Stick to the Code

So what do I do at 3:30 in the morning when my nose is so stuffy that it's got me wide awake?
I update my blog, apparently.

As I was laying here thinking how annoying allergies are, I was thinking about a new members class that I taught last night. We got into a discussion about church government and someone asked the question, "Why do we have a higher government if the individual church is able to make up its own rules?" That's not precisely verbatim, but that's the gist of what he was asking. I'm not sure how clearly I answered his question beyond saying that our task as a church is to interpret how our Presbyterian polity informs our decisions, always rooted both in scripture and in Jesus Christ. Sometimes that does mean we do things differently from other churches, but our Book of Order gives us a framework as a church. Almost like boundaries.

After the meeting, and in the recent wee hours of the morning, I've been thinking more about my response and what it truly means for us as a church to have "higher government" (If you are not aware how the PCUSA government works, there are levels over goverment much like the national government. Church sessions are subject to Presbyteries, who are subject to synods, who are subject to the General Assembly). Having levels of government means that decisions are not made in a vaccuum; the session, for example, keeps detailed meeting minutes and submits them for approval to the regional presbyteries every year. The presbytery signs off on those minutes or points out places where the church might have "strayed" from our polity. If there is a discrepency, we hope that it's an easy fix. Otherwise, the church is subject to the rules of discipline as found in the Book of Order if the discrepency is severe enough and unable to be remedied.

Likewise, presbytery proceedings are subject to the approval of the synod. One presbytery operates differently from another presbytery, but both presbyteries' interpretation of polity are subject to approval by the synod, who is subject to approval of the General Assembly. In this way, there is a system of checks and balances that help us do things "decently and in order."

Churches will usually interpret the rules as they apply to their individual situations. Ours is a polity that allows us to make those choices. Like the pirate code in Disney's, "Pirates of the Caribbean," our polity is a "guideline" open to interpretation. Now you might ask why have a code if it's is just subject to interpretation. We might, in fact, ask the same thing about scripture. After all, with all the translations out there isn't scripture always left us up to interpretation, too? And don't people interpret scripture to fit their own agenda?

Sometimes.

Despite the challenges facing the unity of the church, our polity is a way to maintain unity. While our interpretations of the Book of Order may occassionally differ from our brothers and sisters within the denomination, we are all essentially rooted in the same thing: Christ. Jesus Christ is the head of the church, giving the church her future, her hope, her authority, and her very life. Jesus Christ is (or ought to be) the center of all that we do and how we interpret our polity should be in line with how we believe Christ is calling us as a church. What I really appreciate about being Presbyterian is this sense that no decisions are made without a proper checks and balance system. Sometimes we make fun at the phrase "decently and in order" and it's earned us nicknames like "the frozen chosen." In reality, though, decently and in order means that decisions are group efforts, always subject to the rule of Jesus Christ.

As hard as it sometimes is to sit through Presbytery meetings and as frustrating as I've been at the General Assembly, it is all there for a specific purpose; that purpose allows us to work towards maintaining our unity even in those times when we disagree.

God is so good and God has done such great things within the church. I know in my heart that the church has the potential to live up to the standards that God sets for her and it is my hope and prayer that we continue to strive towards remaining unified in Jesus Christ despite those things -- and God knows there are plenty of things -- that might otherwise tear us apart.

Yours in Christ,
Pastor Becki

Reflections

I turned 16 in April 2001. In September 2001, I started my junior year of high school. I was sitting in creative writing class when a plane struck the first tower. I was in marine biology, fourth period, when the principal came on the intercom to tell us exactly what was going on. And even at that point, we didn't know much.

I've been hearing so many stories this week. It's hard no to hear them; every time you turn on the TV, the news is covering a different angle of 9/11. Some news programs even had former anchors as guest speakers on the news to talk about what it was like covering the news that day. I for one am actually grateful I was still in high school and not yet even interested in being a reporter (I was a reporter fresh out of college before I started seminary). I'm not sure I would have the stamina reporters needed that week to cover the news. Now, ten years later, it seems in some ways we are reliving the horrors of that day. The stories reopen old wounds and shed light on wounds that never closed to begin with. We mourned that day and in many ways, we are still mourning today as we reflect on where we've been and how far we've come since that day.

I think we've learned a number of things since that day. Even through recession, questionable politics, and fear of the vast unknown future, we've come a long way as a nation. And I'm not just talking about learning to have tighter security at air ports. I'm talking about how we've learned to come together as one people. My hope and prayer going into a new election season is that we remember what it is to be ONE PEOPLE, regardless of creed or lack of creed and regardless of all those other hot-button issues that separate us. Whenever the political nature of our nation threatens to tear us asunder, my hope and prayer is that we as ONE PEOPLE are able to tap into that sense of unity and the strength of the bond we all shared that day. I believe people are inherently good and I believe people have the capacity to be good even if there is darkness is our nature.

But above all, I hope we celebrate with purpose. And when I say celebrate with purpose, I mean I hope we are honest about what we're rejoicing in today. I've seen too many Facebooks today thanking God that Osama Bin Laden "finally got what was coming to him" and condemning him to burn in Hell. In my blog entry today, I want to be very clear about what I believe regarding these thoughts.

My disclaimer: These are my opinions. I base my opinions on how I've come to experience God in the world. I'm not speaking on behalf of the church or on the behalf of Christianity.

I preached a sermon today called, "Rejoicing in God" and I took great care to talk about 9/11 without actually talking about 9/11. The gist of my sermon was this: We do not rejoice in death; we rejoice in God. I do not celebrate that death came to people that cause terror and inflicted great pain. I rejoice in the fact that in the midst of it all, God remained faithful to God's people. God continued to act on our behalf by carrying us through and keeping us unified. As I remember 9/11 today, I'm celebrating the very fact that God acts. God always acts, and God will always act.

So I say to you today: do not rejoice in death. Do not rejoice that people "got what was coming to them" because they committed acts of terrorism against our country. Celebrate that despite those acts of terrorism, our spirit as the American people stayed strong. Regardless of the state of the American political system and the murky state of the American economy, we continue to be ONE PEOPLE. ONE NATION under God INDIVISIBLE. Let us never forget that word "indivisible."

Praise God for being a God who stays with us and acts through us and let it be our prayer as Christians to stand with our brothers and sisters of every time and place and may God help us to love, accept, and protect one another as we practice mutual forbearance.

To God -- and to God alone -- be the glory.

Yours in Christ,
Pastor Becki