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07/01/2004: "Weirdness at the PCUSA assembly"
The Presbyterian Church (USA) is meeting in Richmond this week. While the big issue of gay ordination has yet to reach the floor, that doesn't mean there haven't been opportunities for lunacy. Take this example from the Layman Online (sorry, no permalinks–scroll down to the story "Staying Alive"):
"I urge you, in the name of Sophia, to stay alive...Voices of Sophia is needed to raise holy hell!" Speaking on Tuesday to a crowd of some 70 Presbyterians that included the moderator and vice moderator of the General Assembly, Voices of Sophia leader Mike Smith pleaded for the rejuvenation of a dying organization.
Recent General Assembly budget cuts have severely wounded "Voices," an ostensibly independent organization that has leaned heavily on denominational staff, particularly in Presbyterian Women, to carry out its agenda. "Bless the loving god Sophia," Smith said. "Bless Sophia with your wallet."
The crowd responded with its "Sophia Blessing," whose debut at the 1993 Re-Imagining god conference traumatized Presbyterians, resulting in huge budget deficits at national headquarters and job losses in key executive positions:
Bless Sophia
Dream the Vision
Share the Wisdom
Dwelling deep within
Participants raised their arms heavenward as they voiced the name of their goddess, and touched their eyes and heads when chanting "wisdom." Then they rested their hands upon their hearts.
Despite the dirge-like flavor to the chant, it is clear that "Voices" has no intention of going away. Energized by the election of a General Assembly moderator whom they say identifies with "the marginalized," Mieke Vandersall urged the group to action. Vandersall, a recent graduate of Union Theological Seminary who was employed by "Voices" and a New York gay and lesbian organization during her seminary years, said: "We need to vote. We need to get out the vote. We need to get out there and make the changes that need to happen in the fall!"...
"Voices" received a special greeting from Moderator Rick Ufford-Chase and Vice Moderator Jean Marie Peacock. In presenting Peacock to the group, Ufford-Chase recalled work that they had shared among refugees on the Southwest border.
The vice moderator got a round of applause for her opening line, "God is good, isn't she!" Peacock told "Voices" that she had been deeply involved in the Sanctuary Movement, an attempt to transport illegal aliens into communities in the United States. Picking up on Machado's Samaritan theology theme, she compared the Sanctuary Movement's efforts with that of the Samaritan who transported a wounded Jew to a place of refuge.
The moderator and vice-moderator are the newly elected leaders of the denomination. They are essentially figureheads (the stated clerk is the CEO), but they are a very public face of mainline Presbyterianism. Apparently, "God is good, isn't she!" is the face the PCUSA wants to show the world. As for the rest...it speaks for itself.
(Thanks to Mark at WannabeAnglican for the link.)
