Gender-Inclusive Presbyterians

Now, Religion in the News, a report and comment on religious trends and events being covered by the media.This week’s item is from The Associated Press June 19, 2006, with a headline:Presbyterians Receive Gender Inclusive Policy.The following are excerpts:Presbyterian Church USA delegates stopped short Monday of approving gender inclusive language for worship of the Divine Trinity.The assembly decided to merely receive a policy paper on the subject rather than approve it.That means church officials can propose experimental liturgies with alternative phrasings for the Trinity.A panel that worked on the issue since 2000, said, Presbyterians also should seek fresh ways to speak of the mystery of the triune God to expand the church’s vocabulary of praise and wonder.One reason is that language limited to the Father and Son has been used to support the idea that God is male, and that men are superior to women, the panel said.

Tom:

Dave, isn’t it amazing how we can help God out here?We want to adjust things according to our culture, obviously, something that the Lord missed in this.Now, let me take it a little further here.This is a couple of days after this Presbyterian church USA agreed to allow gender inclusive language in some services when referring to the Divine Trinity.See, the newly elected head of the Episcopal church, Bishop Catherine Jefforts Schory, referred to both “Our mother Jesus” and king Jesus followers in her sermon.She went on to say, “That sweaty, bloody, tear-stained labor of a cross bears new life.Our mother Jesus gives birth to a new creation, and you and I are his children” she said.

Dave:

Tom, I shouldn’t say it, but I get angry.Look, not just angry because it’s contrary to the Bible, but I’m sorry, we think that we can redefine God, we think we can make it up as we go along?What it says, Tom, is these people do not believe that the Bible is the inspired Word of God.Why are they in this ministry, so called?Why do they call themselves Christians?You’re going to change it!Now, you’re going to come up with your own deal, and we’re going to reinvent---They talk about it in fact, reinventing Christianity.It wasn’t invented by anyone.It’s dependent upon irrefutable prophecies, divine revelation, and God has revealed Himself.Now, we don’t like the way God reveals Himself!Well, God, we’re going to change this whole thing around.And what they are saying is, God is not a real person, if He is, He doesn’t have any standards, they just go along with anything we dream up.They have forgotten that one day this world is going to be judged, punished by this God that they are trying to massage around like “silly putty” put Him into a new form, or something.He’s got to conform to our image!He’s got to conform to our latest ideas!O, well now we are really into goddess worship, and let’s not be narrow-minded about gender, and so forth.So let’s change everything.Tom, I’m sorry, I’ve said too much.

Tom:

Dave, you haven’t said too much, because this goes on and on.Now, for example, the 75^th general convention of the Episcopal church---I just quoted the newly elected bishop, all right?There was a resolution they tried to put forth.Here is the resolution:It says, “The Episcopal church declares it’s unchanging commitment to Jesus Christ as the Son of God, the only name by which any person may be saved, and be it further resolved that we acknowledge the solemn responsibility placed upon us to share Christ with all persons when we hear His Word, I am the Way, the Truth and the Life, no one comes to the Father except through me, John:14:6Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
See All....And be it further resolved that we affirm that we in Christ there is both the substitutionary essence of the cross and the manifestation of God’s unlimited and unending love for all persons, and be it further resolved that we renew our dedication to be faithful witnesses to all persons of the saving love of God perfectly and uniquely revealed in Jesus and upheld by the full testimony of holy Scripture.Now Dave, by a vote of 70% against---they said, No, we’re not going to vote on that.

Dave:

Well, I was about to say, That’s great, that’s good stuff!

Tom:

It is great, it is good stuff.And so there are some, we’re not talking about all Episcopalians, there are some who are hanging in there for the standards that God has presented.But they were overwhelmingly, the vote puts forth on this was, No, we’re just not going to deal with it.

Dave:

Tom, shall I just say it’s stupid, shall I say it’s idiotic?They claim to be Christians, I guess, they’ve got a church, and they talk about God, they talk about Jesus, but we’renot going to let God define it.Now they just had a beautiful resolution.What the resolution said was, We’re going to go by what God says, we’re going to go by what His word says, we believe the Bible is the Word of God, and they say, No, we’re not going to do that.Tom, I’m sorry, it’s idiotic, because what are they doing now?They are making up their own religion.Make up any religion you want but don’t call it Christianity!It has its Founder, it has its Scriptures, and if they think that they are going to enter the gates of heaven with their own made-up standards or religion with a false Christ, a false God, and having thumbed their noses at the God who gave us His Word and our Savior the Lord Jesus Christ, who had to redeem us in a particular way---well, Tom, they're not going to make it!

Tom:

Dave, as I read those who said:O, no, you’re misunderstanding here.All we said was we don’t have the time to reaffirm this.

Dave:

You said they didn’t have the time---

Tom:

In other words, there is a lot on the agenda, and this is what we all believe, so we’re not going to---Come on!Talk about weaselism, this is unbelievable!Why wouldn’t a group gathering in the name of Christ, continually affirm and reaffirm these things?

Dave:

It wouldn’t take any time, Tom.

Tom:

No, no.

Dave:

If they say they already believe it, then just give a voice for it one hundred percent.

Tom:

Right.No, this is the way it’s going, and they don’t want to offend here or offend there, but Christ, the Rock, it’s an offense, the cross, is an offense.We have to live with that because that isour salvation.I mean, it’s not a matter of just living with it, we are thrilled by what Christ has accomplished for us.It’s the only hope anybody has.

Dave:

Absolutely, we live in a day of compromise, Tom, we have a saying out there, the politically correct, and these people are being politically correct, it means, it doesn’t matter, truth doesn’t matter.We just going to kind of get along with one another, massage it around and reach some kind of an agreement that has abandoned the truth for its salvation.And tragically, that’s in the church today.