GA06035

Trinity Hearings

Trinity paper draws both praise, criticism in hearings

by Bill Lancaster

BIRMINGHAM, June 16 — The Theological Issues and Institutions Committee of the 217th General Assembly held open hearings Friday on the Trinity paper, and about 15 people spoke, alternating between pro and con arguments.

Sylvia Thorson-Smith, an elder and retired professor of religious studies from Tucson, AZ, spoke in favor of the paper, "The Trinity: God's Love Overflowing."

"For three decades, Presbyterians have repeatedly affirmed their commitment to inclusive language," she said. "The Scriptures are rich with descriptions of the ways God creates, redeems and is in relationship with us limited creatures.

"Christian tradition has relied almost exclusively on male images of God, to the point where women and men have asked the church to recover more expansive images which both honor our tradition and more fully reflect the God of Genesis, whose own image is both male and female

"This paper on the Trinity is a gift to the Presbyterian Church. It may not go as far as some of us would like, but it denounces oppressive paradigms that may be upheld by the idea of a God that is exclusively male. The Trinity paper stands solidly in Christian tradition when it authorizes the use of overlooked female images and promotes egalitarian human relationships. Its recommendations should be adopted."

Susan Cyre, pastor of Dublin Presbyterian Church in Presbytery of the Peaks and editor of the magazine Theology Matters, spoke against the paper. She cited two professors at Pittsburgh Presbytery who have called the paper "fatally flawed."

"It fails to clearly, consistently and accurately make a distinction between the names of God and the attributes and works of God described in metaphors and similes," she said. "Names and metaphors and similes are not the same. God is like a mother hen, but God is not a mother hen and mother hen is not a name of God."

Referring to the Trinitarian language of Father, Son and Holy Spirit, she said these "are not metaphors, but the names for God."

She concluded by saying, "The paper is fatally flawed, and no small amount of amendments can correct it. Please send the paper back to Theology and Worship to be rethought."

Pam Byers, an elder at Old First Presbyterian Church in San Francisco and executive director of the Covenant Network, spoke in favor of the Trinity paper.

"I'm excited about this resource for congregational worship," she told the committee. "The whole structure of the report follows the movement of Reformed worship. It has been specifically helpful to my congregation twice in the last few months. During the Easter vigil, of course, we referred to the mighty acts of God in salvation history. This year, I was invited to read and reflect on the rescue stories.

"I'm sorry that some people are troubled by the image of God as the rainbow of promise. I found it very helpful to reflect that God rescues God's people throughout history and in our personal lives, and is known to us as a rainbow of promise, as an ark of salvation, as a dove of peace in our lives.

"Just last Sunday — Trinity Sunday — during the prayers of the people, we gave thanks to God who spoke the world into being, we gave thanks that God became known to us in the living Word. We prayed for the powerful, indwelling breath of the Spirit.

"Speaker, word and breath, giver, gift and giving. These and so many other Biblical images give us fresh ways to try to understand the God who told our ancestors in faith that his name was only I Am.

"And for this Assembly, I am grateful that this report shows that God's very being shows the community the original unity in diversity that I believe is God's plan and God's desire for the church, this church."

Gerrit Dawson, a pastor from South Louisiana Presbytery, said the task force that wrote this paper "failed to explore the foundational scriptural texts. They passed over the mines in which our theological gems may be found. It is mired in the shallows.

"I simply cannot imagine they could write a foundational document for the church on the Trinity and not enter a sustained engagement with John 14-16. How could you talk about how to name our God without asking the question, how does God name himself? How could you not consider the Lord's Prayer in which Jesus says, 'When you pray, say [Our Father…]' "?

The committee will take action on the Trinity paper on Saturday morning.

Related article

June 19, 2006
GA acts on Trinity paper

June 17, 2006
Trinity paper approved with amendments

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