Date: Fri, 31 Mar 95 13:13:34 EST From: "James D. Anderson" MORE LIGHT UPDATE April 1994 Volume 14, Number 9 Presbyterians for Lesbian & Gay Concerns James D. Anderson, Communications Secretary P.O. 38 New Brunswick, NJ 08903-0038 908/249-1016, 908/932-7501 (Rutgers University) FAX 908/932-6916 (Rutgers University) Internet: janderson@zodiac.rutgers.edu Note: * is used to indicate italicized or boldface text. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * CHANGES New Coordinators for Synod of Mid-Atlantic We have three new co-coordinators for the Synod of Mid-Atlantic: The Rev. Elizabeth Hill, 8605 Warrenton Dr., Richmond, VA 23229, 804/723-2300, PresbyNet LISA FURR; Jack Huizenga, 10-B-3 President Point Dr., Annapolis, MD 21403, 410/268-7244, PresbyNet JACK HUIZENGA1; Dr. Georgeann Wilcoxson, 819 Delaware Ave. S.W., Washington, DC 20024-4207, 202/863-2239, PresbyNet GEORGEANN WILCOXSON. Georgeann says: "I REALLY urge you to push PresbyNet participation by all PLGC coordinators and leaders!" If you are already on, send Jim Anderson your PresbyNet (or Internet) address, and he will add it to the back page of the *Update*. If you're not on, call our PresbyNet coordinators, Mark Smith or Bill Capel, to find out how to get on. They are listed on the back of the *Update*. REQUESTS Calling All Whitworth Graduates The Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Support Group at Whitworth College, Spokane, Washington, is seeking recognition by the college. Whitworth president Dr. Bill Robinson has formed a study group to "determine how this school should handle the issue of homosexuality in a broad sense and consequently how the school will respond to the support group." The group is looking for Whitworth alumnae/i who would be willing to write letters of support to the school's administration. Alumnae/i should write to Gene Otto at 5123 E. 16th Ave., Spokane, WA 99212. For more information, contact Wm. Andrew Gilbert, Head Coordinator, Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Support Group at Whitworth College, Box 400 Whitworth College, Spokane, WA 99251, 509/468-3675. CONTENTS Getting Ready for General Assembly COGA Wants to Ban Dialogue on LesBiGay Issues at G.A. A Beginner's Guide to General Assembly, by Scott Anderson, PLGC Issues Coordinator PLGC and Other Friendly G.A. Events An Overture for Compassion: Overture to Tampa Bay Presbytery from John Calvin Presbyterian Church, Tampa, Florida Why We Can't Wait: A Gay Christian Remembers Dr. King, by Marvin M. Ellison, Bangor Theological Seminary (Martin Luther King, Jr., Day, January 17, 1994, Henderson Memorial Baptist Church, Farmington, Maine) Shackles Keep Your Eyes on Your Own Damned Side of the Fence! by the Rev. Dean Hay What Really Happened at the Foot of the Cross?, by the Rev. Dean Hay Letters Hope: Reformer/Revolutionary: Strong Words on G.A. '93, Looking Forward to '94 and '95, by the Rev. Howard B. Warren, Jr. Synod PJC Member Quits, Disillusioned: The Whole Church Court Structure Is Built on Sand. -- Our processes are only a charade, and real judges, regrettably, are superfluous. Do Chris Glaser a Favor The Presbyterian Laywoman, Volume 27, Number 1, January/February 1994 (or, Tabloids We'd Like to See Competing With *The Layman*), by Chris Glaser Meet Laurene Lafontaine: PLGC's New Co-Moderator Top ten benefits of being a Recovering Princeton Theological Seminary graduate UFMCC Rejected Again The PLGC Executive Board meets in Atlanta Against Nature? A Review by Tom Hanks [NOT INCLUDED IN PRINTED VERSION] * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Getting Ready for General Assembly COGA Wants to Ban Dialogue on LesBiGay Issues at G.A. The Committee on the Office of the General Assembly (COGA) will recommend to the assembly that it refer any business related to homosexuality to the 208th Assembly (1996). Assembly Arrangements Work Group convener Louise Armstrong-Patriquin told News Services COGA voted to refer overtures and resolutions related to homosexuality in order not to "derail" the three-year study now under way in churches and presbyteries, slated for reporting in 1996. The recommendation, which also makes provision for the items referred to be recorded, will go the Bills and Overtures Committee. She said 10 items are currently held over from last year and five of the 17 overtures now in-house [for this year's assembly] deal with homosexuality. Member Herb Valentine, a former moderator, reminded COGA the Assembly "has the right not to accept the recommendation." On another topic, "speakouts," Armstrong-Patriquin told the group, are used by assemblies of the United Church of Christ and are an experimental addition to this assembly. Speakers [presumably commissioners only!] are permitted limited time at the microphone and will be part of the videotape record, but will not be recorded in the minutes of the proceedings. Anti-gay Cincinnati O.K. for the 1995 General Assembly. COGA reaffirmed Cincinnati as the site of the 1995 Assembly and recommended the stated clerk take "appropriate action," such as the filing of an amicus curiae brief, in response to the city's November 1993 passage of Issue 3, which removed the category "sexual orientation" from protection of Cincinnati's human rights ordinance. Armstrong-Patriquin said financial losses would be high if the church attempted to relocate the Assembly now -- but reaffirmed the site "does not reflect support of the passage of Issue 3." Member Pam Beard voted against reaffirming the site. - - based on *News*, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), News briefs 9406, February 11, 1994, Presbyterian News Service, p. 7-8. Editorial comment Commissioners, especially those on the Bills and Overtures Committee, need to decide whether they want to ban dialogue and discussion of lesbian and gay issues at the assembly. An alternative would be for the assembly to set an example for synods, presbyteries and congregations in pursuing the dialogue that the 205th assembly mandated for everyone else. I wonder if we would go to Cincinnati if they removed civil rights protection for any other group?! The Cincinnati vote is in direct opposition to General Assembly policy, but I guess money is more important than policy, especially if it relates to the already disenfranchised gay and lesbian membership of the Presbyterian Church. After all, recent high church court decisions have banned all service in ordained positions by happy lesbian and gay folk, and that probably includes serving as an official presbytery representative to the assembly. Commissioners might consider introducing a resolution calling on the assembly to set up special protective services for all lesbian and gay Presbyterians attending the Cincinnati assembly, since the city has voided their civil rights protections. But then if the COGA recommendations is adopted by the assembly, no one could talk about it until 1996! -- JDA. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * A Beginner's Guide to General Assembly by Scott Anderson, PLGC Issues Coordinator What is the General Assembly? The General Assembly is the highest governing body of our denomination and, according to our church's constitution, "is representative of the unity of the synods, presbyteries, sessions, and congregations of the Presbyterian Church (USA)." Sometimes that unity is difficult to discern, as the General Assembly attempts to deal with the myriad of controversies and conflicts that confront it each year. The 1994 Assembly in Wichita, Kansas, June 10-17 will prove to be no exception. The General Assembly carries out a variety of legislative functions, including charting the direction of the denomination, raising and spending money, overseeing programmatic responsibilities of its boards and agencies, and speaking to both the church and the world on the great social issues of our day. Yet, for most people who attend a General Assembly, the legislative process seems to take a back seat to the total experience -- so fun and often exhilarating, yet exhausting and frequently depressing -- of this Presbyterian microcosm gathered in one place. Who attends? Besides elder and minister commissioners elected by each Presbytery who actually have voting power, there are upwards of 2,000 to 3,000 others who hobnob on the sidelines. Church bureaucrats, seminary presidents, ministers looking for work, General Assembly groupies who love the excitement and fellowship, tall steeple pastors who like to see their tall steeple friends, and those of us who are a part of advocacy groups, all are among those who faithfully attend each year. Who votes? Each Presbytery elects an equal number of elders and ministers. The size of the Presbytery delegation is dependent on the number of communicant members within its bounds. Because the denomination is losing members