Breaking historic ground . . . again

A hybrid 225th General Assembly has high hopes

By J. Herbert Nelson, II | Presbyterians Today

Teaching Elder Gregory J. Bentley speaks at the virtual 224th General Assembly on June 27, 2020, after his election as co-moderator. Randy Hobson

It took 122 years, but on June 10, 1983, the Presbyterian Church in the United States and the United Presbyterian Church in the United States became one denomination — once more.

More than 14,000 people gathered at the World Congress Center in Atlanta for the historic vote that would create the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). Afterward, the crowd poured into the streets to celebrate while groups across the country gathered in their local congregations to take communion and celebrate the long-overdue reunion.

There would be more changes to come that would capture the denomination’s spirit of “reformed and always reforming,” among them the notable move in 2002 at the 214th General Assembly to biennial Assemblies. While this change might have seemed momentous at the time, nothing could have prepared Presbyterians for the biggest change to come, one that would alter the way the business of the Church got done. That change had a name: COVID.

In 2020, the global pandemic changed the world and everything in it. As the virus worked its way across the country, conference centers and hotels were converted into makeshift hospitals, bracing for the worst. Faced with the loss of hotel and meeting space, coupled with the health risks of holding an in-person gathering, the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) hosted its first fully online General Assembly.

The digital learning curve was fast and furious. Most business was put on hold and the Church conducted a basic four-day virtual meeting, dealing with only critical business. Commissioners, advisory delegates and hundreds of corresponding members participated from their own homes. The Louisville-based tech crew, surrounded by wires, monitors and laptops, orchestrated a complete virtual Assembly with only key personnel at the Presbyterian Center on Witherspoon Street in Louisville, Kentucky. While it wasn’t the General Assembly they had envisioned on the historic waterfront in Baltimore, the online Assembly “exceeded expectations,” said Ruling Elder Julia Henderson. Henderson, a leader for planning and business in the Office of the General Assembly (OGA), said that while a few “hiccups” were expected, there was “rejoicing” in the work of the team and “how we were able to seamlessly pull this thing off.”

The 224th General Assembly, and the subsequent online conferences that followed, showed OGA worship, training and fellowship could take place over long distances.

A changing world

The PC(USA) is once again faced with creating history at a General Assembly. With nearly two years of online experience under its belt, OGA is hosting a hybrid gathering that mixes in-person meetings with online plenaries.

COVID-19 led the 224th General Assembly to a new digital future, paving the way for a hybrid gathering this June. Randy Hobson

“Protocols will be put into place following the advice of our COVID advisory team made up of physicians and scientists,” said Henderson. “There’s no way we could have come up with the ideas we are implementing now had it not been for individuals sitting around a table thinking and learning how to work together in a different way, accepting the fact that some of the things we have been doing we just can’t do the same anymore. The world has changed around us, and for us to be relevant, we have to continue to change with it.”

There will be no exhibit hall, lunches, dinners or other events, reducing opportunities for agencies and entities of the Church to engage with commissioners and advisory delegates in person.

To adequately provide for in-person committee meetings, the first floor of the Presbyterian Center is undergoing a major facelift to host committees. The $2.4 million project not only opens the door for the hybrid Assembly, but future meetings as well.

“We need this renovation for all meetings we host. The world of hybrid meetings is something we would not be equipped to deal with were it not for this project. We will be in good shape to meet the future,” said Kerry Rice, deputy Stated Clerk with OGA.

But the 225th gathering is more than just providing a safe environment for commissioners, advisory delegates and other participants. It’s about changing how the Church looks at the Assembly and the way Assembly business takes place. The Church’s vision for 2022 focuses on the need to include and hear from everyone about the future direction of the PC(USA):

• Exploring revisions to the Book of Order and Standing Rules
• Seeking community partners across the denomination
• Offering easily accessible and effective resources to all Presbyterians
• Upholding a faithful theology and practice of stewardship: care for the Earth, health and safety of all in light of the COVID-19 virus
• Providing space and freeing funds for innovative ministry rather than funding convention-style gatherings.

True inclusion is the goal

Logistics aside, the real hope of this year’s General Assembly is to see real issues of inclusion being addressed, not just by overture, but through the creation of an Assembly that demonstrates love and openness for everyone.

Some of the data collected in 2021 on the 224th General Assembly showed a decline in participation by Young Adult Advisory Delegates (YAADs). Approximately 130 YAADs registered at opening session, yet the last vote of the Assembly recorded approximately 76 YAAD votes. That area is of grave concern to OGA staff and committee members.

The upcoming Assembly affords an opportunity to build inclusiveness into the business of the Church through the introduction of moments of pause to reflect further on the options available before voting.

“After a while, people get into a habit of either approving or disapproving motions. Folks don’t always think about the different options that are present. It could be approved with comment or disapproved with comment,” said the Rev. Jihyun Oh, OGA’s director of Mid Council Ministries. “It would be good to present the different motions that can be made about an overture beforehand. Sometimes people get stuck in that approve/disapprove mindset. This can help give a brief pause to remember what the options are.”

Commissioners and advisory delegates who identify as Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) will have opportunities to meet as a group, both personally and virtually during Assembly. “We did this at the last Assembly and found it to be incredibly helpful,” said Ruling Elder Elona Street-Stewart, Co-Moderator of the 224th General Assembly. “Not only were we able to provide each other with emotional support, it was an opportunity to address process and policy questions.” Street-Stewart adds that the move is not meant to offend white siblings. “This can be incredibly life-giving, creating a space where people can be authentic to who they are and be able to be nurtured in their courage to go back as a commissioner and serve, equipping them with what they need to be a good commissioner,” she said.

Assembly chaplains

This year, two “accompaniers” with General Assembly experience will be assigned to provide chaplaincy-like support when the committees meet in Louisville. They will also be a resource and remain in relationship and communication with BIPOC commissioners for the duration of their service to GA.

Teaching Elder Leon Lovell-Martin, who serves on the Committee on the Office of the General Assembly (COGA), hopes it sets a new standard going forward.

“I’m hoping that in light of where we are in the 21st century, and in a Church that is becoming more and more multicultural, we will get to a point where we would not have to seek approval to have this done,” he said. “It would become a regular part of what we do at General Assembly.”

OGA and COGA have taken some major steps to try and be as innovative as possible. Technology has helped pave the way for that innovation. “It not only helped us address the inability to gather in person but allowed us to find more efficient ways to make decisions and get things done,” said Henderson, adding that “the discussions for what the 21st century is calling the Church to be will continue long after this Assembly ends, as will the openness to being inventive and creative. It’s a challenge not just for OGA, but for all of God’s children.”

The Rev. Dr. J. Herbert Nelson, II, is the Stated Clerk of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).

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