 |
photo by Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford
Annual Conference moderator Nancy Sollenberger Heishman leads a
conversation in Standing Committee, with representatives from On Earth
Peace. Executive director Bill Scheurer and board chair Jordan Bles and a
delegation of Standing Committee members reflected on recent meetings
regarding the agency's "Statement of Inclusion."
|
The Standing Committee action came at the close of its first full day of meetings prior to the 2014 Annual Columbus in Columbus, Ohio. Standing Committee is led by Annual Conference moderator Nancy Sollenberger Heishman, assisted by moderator-elect David Steele, and Conference secretary James M. Beckwith.
Denial of support, affirmation of love
Today’s Standing Committee statement was arrived at after much conversation and at times emotional debate, and the vote revealed a significant divide in the group. The Standing Committee statement, adopted by a majority vote with a minority of more than a quarter of members voting against, reads:
“Standing Committee does not support the 2011 Statement of Inclusion of On Earth Peace as an agency of the church, but we will continue to commit ourselves to walk in love together in the face of differing interpretations of scripture and Annual Conference statements and decisions.”
The “Statement of Inclusion” from the On Earth Peace board reads:
“We are troubled by attitudes and actions in the church, which exclude persons on the basis of gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, or any other aspect of human identity. We believe God calls the church to welcome all persons into full participation in the life of the faith community.”
Series of interactions between Standing Committee and On Earth Peace
Moderator Nancy Heishman introduced a time of sharing of feelings about the interaction between the Standing Committee delegation and On Earth Peace, offering information about the series of interactions between the two groups and reviewing other relevant information as well as the activities of the most recent delegation.
Interactions that led to today’s statement included, among others, two Standing Committee delegations that both reported good conversations with the agency’s board and staff but that did not gain resolution of the conflict.
As part of its effort, the second delegation held a conference call with the executive committee of On Earth Peace and the two groups jointly proposed that On Earth Peace add the following additional sentence to the statement of inclusion, from which much of the language of today’s Standing Committee statement was derived:
“We continue to commit ourselves to walk in love together with the denomination in the face of differing interpretations of scripture and Annual Conference statements and decisions.”
However, the sentence did not receive consensus support from the full board of On Earth Peace, which requested consultation about the sentence from several other groups in the denomination including the Open Table Cooperative, Womaen’s Caucus, Brethren Mennonite Council for LGBT Interests, the Brethren Revival Fellowship, and the liaison to the Council of District Executives.
Other interactions over the three years included a specially called session with Scheurer during 2013’s Standing Committee meetings, reported by Newsline at www.brethren.org/news/2013/ac2013news/standing-committee-special-session-with-oep.html, and in 2012 the Standing Committee statement of concern titled “A Way Forward” that said, in part, “trust in leadership has been broken” by three events--one being the “Statement of Inclusion.”
At that time Standing Committee urged On Earth Peace “to re-examine its statement of inclusion regarding ‘full participation’ so that it will be consistent with Annual Conference decisions regarding Human Sexuality from a Christian Perspective [the 1983 Conference statement] and the polity regarding ordination.” Find “A Way Forward” in full at www.brethren.org/news/2012/ac2012-onsite-news/a-way-forward.html.
 |
Photo by Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford
The Annual Conference officers for 2014 at the head table at Standing
Commitee: at center, moderator Nancy S. Heishman, with moderator elect
David Steele at left, and secretary James Beckwith at right.
|
Standing Committee also has made recommendations on two items of new business coming to the Annual Conference:
Amendments to the Bylaws of the Church of the Brethren, Inc.: Standing Committee recommended approval of amendments to the denominational bylaws proposed by the Mission and Ministry Board. The amendments clarify the term of service for a member of the board who is chosen chair-elect, and clarify “that the full five-year term allowed for a director [board member] who serves less than half of an unexpired term is subsequent to that unexpired term, not in place of it.” The amendments also update the change of name of Oregon-Washington District to Pacific Northwest District. Find the full proposal at www.brethren.org/ac/2014/documents/business-items/2014-nb1-amendments-to-bylaws.pdf.
Amendments to Church of the Brethren Benefit Trust Articles of Organization: Standing Committee recommended approval of amendments to the BBT Articles of Organization. The most substantive amendment would allow for an incumbent member of the BBT board eligible for a second term to automatically become one of two nominees that Standing Committee recommends for Annual Conference election. Others include changes to conform to style, addition of a clause related to BBT’s socially responsible investing in a manner conforming to Brethren values, clarification that a financial report and annual report are submitted to the delegate body, among others. Find the full proposal at www.brethren.org/ac/2014/documents/business-items/2014-nb2-amendments-to-bbt-aticles-of-incorporation.pdf.
In addition, Standing Committee received an update and held table talk about the Ministerial Leadership polity revision and the item of unfinished business on equitable representation on the Mission and Ministry Board, received reports from the moderator and the denomination’s Leadership Team, and heard from the Council of District Executives.
Standing Committee meetings opened yesterday evening with a dinner and a time for sharing from the districts.
-- Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford is director of News Services for the Church of the Brethren.
Source: 7/1/2014 Newsline
No comments:
Post a Comment