Presbyterians Pro-Life NEWS
Winter 2004

In a statement called "Time for Change," issued in late September, the Covenant Network laid out five strategies for the removal of the "fidelity and chastity" requirement from the denomination’s constitution.

The first goal is to "remove all the authoritative interpretations" that relate to sexual standards for ordination. Covenant Network co-moderator, Eugene Bay, noted that as long as the authoritative interpretations remain, "not much is accomplished by removing Amendment B." ("Amendment B" was the original designation of what is now the "fidelity and chastity" wording in the Book of Order.)

It is the authoritative interpretations that say explicitly that "for the church to ordain a self affirming, practicing homosexual person to ministry would be an act in contradiction to its charter and calling in Scripture...." The Covenant Network agenda focuses on normalizing homosexual behavior in particular.

Removal of authoritative interpretation can be done by an action of a single General Assembly and does not require a vote by presbyteries. Members of the Covenant Network board distributed copies of a suggested overture to participants. Milwaukee Presbytery has already sent up an overture calling for this change.

Families will be back at the next General Assembly. The original policy, created by the Advisory Committee on Social Witness Policy (ACSWP) found little favor by last year’s General Assembly. An alternative statement was adopted in committee and came to the plenary floor as the majority recommendation. Commissioners, mostly unfamiliar with the lengthy document that most of them had not seen, sent both documents back to ACSWP with recommendations for improvements.