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Highlights of the 183rd General Assembly, Rochester, N.Y., May 17-26, 1971, side 2.
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- speakerMany commissioners were not prepared for what followed. Many of them,
- speakerliving in all white congregations in north east and west, had overlooked the simple
- speakertruth that such a union would merge some presbyteries in the south,
- speakerand that they were more than northern and southern Presbyterians. They were
- speakerneighbors, but they were also black and white.
- speakerI would offer a substitute motion. I.
- speakerI move as a substitute motion the action on the report of the
- speakerjoint committee of 24 be postponed until
- speaker1975. And that during the intervening period,
- speakerextensive negotiations be carried on between the Joint Committee on
- speaker24 and the Second Cumberland of the Presbyterian Church,
- speakerthe African Methodist Episcopal Church, the African Methodist
- speakerEpiscopal Zion Church, and the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church
- speakerlooking toward the possibility of more comprehensive and effective
- speakerplans for a united church. Madame Moderator
- speakerand members of the General Assembly, I'm the spokesman
- speakerfor black Presbyterians throughout this church.
- speakerAnd, we are opposed at this time to this plan
- speakerof merger for the following reasons.
- speakerThe merger to us overlooks the need for highlighting black
- speakersolidarity at a time when this is uppermost on the
- speakeragenda of black churchmen. This merger would
- speakerweaken the black impact and respective denominations
- speakerand dilute it in the united church. We are convinced that
- speakerblack churchmen have much to contribute to the church.
- speakerThis church has moved in the direction in the last few years
- speakerof recognizing the gifts of black churchmen. This
- speakerplan, if accepted, provides for an numerical
- speakersuperiority by those who have traditionally
- speakeropposed what black people have tried to achieve and also
- speakerpositions for which this church has stood.
- speakerWe feel that this merger is being pursued for the wrong reason.
- speakerEmphasis should be focused on clarity of mission rather than
- speakermanipulation of structure. Speaking the truth in
- speakerlove, we would remind our white brethren that,
- speakeralthough the oneness of the church across every cleavage of
- speakerrace color or class is still the highest Christian
- speakerideal, we have no confidence that oneness can be
- speakerachieved simply by structural merger or by one
- speakerway integration. Historically, neither the
- speakernorthern or southern branches of Presbyterianism have been able to
- speakerpurge their churches of powerful vestiges of white
- speakerracism in both pulpit and pew.
- speakerToken racial integration in both church and society has
- speakerserved to obscure the true nature of pluralistic democracy.
- speakerAnd short circuited the possibility that black Christians could
- speakermake as much progress in predominantly white denominations
- speakeras in their own black denominations. We believe that we, as
- speakerblack Presbyterians, have a significant and historic
- speakercontribution to make to the richness of the Church of Jesus Christ.
- speakerBut it cannot be done in the context of neglect, repression, and
- speakerracism. Today, black Presbyterians demand
- speakersafeguards and guarantees that this context will not obtain
- speakerin any proposed United Church. We must have
- speakerrequisite power and resources to strengthen and enlarge our ministry of
- speakerliberation to the oppressed black people of America's rural s
- speakerlums and urban ghettos. The empowering and
- speakercompensatory provisions we demand in this document can make such
- speakera ministry possible, even in a predominantly white church and will
- speakerprovide greater protection to the freedom and dignity of black Presbyterians
- speakerin the years ahead. Thank you, Madam Moderator. Thank
- speakeryou. And, is there someone else?
- speakerA compromise was made. Instead of delaying until
- speaker1975 the plan would be studied for two years
- speakerand COEMAR was requested to make overtures to the churches
- speakermentioned. There's one more area of ecumenical relations
- speakerneither Council nor union, called the World Alliance of Reformed
- speakerChurches. The newly elected stated clerk William Phelps Thompson,
- speakeras President of this body, representing some 55 million people in the world. A
- speakerfraternal delegate from one of the oldest of these bodies addressed the house. And we
- speakerincluded his remarks. Those of the Reverend Michel Wagner because of what he
- speakerhad to say. Many commissioners did not hear it because of his accent. Madame Moderator. Friends.
- speakerSome time American Presbyterians come to France to make investigation
- speakerabout their Huguenot ancestors. This time it is my
- speakerprivilege to bring you some news from overseas cousins.
- speakerAnd I think good news. As a nation
- speakerwhat has happened to us French? We were
- speakerpowerful. We were an empire. We have lost our
- speakerempire. We have lost our power.
- speakerWe have lost the war in Vietnam.
- speakerWe have lost the war in Algeria. We have tried to comfort us
- speakerby keeping our economic domination on our former colonies
- speakerbut they are getting rid of us like Algeria with oil.
