Meetings with a purpose
The PC(USA)’s mid Council moderators take in proven ideas for holding gatherings that people appreciate attending
LOUISVILLE — A meeting with purpose is a meeting worth having.
On Saturday at the Moderators Conference, mid council moderators and moderators-elect from across the country learned more about infusing their meetings with purpose from a handful of experienced hands: the Rev. Jihyun Oh, Stated Clerk of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and Executive Director of the Interim Unified Agency; the Rev. Dr. David Gambrell, the PC(USA)’s Associate for Worship, who, like several of the moderators, appeared via Zoom; and the Rev. Sarah Moore-Nokes, Director of Mid Council Ministries.
“This is a time to talk about how you can be intentional in thinking about arranging the time, civility, worship in the midst and tech considerations,” Oh said. “We will ask you to add your wisdom as well.”
Before the Covid pandemic, a few mid councils — especially synods — held online meetings because they were so spread out, Oh said. But most mid council gatherings were in-person only. “Now we have online and hybrid meetings, and even during in-person meetings, people are asking about their meeting link,” she said.
Part of Gambrell’s work is to help mid councils think theologically about worship. Those thoughts are guided by the Directory for Worship, the portion of the Book of Order that provides theological principles and norms for worship. The Directory for Worship says mid council meetings “are where the church gathers regularly to seek the mind of Christ together,” Gambrell said.
A diversity of folks says that “their voices matter, and their being there changes the gathering in some way,” Oh said. “It’s not that you [always] get your way, but your voice is heard and considered, and it matters.”
The General Assembly Committee on Representation uses process observers during General Assembly meetings, including the committee work, to tabulate who is speaking, who’s getting heard and who’s not, Oh said. Equity Primes have been developed “to help us pause when we think there might be some implicit bias we are working on to say, ‘What is the path forward on equity and full participation, and what are the options we have’ rather than ‘what is the easiest way to go forward,’” Oh said.
Moore-Nokes filled in for another presenter on technology and other preparations that are needed to hold a good meeting.
“Some just want to come and get the business done,” she said. “Others want to come, worship and see people they don’t get to see very often.”
A few mid council moderators present began discussing the use of commissions rather than committees. Commissions are empowered to make decisions on behalf of the entire mid council, and Oh made a distinction between decisions appropriately left to a commission “and those that still need to be made at the presbytery level.”
“Don’t forget the church members, who can be part of [mid council] committees,” Oh said. “For commissions, membership is limited to teaching elders and ruling elders.”
A moderator in attendance said one way the mid council is building community is to have church members open their homes to people attending a presbytery meeting from out of town because the community has only one hotel, and it’s on the smaller side. “People are willing to build community on the presbytery level that way,” she said.
As to people declining to attend a mid-council meeting because they’re too busy, Oh asked, “What can be done at the denominational or presbytery or congregational level to name it and talk about what it is that’s worth giving our time and effort and energy to?”
“Is the meeting planned and purposeful,” Oh asked, “or is it just mandatory?”
One mid council moderator suggested removing the term “business” from the agenda and calling it “governance,” as well as attempting to balance governance and worship at mid council meetings. “Governance and worship are both important parts of the work we do,” he said. “I love governance, but one of the best values I have had at presbytery is it has expanded my love for worship.”
Oh said she appreciated his insight. “Our worship and our governance are so intimately tied together,” she said.
For one moderator, “there used to be little reason to go to presbytery [meetings] because commissions did all the work in advance. But that’s not how our polity is supposed to work,” she said. “The work of governance is really valuable because it makes people believe their say is real.”
“Our congregations and our mid councils need to be pockets,” this moderator said, “where life can be different.”
A lot of the consternation goes back to church nominating committees, one moderator said.
“We need to take the time and find out what they’re really doing, and take seriously in the Book of Order that they are to be trained and examined, and that this is serious stuff,” the moderator said. “I think that would go a long way.”
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