|
Spring 2001
Third Presbyterian Church
More Light Committee News
www.thirdpresbyterian.org
Periodically, the Third Presbyterian Church More Light Committee
shares news with the congregation about its committee activities
and about issues that impact this congregation and the entire
denomination. The Spring 2001 edition includes news about Third
Church and the Boy Scouts, the regional welcoming conference,
the sexual harassment workshop at the Hot Buttons II conference,
SONDA and Lobby Day, the More Light Presbyterians spring meeting
and General Assembly. The news begins with the Third Church More
Light Statement and the More Light Committee’s mission.
It ends with a list of web pages of interest and a list of the
members of the More Light Committee. We hope you will read the
news, share it with friends, then contact us; we would like to
hear from you. You may write me at Bettyiwan@aol.com.
Third Church More Light Statement
Third Church has joined with other like-minded Presbyterian congregations
in declaring ourselves to be a “More Light” church. We are
committed to the full participation of all persons in our community
without regard for sexual orientation, personal background or
human condition.
Third Church More Light Committee Mission Statement
The More Light Committee is a committee of Session whose purpose
is to educate about and advocate for policies and practices that
carry out our commitment to full participation.
Mission Statement: The Third Presbyterian Church More Light Committee
will provide leadership to the church community as we strive toward
inclusivity and justice for gays, lesbians and transgendered individuals.
In this role, we will educate, advocate, communicate and care.
1. Primary Focus I: Increase the number of lesbian, gay, bisexual
and transgender individuals at Third Church. In this role
we will educate and advocate for their participattion in the life
of the church.
2. Primary Focus II: Increase church leader’s understanding of
issues as they relate to More Light concerns: inclusivity, diversity,
multiculturalism and justice.
Boy Scouts and Third Church
At its April 2001 meeting, the session of Third Church voted to
renew its charter to sponsor Boy Scout Troop 31. This year the
vote was taken with more introspection than usual since the Supreme
Court’s ruling a year ago affirmed that since Boy Scout troops
are private organizations, they do not have to include in their
membership boys or leaders who are gay. A four person task force
of Third Church people has met with Troop 31 leaders and Third
Church member Frank Crego and other leaders of the Otetiana Council,
Inc., Boy Scouts of America to discuss its position on this matter,
offer assistance with providing educational materials on homosexuality
and urging an ongoing dialogue. The Council is opposed to the
national Boy Scout policy and has issued an Otetiana Council Position
Statement of its own. The More Light Committee hosted an Adult
Education program on Sunday, May 13 on the topic of Boy Scouts
and Third Church. Carol Malach, Session member and chairperson
of the More Light Committee, and Frank spoke about the actions
and meetings that have taken place locally since the Supreme Court
ruling and answered questions from members of the congregation.
Session and many members of the congregation have already signed
a petition urging the Otetiana Council to publicly oppose the
national position.
"Becoming the Welcoming Church – A Regional Conference for Church
Leaders"
Love and excitement filled Third Church the last weekend in April.
Presbyterians from as far west as Erie, Cincinnati and Santa Fe
and as far east as Vermont and Baltimore joined together for two
days of worship and workshops focused on how we can help our churches
become more welcoming for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered
people. In his keynote address, Michael Adee, National Field
Coordinator for More Light Presbyterians, reminded us that we
are all children of God and therefore churches that profess to
be communities of God lovers cannot judge who is in and who is
out of God’s grace and love. In fact they have a mandate
to emulate God’s love.
Cultural and Institutional Violence: Its Effect on GLBT Youth:
Hot Buttons II Conference (Contributed by Ralph Carter)
On March 31, 2001, the More Light Committee sponsored a workshop
at the community-wide conference sponsored by Third Church, "Hot
Buttons II: Family and Personal Empowerment Against Violence."
