Covenant Network draws criticism from within
By John H. Adams, The Layman Online, June 24, 1999
FORT WORTH – The Covenant Network of Presbyterians, which widely disseminated an executive committee member’s plan for a liberal takeover of the Presbyterian Church (USA), faced a hostile takeover from within its own ranks during an “Open Forum” at the General Assembly.
The forum, held Wednesday, June 23, was intended to give participants an opportunity to “share their pain” because of the PCUSA’s constitutional prohibition against ordaining homosexuals as deacons, elders and ministers.
The participants talked of their pain – and the pain they said they had because the Covenant Network had agreed to a sabbatical and was not lobbying during the 211th General Assembly for overtures to end the prohibition.
Covenant leaders don’t speak
Neither of the Covenant Network’s co-moderators – former General Assembly moderators John Buchanan and Robert Bohl – spoke during the open forum. Buchanan entered the auditorium near the end of the forum and stood in the back.
The leadership duties for the forum were entrusted to incoming co-moderators – the Rev. Deborah Block, pastor of Immanuel Presbyterian Church in Milwaukee, and the Rev. Laird Stuart, pastor of Calvary Presbyterian Church in San Francisco.
Several of the people who spoke at the hearing criticized the Covenant Network for failure to work openly against the constitutional standard, and none spoke in favor of the requirements. They also accused the denomination of hypocrisy, xenophobia, homophobia and misgovernment. They called for more aggressive efforts to overturn the ordination standard and cited examples of methods that could accomplish their goals, including getting more gay and lesbian church members involved in presbyteries.
Spahr sets tone for attack
Jane Spahr, who earlier in the week received a “Women in Faith” award, helped set the tone for an aggressive attack on the ordination standard. Applauded enthusiastically as she rose to speak, Spahr, a self-described “lesbian evangelist,” said, “Don’t wait for the church to act. I’m going to storm this country until you collapse and say yes.”
She said the sabbatical “is killing us. You cannot take a sabbatical on truth or justice. Everybody wants to be on a sabbatical, but Jesus said, ‘If you are lukewarm, honey, you aren’t mine.'”
Officially, the Covenant Network refrained from lobbying for any of the three overtures that would have dismantled G-6.0106.b or made it virtually unenforceable. But many who identified with the Covenant movement did work for the overtures.
Network wins some applause
Although criticized for agreeing to a sabbatical, the Covenant Network did win some applause for its leadership in the battle for ordination of homosexuals. Ken Howe of Detroit said, “Covenant Network needs to do more for us, but we still need Covenant Network to provide a balance for The Presbyterian Layman.”
Many of the comments during the forum were offered as personal examples of what were viewed as conflicts within the Book of Order.
Susan Andrews, a Presbyterian pastor in Bethesda, Md., told of three members of her congregation who were considering being candidates for elder but added that all said they could not support G-6.0106b. Therefore, Andrews said, they asked how could they say at their installation that they supported the constitution of the Presbyterian Church (USA) when they opposed that section.
Andrews said she pointed out to the three candidates that “there is internal disagreement within the Book of Order. I showed them that section that says ‘God alone is Lord of the conscience,’ and all three were then willing to stand up and honor the constitution.” She did not cite the full statement. Following “Lord of the conscience,” the Book of Order says the conscience must be captive to the Word of God.
Job opportunities for gay pastors
Clifton Frasier, who calls himself an evangelist for Presbyterians Welcome – a program of some Presbyterian churches in New York City to recruit homosexuals into the churches – said he sees encouraging signs. Quoting the maxim that “only two things get better when they are walked on, Persian rugs and the Christian Church,” Frasier said a Stamford, Conn., judicial case was an example.
A remedial action was brought against the session of First Presbyterian Church in Stamford to prevent the installation of a homosexual elder. The Permanent Judicial Commission of the Presbytery of Northern New England affirmed the session’s approval of the elder, but the case is now on appeal.
Meanwhile, said Frasier, First Presbyterian has had a financial windfall because of the case – going from a $16,000 budget deficit to a $60,000 surplus in a few months. He also said his own organization, Presbyterians Welcome, had been able to hire a second “evangelist” – lesbian activist Liz Alexander. Alexander had previously transferred her ordination from the PCUSA to the United Church of Christ.
One pastor wants referral service
While Frasier talked about new job prospects for homosexual ministers, the Rev. Martha Muller of Falls Church, Va., had the opposite concern. She said she had tried repeatedly to get her congregation to officially join the ranks of G-6.0106b opponents, but they wouldn’t. Consequently, she said, she is looking for a call to another church. She said the Covenant Network should provide a referral service for More Light ministers, just as Presbyterians for Renewal assists evangelical pastors in pursuing calls.
Jane Stone, a psychologist and seminary student, said some of the psychology of the sabbatical was that Presbvterians were stressed out over the ordination issue. But she said stress could be psychologically beneficial in motivating the campaign to eradicate the prohibition against ordaining homosexuals.
Confessions ridiculed
One speaker, who did not give her name, ridiculed the Book of Confessions. “I am not a psychologist, not a minister, not a lesbian,” she said, “although at times I wish I were all three. But I am a reader and I have read the Book of Confessions. She noted that the Second Helvetic Confession “clearly condemns, harshly, vegetarians.” She won a roar of laughter. “Let us hope a few generations from now that we can laugh about the foolishness” or prohibiting ordination of homosexuals.
Another speaker who did not identify himself declared that the PCUSA had been “out of order for more than 20 years” by excluding homosexuals from ordination. A member of West Hollywood Presbyterian Church, he lamented the AIDS deaths of 120 West Hollywood members over the last few years.
Roger Wilson of the New York City Presbytery told the gathering that acceptance by local churches had been deeply appreciated by him and his male mate. They were joined in a “holy union” in 1983, and the same congregation helped them celebrate their 15th anniversary last year. Furthermore, “a few months later, my partner was elected and installed on the session.”
The crowd applauded.
Covenant Network promotes takeover strategy – May, 21 1999, The Presbyterian Layman