- speakerAnd, as a Christian I am grateful for that.
- speakerEven if it has not been always easy to leave. I am
- speakergrateful.
- speakerBecause we are becoming liberated of most of alienations. We
- speakerwere colonialists, aggressors, racists.
- speakerAnd we are becoming just what we are
- speakera small nation. And I feel much honored to be
- speakerintroduced to you as the last representative of the Third World.
- speakerAs a church. What has happened to us? After the end
- speakerof the 16th century persecutions, we were absolutely persuaded we were
- speakerthe true church with the real knowledge of the word of God and that even if
- speakerwe were less than one percent of the French population, it was our call to
- speakerstand against the Roman Catholic Church. But it just so
- speakerhappened that since the Council of Vatican 2 it is obvious, at
- speakerleast in France, that the Roman Catholic Church is going through a deep
- speakerReformation, making some of us jealous.
- speakerThis is why we are now discovering along with our Catholic friends
- speakerand increasing cooperation with them that Christians are a
- speakersmall minority in a secularized nation. We
- speakerare losing with them and like them power,
- speakermoney, membership, good reputation among the right thinking
- speakerbourgeoisie. We are discovering that poverty, lack of
- speakeraudience, proximity with the poor, insecurity are
- speakerthe normal condition of the church. And that, in
- speakerthis condition, never have we been given so many
- speakeropportunities to speak, not only to speak, but to live
- speakerthe gospel.
- speakerIn fact it didn't happen by chance that Jesus as simple as assume the
- speakernature of a slave, accepting death and death on a cross.
- speakerOnly can you preach the gospel when you are in the situation of
- speakerdependence. Domination paternalism racism
- speakeraggression are absolute obstacles to any mission of the
- speakerchurch. This has been our painful discovery
- speakerand is now our joyful and convinced witness.
- speakerThis is why I bring you good news. Two weeks in your country have made
- speakerme aware of some of the problems you are now facing:
- speakerpollution, violence, Vietnam, racism,
- speakerdrugs, recession. Don't be afraid, brothers!
- speakerDon't trust in your power. Be prepared to
- speakerlose power, money, membership, good
- speakerconsideration. Be prepared to lose the war.
- speakerYou are winning
- speakeryour liberation and your redemption. The
- speakerpossibility for a poor minority church, powerless to live
- speakerand to preach the gospel.
- speakerFrench people are fluent in languages that you can see. But there is one of your hymns that
- speakeralmost every young French including my youngest daughter who is seven, is
- speakerable to sing from the first to the last verse. This is "W
- speakere Shall Overcome Someday." When
- speakerMartin Luther King came to Paris some years ago. There were more
- speakerpeople to listen to him than when the Beatles came.
- speakerAnd, he brought to us your witness. Simard
- speakeras you know is sent in France by the churches to leave concrete solidarity with the
- speakerrefugees migrant workers and the oppressed
- speakeramong them and with them. We feel this fresh wind coming
- speakerfrom the mountains of Latin America. Although the prisons of South Africa, Portugal,
- speakerour slums and down to the rice field of Laos and Cambodia
- speaker. This wind carries somewhat.
- speakerOf this whole song by your old negro
- speakerspirituals. They will overcome someday.
- speakerMadam moderator. It is my
- speakerprayer that you and my church and
- speakerthat this General Assembly will help courageously
- speakerthis day to come, so that when we can't wait, it
- speakerwill come. We will share this feast with
- speakerall the poor of the world and among them
- speakerwith the Lord. Thank you, Mr. Wagner. It
- speakerseems inevitable that some form of greater cooperation if not union
- speakerwill take place in the future of Protestantism. If compelled by nothing
- speakermore than stewardship something of value must inevitably come of the
- speakerconsiderable time, effort, and prayer devoted to this quest.
- speakerBut we began the highlights with two themes and the other one was woman.
- speakerIf this was or is the year of the woman it is only the first year. And, the women
- speakerwho have been with us from the beginning of time will play a more active role in the life of the church's
- speakerfuture than they have in the past. This fact of church life well spelled out by the
- speakerTask Force on women. Number one: On sessions.
- speakerFourth paragraph down.
- speakerEvery congregation shall elect persons from among its members in full communion
- speakerin ratio consistent with both the male and female constituency of that
- speakercongregation to the office of ruling elder and to the office of Deacon
- speakeror either of them in the mode most-approved and in use in that
- speakercongregation subject to the following provision to wit. And this
- speakeris number five in parenthesis. A particular church may be exempted from one or
- speakermore of the above requirements in the discretion of the Presbytery by a three fourths vote and so on.
