While ministers go public on constitutional violations,
By John H. Adams, The Layman Online, August 8, 2002
While two Cincinnati ministers accused of renouncing the jurisdiction of Presbyterian Church (USA) continue a high-profile campaign to win sympathy for their violations of the denomination’s constitution, the presbytery scheduled to settle the case has urged the complainant to remain silent.
“We respectfully request that this matter not be made a public issue, and that you not publicize any more information about the complaint,” the presbytery’s investigating committee said in a letter to Paul Rolf Jensen, the Reston, Va., lawyer who filed charges against A. Stephen Van Kuiken and Harold Porter of Mount Auburn Church.
“Only a blind man would suppose that there is anything confidential about this case,” said Jensen in a letter of response. Copies of Jensen’s letter were mailed to The Layman, the Presbyterian Outlook and the Presbyterian News Service. At the request of a reporter, Jensen faxed a copy of the presbytery’s letter to The Layman Online.
Jensen filed charges against Porter and Van Kuiken after both signed – and directed to the attention of Stated Clerk Clifton Kirkpatrick – public statements declaring that they have defied and will continue to defy the constitutional standards of the Presbyterian Church (USA).
More recently, Van Kuiken publicly underscored that defiance in an open letter to the Presbyterian Church (USA) – and acknowledged point by point that he was guilty of the charges Jensen had made.
Furthermore, on the floor of the 214th General Assembly, to which he was a commissioner, Van Kuiken repeatedly asserted that his church continues to ordain self-affirming, practicing homosexuals and conduct “marriage” services for same-gender couples.
Church law requires single candidates for ministers, elders and deacons to be chaste and married candidates to remain faithful to their partners. It also prohibits ministers from conducting “marriage” ceremonies for same-gender couples or endorsing homosexual activity.
Despite Van Kuiken’s public comments, the presbytery’s letter on August 5 to Jensen noted that the investigating committee had “not publicly named the accused or the nature of the offense. We are taking seriously the matter of confidentiality, and we are not discussing this matter outside our meetings.”
Contacted by The Layman, Jensen said he believed it was disingenuous to ask him to exercise confidentiality while Van Kuiken has undertaken a public campaign to convince Presbyterians that he should be allowed to defy the constitution with impunity – because his “conscience” demands that.
In his August 8 letter of response to the presbytery, Jensen said, “The day before your letter was posted to me, the Layman Online ran an article (with no input or comment from me) which I enclose for your convenient reference. It publicizes a so-called ‘Open Letter to the PCUSA’ from Mr. Van Kuiken dated July 25, in which Mr. Van Kuiken admits every single one of the accusations made against him and reaffirms his defiance.
“Given the fact that your presbytery elected Mr. Van Kuiken to be a commissioner to the recent General Assembly and that there were numerous overtures and commissioner’s resolutions (most unsucessful, like the one offered by Mr. Van Kuiken) dealing with these issues, it occurs to me that your request to preserve ‘confidentiality’ is more than a little disingenuous.”
The investigating committee also asked Jensen to prepare to meet with it, and he responded, “I would be delighted to come to Cincinnati to testify personally in this matter, which is appropriate given the Investigating Committee’s duty under D-10.0202b to seek and obtain testimony from all available witnesses.”
However, Jensen closed his letter by noting, “In light of Mr. Van Kuiken’s unequivocal admission of the accusations, I submit the Investigating Committee need inquire no further, and should immediately report to the Presbytery under D-10.0202h that it will file charges.”