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WHAT DO THEY REALLY
MEAN? A friend recently pointed me to a “resource” on the Presbyterian Women’s website. It is something that should be of interest to all Presbyterian women and men. You can read it for yourself at www.pcusa.org/pw/resources/bias-free-guidelines.htm. Entitled Bias-free Guidelines, the document was written to teach us how to speak correctly. Not necessarily grammatically, or truthfully, or honestly, but rather “correct politically.” The Golden Rule of the Bias-free Guidelines is the helpful reminder that in addressing anyone we should “identify (that) person the way she or he asks to be identified …” Now, that seems to me to be “Etiquette 101,” but apparently the PW leadership believes that we Presbyterians need to be taught some lessons. (It also seems to me unfortunate that the PW leadership does not spend more of its energy worrying about their own theological correctness. But, I digress.) The statement in the Guidelines that particularly caught my attention is found under the heading of Religion. According to PW, we are to “talk about Christianity in a way that is not imperialistic.” Nor are we to “assume that Christians holds authority over all other religions or that Christianity offers something better than other religions” (emphasis mine).” Frankly, I’m not sure what it means to be religiously “imperialistic,” or “to assume that Christianity holds authority” over other religions.” The terms sound more rhetorical than substantive. But, if it makes the PW leadership feel better to offer these meaningless caveats, I guess that it’s OK with me. However, I become profoundly concerned when the PW leadership starts to tell us that we are not to assume “that Christianity offers something better than other religions.” If what they mean by that is that all religions are equally true and good, notwithstanding the fact that they contradict each other, then they have committed intellectual suicide. Further, it also seems to me that they have contradicted their own Purpose Statement (cf. www.pcusa.org/pw/purpose.htm .) The preamble to PW’s Purpose Statement reads, “Forgiven and freed by God in Jesus Christ, and empowered by the Holy Spirit, we commit ourselves….” But, if being forgiven, freed and empowered by Christ is not better than what any other religion offers, then why commit ourselves to anything? If being forgiven, freed and empowered by Christ is not better than what any other religion offers, then why study the Bible? If being forgiven, freed and empowered by Christ is not better than what any other religion offers, then why support the mission of the church worldwide? If being forgiven, freed and empowered by Christ is not better than what any other religion offers, then why witness to the promise of God’s kingdom? It makes no sense whatsoever to say on the one hand that being forgiven, freed and empowered by Christ is not better than what any other religion offers, and on the other to ask us to commit ourselves to specifically Christian endeavors. It seems to me that if the PW leadership really believes what they have said in their Bias-free Guidelines, it is incumbent on them to rewrite their purpose statement – which might then look something like this: Those of us in Presbyterian Women believe that we have been forgiven and freed by God in Jesus Christ, and empowered by the Holy Spirit. But, that isn’t necessarily true for anyone else. So, we commit ourselves: § To nurture our own faith through prayer and Bible study, but we encourage you to read whatever religious material may be at hand and to pray to whomever you think might be appropriate at any given time;
§
To support the mission of the church so long as
no § To work for justice and peace as defined by our partisan political persuasions; § To build an inclusive, caring community of women that strengthens all religions and witnesses to the contradictory promises of each of them. This imaginary Purpose Statement, of course, is utterly ridiculous – unless PW has in fact turned its back on the scriptural and constitutional standards of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). Every year, Presbyterian women all across America pledge undesignated money to support PW and the mission of the church worldwide. And in doing so, I do not believe that their intent is to pay for the kind of mission that is implied by PW’s Bias-free Guidelines. Therefore, I challenge the leadership of Presbyterian Women to rethink the implications of their Bias-free Guidelines. If in doing so they determine that the Guidelines reflect their real commitments, then integrity demands that they amend their Purpose Statement. But, integrity will then also demand that the General Assembly Council rethink its covenant with PW (www.pcusa.org/pw/covenant.htm).
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