otherwise sinking in to the deep pile of work before

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The Silence Is Deafening

24 Comments / 2012th General Assembly (Pittsburgh), GAPJC Decisions, Marriage Definition, PCUSA / By /

[It shouldn’t be fascinating at all that I have not been blogging. Still burning the candle at both ends. Just two more days of grading papers and finalizing the academic quarter, and I’m back with you on a daily basis, for the duration!]  It is so fascinating to observe how quiet some people are in the face of recent events in the PCUSA.  A few cases on point: The silence in response to rogue Redwoods Presbytery has been deafening. Whom might we expect to react to its refusal to censure one of its minister members, the Rev. Janie Spahr (honorably

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Reflections at Fuller Seminary’s Commencement

3 Comments / Personal, Teaching / By /

Below is the text of my three-minute speech to the Fuller graduating Class of 2012 and their families and friends, on Saturday, June 9, 2012, at Lake Avenue Congregational Church. I was chosen to be one of four student speakers, and the task was “to give a snapshot of what you are doing now in ministry, and how Fuller helped prepare you.” Surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses and professors, I have a fire in my belly for teaching. My thirty-five years of learning at Fuller has taught me that the world and the church need more and

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