Corrected version of previous story
By John H. Adams, The Layman Online, May 18, 2005
The Layman Online published a story on May 17 that erroneously said four members of the Presbytery of the Pacific’s administrative commission that has assumed oversight for Hollywood Presbyterian Church are in congregations affiliated with More Light Presbyterians (MLP).
MLP, an organization committed to the repeal of the “fidelity/chastity” ordination clause in the constitution of the Presbyterian Church (USA) lists three of the congregations as its allies – but not as members. The three are identified as allied because they are “hosting” churches for gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgendered people.
The Layman Online incorrectly said commission member Judith Cuthbertson is the pastor of a More Light Church, St. Marks Presbyterian in Lomita, Calif. But St. Marks Presbyterian is not on the More Light list in any category. St. Marks Presbyterian Church in Newport Beach, Calif., is identified as a More Light Church on the organization’s list, but the congregations are not related.
Cuthbertson is a member of the Southern California Ecumenical Council, an organization made up of Christians, Baha’is, Buddhists, Christian Scientists, Moslems, Jews, Sikhs, adherents of the Church of Religious Science.
Two of the members of the administrative commission – elder Tony de la Rosa and the associate pastor Catherine Hughes – are at Immanuel Presbyterian Church in Los Angeles. The More Light list describes Immanuel as a “hosting” church, not as a member. Immanuel’s Web site does provide a link to More Light Presbyterians and de la Rosa is a former president of Presbyterians for Lesbian and Gay Concerns, the organization that eventually merged into More Light Presbyterians.
Westwood Presbyterian Church in Los Angeles, where commission member Earl Ellis is an elder, was also described incorrectly as a More Light Presbyterian Church. But the More Light list says Westwood is a “hosting” church.
De la Rosa, a Los Angeles lawyer, has also served as a member of the Witherspoon Society, an organization that has worked with More Light Presbyterians, the Covenant Network and That All Might Freely Serve to repeal the ordination standard.
In 1996, de la Rosa led a demonstration against commissioners to the General Assembly after they voted in favor of the proposed constitutional standard and submitted it to the presbyteries for final action. The demonstrators carried a wooden cross to the front of the podium and hammered nails into it as a symbol of the persecution of homosexuals.
De la Rosa also served as chairman of the Litigation Committee that advises PCUSA Stated Clerk Clifton Kirkpatrick on whether to file amicus curiae briefs in civil litigation. It was de la Rosa who served notice on Meenan and Manock after the presbytery meeting on May 3 that they were placed on immediate leave and that they had to clean out their offices and turn in their keys in less than 12 hours. The pastors were also instructed not to speak to any members of the congregation, staff or the session.
Another member of the commission is the Rev. Dr. Charles G. Robertson Jr., the president of the Wilshire Center Interfaith Council. Robertson’s organization includes a number of Christian groups, both Catholic and Protestant, as well as the International Buddhist Meditation Center, the Islamic Center of Southern California, and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Robertson led an interfaith worship service on on May 10, when the presbytery voted to affirm its previous action establishing the administrative commission and the commission’s order that Meenan and Manock go on administrative leave.
The service included readings from Scripture and the Koran. The Islamic text, Surah 30:37-38, said: “When we give men the taste of a good thing they rejoice in it, but when evil befalls them through their own fault, they grow despondent. Do they not see that God gives abundantly to whom He will and sparingly to whom He pleases? Surely there are signs in this for true believers. Therefore give their due to the next of kin, to the destitute, and to the traveler in need. That is best for those that strive to please God; such men will surely prosper.”
Then a prayer was read: “O Lord, you are the one God to be worshipped by all peoples, the one called Allah by your Muslim children, descendants of Abraham and Hagar. Give us grace to hear your truth in the teachings of Mohammed, the prophet….”
The other two members of the commission are Sharon Browning, an elder at Brentwood Presbyterian Church, and Robert Erbacker, an elder at First Presbyterian in San Pedro.
While not formally allied with organizations promoting the ordination of homosexuals, Brentwood describes itself as a “welcoming” congregation. On Oct. 10, 2004, its pastor, Dr. Stephen Lien, preached a sermon titled “How to Be a Believer without Being a Bigot,” in which he noted that Brentwood’s values included “Acceptance and Inclusiveness that welcomes all people and calls us to act lovingly and without judgment toward everyone.”
In that sermon, Lien used film clips of the Archie Bunker TV character to lampoon bigotry of all sorts and said, “Male, female, Jew, Gentile, slave, free, black, white, gay, straight, Democrat, Republican – we are all one and our core value is one of acceptance and inclusiveness that welcomes all people and causes us to act lovingly and without judgment to everybody.”