each year, the size of the Assembly -- which now numbers over 600 -- is shrinking. In addition, there are certain groups of advisory delegates who can vote in committee deliberations of the assembly but have voice with no vote during plenary sessions. These include Youth Advisory Delegates (one from each Presbytery), Theological Student Advisory Delegates (representing each Presbyterian seminary), Overseas Advisory Delegates (some of our missionaries and fraternal workers serving overseas), and Ecumenical Delegates (representatives from other denominations). Where does the Assembly get its business? The four major sources of business include: Overtures -- which are usually either proposed amendments to our constitution or resolutions on various social issues -- are sent to GA from Presbyteries or Synods. Agency Reports -- from the various General Assembly agencies usually report on how they have followed-through on the directives of previous Assemblies and also make recommendations for future work. GA Study Committees -- usually multi-year committees appointed by previous Assemblies to study and make recommendations on complex and/or controversial issues facing the church. Commissioner Resolutions -- submitted to GA within the first few days and signed by at least two commissioners. How does the Assembly handle its business? It's really very simple. All items of business are referred to a variety of Assembly Committees (the number varies each year depending on the amount and variety of business facing the Assembly). All Commissioners and Advisory Delegates are assigned to Committees randomly by computer to try to assure some theological balance. The Assembly Committees meet during the first 2-3 days of the Assembly, deliberate, hold hearings, receive testimony, and then make recommendations to the plenary body, which meets during the final days of the Assembly and takes action on Assembly Committee recommendations. How can I have an impact? *If you want to bring some item of new business before the General Assembly*, the *best* way, though difficult, is to ask your Presbytery to send an Overture. Overtures often begin with the session of a congregation. This is a lengthy, often laborious, process, with many deadlines. The *easiest* way is to find two Commissioners to introduce a Commissioner Resolution on your behalf. Generally, however, overtures receive more serious consideration than Commissioner Resolutions, particularly when they are proposed amendments to the constitution. *If you want to influence the Assembly on an item of business before it*, the most effective thing you can do is to testify during the open hearing process before the Assembly Committee that will deliberate and make recommendations on that item. *You will need to find out where your item of business has been referred, and when you can testify.* You will also need to sign up in advance to testify; open hearing sign-up sheets are usually located near the Assembly registration area. Normally you will have only 3-5 minutes to give testimony. I suggest you write out what you want to say in advance, and collaborate with others who hold your viewpoint so that you do not all say the same thing. The easiest thing to do is to check at the PLGC booth in the exhibit hall or the PLGC suite for the location of committee hearing sign-ups, and for more tips on testifying. Where do I get up-to-date information? The lesbian/gay/bisexual folks and friends at the Assembly gather each evening in the PLGC suite for fellowship and to develop strategy. This is the best place to get information on a daily basis. What else should I know? For all the high-minded language about the General Assembly's work, the Assembly itself functions in a highly-charged, highly conflictual political atmosphere. If you don't have the stomach for conflict and nastiness -- particularly around issues related to human sexuality -- then I wouldn't recommend putting yourself through the grueling and emotionally draining experience of a General Assembly. If, however, you love the art of church politics, you can be a real asset. Get on the phone and make those plane reservations today! You also need to be aware that from a procedural point of view, General Assembly is absolutely byzantine. Be prepared for lots of frustration. Not only are there Roberts Rules of Order, but the General Assembly has its own set of complex rules to follow. Since you must live through one General Assembly to understand how it really operates, most voting commissioners are naive about the process. As a result, the Assembly is vulnerable to manipulation by those who attend each year and know "the rules," particularly when it comes to deliberating on controversial issues like human sexuality. My best advice is that if you are planning to attend General Assembly for the first time, write to the Office of the General Assembly, 100 Witherspoon Street, Louisville, KY 40202-1396 and ask for a copy of the Manual of the General Assembly. The charge is minimal. Read this before coming to Wichita; then at least you'll know in advance how frustrated you'll be! Logistics The Office of the General Assembly makes hotel reservations for all those who will attend General Assembly, including visitors, if you want to stay at one of the eleven hotels booked for the assembly. Room rates range from $34 to $80 a night. To reserve one of these rooms, you must fill out a G.A. housing form, which you may obtain from the GA Housing Service, Office of the General Assembly, PC(USA), 4 Witherspoon St., Louisville, KY 40202-1396, 502/569-5409. If you want cheaper accommodations or are looking for someone to share a room, contact Jim Anderson, PLGC's communications secretary (see back of Update). With some good planning and personal flexibility, you can attend G.A. relatively inexpensively. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * PLGC and Other Friendly G.A. Events The assembly will meet in Wichita, Kansas, Friday June 10 through Friday, June 17. For up-to-date information prior to the assembly, contact Jim Anderson, PLGC communications secretary (see back of Update); at the assembly, visit the PLGC exhibit booth. PLGC Exhibit Booth, exhibition hall, Century II Convention Center, Friday, June 10, noon-7 p.m.; Saturday, June 11, 10 a.m.- 7:30 p.m.; Sunday, June 12, 1:30-7:30 p.m.; Monday, June 13, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Tuesday, June 14, 10 a.m.-7:30 p.m.; Wednesday, June 15, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.; Thursday, June 16, 10 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Friendly Allies meeting, Friday, June 10, probably at noon over brown bag lunch, or 1 p.m. -- check at the Witherspoon booth, usually right next to the PLGC booth. PLGC hospitality suite in one of the major assembly hotels (to be determined) -- receptions beginning on Friday, June 10. PLGC Executive Board Meeting, 9 a.m.-6 p.m., Saturday, June 11, in the hospitality suite. Sunday morning worship, 10 a.m., June 12, in one of the assembly hotels or the convention center. Chris Glaser preaching. The Witherspoon Society luncheon, Sunday noon, June 12, with an important and prominent speaker. A PLGC Celebration of Reconciliation, Sunday evening, June 12, 8- 10 p.m., in one of the assembly hotels or the convention center, featuring a team from the Witness for Reconciliation, led by Lisa Larges, and the annual Inclusive Church Award. Regular tickets will be $10; low income tickets will be $5.00; free tickets are also available for those without income or resources -- we don't want anyone to stay away! Full-price tickets will be available from the General Assembly ticket booth. All tickets will be available at the PLGC booth or in advance from Jim Anderson, PLGC communication secretary (see back of Update). The annual PLGC membership meeting, Wednesday, 8-10 p.m., June 15, in one of the assembly hotels or the convention center. The famous annual gala Witherspoon party & dance, Wednesday, 9 p.m., following the PLGC membership meeting -- don't worry, about being late -- you'll be in excellent company! And anyway, it lasts late into the next morning! * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * An Overture for Compassion Overture to Tampa Bay Presbytery from John Calvin Presbyterian Church, Tampa, Florida [Bill Gaebel, who sent me this overture, reports that Tampa Bay Presbytery rejected it, opting instead for the self-righteous, holier than thou approach suggested by the "fidelity in marriage" overture from the Presbytery of Savannah (printed in the February *More Light Update*, p. 9). He hopes PLGC'ers will offer this to their presbyteries, or to commissioners for consideration as a commissioner's resolution. --JDA] Whereas, the biblical witness records the compassion of Jesus Christ in dealing with all manner