W. Va. Presbytery votes no after limited debate on ‘O’
By John H. Adams, The Layman Online, December 5, 2000
SCOTT DEPOT, W.Va. – With some congregations located more than five hours away via perilous mountain roads, the West Virginia Presbytery meeting in Scott Depot on Dec. 1 was a contest determined by who could get there.
The day belonged to the ministers and elders who opposed the constitutional amendment to prohibit Presbyterian Church (USA) ministers from conducting same-sex unions.
The vote against Amendment 00-O was 77-87. The presbytery has 150 congregations, median size 50 members, and the total vote was about half of what would have turned out if there had been 100 percent representation from all congregations.
But that’s the way it usually goes in West Virginia. The conservative voice from the back-mountain congregations, many in depressed coal-mining areas, is rarely heard at presbytery because of the time and costs required for commissioners to attend. Furthermore, a large number of the tiny congregations have no minister, or share one, and there’s little preparation for consideration of constitutional amendments.
The West Virginia Presbytery’s vote on Amendment 00-O followed the same pattern as its previous vote on a related issue. In 1997, the presbytery voted 86-97 against Amendment B, which eventually became the constitutional “fidelity/chastity” standard for ordination.
As of Dec. 5, West Virginia was the 14th presbytery to vote on same-gender union amendment. Eleven have voted no. Three have voted yes. But all of the votes are the same as they were in 1997, when Amendment B was approved 98-75. Most of the PCUSA’s 173 presbyteries will vote during the early months of 2001.
At the meeting on Dec. 1, there were repeated pleas from Amendment 00-O proponents for lay people to speak out on the issue. A few did, but the debate was dominated by preachers, with most opposed to the amendment. Even before the debate began, one minister, Dexter Taylor of Stone Presbyterian Church, proposed that the presbytery vote against all 17 amendments – even a technical adjustment required for the denomination to conform to a change in the tax code.
Taylor’s rationale for his motion was that the Book of Order has become cluttered and legalistic, and before any more amendments are added it needs to be pared down. There was more debate on that issue than on Amendment 00-O, but it failed 60-100.
While the debate on Amendment 00-O was relatively brief – about 30 minutes – there were some pointed remarks.
James WaltherThe Rev. James Walther of St. Andrew Presbyterian Church in Elkview, an opponent of Amendment 00-O, put the issue in perspective. He said a decision on the amendment would not make the denomination’s long and grueling debate over homosexual issues go away.
He predicted overtures before the 2001 General Assembly that will raise the possibility of a split in the denomination. Walter said the overriding issue is “interpretation of Scripture” and that he did not see any common ground for liberals and evangelicals.
One of the few elders to speak was Raymond Bonwell, who said the denomination needs to send a “clear and unequivocal statement” against same-sex unions. “We have a singular and unique opportunity to declare what we believe in.”
The Rev. Philip Graber of Ronceverte Presbyterian Church took issue with ministers who said they should have the right to conduct services of blessing for homosexual couples. “The greatest compassion Jesus gave was not his blessing, but his forgiveness,” Graber said.
Max PerrowMax Perrow, a retired minister, argued against the amendment by citing statistics – some of which have been widely disputed by researchers. Saying “we need more light and less heat on the subject,” Perrow claimed that “some 8 to 10 percent of our population are gay” and that one’s sexuality is genetic, not a choice.
“We know so much more about it than [the apostle] Paul,” Perrow said.
Doris ShieldsDoris Shields, an elder, appealed to the authority of the Bible for understanding. “Before we had a Book of Order, we had the Bible. You can try to rationalize anything you want to. But you have to look at it and say what does the Scripture say.” She said the Scripture clearly says homosexual conduct is a sin.
But the Rev. William H. Dent Jr. of Salem Presbyterian Church said Scripture gives alternatives. He said that when the disciples were picking grain on the sabbath, they were violating God’s law. “But Jesus said they should not be criticized for that,” Dent said. “We need that same viewpoint.”
David BowerThe Rev. David Bower of Philippi Presbyterian Church, who supported the amendment, quoted Jesus in another context: “Jesus said to the woman in adultery, ‘Go and sin no more.’ And he said, ‘I have not come to abolish the law, but to fulfill it.'”