- speakerI think I would like to move just E-1, so that you
- speakercan deal with that. I'm Mrs. Edwards, Presbytery of New Brunswick. And,
- speakerI would move an amendment to the part of one,
- speakerin relationship to the ratio consistent with both male and female. And
- speakerI would move that that portion underlined be replaced by
- speaker"giving attention to fair representation of both the male and
- speakerfemale constituency of that congregation." And, if it is seconded, I would ask to speak
- speakerto it. Sir.
- speakerIt is seconded You may speak. Thank you. I'd like to state first that I'm
- speakerin sympathy with the basic position of the Standing Committee on women. But
- speakerI am also concerned that the response of the presbytery to the overtures which they
- speakerhave outlined, be positive.
- speakerAnd I am afraid that any overture that is sent down based on ratio will be
- speakeranswered in the negative and therefore defeat the intent of the Standing Committee on Women.
- speakerI also feel personally that the ratio between male and
- speakerfemale may not reflect the true number of members eligible and
- speakerable to serve on a church's board. Especially in churches where there
- speakeris a large membership 55 and over, which many of us face, the
- speakernumber of women in that age bracket consider it can seriously affect the
- speakerratio between men and women in that congregation. And, that these women are
- speakervery often unable to serve.
- speakerThank you. Now we have an amendment before us. Are there others who wish to speak
- speakerto it. This is. The Stated Clerk [Thompson, William Phelps] tells me that this is in
- speakersubstitution for the first four words that are
- speakerunderscored "in ratio consistent with," to read as
- speakerfollows, "Giving attention to fair representation of
- speakerboth the male and female constituency of that congregation."
- speakerWhile it that a full sentence. The
- speakersentence that I read really is a substitute for the
- speakersentence that is underscored although the latter half of it is the same. Now
- speakerif you favor substituting this for what is in the
- speakertext of the committee, give consent by saying, "Aye."
- speakerIf you oppose it, say, "No." it is carried.
- speakerThe women asked for 50 percent. They were in effect asking for only 25
- speakerpercent because half of all of our structure is clerical, and not
- speakermany women are among the clergy. And, half of the laity is only
- speaker25 percent of our representation. In all cases, where 50
- speakerpercent had been asked, the words fair share were inserted. And with this
- speakermodification most of what the women had asked for was granted. It
- speakerwasn't until the last item was moved that the voting changed. The
- speakerlast two items. In terms
- speakerof the resources
- speakerneeded to continue this work,
- speakerone is a budget request for $35,000. And, two is a
- speakerrequest for the dissemination of and
- speakerreleases on the total report of the Standing Committee on Women.
- speakerMay I ask Madam Chairman if item I-A has been before the General Counsel?
- speakerNo it has not. It has not. It will
- speakerautomatically be referred then.
- speakerWe will now vote on Item I.
- speakerDo you have any objection, Madam Chairman, to our taking the two of them together?
- speakerOr did you want. No, that is fine. Items I, A and B.
- speakerThose favoring their adoption indicate by saying aye.
- speakerContrary, "No."
- speakerLet's see a showing of hands. Those who favor the adoption, raise your hand.
- speakerThank you. Now those opposed.
- speakerI'm afraid I'll have to have a count again.
- speakerWill those favoring please rise.
- speakerAnd, other than commissioners who are on the floor, please clear the floor
- speakerat this time, so there's no mistake in the count. It's lost. The
- speakercount is two hundred and
- speakerninety eight, Yes. Three hundred and twenty four,
- speakerNo. The item is lost.
- speakerSome will say it was male chauvinism. Others that it was
- speakerfemale arrogance or lack of humility. Still others that the work of the
- speakertask force was substantially accomplished and the vote an act of stewardship. In
- speakerany event the women had turned a corner that Susan B Anthony of
- speakerRochester New York had not quite reached. If these were not the
- speakerhighlights of the General Assembly, we apologize. But ecumenics and women
- speakerare two subjects that will affect the life of sessions for several years.
- speakerThere were other actions taken by the Assembly, important actions, on more
- speakertemporary or controversial themes. The reorganization of the
- speakerchurch's boards and agencies, which was approved. The fund for Self-Development
- speakerwhich was approved, the statement on Vietnam and the rest of the
- speakerChurch and Society report. The actions taken and the
- speakeramended statements can be found in print and reported by your commissioners to
- speakerpresbytery. We have deliberately sought to avoid that which tends to
- speakeroccur at an assembly and to stress that which will be a part of
- speakerthe lives of sessions and presbyteries in the future.