of persons and instructs us to "clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience" (Philippians 3:12), and Whereas, The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) has been and continues to be troubled by controversy and divisiveness, and Whereas, The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) has encouraged congregations to adopt both the Commitment to Peacemaking and the Commitment to Evangelism, and Whereas, We steadfastly affirm our denomination's commitment to diversity of expression in matters of Christian faith and affirm the full participation and gifts of all women and men in the church's life and in the calling of Jesus Christ to ministry; now therefore be it Resolved, That the Session of the John Calvin Presbyterian Church, Tampa, Florida, now overtures Tampa Bay Presbytery to call upon the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) to adopt the following *Commitment to Compassion*: The hallmark of the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ was compassion, and compassion must be the hallmark of our Christian discipleship. As the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) struggles to discern and to follow the will of God, the values and issues of the world sometimes threaten to turn the gift of our diversity into the tragedy of brokenness. At all times and especially in times of trouble, we are called to exercise compassion. The *Commitment to Compassion* affirms the capacity of God to mediate among us and recognizes that compassion can temper all differences with grace. Responding to the example of Jesus Christ and to the instruction of scripture, we commit ourselves to compassion. In fulfilling this commitment we shall exercise compassion through: *Worship* which highlights the reality of God's compassion; *Prayer and Bible Study* which encourages members of this congregation to receive God's compassion in their own lives and to seek it for the world; Enabling and equipping *Families, the Congregation, and the Church* to grow in compassion, modeling openness to differences of opinion, avoiding judgments based on personal moral standards, and affirming that to be "reformed and always reforming" requires open dialogue; *Community Ministries* which work for justice issues affecting humankind, social, racial, sexual, economic, health and welfare; confronting all forms of prejudice and bigotry, and responding to all persons with compassion and dignity, affirming that we are all created in the image of God; *Global Awareness* which helps the congregation support human rights and economic justice, especially when persons are victimized by war, recognizing that persons on all sides of a conflict deserve compassion; *Ecological Sensitivity* which involves the congregation in efforts to protect and restore the environment, exercising compassion especially when the needs of humanity must be weighted against the needs of the rest of creation. The session will lead and support the congregation in this response to God's compassion. We affirm this as we go about the business of living out our commitment to God through Christ: proclaiming the good news; taking part in the common life and worship of the congregation; praying and studying scripture and the Christian church; giving our time, talents, and money; participating in the governing responsibilities of the Church; demonstrating a new quality of life within and through the Church; responding to God's activity in the world through service to others; living responsibly in personal, family, vocational, political, cultural, and social relationships; and working in the world for peace, justice, freedom, and human fulfillment (G- 5.0102). In our ministries and in our lives we commit to compassion. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Why We Can't Wait A Gay Christian Remembers Dr. King by Marvin M. Ellison Bangor Theological Seminary Martin Luther King, Jr., Day, January 17, 1994, Henderson Memorial Baptist Church, Farmington, Maine Over 35 years ago, Martin Luther King, Jr., wrote: "There comes a time when people grow tired, when the throbbing desires of freedom begin to break forth." In the midst of this tiredness, something happens. The oppressed, King said, "rise up in protest against injustice" because "the time for freedom has come."{1} Sisters and brothers, the time for freedom is now. I say this as a gay man and as a Christian. I'm standing here today ready for freedom. I'm ready for freedom, and I'm tired -- tired of injustice against my people; tired of the hate, the indifference, the violence; tired of all the assaults against the bodies, spirits, and love of gay people everywhere. I'm sick and tired of homophobia. I'm sick and tired of heterosexism. With Martin Luther King, I say: it's time to grab hold of our self-respect. King's mother said to the young Martin, "You are as good as anyone." This is what is owed to every person -- of all colors, ages, life conditions. "You are as good as anyone." Gay people need to believe this about ourselves. Our self-respect, yes -- but with King, we know that we need something else. The rules of the game must be changed. I work in the church, and I work here today, with a vivid sense that I don't belong. The church is not a safe and welcoming place for gay people. But I'm not looking for safety, and if that's why you want church, look again. When church is really church, it doesn't offer a safe, quiet place. Instead, it offers a "space of radical openness,"{2} a place to question the status quo. We need communities of resistance teaching us how to fight injustice and oppression. Church is where we train for radical love and solidarity, or it's not worth the bother. I'm here today because I want freedom and I want justice for my people. I want *sexual* justice. Sexual justice may be the "most trivialized, feared, and postponed dimension of social justice in western society."{3} Western culture fears the body and sexuality, but it's preoccupied with sex at the same time. Many of us simply don't know how to keep sex in proper perspective. We end up making too much or too little of it. We don't live comfortably in our bodies. We're not sure how to connect sexuality and spirituality. We fear sexual difference. Religious people, most of all, distrust strong passion and deep feeling. But what do they do with all their discomfort with body, sex, and passion? Do they take responsibility for it? Do they work through their own stuff? No, more often than not, they take their fear and project it onto gays and lesbians. They expect *us* to carry *their* dis-ease, *their* ambivalence about body, sensuality, and body-touch. We're the ones they beat up, vilify, pity, and ridicule because we break their rules. People work hard to avoid the truth, namely, *that gay people are like them.* But they fear to see themselves in us because sex is this culture's "dirty little secret." Something is terribly wrong about how this culture and how the churches deal with sex, love, and power. Gay people know deep in our bodies, deep in our souls, how wrong sexism and heterosexism are -- in the bedroom and out in public, but we're fighting back. We're fighting for our lives, trusting that God, too, is against this evil and wants it to stop. That's why the church needs us gay people *much more* than we need the church. The church has been fighting the wrong battle and, if you'll pardon the pun, needs to be straightened out. To resist evil, a first step is to stop asking the wrong questions. The problem has never been homosexuality, has never been same-sex love, has never been sexual difference. The moral problem has always been sexual injustice -- the oppression of women and the oppression of gay people. The two go together. Sexism and heterosexism are wrong. They're killing us, physically and spiritually. Flannery O'Connor has written a wonderful line: "You will know the truth, and the truth will make you -- odd." People of faith are called to be at odds with injustice. We're called to be odd people -- lovers of justice, wagers of peace. Martin Luther King knew, in his living and in his dying, that whenever people seek justice and love the things that make for peace, they are never alone. Where there is love, *there* is God, the God of Abraham and Sarah, of Jesus and Oscar Romaro, of Fannie Lou Hamer and Sojourner Truth. You have to admit, this God is a rather odd God, as these things go. When God does justice, it's "not modest or polite or understated. It is an act of powerful intervention. It is like Moses in the court of Pharaoh insisting on freedom."{4} We're invited to do justice as God does justice -- *oddly, passionately.