Most
business is in the form of overtures and reports
At
this writing (early January), the Office of the General Assembly (OGA)
reports 32 overtures coming to the General Assembly. There are several
months to go before the deadlines for overtures are all past.
February 15 marks
the date when both constitutionally related overtures and reports
from General Assembly entities are due. The General Assembly Council
(GAC) will meet just prior to the deadline. Much of their work will
be adding finishing touches to staff reports and recommendations,
and then having those reports approved by the GAC committees.
Business
affecting the constitution
Business
related to the constitution is coming in Recommendation 5 in the report
from the Theological Task Force on Peace, Unity, and Purity of the
Church (PUP), and there are overtures seeking to modify the PUP report.
Business is coming also in overtures related to G-6.0106b (the “fidelity
and chastity” paragraph of the Book of Order), and
the current authoritative interpretation. To date, eleven overtures
seek removal of and two support maintaining the current ordination
standards.
Divestment
and other matters of importance
At
least four overtures are responding to the 2004 G.A. action on divestment
from companies doing business in Israel. Three of the four seek change
or a complete rescinding of the last G.A’s action.
Additional overtures
address Christian marriage and the authority of Scripture. Several
seek changes to the constitutional Rules of Discipline and one seeks
the creation of a fourth ordained office to be known as “Educating
Elder.”
In addition
to the PUP task force report, there will be reports from G.A. entities
on the Trinity and on the Sacraments. The General Assembly Council
will seek approval of a plan to reorganize itself.
Elections
at G.A.
The General
Assembly will elect a large number of people to committees and entities.
Among those will be a new executive director of the General Assembly
Council. The current director, John Detterick, is retiring. The Assembly
will elect a class of its Permanent Judicial Commission (PJC), a class
of the General Assembly Nominating Committee, and members of the GAC.
All members of the PC(USA) are eligible for nomination to these positions,
except for the PJC for which nominees must be clergy or elder.
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