Consensus decision-making urged in Cincinnati vote on proposed overtures
The Layman Online, January 13, 2006
The moderator and vice moderator of the Presbytery of Cincinnati, following the lead of the Theological Task Force on Peace, Unity and Purity, are urging their members to follow a consensus decision-making model for their Jan. 14 meeting.
The presbytery will consider two overtures to the 217th General Assembly – one that seeks to ban any amendments to the fidelity/chastity clause (G-6.0106b) in the Book of Order prior to 2018, and another that seeks to amend the 1978 Authoritative Interpretation “Homosexuality and the Church” by deleting statements about “homosexuality and homosexuals that are considered by some to be offensive.”
In a letter, Moderator Becky Lindsay and Vice-Moderator Erwin Goedicke say that it is their hope that the presbytery “can preserve the trust that we have built and learn to respect and care for each other even while discussing controversial issues. To that end, we plan to model a different way to handle the overtures that are before us at the January meeting. The model that we plan to follow will include a time for sharing information about the overtures by the churches presenting them and by the Ecclesiastical Affairs Committee; time for corporate prayer and personal reflection; small group reflection and listening using a process called mutual invitation; formal discussion and voting on the overtures.”
The letter states that, “By spending time in small groups, everyone present will have an opportunity to express his or her thoughts, hopes, fears and opinions about the two overtures. Those who wish to speak to the whole assembly will have that opportunity during the formal floor discussion. Those who do not wish to speak can participate by praying silently. We hope that this approach to our deliberations will lead us away from the kind of debate that tends to produce winners and losers and toward discernment that will help us to uncover God’s will in our midst.”
The letter cites the final report of the task force, which “calls for the church to learn and use processes of communal spiritual discernment, especially when dealing with controversial issues.”
The letter ends by urging members to read a paper titled “Discernment and Decision-Making,” which advocates the consensus model over Robert’s Rules of Order. It was written by Rev. Vicky Curtiss, a pastor from Portland, Ore., and a member of the task force.