* My challenge to my gay brothers and lesbian sisters is this: Insist on freedom. Live and love the word of freedom. Claim your right to love and to be loved. Don't be afraid to be odd. My challenge to my non-gay sisters and brothers is this: Insist on freedom. Live and love the word of freedom. *Be* that word of freedom so that gay people can hear your word, trust it, and know that in you, they have nothing to fear. Delight in being odd yourselves. Martin Luther King, Jr., bless his soul, said to the people, "Rise up in protest against injustice. The time for freedom has come." Thank God for his faithful witness. References 1. Martin Luther King, Jr., "Facing the Challenge of a New Age," *Phylon* 18 (April 1957), 26, cited in James H. Cone, "Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Third World," in *The Future of Liberation Theology,* ed. Marc H. Ellis and Otto Maduro (Maryknoll: Orbis Books, 1989), 347. 2. The phrase is African-American feminist social critic Bell Hooks'. See her *Talking Back: Thinking Feminist, Thinking Black* (Boston: South End Press, 1989). 3. Carter Heyward, *Touching Our Strength: The Erotic as Power and the Love of God* (San Francisco: Harper and Row, 1989), 4. 4. Walter Brueggemann, "Voices in the Night -- Against Justice," in Walter Brueggemann, Sharon Parks, and Thomas H. Groome, *To Act Justly, Love Tenderly, Walk Humbly* (New York: Paulist Press, 1986), 15. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Shackles We take this story, with thanks, from the January/February 1994 issue of *Nor'easter*, the newspaper of the Synod of the Northeast. Those who do not know him may be surprised by the clerical garb that the Rev. John Sisley wears in the pulpit at Rutgers Presbyterian Church (Presbytery of New York City). Why, they may wonder, is there a length of chain around his neck? The answer can be found in the Rutgers worship bulletin each week. "This is not a chain," reads a statement from the interim pastor printed there. "This is a shackle. Until the shackles that bind my gay brothers and lesbian sisters are broken, shackles placed there by both society and church, this shackle stays around my neck." Sisley explains that he decided to wear the shackle after attending a meeting in the New York City area held in response to the Jane Spahr decision [the decision by the Permanent Judicial Commission of the General Assembly banning any call to a "self- avowed, practicing" and happy (!) lesbian or gay pastor -- JDA]. "I suggested at that meeting that we have got to break these shackles," Sisley recalls. "Then I went and bought a length of chain. I wear it every Sunday." Sisley says that wearing the shackle provides opporutnity for conversation that he thinks is healthy. He notes that, although some with whom he speaks think the shackle and what it represents to be an abomination, the session chose to support him even though he did not ask for the support. "An overwhelming number of members of Rutgers Church are supportive," he concludes. "The session voted that they supported without reservation that the pastor wear a shackle until the shackles fall. We have a new member class of 20 that says, 'Go with the shackle.'" * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Keep Your Eyes on Your Own Damned Side of the Fence! by the Rev. Dean Hay [Dean is our new co-coordinator for Utah in the Synod of the Rocky Mountains. He is also the religious columnist for Salt Lake City's lesbian/gay newspaper. We welcome him to the *Update* with two thought-provoking meditations. -- JDA] There really *are* Ten Commandments. Almost all of us pass over at least one, at times, and maybe more. All that proves, however, is that it is really dangerous for anyone of us to be "scorekeepers" on someone else! The Bible is actually a very personal book. Its intention is to speak to us each about our own relationships. Nowhere is it either implicit or explicit that the Commandments or any other portion were given so that some of us would have a ready-made check list to use on the rest of us! Jesus, in one of his delightfully wry -- even humorous -- remarks suggests that we should be wary of attempting to pick a splinter out of someone else's eye "while we have a beam" ( read 2"x4" !) in our own! In fact, using the Bible principally to beat other people over the head for their presumed failings or "their ungodliness", says nothing positive at all about our personal faith. It does suggest some things that may not be especially welcome for our hearing if we let the ancient words sink in! There is the Tenth Commandment -- not generally taken too seriously -- not to covet "a neighbor's house, wife, man servant, maid servant, ox, donkey, or anything that is your neighbor's." Modern summaries sometimes leave out "man servant or the maid servant." It doesn't take a degree to know they were available for anything, and could be coveted. The Tenth Commandment, believe it or not, is about *love* -- and *lust*! Or to put it another way, it recognizes that fidelity is an essential mark of genuine love, much more than a rush of vigorous heart beats and an "I gotta have it" syndrome. Like the Ninth Commandment which precedes it, the Tenth seeks to guard us against those destructive fantasies in which our feelings can play tricks on us and trap us into claiming special privilege for ourselves and our thoughts, feelings, and actions -- even if it entails the creation of havoc in the life of someone else. The rantings of some who expose a vitriolic hatred of persons with same gender affectionate feelings appear to be more an outburst of loveless jealousy or envy than of moral indignation. The message that comes through is anger, not the redemptive love that comes through God's grace. It also reveals a poverty of spirit in perceiving genuine affection, identifying the latter as lust on the basis of our own predispositions. Those who have a passion for identifying perverts might better check out the hateful slander of the self-approving moralist on the sidewalk rather than person in the dimly lit bushes of the park -- whatever gender combinations or level of involvement may have sought some privacy! In fact, anger over seeing two men together -- and immediately "assuming sex" -- may be telling us something that a man really does not intend us to recognize about his inner sense of self! It tells us of a dissatisfied life. Looking "over there" and becoming aware of his neighbor's "man" has heightened his own deep, unfulfilled hungers, not yet admissible as "coveting," which it may very well be. An unhealthy repressed sexuality is displayed in hostility, a sheer mask for his jealousy. Gay men have learned this in gay bars where such men wish to be approached, but not responsible for an encounter -- or from "outings" in the news of others who have been vocally vicious regarding "queers." Or, the rage that bursts out over the sight of two women walking very closely together (God forbid they might even hold hands!) -- may reveal a possibly same-gender-starved human being who hates them because of personal feelings -- fantasizing these two on their way from an encounter and heading somewhere for another. Joking happily with my dear older daughter, a psychotherapist "who has her head screwed on," we laughed together when I suggested that my life would be much more exciting if it was as overwhelmingly sexual as the stereotypes of some "straights" presumed -- but I would never have had time or energy for success in my career! There are those with perverted minds which set the focus on "lust" at every hint, rather than smiling inwardly at "love." But remember, the Tenth Commandment does not give us a weapon for "straight bashing" any more than a few spuriously interpreted texts justify "gay bashing." Covetousness is not far from most of us more frequently than we wish. The Commandment has a very plain message, "Keep your eyes on your own damned side of the fence!" It applies to everyone -- including me! Not only is it a mandate regarding envy and jealousy that are the well-springs of covetousness, it is a reminder of caution; the virtue of fidelity is to be guarded by loving attentiveness to one's own -- persons, possessions, and household. Almost anyone may be tempted to look around, resenting what others have, what he or she does not have, wants very badly, and is not able or free to obtain! Perhaps you are seated in a social club and see a partnered person enter alone, and whom you hope you may avoid! You know, from past experience, that if you have an attractive or attentive conversationalist beside you, this person will immediately try to move in to divert your discussion -- or even physically insert himself or herself between you both, "turning on the charm"! Then you realize that on occasion you may not be careful to avoid such an intrusion yourself! That is when you are really beginning to get the hang of "The Book!" Everything in sight is not necessarily "fair game!" The Tenth Commandment