Living in coronavirusworld 96: Final day GA

6/27

The Final day of the  Presbyterian Church (USA) 224th General Assembly. The first item of business of the day was the (re) election of the Rev. Dr. J. Herbert  Nelson for his second term as Stated Clerk of the PC(USA), our denomination’s highest elected position. Following calls as a congregational pastor and as director of the denomination’s Washington., D.C. office,  he has brought a consistently passionate and resolute commitment to social justice to his call,  bringing a preacher’s approach to what could be a primarily bureaucratic job.

Our Central America work group had one more hoop to get through to be extended until 2022. Unfortunately, the empowering action called for no expenditure of funds and no in person meetings.  I made an amendment to essentially allow for self-funded meetings, but our chair was never able to reagin the floor and we went down in the Assembly’s (til then) closest vote. The work will continue.

The status of  San Francisco Theological Seminary, now part of the University of Redlands remained a sticking point throughout the Assembly, popping up every time a theological institution related issue arose. 

Then we launched into the long slog through budgets.

The last moment of drama had to do with an effort to make specific mention of  Black women and girls, their report put off until 2022.  Rev. Denise Anderson, chair of that committee,  had passionately protested the omission on the floor during debate of our Black lives matter statement.  I learned a new word, noirsogeny(?) the hatred of black women. Our Young Adult Advisory Delegates were particularly aware of this and worked diligently to develop a strategy to get her words on the record. But the moment to introduce new business passed and a late effort “reconsider” the action failed …barely…to reach the 2/3 majority necessary to  reopen the agenda. People were too tired to do any more work. Sigh.  A sense of hurt and sadness remained.  Later during an 8:46 time of silence in memory of George Floyd, a delegate was seen in his ZOOM box holding a sign that said “pre-born lives matter.”  Sigh. 

And so the Assembly came to an end.  In the  need, it’s important to remember that this was slated to be an “essential business only” assembly. It took the pressure of groups like my PHEWA and others, and responsible journalism of the Presbyterian Outlook,  to push that door open and commissioners working long hours cooperatively and creatively to make this, in the end, a real Assembly.  And credit does go to the GA staff tag somehow made a ZOOM meeting with over 500 delegates work somehow.  There were stretches of time that I had to remind myself there was to a real convention hall somewhere.  When I spoke, I felt like I was in a great hall. So all things considered, they did reasonably well.  And commissioners went home having been true to their historic call. 

I was glad to have been part of an historic event. 

And to have actually worked with a minimum of three screens at any moment. Lap top, iPad and phone. Seriously. And I should have had one on Twitter. 

...I tried....

The Voices of Justice were throwing  a virtual dance throughout the event to rep the traditional “Witherspoon Dance.” I never could figure out how it worked. But I left a “calling card” image. 

Exhausted, I went for a walk to unwind.  Came home to join the Peace Fellowship’s closing vigil. There was palpable sadness about where we had fallen short. It is important to remember where we were at the beginning of the Assembly and where we were at the end. Recognizing how far we came but what we missed and how far we have go. 

Exhausted. A hungry. Time to order a wet burrito from Encanto de Lola.