GA08117

FOG revision sent for study to churches and presbyteries

by Toya Richards Hill

SAN JOSE, June 26, 2008 — Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) churches and presbyteries are expected be more involved in the process of revising the Form of Government section of the denomination’s Book of Order, thanks to an action passed Thursday by the 218th General Assembly.

The Assembly passed without any changes a recommendation coming from the Assembly committee tasked with examining a proposed revision to the Form of Government. The recommendation asked that the proposed revision, crafted by the Form of Government Task Force (FOGTF), be referred to the Office of the General Assembly “for a period of consultation and study with churches and presbyteries.”

The GA action addressed widespread concerns raised in overtures to the Assembly, claiming that presbyteries simply did not have enough time to thoroughly review the overall document.

The FOGTF, charged by the 217th General Assembly (2006), crafted a proposed revision that included two documents: “Foundations of Presbyterian Polity” and “Revised Form of Government” with recommendations.

Thursday, the GA agreed to a new, expanded task force that will revise the FOGTF’s work, “taking into account the concerns and suggestions gleaned from the consultation and study process.” This task force will include members of the original FOGTF and new representatives from the current Assembly committee that reviewed the Form of Government.

The new task force will also consider, among other things, presbytery overtures and testimonies received during the current Assembly.
A substitute motion was presented in lieu of the 68-member committee’s recommendation. That motion called for allowing “presbyteries the freedom to work in conjunction with the General Assembly Mission Council to develop a new way forward rather than trying to amend and reshape only the model proposed by the Task Force.”

That substitute motion failed.

“Let’s not just scrap all the work that has been done,” GA commissioner the Rev. Dean Strong said in arguing for not replacing the substitute motion for the main motion, which was the committee’s recommendation. “Build on what’s been done already.”

Several attempts also were made to amend the committee’s recommendation, all of which failed.

The new Form of Government revision is to be submitted to the stated clerk of the General Assembly no later than Oct. 15, 2009, for distribution to the church-at-large no later than Jan. 15, 2010. The new revision is to be considered by the 219th General Assembly (2010).