points to the need of honoring and respecting the virtue of fidelity. "Tend", says the Commandment, "to that which is your own." The starting point may be the simple matter of avoiding covetousness, "Keeping your eyes on your own damned side of the fence." * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * What Really Happened at the Foot of the Cross? by the Rev. Dean Hay Mary P. (nowhere near her real Polish name!) was blind, had difficulty walking, and missed her son John, with whom she stayed three months of the year. Other sons lived in her city, but John was special. Over several years, I heard a great deal about John, including his age, which was forty-five. In one of those calls, there was an impulse to raise a question. She had never mentioned a family, and I was certain that I knew the answer. So I asked, "Does he have a family." "No," she said, "but he has a lot of friends. And they are fine men. They are so good to me, too, when I am there with John." "If," I said, "John is forty-five and has a lot of friends who are men, probably some of them are gay men and very fine men, too." "Yes," she said, "some of John's friends are gay." "I assumed that, my dear. And I also assumed they were fine men, because you see, I am gay and I am a clergyman." "You are a priest?", she said incredulously! "Yes, but Presbyterian. And I am gay," I repeated. Her voice choked. "My John is gay, and I love him so much! I am 84 years old, and I was never able to tell his father he is gay. I could never tell his brothers that he is gay. I have never been able to tell a priest he is gay. I have never been able to tell anyone ever before that my John is gay and that I love him! Or that his friends are gay, too, and they treat me like I was their own mother!" A week later, she called back. "I do not need anything this time," she said. "All week long I have just been so grateful for your telling me you were gay -- and letting me tell you about my John. It is just as though those feelings that have hurt so long have just disappeared! I just want to thank you." Jesus, the Gospels pointedly state, had a "beloved friend." At the Last Supper, that beloved disciple put his head on Jesus' breast. It was a tender moment -- and so different from Jesus' relationship to the other disciples that it was noted by the Gospel writers. That "beloved disciple" was at the foot of the Cross with Mary, the mother of Jesus. Before he died from the cruel torture of that Cross, he uttered two sentences that have been interpreted with the exclusion of a very clear possible meaning, quoting from John 19: 26-27 (NRSV): *When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing beside her, he said to his mother, "Woman, here is your son." Then he said to the disciple, "Here is your mother." And from that hour, the disciple took her into his own home."* Said Mary P., "They treat me as if I was their own mother." Is it possible that Christian gay men -- and their mothers -- can understand this passage more clearly than those who come with preconceived notions about Jesus -- often portrayed as a sexless (and therefore not fully incarnate) Lord and Savior? Have the Scriptures been manipulated through cultural presumptions or interpretations out of a heterosexual mind-set -- rather than the homosexual, gay, fairy, or queer who reads them through the eyes of faith and lets them speak of holy love? Is it not possible that Jesus, out of love for his mother, entrusted her not to his sisters, not to his brothers, but to the man whom he loved more dearly than any other, "Behold, your mother." It is relatively well agreed that if Jesus had married, that would have been noted in Scripture. But it is never indicated. The social pressure of those times, as well as ours, presumed that a Jewish male would take a wife. It was as deeply rooted as the conviction that the worth of a woman was distinctly related to her child-bearing. Pre-conceived notions and assumptions which glide over this facet of our savior's life, including sexuality, do so with far more ease than merited. Shame on those ready to debate the slightest nuances of every word, like medievalists who argued over how many angels might stand on the head of a pin, but who refuse to even consider together the possibility of the Incarnate Christ being fully complete, true in all its fullness, as affirmed in the Scriptures! There are no answers, but the existence of honest questions can hardly be avoided without disparaging the Biblical testimony. Even for those who hide behind the excuse of impropriety to speculate on the exact nature of Jesus' most profound experiences of human love, the point is still relevant. It may, indeed, be out of order to posit sure answers -- based on speculation -- regarding any person's intimate relationships, but equally as inappropriate to assume there are none as to assume there are, and of what nature. But what happened at the foot of the Cross is suggestive enough to warrant greater reservation by those who purport to purvey an omniscience that belongs to God alone, restricting possibilities for Jesus, "human as we are". The rejection of possibility refutes the Incarnation. I have never had the opportunity to share this passage with Mary P. She knows, however, what it is to be respected and cherished as a mother by the gay friends of her son. I think she would understand this passage with little difficulty -- and find, in her own privacy and loneliness, a joy. Grace, and Peace. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Letters to the Church Hope: Reformer/Revolutionary Strong Words on G.A. '93, Looking Forward to '94 and '95 by the Rev. Howard B. Warren, Jr. Chris Glaser's "Hope But Don't Get Your Hopes Up" (*More Light Update* February 1994) sets a wonderful context for this 3-year study pushed on us by the genuflecting, avoidance-minded General Assembly. Chris is right. We *are* here for the long run. His words are echoed by Randy Shilts in *Conduct Unbecoming: Gays and Lesbians in the U.S. Military* when he quotes James Foster at the 1972 Democratic National Convention: "We are here. We will not go away until the ultimate goal of Gay Liberation is realized, the goal that all people live in peace, freedom and dignity of who we are." God called us to ordination and, in spite of the 3- year study, continues to call us. As witness to this, I just sent a letter of recommendation to one of our seminaries for an openly gay Presbyterian seeking admittance. I would like to expand on one part of Chris's excellent article. In the midst of this cycle of violence the Presbyterian Church has directed against us, there is the right to ventilate all kinds of feelings and emotions. At Baltimore, our pain and hurt was felt, expressed and seen. Particularly at Orlando our anger was felt, expressed and seen without apology. It was not the best of times, but the cruel, dishonest machinations of the pharaohs (Andrews, Jenkins, Brown and Dobler) of that General Assembly with their false avoidance dream of peace, peace when there will be no peace, created an outcome where rage, shouting and crying was important, even essential. They know now that we are not sheep to be led silently to the slaughter and we never will be. We are both reformers and revolutionaries. We must never let "them" divide us over the expression of any feelings. Jesus does advise us to be "wise as serpents but gentle as doves." Jesus also overtured the tables of the money changers in the Temple, and we will model this action also. Our expressions of anger and pain, if this is all we do, will result in an endless cycle of violence that will ultimately make us powerless. But this is what we have done for 17 years and now they ask for 3 more years of the same! As I look back at last year's General Assembly, I sense the pain of old and new faces who, trying all year long to work within the decently and in order system of the church, produced overtures and then saw the results of their work, remembered the lies they heard from our bureaucrats and pharaohs, felt used and manipulated and now abused by Moderator Dobler's 5- minute Grace Spotlight with a standing ovation, sensed the tentacles of Andrews, Jenkins, and Brown, more deadly than any Sanhedrin, and reacted as revolutionaries. Thank God we did and by the grace of God I pray that women will turn the tables after Brown's patriarchal letter! But, we don't have to repeat, we don't always have to do this. I applaud the hope, the resilience of the PLGC executive board, the many reconciling groups being patterned on Lisa Larges' model, the More Light Churches and PLGC groups, including the one we have here in Central Indiana. The decision to focus on hope and healing at General Assembly '94 is excellent; yet, let us be aware that all feelings and all roles (Reformers and Revolutionaries) go