PCUSA presbyteries continue voting on
‘fidelity/chastity’ ordination requirement
The Layman (updated 1/27/09), January 27, 2009
Presbyteries are continuing to follow the voting patterns of past years when considering amendment 08-b, the latest attempt to eliminate the “fidelity/chastity” ordination requirement (G-6.0106b) from the Book of Order of the Presbyterian Church (USA).
Three presbyteries held votes on Saturday and one Thursday evening to bring the grand total to 16-7 against changing the Book of Order.
As it did in 2000-2001, Baltimore Presbytery voted Thursday in favor of the amendment to change G-6.0106b to read:
“Those who are called to ordained service in the church, by their assent to the constitutional questions for ordination and installation (W-4.4003), pledge themselves to live lives obedient to Jesus Christ the Head of the Church, striving to follow where He leads through the witness of the Scriptures, and to understand the Scriptures through the instruction of the Confessions. In so doing, they declare their fidelity to the standards of the Church. Each governing body charged with examination for ordination and/or installation (G-14.0240 and G-14.0450) establishes the candidate’s sincere efforts to adhere to these standards.”According to James D. Berkley, a longtime commentator on Presbyterian issues, approving the new words for G-6 would allow presbyteries to ordain anyone they want to. He said that pro gay ordination advocates were pushing for approval to the amendment to “try to substitute for unwanted constitutional language innocuous-sounding language that would actually allow one to ordain whomever one wants. Perhaps a sly, subtle constitutional amendment can smuggle the change past unsuspecting Presbyterians.”
In the 2000-2001 vote to delete the fidelity-chastity ordination clause in the Book of Order, Baltimore Presbytery voted 106-56 to delete the requirement. This year the presbytery vote was 78-25 in favor of changing the requirement.
Other presbyteries voting on Saturday to change the current words of G-6.0106b, included:
- Albany Presbytery, 78-26. In 2000-01 it voted 74-28 to delete the fidelity-chastity ordination clause.
- New Castle Presbytery, 82-48. In 2000-01 it voted 65-55 to delete the fidelity-chastity ordination clause.
On the other side of the issue, two presbyteries voted Saturday to keep the fidelity-chastity ordination clause as it is in the Book of Order. They were:
- Lackawanna Presbytery, 40-30. In 2000-01, the presbytery voted 49-26 to keep the clause in the church’s constitution.
- Eastern Virginia Presbytery, 80-72. In 2000-01, the presbytery voted 98-70 to keep the clause in the church’s constitution.