{"id":635,"date":"2009-03-26T04:15:00","date_gmt":"2009-03-26T11:15:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.gajunkie.com\/?p=635"},"modified":"2009-03-26T04:15:00","modified_gmt":"2009-03-26T11:15:00","slug":"two-sign-posts-on-the-journey-with-standards-for-ordained-office-2-church-of-scotland-and-aberdeen-presbytery","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.gajunkie.com\/?p=635","title":{"rendered":"Two Sign Posts On The Journey With Standards For Ordained Office: 2 – Church of Scotland and Aberdeen Presbytery"},"content":{"rendered":"

Today the Commission of Assembly of the Church of Scotland<\/a> deliberated another case regarding standards for ordained office, this one regarding the call of a partnered gay pastor to Queen’s Cross Church<\/a> in the Presbytery of Aberdeen<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Rev. Scott Rennie was called to serve as pastor of Queen’s Cross Church and this call was approved by the Presbytery of Aberdeen back in January by a vote of 60-24.  (For more details and reaction you can check my first<\/a> and second<\/a> posts from that time.) This is not an ordination question.  Mr. Rennie is ordained and was in a heterosexual marriage previous to his current life style.  The Church of Scotland does not have the case law that the PC(USA) has in the GAPJC Sallade v. Genesee Valley<\/a> decision that says “this commission holds that a self-affirmed practicing homosexual may
\nnot be invited to serve in a Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) position that
\npresumes ordination.”<\/p>\n

Following the vote twelve ministers and elders appealed the decision of Presbytery to the General Assembly and the appeal was debated by the Commission of Assembly today.  One of those appellants was the Rev. Louis Kinsey who wrote about the appeal yesterday in his Coffee With Louis blog<\/a>.  The Commission of Assembly, not to be confused with the Council of Assembly, is a subgroup of the Assembly comprised of 10% of the commissioners to the last Assembly.  It has interim authority to make decisions on many matters for the current Assembly.<\/p>\n

Thanks to the Rev. Ian Watson for letting us know<\/a> that today the Commission decided that this issue was significant enough that it should be decided by the full Assembly and not this subgroup.  But it was by the slim margin of 42 to 41.  The Rev. Watson’s take is that they decided not to decide.  He is significantly closer to the situation both geographically and connectionally, so he may very well be right that the Commission decided not to wade into these waters but leave it for the next Assembly in May.  But in light of the caution shown by 2007 General Assembly to invoke the Barrier Act and send the issue of blessing same-gender unions out to the Presbyteries, I interpret this decision similarly as the Commission deciding to involve the greater wisdom of the wider church and greater buy-in to the final decision.  I would like to think that they are not ducking the issue but rather considering “discretion the greater part of valor.”  And as always, I could be completely wrong.  I have a lot less experience and no “boots on the ground” like Mr. Watson has.<\/p>\n

So, this now goes on the docket for the 2009 General Assembly and we will have to see where it goes from there.  Again, the journey continues.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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