The workshop, "Cultural and Institutional Violence: Its Effect
on LGBT Youth," was hosted by committee member Ralph Carter with
presentations by Honorable Tim Mains and Tom Carlock. Tim is the
first openly gay person elected to public office in Rochester
and is an at-large member of City Council. Tom is active
with GLOBAL, the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employee
group at Bausch & Lomb.
This workshop offered a discussion on the anti-gay verbal and
physical violence that youth experience and its effect on self-esteem,
suicide rates and gun violence. Participants explored opportunities
for Rochester-area institutions (schools, businesses, charitable
organizations and youth service providers) to deploy the best
diversity practices and policies regarding non-discrimination
and non-violence. The national controversy over Scouting
and United Way policies served as workshop examples. For
those interested in receiving periodic updates locally and nationally
on this topic, please send a blank email to SaveScouting-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.
Nonviolent Resistance under the direction of Mel White
Mel White, Executive Director of SoulForce,
spoke at the Downtown Presbyterian Church and at the Colgate Rochester
Crozer Divinity School in mid April. According to That All
May Freely Serve web master, “Under the SoulForce banner, White
and about 80 others were arrested outside the meeting location
of the 2000 General Assembly in Long Beach CA, in an act of planned
civil disobedience highlighting the church's exclusion of gay,
lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (GLBT) people from leadership
positions. White founded SoulForce to bring the non-violence ideas
of Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. to the subject of GLBT acceptance
in the church.” For more information on Dr. White
and his talks in Rochester, log on to www.tamfs.org.
SONDA and May 21 Lobby Day
The Session of Third Church at its May 8, 2001 meeting voted its
support and endorsement of SONDA, the Sexual Orientation Non Discrimination
Act (NY SONDA). This bill is comprehensive non-discrimination
legislation that outlaws sexual and sexual orientation harassment
at all levels of government and in the work place. The bill has
passed in the NY House of Representatives ten years in a row but
has not yet passed in the NY Senate.
On Monday, May 21, hundreds of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered
people and their allies from across New York state converged on
Albany to meet with state legislators to demand passage of SONDA.
Neil Floar, a member of Third Church and its More Light Committee,
participated in Lobby Day for the third year in a row.
Roderic Frohman Overture Advocate to June 2001 General Assembly
The General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) will
meet in Louisville, KY, June 9-16, 2001. Roderic Frohman will
be an Overture Advocate and Alternate Commissioner from the Presbytery
of Genesee Valley. Individual committees and the assembly
will study, discuss and vote on many overtures (amendments) to
the Book of Order. Issues that are of particular interest
to our More Light Committee and our congregation include the following:
1. Commissioners will hear a final report on Amendment O, On adding
new section W-4.9007 prohibiting Same-sex unions. Presbyteries
have voted in the negative on this amendment passed at the 212th
GA in Long Beach, CA in 2000. Therefore, the proposed language
will not become part of the Directory for Worship (G-18.0301e).
2. Commissioners will hear a final report on Amendment A, On Amending
G-5.0103 to remove the list of persons welcomed as church members.
Presbyteries have voted in the negative on this amendment that
was passed at the 212th GA in Long Beach, CA in 2000. Therefore,
the proposed modification will not become part of the Book of
Order.
3. Many overtures are being presented to GA’s Bills and Overtures
Committee that suggest doing away with both Amendment B and the
1978 ‘definitive guidance.’ Amendment B, passed by GA in 1996
and approved by presbyteries, requires “those who are called to
office in the church…live either in fidelity within the covenant
of marriage of a man and a woman or chastity in singleness.” The
definitive guidance concludes that “unrepentant homosexual practice
does not accord with the requirements for ordination…”.
4. Roderic Frohman will be the advocate for the New York City
Presbytery's version of the overture that was approved by the
Presbytery of Genesee Valley. It deletes these statements
from Presbyterian policy.
Sunday, June 17, 2001, 9:15 am - Report from General Assembly
Third Church will be well represented at General Assembly in June.
