Toward a Church as Generous & Just as God's Grace
The Rev. Nancy Hutchison Enderle served the Covenant Network of Presbyterians as Interim Executive Director in 2011-12. As she prepared to conclude her service, Nancy shared her reflections at the Commissioners Convocation Dinner the night before the 220th General Assembly (2012) convened in Pittsburgh:
I’d like to start these comments with the tale of two ordinations….
A sermon on Micah 6:6-8 by Randy Bush: “Once the evangelical commotion of the modern church is turned down for a moment, the wisdom of other people of faith can be heard again. Mahatma Gandhi once said: I told the missionaries to refrain from telling India about Christ and merely live the life set before them by the Sermon on the Mount. India then, instead of suspecting them, would have appreciated and directly profited from their presence. Malcolm X once said: Don’t condemn a person who has a dirty glass of water. Just show them the clean glass of water that you have. When they inspect it, you won’t have to say that yours is better.”
“I speak of imagination because I believe there is a movement afoot in our world. A movement for civil rights? Well yes, that’s a big part of the story. A justice movement to address ancient prejudices and right ancient wrongs? Well, of course. But there is a deeper, wider, larger movement that permeates these smaller ones. The movement of God, the One who has gone way out in front of us in the church on a mission to heal, and to reconcile, and to restore all of creation, the One whose gracious hand is visibly evident, I believe, in all of these unimaginables we are now experiencing, signs of the nearness of God’s reign.”
For many years, votes on ordination standards have been a focal point for General Assemblies. We are gratified that, this year, the progress accomplished through Amendment 10-A has been strongly ratified with little drama. We are grateful for the pastoral statement issued by the 220th GA, which reminds the church that Presbyterians hold different views of Scriptural [...]
Remarks by National Organizer Tricia Dykers Koenig to the Covenant Network Luncheon, Monday, July 2, 2012: No turning back!
Removing G-6.0106b and other impediments to the ordained service of LGBT Presbyterians, and upholding the unity of the church: from our founding in 1997, these two goals have been the focus of the Covenant Network of Presbyterians, and these two goals will again guide our approach to the issues being considered by the 220th General [...]
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