Mid-Tenn. Presbytery votes against repealing G-6.0106b
The Layman Online, January 23, 2006
The Presbytery of Middle Tennessee, during a special session to consider an overture that sought the repeal of the constitutional prohibition against ordaining practicing homosexuals in the Presbyterian Church (USA), voted overwhelmingly against the proposal.
The vote, taken after debate during a meeting on Jan. 19, was the presbytery’s strongest affirmation yet of G-6.0106b, the “fidelity/chastity” standard in the Book of Order. The vote was 124-65, with 65.8 percent of the ministers and elders favoring retaining the standard.
The proponents of repeal had hoped that Middle Tennessee would join 18 other presbyteries that had already submitted overtures to the 217th General Assembly. All but one of the overtures favored repealing G-6.0106b and the current General Assembly Authoritative Interpretation, which dated back to 1978, before G-6.0106b was added to the Book of Order in 1997. The one overture proposed major changes to the Authoritative Interpretation to eliminate any language deemed “unfriendly” to homosexuals, including the conclusion that homosexual behavior is sinful.
Previous votes in Middle Tennessee on the issue were closer than the Jan. 19 tally.
In 1997, only 38.1 percent of the commissioners voted in favor of adding G-6.0106b to the Book of Order. But the votes on affirming the constitutional standard rose to 55.2 percent in the 1998 national referendum and 55.4 percent in 2001.
The outcomes from 1997 to 2006 show a substantial change – from nearly two-thirds of the presbytery’s commissioners opposing the prohibition against ordaining practicing homosexuals to nearly two-thirds favoring it.
Sponsors of the proposed overture succeeded – over the objections of the supporters of the constitutional standard – in having the meeting on a Thursday, which normally reduces the turnout of elders. But the supporters of the standard made a concerted effort to boost attendance by elders.
Attempts to delay the vote in lieu of the turnout of elders were defeated. According to denominational polls – the latest in 2002 – 64 percent of the elders support G-6.0106b and 51 percent of ministers serving congregations favor the policy. But 72 percent of the “specialized clergy” – ordained ministers who do not serve congregations or church bodies – oppose the standard. The Presbytery of Middle Tennessee has a large number of specialized clergy who are employed at Vanderbilt University and other institutions.