This morning, Sunday morning, I returned to the church I grew up in, Community Presbyterian Church of Danville, CA. I first attended that church nearly 45 years a go. It always feels like home, even though my mom, the one who was the link to Danville, died almost 9 years a go.
This is the church that took care of me, taught me, was patient with me, sent me to camp, took care of my mom, my sister and I when we had no where else to turn. I received such a great foundation in Christian faith from Orville, Jim, Kern, Ed, Don, Bill, Jean, Joan, Gloria, Marylou, Dick, and many others.
After church I drove up into the Berkeley mountains and stopped in front of my Grandfather’s old house. Not much has changed up on Creston Road. It brought back a flood of good memories and I offered thanks and praise to God as a response of my gratitude for His care and love through those early years.
In the afternoon I read more material related to the General Assembly and then attended the General Business session and afterwards my committee’s opening session (I was assigned to the Worship and Spiritual renewal committee). With only two pieces of business to consider the work of this committee should be easy to complete with a couple of hours work. BUT … there is something different about this committee. The General Assembly Council has directed us to operate differently than we would normally operate. They would like us to work together in Spiritual discernment and consensus building. The question I believe we are being tasked with is, “Can we come to decisions in a les combative way than typically takes place in General Assembly committees. A normal mode of operating for GA committees is to hear from advocates, opponents and proponents of each overture being considered and then the voting delegates debate and vote on each overture on what to send to the larger General Assembly sessions. Majority vote wins the debate and the overture (amended, replaced, or adopted as is) is passed along to the larger GA gatherings for final approval or disapproval. That is the process most commissioners are familiar with and prepared for. For the committee I have been assigned to the process will be quite different. We will not debate we will discuss. We will not choose sides we will listen and discern. We will express feelings rather than positions. We will not disagree we will come to a consensus we can all agree to or live with … at least that is the hope of those advocating this new approach to GA business. We are intended to be a laboratory which will serve as an example to the entire GA for a future process that may replace the current processes. I am open to entering into this type of process although it is not how I am wired. I already like many of those I have met who serve with me on the committee. They seem to be intelligent and deeply committed to Jesus. I will need prayers for patience and sensitivity as the work of the committee proceeds. I am not a touchy-feely kind of guy but I certainly lean too far in the other direction at times. I believe God is Sovereign and has a plan and a purpose and a sense of humor for placing me on this committee. Others on the committee are very restless and uncomfortable with the process and how we got to this process. Hopefully we ca move past that and take what we have been given and work respectfully, to ask serious questions about Spiritual renewal and worship within the Presbyterian Church. Why isn’t it happening across the denomination? Here are some other questions I been working on:
a. How are we facing up to the steep ongoing decline in the PCUSA (50,000 – 80,000 members have left, or will leave, the denomination in 2007 and again in 2008)?
b. How re we going to face up the continuing sense of disunity and distrust within the denomination?
c. What is our common foundation (It can’t be polity) and our common mission? Doesn’t our unity need theological and missional agreement (within certain generous but enforced boundaries)?
d. Why does it appear we are the largest donor to both WCC (World Council of Churches) and NCC (National Council of Churches)? Does that help our local mission?
Spiritual renewal begins with humility before God, with prayer, and it begins with each one of us before it can reach the national level.
Blessings in Jesus. Thanks for your prayers for renewal and faithfulness,
Curt McFarland
After church I drove up into the Berkeley mountains and stopped in front of my Grandfather’s old house. Not much has changed up on Creston Road. It brought back a flood of good memories and I offered thanks and praise to God as a response of my gratitude for His care and love through those early years.
In the afternoon I read more material related to the General Assembly and then attended the General Business session and afterwards my committee’s opening session (I was assigned to the Worship and Spiritual renewal committee). With only two pieces of business to consider the work of this committee should be easy to complete with a couple of hours work. BUT … there is something different about this committee. The General Assembly Council has directed us to operate differently than we would normally operate. They would like us to work together in Spiritual discernment and consensus building. The question I believe we are being tasked with is, “Can we come to decisions in a les combative way than typically takes place in General Assembly committees. A normal mode of operating for GA committees is to hear from advocates, opponents and proponents of each overture being considered and then the voting delegates debate and vote on each overture on what to send to the larger General Assembly sessions. Majority vote wins the debate and the overture (amended, replaced, or adopted as is) is passed along to the larger GA gatherings for final approval or disapproval. That is the process most commissioners are familiar with and prepared for. For the committee I have been assigned to the process will be quite different. We will not debate we will discuss. We will not choose sides we will listen and discern. We will express feelings rather than positions. We will not disagree we will come to a consensus we can all agree to or live with … at least that is the hope of those advocating this new approach to GA business. We are intended to be a laboratory which will serve as an example to the entire GA for a future process that may replace the current processes. I am open to entering into this type of process although it is not how I am wired. I already like many of those I have met who serve with me on the committee. They seem to be intelligent and deeply committed to Jesus. I will need prayers for patience and sensitivity as the work of the committee proceeds. I am not a touchy-feely kind of guy but I certainly lean too far in the other direction at times. I believe God is Sovereign and has a plan and a purpose and a sense of humor for placing me on this committee. Others on the committee are very restless and uncomfortable with the process and how we got to this process. Hopefully we ca move past that and take what we have been given and work respectfully, to ask serious questions about Spiritual renewal and worship within the Presbyterian Church. Why isn’t it happening across the denomination? Here are some other questions I been working on:
a. How are we facing up to the steep ongoing decline in the PCUSA (50,000 – 80,000 members have left, or will leave, the denomination in 2007 and again in 2008)?
b. How re we going to face up the continuing sense of disunity and distrust within the denomination?
c. What is our common foundation (It can’t be polity) and our common mission? Doesn’t our unity need theological and missional agreement (within certain generous but enforced boundaries)?
d. Why does it appear we are the largest donor to both WCC (World Council of Churches) and NCC (National Council of Churches)? Does that help our local mission?
Spiritual renewal begins with humility before God, with prayer, and it begins with each one of us before it can reach the national level.
Blessings in Jesus. Thanks for your prayers for renewal and faithfulness,
Curt McFarland
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