25 May 2011

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Presbyterians Week Headlines

[1] Christian Reformed Church in North America Continuing Aid to Spring 2011 Storm Victims

[2] Church of Scotland 2011 General Assembly Loosen Restrictions on Homosexual Ministers and Deacons while Continuing Theological Study

[3] Free Church of Scotland 2011 General Assembly Receives Multiple Overtures Objecting to 2010 Plenary Assembly Decision to Abandon Exclusive A Capella Psalmody in Worship Services

[4] Grace Seattle PCA Church Website Shows at Least Four of the Church’s Nine Deacons as being Female

[5] United Kingdom General Medical Council Investigates Doctor that Shared Christian Faith with a Patient

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[1] Christian Reformed Church in North America Continuing Aid to Spring 2011 Storm Victims

In the aftermath of the 22 May 2011 tornado in Joplin, Missouri, which killed 116 persons and destroyed a significant part of the city of 50,000 people, the Christian Reformed Church in North America (CRCNA)’s Christian Reformed World Relief Committee (CRWRC) Disaster Response Services (DRS), in a 23 May 2011 press release, announced that they are seeking US$1 million to respond to spring storms in 2011.

Donations can be made at:

www.crwrc.org/donate

and choosing “Donate today,” “Give Online in Canada,” “Give Online in the US,” or call 1-800-552-7972 with your credit card gift. Checks to CRWRC-DRS, designated “Spring Storms 2011” in the memo line, can be mailed to CRWRC at the address below:


+ Christian Reformed Church in North America, 2850 Kalamazoo Avenue Southeast, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49560, 616-241-1691, Fax: 616-224-0803 crcna@crcna.org


[2] Church of Scotland 2011 General Assembly Loosen Restrictions on Homosexual Ministers and Deacons while Continuing Theological Study

The 2011 Church of Scotland (CoS) General Assembly (GA) on 23 May 2011 discussed the “Report of the Special Commission on Same-Sex Relationships [SCSSR] and the Ministry [Section 23],” and acted upon several related items which included:

-- Voting to accept the SCSSR proposal that those already ordained before May 2009 remain as ministers or deacons and until a final resolution is determined;

-- Voting to ban all Courts, Councils, and Committees from issuing or otherwise speaking to the media on matters of human sexuality and the Ministry;

-- Voting to establish a Theological Commission; and,

-- Voting to consider the lifting of the moratorium on the appointment of
homosexual ministers and instruct the Theological Commission to prepare a report containing a theological discussion of the issues around same sex relationships, civil partnerships, and marriage, and to consider the issue of liturgical help for services of blessing of civil partnerships, if that is desired.

At the end of the day’s deliberations and voting, CoS GA Commissioners left the meeting hall to discover that transportation across Scotland was being severely disrupted by storms with winds as high as 150 MPH.


+ Church of Scotland, 121 George Street, Edinburgh EH2 4YN, Scotland, 0131-225-5722


[3] Free Church of Scotland 2011 General Assembly Receives Multiple Overtures Objecting to 2010 Plenary Assembly Decision to Abandon Exclusive A Capella Psalmody in Worship Services

The Free Church of Scotland (FCS) began its 2011 General Assembly on 23 May 2011 meeting at St. Columba’s Free Church, Edinburgh, Scotland, and are scheduled to adjourn on 27 May.

Several overtures will be presented to the assembly objecting to the 2010 plenary assembly that voted to abandon the practice of exclusive a capella psalmody in public worship by allowing uninspired hymns and musical instruments as additional options. One of the two major points made in the overtures is that the 1910 action mandating exclusive a capella psalmody in public worship was enacted through the FCS Barrier Act, and that repeal of any Barrier Act enactment must be done by provisions of the Barrier Act that require the repeal decision be subsequently forwarded to the FCS presbyteries for approval or disapproval. The other major point is that exclusive a capella psalmody is a constituent part of New Testament divine worship as commanded by scripture, and that the Regulative Principle of Worship requires that worship be only that which God has commanded.

Another overture was offered by the Rev. Prof. John A. Macleod that included provisions to now recognize two forms of public worship, that each church session have the option of retaining or not retaining exclusive a capella psalmody for their church, that meetings of Church Courts use only exclusive a capella psalmody, that no office bearer be forced to act against his conscience concerning this issue, and that two options for license and ordination vows be available depending on the understanding of this issue by those being licensed or ordained.


+ Free Church of Scotland, 15 North Bank Street, The Mound, Edinburgh, Scotland EH1 2LS, 0131-226-5286, Fax: 0131-220-0597, catherine@freechurchofscotland.org.uk


[4] Grace Seattle PCA Church Website Shows at Least Four of the Church’s Nine Deacons as being Female

Grace Seattle (Presbyterian Church in America (PCA))’s website, in apparent contradiction to the PCA Book of Church Order (BCO), lists at least four of the church’s nine deacons as being female.

+ Grace Seattle, 1406 10th Avenue, Suite 102, Seattle, Washington 98122, 206-709-4432, office@graceseattle.org

+ Presbyterian Church in America, 1700 North Brown Road, Suite 105, Lawrenceville, Georgia 30043, 678-825-1000, Fax: 678-825-1001, ac@pcanet.org



[5] United Kingdom General Medical Council Investigates Doctor that Shared Christian Faith with a Patient

Christian Concern reported 22 May 2011 that the United Kingdom General Medical Council (GMC) is investigating Dr. Richard Scott of the Bethesda Medical Centre in Margate, Kent, England, for in 2010 sharing his Christian faith with a patient at the end of the patient’s appointment with the doctor. The patient’s mother requested the medical appointment for her son, then subsequently filed an official complaint, claiming that the doctor had not offered medical advice during a consultation, but instead, talked about Jesus.

Dr Scott said: “I only discussed my faith at the end of a lengthy medical consultation after exploring the various interventions that the patient had previously tried, and after promising to follow up the patient’s request appointment with other medical professionals.

“I only discussed mutual faith after obtaining the patient’s permission. In our conversation, I said that personally, I had found having faith in Jesus helped me and could help the patient. At no time did the patient indicate that they were offended, or that they wanted to stop the discussion. If that had been the case, I would have immediately ended the conversation.

“This complaint was brought to the GMC not by the patient, who has continued to be a patient at this practice, but by the patient’s mother.”

The GMC has written to Dr. Scott offering a ‘compromise’ decision to the disciplinary complaint of placing an Official Warning on his file. However, the doctor is calling on his professional body to strike-out the complaint on the basis that the complaint was from a mother who was not medically qualified to comment on what treatment, if any, a medical practitioner should prescribe and, the GMC’s own guidelines state that it is acceptable to present faith to a patient as long as it is done gently and sensitively.


+ Christian Concern, 70 Wimpole Street, London W1G 8AX, England, 020 7935 1488, Contact Page

+ General Medical Council, Regent's Place, 350 Euston Road, London NW1 3JN, England, 0161-923-6602, Fax: 44-20-7189-5401, gmc@gmc-uk.org