Inconsistency in ‘fragile times’
The Layman August 2002 Volume 35, Number 4, July 19, 2002
As grassroots efforts to affirm and uphold the constitution continue to rise as a counter to the prevalent disregard and outright defiance of that cornerstone of our polity, a glaring inconsistency on the part of the two highest-elected officials within the Presbyterian Church (USA) threatens its viability.
Moderator Jack Rogers and Stated Clerk Clifton Kirkpatrick, while being careful to pay lip service to the letter of that standard by which all Presbyterians agree to be governed, are using the bully pulpit of their offices to advocate actions that violate its spirit and, what is worse, send mixed messages to middle-governing bodies and individual Presbyterians – all the time bemoaning what Kirkpatrick calls the “fragile times in the life of the Presbyterian Church (USA).”
In the wake of the overwhelming defeat of Amendment 01-A (the third time by increasingly wider margins that Presbyterians have voted to uphold the Biblical and historical standards of conduct for church officers), Rogers and Kirkpatrick dutifully sent a letter to the church saying, “Those called to office in the church and all ordaining bodies are responsible to uphold this provision for ministers, elders and deacons.”
This is window dressing that camouflages their attempts to undermine the constitution.In speeches across the country, Rogers, for example, continues to advocate for the elimination of the “fidelity/chastity” standard. As an officer of the General Assembly whose duty it is to “support the decisions, actions and programs” of that assembly, Rogers is promulgating an action that stands in stark contrast to the will of the majority of Presbyterians. As such, it may appear to encourage defiance, not compliance.
Kirkpatrick convened a conference on “The Role of the Constitution in the Life of the Church” in which he advocated gutting the Book of Order and writing one that is long on principles and short on specifics – and calling for local option as an enforcement device.
Is that a prescription to “preserve and defend the Constitution of the Presbyterian Church (USA), and support the decisions, actions, and programs of the General Assembly,” which is the duty of the stated clerk?
What is at stake here is the viability of the constitution and, with it, the peace, unity and purity of the church that Rogers and Kirkpatrick continually talk about, but seem to disregard in their actions – leading, inevitably, to today’s “fragile times in the life of the Presbyterian Church (USA).”