hand in hand, are all part of the spectrum of change for God's Lavender People. I left General Assembly in a panic. I fled to the safety of The Damien Center here in Indianapolis. When I got here, I realized that I could have simply taken the elevator to another safe place: the PLGC suite. I realize that in the spectrum I am more revolutionary than reformer, but this is the role in which God has placed me. I will not be God's Glorious Gadfly, Muzzled Pit Bull, Non-violent attack dog (all names given me by PLGC friends) at this year's General Assembly. What you are doing is right and I will support you with my prayers and finances and feel I am a part of it all, but I cannot, will not be present. Instead, I will be a part of the first full Lesbian/Gay Pride March in Indianapolis, and for the entire 10 days of the Games and Stonewall in New York City, I will walk with this sign, "God, damn the Presbyterian Church and all denominations when they use the Bible as a weapon rather than a welcome to Lesbians, Gays and Bisexuals. God cries that some of the beautiful created rainbow of human sexual orientation is left out." Like Jesus and others, I go outside the walls of the church. Because of my support of you, and yours of me, I also remain within the walls of the church. Do good work and I look forward to being with you in person in '95 and '96. The spectrum of activities and feelings will melt pharaoh's heart as we minister together for an inclusive church. Hope, reconciliation, revolution is the way. Alelulia. Amen. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Synod PJC Member Quits, Disillusioned The Whole Church Court Structure Is Built on Sand. Our processes are only a charade, and real judges, regrettably, are superfluous. This letter, from John W. Runde, member of the Permanent Judicial Commission of the Synod of the Pacific to the Rev. Donald I. MacInnes, Stated Clerk of that Synod, was circulated on PresbyNet -- JDA. November 7, 1993. Dear Don, I received yesterday the copy of the opinion of the PJC of the General Assembly in HOPE VS. CENTRAL which you sent. As I am sure you anticipated, I was quite disappointed with it. [This decision was published in the February 1994 *More Light Update*.] Actually, disillusioned is more accurate. The substantive ruling (i.e., the continuing ban on the ordination of gay persons as deacons) is troubling. However, from my perspective, infinitely more troubling is the PJC's refusal to discuss either the controlling provision in the *Book of Order* (G-5.0202), or the authority of the *Book of Order* itself over all governing bodies -- including the General Assembly. The impression I am left with is that the PJC lacks fidelity to the constitution of our church. Such being the case, I find I no longer can continue as a member of the PJC of the Synod of the Pacific. For any acceptable court system to work, the highest authority in it must remain true to the precepts of the law it administers. If it does not, it can hardly expect lower tribunals, or anyone subject to its authority, to do so. If the PJC of the General Assembly does not follow clear provisions of the *Book of Order*, how can it expect the rest of us to follow and implement them? Thus, it appears that the whole church court structure is built on sand. Though impressive in form, it lacks the necessary intellectual rigor and moral integrity to stand. The whole edifice collapses to the touch. Our processes are only a charade, and real judges, regrettably, are superfluous. In closing, let me assure you that I express these sad thoughts not out of any hurtful or malicious intent to the church or to any person -- least of all you, whom I hold in the highest possible esteem. I write these feelings because you (and whomever else is interested in this matter) deserve the fullest explanation for my sudden resignation. I hope I am not in vain in thinking also that, eventually, some good might come of this. Yours in Christ, John W. Runde * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * [Box with Glaser Column] Do Chris Glaser a Favor 1. Go to your local book store and tell them you hope they will order Christ Glaser's new book, *The Word Is Out -- The Bible Reclaimed for Lesbians and Gay Men* (A 365-day meditation book), due from HarperSanFrancisco this summer. Advance orders might persuade the publisher to bring the book out in time for General Assembly in June! 2. HarperSanFrancisco is considering whether to do another printing of Chris's earlier books, *Uncommon Calling* and *Come Home!* If you believe there is a need and a market for these books, send a friendly, encouraging letter or fax to Tom Grady, Publisher, HarperSanFrancisco, 1160 Battery St., San Francisco, CA 94111-1213, FAX 415/477-4444. The Presbyterian Laywoman Volume 27, Number 1, January/February 1994 (or, Tabloids We'd Like to See Competing With *The Layman*) by Chris Glaser Copyright (c) 1994 by Chris R. Glaser. All rights reserved. [*The Presbyterian Layman* has launched another attack on the Presbyterian Church, this time in reference to a Christian feminist gathering partly supported and attended by Presbyterians. "Re-Imagining 1993," held in Minneapolis Nov. 4-7, invited participants to imagine a God and church free of patriarchy, racism, sexism, heterosexism, abuse, and violence. As I read the hysteria with which the conference was reported by *The Layman*, I wondered what it would be like if a typical General Assembly were similarly evaluated -- but from the opposite perspective. This is the product of my "wonderings." -- CRG] PCUSA FUNDS EFFORT TO IMPRISON GOD Millions spent for Theological Cryogenics GENERAL ASSEMBLY -- Presbyterians from all over the country gathered to assert that god is male and a father who demanded the death of his own son. Under the rubric "trinity," they unashamedly worshiped three gods -- all male, according to them -- made in the image of the "ol' boys' network." Proclaiming these gods "as out of touch as we are," they affirmed "the absolute separation of god and the world." Delegates performed a ritual in which they drank blood and ate flesh, followed by a sado-masochistic hymn, "Blest Be the Tie that Binds." The group also sang songs proclaiming that the dead are not underground but in a relationship with the living -- including one called, "For All the Saints." They denounced as "blatant heresy" orthodox Christian teachings that God chooses to live within our hearts, and rejected God's call to mutuality between the genders and among the races, regardless of sexual orientation. They celebrated a pyramid of control with god and males on top, which they called "patriarchy." To marshal the divine energy force of patriarchy, the group was led in an exercise labeled "phallic healing" and encouraged to practice this technique each day while singing: Come, Thou Fount of every blessing . . . Streams of mercy, never ceasing Call for songs of loudest praise . . . Praise the mount! I'm fixed upon it . . . Here I raise my Ebenezer, Hither by thy help I'm come . . . In legislative actions, the delegates voted to remove female images of God from the Bible, especially those of "Sophia" -- Wisdom. "We don't need no wisdom," Stalker Wilkilsom, an Anglo-European straight radical misogynist and graduate of Fuller Theological Seminary, was quoted as saying. The commissioners also endorsed downward/penis-upward/vaginal intercourse as the only way to please God, but left unsettled whether French kissing was a product of the Fall or God's wish for humanity. In judicial actions, the gathering approved the Permanent Judicial Commission's judgments that a man divorced thirty- two times could be ordained; that a clergyman who was a serial killer could continue in his pastorate as long as his church gave generously to missions; and returned a clergyman accused of multiple sexual encounters with female parishioners to his congregation "to finish the job." The General Assembly also challenged the right of church women to speak from their own experience, based on New Testament passages written by Paul and citing the "ultimate depravity of womankind." "If women shared their theological views, it could distort our whole understanding of God Himself and Christ's Bride, our virgin Church," said radical Anglo-European sexist Warring N. Raping, a graduate of Gordon-Conwell seminary and leader of the radical group, Christians Rejecting Others That Christ Hates (CROTCH). He stressed that his own controlling relationship with his wife revealed the nature of God's relationship with His Church. Unrepentant straight man Tomcat Tulipsie of Princeton Seminary expressed concern for the future of theology: "You slash a theological erection at its roots when you involve too many people in theological reflection." In other action, the General Assembly voted to study whether to remove language about the "Body of Christ" and "governing bodies" from the Book of Order because of their sensual connotations. The G.A. approved a Georgia presbytery's overture requiring governing bodies to be married or celibate. **Editor's note:** We have used "god" when speakers referred to an exclusively male divine presence with "in-and-out" privileges, and "God" for references to God as one who embraces the world and tabernacles with us always. