Assembly approves, reins in campus women’s group
By John H. Adams, The Layman Online, June 25, 1999
FORT WORTH – With the help of former General Assembly Moderator Douglas W. Oldenburg, the National Network of Presbyterian College Women has won a stay of execution and twice as much money to spend.
“They are my friends and our daughters,” Oldenburg told the Assembly. “Though at times they have had a lovers’ quarrel with the Church, … surely the Church is broad enough and strong enough to embrace these young women.”
The “lovers’ quarrel” included Network material with theological positions that had been repudiated by previous General Assemblies. The Network even operated a web site on the Presbyterian Church (USA) that helped direct users toward other sites promoting homosexuality in graphic detail.
Network’s resources
The Network was briefly shut down by the 210th General Assembly because commissioners concluded that its resources espoused ReImagining God theology, same-gender sex, pre-marital sex and defiance of the “fidelity/chastity” clause in the PCUSA Constitution.
Nonetheless, convinced by Oldenburg, other members of the task force and members of the General Assembly’s Mission Coordination Committee that the Network has cleaned up its act, the 1999 commissioners voted 344-178-16 Friday afternoon to continue PCUSA sponsorship of the campus organization.
Budget increased to $96,000
That vote also increased the annual budget of the Network to $96,000.
While the vote established theological and administrative oversight for the Network, the General Assembly came within a smidgen of setting a precedent. It turned down, by a vote of 283-244, an amendment that would have required annual reviews by three consecutive General Assemblies to ensure that the Network was conforming to the denomination’s biblical and confessional standards. No other agency of the denomination has had to pass General Assembly scrutiny for three consecutive years.
The close vote on the amendment underscored the perception of many commissioners, that the Network had merely undergone a cosmetic change. “It does not, has not and will not represent the polity of the PCUSA,” warned Will Adams of the San Diego Presbytery during floor debate.
Instead of General Assembly oversight, the commissioners voted to direct the Women’s Ministry program area and representatives of the Evangelism, Justice and Partnership subcommittees of the National Ministries Division to conduct the annual reviews.
If the Network passes muster for three straight years, it will undergo less stringent reviews. The commissioners also ordered that the Network’s primary publication, titled Young Women Speak, not be reprinted or used before new material is prepared. That preparation must include theological help from “a Reformed theologian, a biblical scholar and a specialist in curriculum development.”
Young Women Speak, which the Network had on display at its booth during the General Assembly, has been roundly criticized. It includes questions such as “How do you know you wouldn’t rather have a good gay lover” and suggested prayers to “Christa … our primeval mother.”
Assurance from Oldenburg
But Oldenburg and other supporters of the Network tried to assure commissioners that those dalliances beyond the boundaries of historic Presbyterian doctrine were all in the past – and that the Network was and will be a new creation.
He pointed out that the task force reached a “unanimous consensus” on calling for continued sponsorship of the Network. “We listened very carefully to the critics of the Network,” he said. “Candidly, we found some of the materials to be inconsistent with the policies and theology of the Church.
“We recommended that they cease publishing Young Women Speak …We recommended closer guidance and leadership … We recommended a review process. Now the Church needs to hear their voice.”
Other supporters of Network
Several other supporters of the Network spoke during debate. Amy McCain, a student at Louisville Theological Seminary, said she might have made her decision to enter the ministry 20 years earlier if she had had “such a group of strong, articulate women surrounding me.”
Louise Davidson of the Presbytery of Scioto Valley said the Network had struggled from its beginning in 1990, when it was founded by the General Assembly as the brainchild of Mary Ann Lundy. Lundy is former executive director of the National Women’s Division and the leader in getting $66,000 in Presbyterian funds reallocated to support the 1993 ReImagining God Conference.
“The Network has had little funding,” Davidson said. “Last year, it had more grief than any group needs in a lifetime, yet they have been active in bringing young women to Christ. They’ve had more poking and prodding than a physical.”
Marilyn Washburn of the Presbytery of Greater Atlanta said members of the Network had “spoken with eloquence of their love for Christ. They acknowledged their resource had problems, but part of their problem was that their leadership changed. Let’s give our daughters the support and encouragement they need.”
Loss of support feared
But Charles Blair of the Presbytery of Shenandoah said he feared that approval of the Network would erode support from congregations for the denomination. “If we pass this motion it is going to be seen by many in the church as an endorsement of the wrong type of ministry.”
The Rev. Esther Berg of the Presbytery of Plains and Peaks told the commissioners, “No matter how you vote, people are going to get hurt.” But she reminded commissioners of the General Assembly’s near unanimous decision that the ReImagining God Conference was beyond the boundaries of Christian faith – and of the Network’s agreement with ReImagining theology.
“Our task force has given us a compromise,” Berg said. “They’re asking us to have an a la carte faith” that the Network will now disavow that theology.”
Five no votes in 1998
In 1998, there were three committee votes and two General Assembly votes to end PCUSA sponsorship of the Network. But on the eve of adjournment, Oldenburg allowed Network leaders to conduct a tearful demonstration in front of commissioners. The demonstration was orchestrated with the help of General Assembly staff.
Following the demonstration, commissioners rescinded their previous decision. The next morning, the last day of the 1998 General Assembly, commissioners voted to continue the Network for one year and directed the General Assembly Council to appoint a task force to review the organization.
The Network’s demonstration prompted more than 3,500 readers of The Presbyterian Layman to write that they strongly opposed a moderator’s right to allow a demonstration on the General Assembly floor.
Oldenburg told the Mission Coordination Committee that he met with three representatives of the Network after the General Assembly voted down their organization and that he agreed to allow a demonstration. But he insisted that he did not know that the demonstration would result in a second chance for the Network.