Ralph Carter, John Wilkinson and Rod Frohman will be in Louisville,
June 9 – 16. Rod Frohman and Ralph Carter will be back at
Third Church on Sunday morning to report on the proceedings at
9:15 am Adult Education. To follow the day by day happenings,
log onto That All May Freely Serve web page www.tamfs.org
or www.pcusa.org.
Affirmation – 2001 (In the spirit of the 1924 Auburn Affirmation)
In an attempt resolve the crisis in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)
that has different sides arguing over who is welcome in the church,
a group of concerned members from around the country has drafted
"Affirmation 2001, in the spirit of the 1924 Auburn Affirmation."
Signatures from individual church members, sessions and presbyteries
are being received through hard copies and through the web page
www.auburnspirit.org.
This call to action will be presented to the General Assembly.
The full text of the affirmation may be found on the web page.
Below is the Call to Action taken from Affirmation 2001.
Therefore, in a world crying to hear a word of love, reconciliation
and justice, we call upon Presbyterian members, church officers
and governing bodies –
- To be faithful to our church’s constitutional call of openness
to all church members who earnestly profess faith in Jesus Christ;
- To reaffirm and protect freedom of conscience, liberty of expression
and the freedom to disagree within our broad reformed principles
(G-1.0305), and
- To resist – as a ‘scandal to the gospel’ (G-5.103) – any action
taken by governing bodies that fails to welcome all persons who
profess their faith in Jesus Christ as full and equal members
of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). “Open Minds, Open Hearts, Open Hands” - 2001 More Light Presbyterian’s
Conference
The University of Texas, Austin, TX will be the sight of the May
25-27, 2001 More Light Presbyterian’s (www.MLP.org)
Conference. Ralph Carter, Third Church elder and member of the
MLP Board of Directors will attend the conference. Worship
services, plenary sessions and workshops will include offerings
on spirituality, liturgical dance, meditation, inclusive language,
GA polity, issues of interest to Latinos and communities of color,
youth issues, social justice, national political issues and the
“‘how-to’s” of becoming a More Light congregation.
Selected Presbyterian Church Web Sites and Contact Numbers
Below is a list of Presbyterian organizations working for a truly
inclusive Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) (from Nov-Dec 1998 “More
Light Update”):
1. More Light Presbyterians (formerly PLGC and the National
More Light Network), www.mlp.org.
2. That All May Freely Serve, www.tamfs.org
3. Covenant Network of Presbyterians, www.covenantnetwork.org
4. Vocies of Sophia, 223 Choctaw Rd., Louisville,
KY 40207
5. The Witherspoon Society, Eugene_TeSelle.parti@ecunet.org
6. Hesed (Hebrew for The Covenant of Steadfast Love),
www.southwestern.edu/lewis/Hesed/Hesed.html
7. The Lazarus Project, West Hollywood Presbyterian
Church, 7350 Sunset Blvd., Hollywood, A 90046
8. Presbyterian AIDS Network, c/p PHEWA, Room 3041, 100
Witherspoon St., Louisville, KY 40202-1396
9. Presbyterians Parents of Gays and Lesbians, Jane C. Loflin,
P.O. Box 781-591, Dallas, TX 75378
10. Presbyterian Partnership of Conscience (P.P.C.),
Bear_Scott.parti@ecunet.org
11. Presbyterian Welcome, Jan Hus Church, 351 E. 74th
St., New York, NY 10021
12. Semper Reformanda (Always Being Reformed)
Upcoming Events:
Sunday, June 3 – 10K Rochester AIDS Walk, 10am Cobbs Hill
Park. To register contact Rod Frohman, Rfrohman@thirdpresbyterian.org
or call 271-6513.
Saturday, July 14, Rochester Gay Pride Parade, 6pm. Starts
near the corner of Brunswick and Park Ave. To walk with members
of the TPC More Light Committee, contact Betty Iwan, Bettyiwan@aol.com
or 442-3655.
**End of Spring 2001 More Light Newsletter **
Top of Page
Back to Outreach/Services
|