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Meet Laurene Lafontaine PLGC's New Co-Moderator (c) 1994 by Laurene Lafontaine, all rights reserves On November 4, 1992, after months of campaigning against Amendment 2, I woke up from my worst living nightmare -- Amendment 2's passage and the news of the GA PJC's rulings against Janie Spahr and Lisa Larges. I was thoroughly devastated and didn't know quite where to turn. Initially, I didn't think I could stay in Colorado or in the PCUSA. But a comment made by Jim Anderson at 1991 GA in Baltimore ran through my head: "Those that hate us want us to leave." On that evening, I stood with 7000 other gays, lesbians, bisexuals, our families and friends on the steps of the Colorado State Capitol. We gathered to express our outrage and pain. In the midst of that gathering, I made commitment to myself and God that I would no longer deny who God created me to be -- a life-affirming lesbian. After the passage of Amendment 2 and the PJC's rulings, I found myself terribly depressed and overwhelmed with anger and fear. I didn't know where to turn -- my adopted state of Colorado seemed no longer safe and neither was my church. Yet, in that time it became very clear that I needed perspective, perspective on the justice movement throughout history. I purchased three books, *The Gandhi Reader; Elizabeth Cady Stanton/Susan B. Anthony: Correspondence, Writings, Speeches;* and *Martin Luther King, Jr.'s I Have a Dream: Writings and Speeches That Changed The World.* Reading the work of these saints helped me to see and understand that what we are about is of significant historic proportion. Many things have happened over the past year and half: Being honest and coming out on the floor of the Presbytery of Denver; the harassing phone calls and nasty letters; being told by Princeton Theological Seminary President and self-appointed expert on lesbigay issues Thomas Gillespie that I "am just going through a phase"; coming out on the floor of GA and then protesting yet another "study"; and on Dec. 21, 1993 hearing Denver District Judge Jeffery Bayless's decision that Amendment 2 was unconstitutional and legally dead. I come to this place as PLGC Co-Moderator with reverence and sadness. Reverence for the many lesbigay folks who have led the way in this journey of justice making. I am sad because often the cost is extremely high, often too much. I am thankful for Susan Kramer's work and trust that this is a time needed for healing and re-energizing her soul. Just a bit about me. I wear many hats. I coach the middle school volleyball and basketball teams and high school junior varsity lacrosse team at a private catholic girls academy. I direct the AIDS/HIV Interfaith Network of Colorado. I am co-organizing a new church development in Denver Presbytery. I am an out christian lesbian activist committed to truth telling and creating communities of faith. Plus, I am a David Letterman fan! See my version of a top ten list! What will assist the transformation of our society and church is learning to care for ourselves and one another, encouraging, empowering, listening and being with each other as we experience the guiding and reforming Spirit of God. I look forward to this new challenge of being co-moderator and working with you. Top ten benefits of being a Recovering Princeton Theological Seminary graduate 10. Living proof that LesBiGay folks have attended and survived PTS. 9. Having the common sense to give my money to Women's Alliance for Theology, Ethics and Rituals (WATER) instead of PTS. 8. Co-moderatoring the PTS Lambda Alumni Association. 7. Graduating in 1987, years before the "Princeton Five" and the current theological inquisition. 6. Receiving lots of compliments -- "but you don't seem like a Princeton Grad!" 5. Having more than an ample supply of cat box lining (i.e. all those PTS fundraiser letters and publications) although now I have to live with two cats with that Ivy League Seminary attitude -- Yipes! 4. Great training for understanding the current PTS president's rhetoric. 3. Get to come out twice -- I'm a lesbian and yes -- I graduated from -- Princeton Seminary. 2. Don't have to worry about being contacted to be the local PTS/PFR alumni representative. 1. Sometimes a leader just needs to stand up and be counted. The PLGC Executive Board meets in Atlanta We gathered over Martin Luther King, Jr.'s weekend in Atlanta at North Decatur Presbyterian Church for two days of meetings. After experiencing the warm welcome and southern hospitality of our host families on Friday night (Many thanks to Jim Earhart for local arrangements and host families for their hospitality!), we met together to work through a very full agenda on Saturday. The board received with much regret and understanding, the resignations of Susan Kramer, co-moderator, and Va Nee Van Vleck, board member and PLGC co-coordinator for the Synod of Lakes and Prairies. I, Laurene Lafontaine, was nominated and elected co-moderator. The other vacancies will be filled this spring. We have a number of new synod coordinators who were approved. Our Presbynet coordinator position was expanded to co- coordinators. Mark Smith has been serving as PLGC Presbynet Coordinator for quite some time and has done a good job. Bill Capel will now join Mark as Co-Coordinator. Presbynet has quite a number of meetings related to lesbigay justice. The 1994 General Assembly in Wichita will start on June 10th on Friday. Given the new schedule, the board made the following decisions: Saturday June 11th, PLGC Executive Board will meet in the Hospitality Suite. On Sunday June 12th, PLGC will have a 10 am worship service, with Chris Glaser preaching. That evening, we will have a reception featuring the presentation of the Inclusive Church Award and Lisa Larges' "Witness for Reconciliation" traveling road show. The annual membership meeting will be held on Wednesday evening June 15th followed by that splendid expression of an inclusive church, The Witherspoon Party and Dance!! The PLGC and More Light Church Network Boards met together for a presentation on Bisexuality. Cedric Maurice and Teresa Walker from Bisexuals of Atlanta Resource Network spoke to a number of issues related to bisexuality. Both emphasized the invisibility and rejection experienced within the heterosexual and lesbian/gay communities. They addressed the lack of bi culture, bi-phobia and horizontal violence. Their presentation was powerful and very informative. Both Cedric and Teresa were very positive about PLGC's sensitivity with regards to the proposed name change to include bisexuals. This presentation helped inform our discussion about the PLGC name change. We decided to poll the membership regarding four possible changes: 1. Presbyterians for LesBiGay Justice 2. Rainbow: Presbyterians for LesBiGay Justice 3. Presbyterians for LesBiGay Concerns 4. Presbyterians for Gender and Orientation Inclusiveness We will also include "no change" as an option and will invite members to write in additional suggestions. The poll results will be presented to the board and the board's recommendation will be voted on at the membership meeting on June 15th. The PLGC and MLCN Boards came together again for a presentation on the document "Unity Through Diversity (UTD)" by the UTD strategy team: Scott Anderson, Martha Juillerat, Tricia Dykers Koenig, Kay Wallace and Timothy Rodden (not present). This team and document were results of the Baltimore meeting in September. Scott led us through the document. Both boards voted to make Unity Through Diversity a project of both organizations, to appoint an Implementation Team made up of representatives from PLGC and MLCN, and to receive the Implementation Team's report to MLCN in May and PLGC in June. The goal of the UTD project is to help PLGC and MLCN work more cohesively together and maximize our effectiveness in education, outreach and nurture. We had a wonderfully delightful party hosted by Jim and Mary Grace Earhart. There were a number of local PLGC'ers present, but I was unable to rouse enough interest for dancing. Oh well, next year!! Board, bring your dancing shoes!!! UFMCC Rejected Again A couple of years ago, Carol Gough saw the intense need for a congregational pastoral care program within her UFMCC church. She had participated in the Stephen Ministry program when she attended Christ Episcopal