Saturday’s business began with the report of the Assembly Council, the body which carries out the work of the General Assembly throughout the year.
Two issues generated debate: a change to the formula used to calculate Presbyterians Sharing allocations, and a proposal to hold General Assemblies every two years instead of every year.
Presbyterians Sharing Formula
Presbyterians Sharing, the church’s national mission and ministry fund, relies primarily on contributions from congregations. Currently, each congregation is asked to contribute a portion of its dollar base, which is the congregation’s income in a given year, minus all money sent to mission purposes or used to repay debts. Of that dollar base, the current formula asks for 13 per cent of the first $50,000, 18 per cent of the next $50,000 and 21.5 per cent of the remainder.
A recommendation from the Assembly Council aimed to replace this formula with a simpler one: starting in 2014, congregations would be asked to contribute 10 per cent of their dollar bases.
Under both the old formula and the new formula, contributions are voluntary.
A commissioner from Hamilton proposed basing the yearly allocation on what each congregation contributed the previous year, with the suggested allocation increasing or decreasing each year if the dollar base increases or decreases.
“I think most churches give now what they feel called to give and what they can afford,” said Rev. Tom Billard, who made the amendment. He suggested the 10 per cent formula “asks less of the most generous givers.”
“Too often in the church, as sessions and congregations, we’re always looking at what we did last year as a comparison,” said Rev. Lara Scholey from the Presbytery of Pictou. “I think we need to see each year as a new year. … Presbyterians are generous. I think the national church will do better if all churches, even if they’re small churches, are participating in the work of Presbyterians Sharing.”
The assembly voted to defeat the amendment and endorse the 10 per cent formula as recommended by the Council.
Biennial Assemblies
The idea of moving from annual to biennial assemblies stirred up much debate.
“My main concern is related to the involvement of teaching elders and of ruling elders and their relationship to the highest court of the church,” said a commissioner from the Presbytery of Seaway-Glengarry. If the meeting only happens every other year, elders may only come once or twice in their lifetimes, he suggested. “This is of grave concern because surely one can start losing connection with the highest court of the church.”
“It seems the time is right,” said a commissioner from the Presbytery of Edmonton-Lakeland. “We don’t have to do church the way we do it now for it to be effective.”
Eventually, assembly agreed to send a proposal on biennial assemblies to the committees and courts of the church for study and report by Jan 31, 2014. The original motion would have “approved biennial assemblies in principle” but these words were removed before the recommendation was passed.
“What strikes me about the conversations is it’s not just a gospel value we’re talking about but a cultural value,” said Rev. Paulette Brown from the Presbytery of East Toronto. “We have to learn to rethink the stuff we hold so dearly. In the church there are many families that are making tough decisions. You’re in a new country, you have to rethink the way you’re going to live so you live in a way that makes sense.”
Rev. Paul Johnston spoke against biennial assemblies, referring to the church doctrine committee’s previous work on the subject, which spoke unfavourably about the change, and reminded commissioners that a previous assembly already voted down the idea. Johnston said annual assemblies are a precious Presbyterian event, and that changing such a thing would be like Esau selling his birthright for a bowl of porridge.
“Are we going to sell our birthright to balance a budget, or hold tight to who we are as the body of Christ?” he asked
Rev. Peter Coutts, Presbytery of Calgary-MacLeod, spoke in favour of the change.
“What kind of denomination do we want to be and how do we achieve that? Assembly Council has spent a lot of work on how to adjust the budget, modestly. We’ve got to think much more about the bigger picture, including things that are very important to us. What are the most important values for our future? If we move to biennial assemblies, we still have good governance. We’ll manage. We’ll adjust. It’s about vitality and being able to hand over a healthy church to the next generation.”
Committee on History
The assembly reinforced the importance of the denomination’s history by endorsing several recommendations regarding its heritage. The National Presbyterian Museum, which receives no money from the denomination and relies almost exclusively on donations to operate, asked permission to request a $50 donation from each congregation in 2014.
Assembly also agreed to encourage congregations to celebrate Heritage Sunday on February 16, 2014.
Presbyteries and sessions are invited to submit suggestions to assist in the study of a symbol and motto for the denomination, as the church currently has no official symbol.
Healing and Reconciliation
In light of next year’s 20th anniversary of the church’s Confession to Aboriginal Peoples, commissioners were given time in their table groups to reflect on ways the church can live out the commitments it made in the Confession. Such suggestions can “put life into the Confession,” as stated by David Phillips, healing and reconciliation animator with Justice Ministries. This department collected the suggestions and they will be used when considering how the Presbyterian Church will continue its work on healing and reconciliation.
Working with Refugees
Presbyterian World Service and Development is devoted to the plight of refugees, and they brought forward a recommendation to affirm this commitment.
In February, the Canadian Council for Refugees launched the “Proud to Protect Refugees” campaign, as an initiative to send positive messages about refugees in opposition to the media and society’s negative messages about refugees. In April, the PWS&D Committee adopted a motion endorsing the campaign, which, among other things, encourages groups to
promote positive messages about refugees, and create safe opportunities for refugees to share their stories.
The Church’s Relationship with Israel/Palestine
Several recommendations from the International Affairs Committee asked the moderator to write to the Minister of Foreign Affairs on issues related to Israel. These ignited much discussion.
The moderator was first asked to write to ask “what measures Canada takes to persuade Israel to lift the restrictions it places on the movement of people and goods that hamper economic development in the West Bank.”
While the Presbyterian Church supports the right of Israel to exist, it is sensitive to the daily challenges faced by Palestinians. Several commissioners balked, with one even calling recommendation anti-Semitic. Others, however, called this a justice issue and suggested congregations and individuals should write to their Member of Parliament to express their concerns and to ask for action.
Rev. Iona Maclean of Pictou presbytery, who moved the recommendation, spoke in favour of the motion, saying: “Justice is always a messy business … Over the years, we’ve been in conversation with people in Israel and Palestine, trying to see the way towards peace. We don’t come to these discussions lightly or uniformed … We support Israel’s right to exist, but also Palestine’s right to its own governance. We can’t solve this by ourselves, but if there are ways we can foster dialogue to this conflict, I pray that it would be so.”
Rev. Karen Horst, Barrie presbytery, also supported the motion. She said she travelled to the Middle East with her husband, Rev. Rick Horst, moderator of the 137th General Assembly. She said she has travelled to many places and seen many atrocities, “but I came back broken-hearted, seeing how a particular people were being treated … Until you see it firsthand, you would not believe the kind of daily degradation people there endure.”
The motion passed.
The moderator will also “write to General Electric and Caterpillar requesting information on corporate policies to ensure their products are not used in situations where human rights are violated.” The PCC has shares in these companies.
The moderator will also write to the Commissioner of the Canada Revenue Agency to “inquire if CRA policies permit Canadian charities to issue tax receipts for donations that support programs in the Jewish Settlements in the West Bank.”
An additional motion was made by Rev. Paul Johnston, Presbytery of Lindsay-Peterborough, asking that the International Affairs Committee compile a summary of previous assembly decisions regarding the right of Israel to exist within secure borders, and of the actions taken to implement those decisions, and report to the 140th assembly and publish this information in other church publications as appropriate.
Johnston noted that prior to coming to this assembly, he was unaware of the history and work that has been done on Israel/Palestine by previous assemblies. He said he found the information given at this assembly to be very informative and he thought others could benefit from this information. The motion was carried.
Sharing Inspiration
The assembly spent a good deal of time sharing “good news” stories from congregations. Various ministers told the court how their congregations have changed, grown, and been renewed and invigorated by and for the work they do. Be sure to watch upcoming issues of the Record for these stories!
