By Maureen Wright
The 226th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) opened on Tuesday as the committees of the assembly began their work using Zoom. The General Assembly is awe-inspiring. It challenges us to look beyond our local context to listen, wonder, and discern what God is saying to the church today. The Constitution of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) Part II the Book of Order describes it this way:
The General Assembly constitutes the bond of union, community, and mission among all of its congregations and councils, to the end that the whole church becomes a community of faith, hope, love, and witness. As it leads and guides the witness of the whole church, it shall keep before it the marks of the Church (F-1.0302), the notes by which Presbyterian and Reformed communities have identified themselves through history (F-1.0303), and the six Great Ends of the Church (F-1.0304). (Book of Order, G-3.0501)
To attend a General Assembly – as an observer, worshipper, volunteer, commissioner, or staff person – is to experience this community of faith, hope, love, and witness. It is a living out of the words of Luke 13:29, “Then people will come from east and west, north and south…” Those gathered come to listen for the Spirit, who speaks through worship and committee meetings, voices and silence. Those gathered come to make decisions in witness to Jesus Christ through times of agreement and disagreement, silence and shouting, study and prayer. God is always present.
The church gathers in this highest council, the General Assembly, because Presbyterians firmly believe that God speaks as we gather. In her orientation videos for presbytery meetings, Susan Sharp Campbell shares, “as we gather in councils… we do so trusting that God’s Spirit will be in our midst and lead us to discern together where God is leading us.” On Tuesday, I sent a text to our commissioners, Chris Kilbert and Susan Shelton Perry, and Young Adult Advisory Delegate, Em Rau. I encouraged them to listen – for God through the Spirit, to their committee leadership, and to their commissioner colleagues. They are living out the commission from us to study and prepare, to be present, to listen, to be active and vote. They are charged to vote their conscience (F-3.0101) that God’s will be made known. Please pray for them and for all of the commissioners to the assembly.
Chris Kilbert, Susan Shelton Perry, Em Rau, and I will travel to Salt Lake City on Friday and Saturday. Please pray for all of us as we travel and as we serve the Presbytery of West Virginia. I will be sharing regular reflections from the General Assembly as well as providing links to summaries of the business accomplished. Here is what I am most looking forward to at the General Assembly plenary in Salt Lake City: God is present every time the body worships; I cannot wait to meet God there. God is present every time a report is shared, as decisions are made that surprise me; I cannot wait to meet God there. God is present in the fellowship, every time I see a friend or make a new one; I cannot wait to meet God there. God is present every time a commissioner finds their voice and speaks to the gathered assembly; I cannot wait to meet God there. I encourage you to take some time and listen to the livestream so that you can meet God there, too.
Here Is How You Can Follow General Assembly 226
Find a full schedule of events here. The committees and the plenary sessions of the General Assembly can be livestreamed at https://ga-pcusa.org/. Interested persons can also register free as an online observer, which allows access to MyGA. A MyGA account provides online observers with access to many of the same resources available to commissioners and other official participants. You can also sign up for a Daily News GA Update.
Two early events in the assembly will be the election of Co-Moderators and a Stated Clerk. Those standing for Co-Moderators are Rev. CeCe Armstrong and Rev. Tony Larson as well as Rev. Danny Morales and Rev. Dr. Marian McClure Taylor. The Rev. Jihyun Oh will be nominated as Stated Clerk. “If elected, the 1.5 generation Korean American, who was born in South Korea and raised in Kansas, would be the first Korean American to serve in the PC(USA)’s highest ecclesial office, only the second woman, and the first woman of color.” (Mike Ferguson, Presbyterian News Service, April 26, 2024)