GC #3: Church Manual, Part I

The 59th General Conference Session completely reorganized the Church Manual of the Seventh-day Adventist Church.  For several days of the business sessions the delegates worked through 95 proposed changes that had percolated through the church's committee procedure.  Because this single volume is the world-wide application of structure and practice for the entire denomination I paid special attention to each part of the discussion.  In the end it was an exercise in cross-cultrual understanding in how to make a world-wide church work in harmony.

There were some significant changes--some of which were, to me, milestones in how we view leadership in the local church.  First, the most revolutionary in my eyes:

Gender-referenced ordination enters the World Church for the first time.  The previous editions of the Church Manual provided for an ordination service for elders and deacons.  Please note that "elders" is a gender-neutral office.  In North America, Australia, and Europe there are both women and men who are elected as elders and through that election are eligible for ordination.  But this gender-neutrality allows churches in places such as the African continent to bypass the whole discussion whether to ordain women elders--they just don't appoint elders who are female.  And, of course, deacons are males by definition. The ordination issue for women is moot.  But what about the deaconess?

The previous Church Manual designated an "induction" service for deaconesses elected to this church office.  However, the practice of "laying hands of ordination" on deaconesses is increasingly practiced on an ad hoc basis in various parts of the world church.  The debate on the delegate floor at this General Conference was whether to officially authorize the ordination of deaconesses in the Church Manual. The actual proposal that came from the General Conference Executive Committee would have allowed the 13 World Divisions to apply this individually--thus leaving it open for cultural application.  As you can imagine, this whole topic elicited an intense debate.  Various amendments were offered, debated, and defeated.

In the end, the language voted into the Manual was even stronger than the original proposal.  I had a sense that some of the delegates really didn't appreciate how powerful this final action turned out to be.  A service of ordination should be conducted for deacons and deaconesses without any wiggle-room for the various divisions to opt out of it.  Granted, "should" is a middle ground between "may" (optional) and "must" (no choice).  But it does do something that has never been done before--the world church has gender-specific ordination for a female. This is monumental, especially in Divisions of the world church that see "ordination" of elders, deacons, and pastors as identical in quality with the only difference being the functions of the office.
Sure, this is a small step but that is the nature of change when you're seeking to move 13 World Divisions together.  And the vote came with a surprisingly clear majority.

 I was thankful as we raised our yellow voting cards for progress in equipping every member of the church for service--especially the 60% of the membership who are women.

But wait....there's more!  See GC #4:  Church Manual, Part II.

What Makes A Church?

Today I witnessed the practical manifestation of Peter's words, "...you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ." (1 Peter 2:5).

At the Sparks, Nevada, Seventh-day Adventist Church you'll meet Elder Kingsley Palmer who serves, with his wife Lorraine, as the lead pastor of a vibrant, multicultural congregation in the greater-Reno area of Northern Nevada. But he'll be the first to tell you that there is no church without the faithful service of scores of volunteers.

This Sabbath was officer dedication day at Sparks and it was my privilege to join Pastor Palmer in the service. His theme was being the "hands of Christ" with an emphasis on the kinds of hands one can be in the various roles of elder, clerk, Sabbath school teacher, children's ministry, etc.

We also laid the hands of ordination on two local elders. As I joined in the prayer of dedication it reminded me of the the thousands of other elders across our world church as well as across the years who have felt the touch of hands pressed gently upon their shoulders. This simple act triggered the memory of my own father's ordination in the Orange, California, church one Sabbath in the 1960's as well as my own ordination as a minister in 1988. That moment is a living connection to Peter's words--we're now part of the framework of the "spiritual house" that God is constructing in each generation.

My message for the worship hour was taken from John 15:1-9 where we're reminded that connection with Jesus is the sole criteria for success in both life and ministry. And as Jennifer and I shook hands with the congregation at the door we touched the "living stones" that God is cementing together with the mortar of heavenly love to accomplish His work in Spark, Nevada-- just one of the thousands of places where God is at work in the Vineyard of the Pacific Union Conference.