Church in Denver so she naturally thought her new church home would benefit greatly from such a program. A fund was established with the hopes that the congregation would be able to raise the required parish fee of $900 to join the Stephen Ministry program. Last year, MCC of the Rockies was invited to send a couple of members to audit St. John's Catheral's Stephen Ministry training. The Catheral then made a gift to MCC of the remaining money required to become a participating church in the Stephen Ministry program. The appropriate paperwork required for admission as a participating church was submitted. After some time, Carol hadn't heard from the program so she wrote and then called Mr. David Paap who oversees the admission process. In her conversation with Mr. Paap, she expressed her wish to receive the training because of the need of the congregation, a primarily gay and lesbian church. She spoke about the rejection and alienation experienced by many parishioners. Carol told Mr. Paap just how badly her congregation needed this pastoral care program. Mr. Paap inquired about the percentage of straight people within the congregation. She responded she didn't know the exact percentage but the church was made up of gay, lesbian and some heterosexual people. Carol was told that he had to bring it up with his staff. After a period of time and many unreturned phone calls, Mr. Paap told Carol that the reason MCC of the Rockies could not be admitted into the Stephen Ministry program was because of the possibility of inappropriate behavior that might take place when couples came to the training events. When she replied, "We are professionals" and went on to describe the credentials of persons interested in being lay ministers. He responded, "You might be professional but you never know how people are going to behave." He went to say that the "fundamentalist brothers and sisters" present at the training events "might try to convert you and then there's a problem with scripture and theology." Carol said she tried to talk with him on each point that he brought up. But in the end, MCC of the Rockies was denied admission. Carol feels understandably beaten up by the process and this rejection. Yet she told me, "I want them to know who we are and what we are about. I want them to come to our church and experience the love for God and one another." As one who was present at the 1993 National Council of Churches meeting when UFMCC was denied observer status, I am again outraged. Outraged because the Stephen Ministry program, which claims to transcend denominational and political lines and doctrinal issues, and to focus on the ministry of Christ to all people, has betrayed Christ through their narrow understandings and fears. Outraged because of the hypocrisy and bigotry in our own PCUSA and the larger Christian Church that continues to deny Jesus the Christ. It is important that we respond to this incredibly outrageous action. This program trains those who want to minister to others within many of our presbyterian churches. St. John's Catheral will no longer use the Stephen Ministry training materials for training lay ministers. They, along with MCC of the Rockies are developing other models of training lay ministers. Let us take Carol's lead by expressing who we are and what we are about as a people of faith committed to the ways of love and justice expressed through Jesus the Christ. Please write and share your thoughts with: The Reverend Kenneth Haugh & Mr. David Paap, Stephen Ministries, 8016 Dale, Saint Louis, Missouri 63117-1449. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Against Nature? A Review by Tom Hanks [Tom Hanks, a minister of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) is a missionary working with sexual minorities in Latin America. After many years with the Latin America Mission in Costa Rica, he now heads Otras Ovejas: Ministerios Multiculturales con Minorias Sexuales -- Other Sheep: Multicultural Ministries with Sexual Minorities.] Pim Pronk, *Against Nature? Types of Moral Argumentation regarding Homosexuality.* Translated from the Dutch by John Vriend. Foreword by Hendrik Hart. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Pub. Co., c1993, 350 p. ISBN 0-8028-0623-6 paperback. Pronk's Dutch doctoral dissertation may not be your cup of tea, but its publication by Eerdmans unquestionably is a significant event for everyone in the reformed tradition -- where for years we've been polarized over questions related to human sexuality, homophobia and rights for sexual minorities. Scholarly dialogue and rational debate have not been prominent features in the disputed areas for several decades, but to the extent that they influence decisions, Pronk probably is correct in focusing in on common misunderstandings related to the concepts of "nature" as the fundamental issue. A Dutch doctoral dissertation on this subject provides far more than most of us want to know, or can helpfully summarize for sound-byte debates with the defenders of (recent) tradition as our various cases wind their way through the labyrinth of the Presbyterian judicial system. But you probably will want to know that the book is available for any traditionalists who pretend to respectable scholarship, yet continue to fall back on the "against nature" argument. If you could somehow seduce such to buy and start reading Pronk, probably you can have the floor unchallenged in Presbytery meetings for the foreseeable future. Since both the Free University of Amsterdam (for which Pronk wrote the dissertation) and Eerdmans are considered by traditionalists as "kosher" (or at least not as seriously defiling as McCormick and Westminster Press), Pronk may manage to win a hearing inside doors otherwise closed to such academic investigation. One might even pray that a copy of Pronk somehow slip in unawares to the library holdings of Princeton Seminary and be read by some unsuspecting student. More remarkable miracles have happened: way back in 1974 Eerdmans goofed again and published another Dutch work, J. Rinzema's *The Sexual Revolution*, translated (in a weak moment) by Lewis B. Smedes of Fuller Seminary -- and recommending stable same-sex relations for homosexuals. Pronk holds doctorates in both biology and theology, so he brings unique expertise to this study. The time lapse between getting the dissertation finished and getting it out by Eerdmans (in a rather rough translation) means that the bibliography lacks significant recent items in biology and theology. But this bibliographical lapse does not detract seriously from the case Pronk builds (p. 214): "homosexuality is not unnatural" (which in American English would read "homosexuality is natural"). Tell it not in Lynchburg, but Pronk's position is significantly more radical than our current controversial Presbyterian documents: "not everything that is needed for a good heterosexual morality is needed in homosexual contexts" (p. 263). Scholarly types who consider the lid of Pandora's box to be a distinguished academic chair will not be happy -- especially since Pronk obliges us to await a future study for his delineation of "not everything." Meanwhile, those of us with a penchant for sliding down slippery slopes are left on a prolonged skiing vacation. Perhaps like me, you find scholarly discussions of Aristotle and Aquinas on "nature" an unfailing cure for insomnia -- but don't be put off by Pronk's detailed treatment of such subjects. Scintillating summaries of Foucault's contribution to the debate and a sympathetic biologist's critique of constructionism can be counted on to keep you from nodding in your Presbytery meeting, even through the direst of jellybean shortages. Friends and foes of Karl Barth will find Pronk's devastating refutation of Barth's "natural theology" of sex worth pondering -- especially since that seems to be the one aspect of Barth's theology his foes seem intent on preserving. Nowhere in his dissertation does Pronk admit to being Gay, but Hart proceeds to out him in his Foreword (p. xx -- one cannot help wondering when Eerdmans will proceed to out others amongst their best-selling authors). Unfortunately, in Pronk's case this has happened before he could be invited to give the baccalaureate address at Princeton Seminary. However, with recommendations from such ideologically diverse sources as Ralph Blair (Evangelicals Concerned), John Shelby Spong, and Peggy Campolo on the back cover, Pronk should not lack from invitations to enlighten the disUnited States and the divided Presbyterian church. Meanwhile, I continue to suspect that such comings out (especially when sponsored by institutions like Eerdmans or Princeton Seminary) have more influence on ecclesiastical politics than the theological debates about "nature." * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *