First Pres Response to General Assembly Action Concerning Israel
The 216th General Assembly (GA)
of the Presbyterian Church (USA) met in Richmond, Virginia from June 26
to July 3, 2004. While the business of the GA encompassed many different
things, one particular action has caused much controversy since the Assembly.
This was the adoption of a resolution that included language about beginning
a process of “phased selective divestment of multinational corporations
operating in Israel.” Because much of the media attention to this
issue has been overblown and distorted, it is important to read the actual
text of the resolution.
When stories and opinion pieces began appearing in the media (some of
which erroneously implied that the PC(USA) was siding against Israel and
with terrorists), several people understandably expressed concern. The
Session, on the recommendation of the Denominational
Concerns Committee, responded by appointing a Task Force to look into
the issue. The Task Force consisted of Dr. Carl Hofmann and Elders Kathy
Haddock and Allan Harvey. Their assignment was to study both the current
situation and the historical role of Israel in Christianity, to prepare
a response from our church to the appropriate denominational officials,
and to communicate to the congregation about these matters.
An important part of this process was a study of a Reformed understanding
of the role of Israel in salvation history. This study, prepared by Dr.
Carl Hofmann, was presented to the Session at its December 2004 meeting.
It has since been presented at the Men’s Retreat, and may be presented
elsewhere in the future. Because it provides important theological background
for understanding current issues, we are making Dr. Hofmann’s audio
presentation and text outline available
from this website.
In studying the situation, it became clear to the Task Force that the
characterization of the GA resolution in the media has been inflammatory
and often inaccurate. Rather than placing the PC(USA) in an anti-Israel
position, the resolution must be viewed in the context of other PC(USA)
statements that denounce terrorism and affirm Israel’s right to
exist in peace and security. Rather than being a vote for immediate divestment
of all companies doing business in Israel, it begins a process of study
where the denomination’s Mission
Responsibility Through Investment Committee (MRTI) will set up criteria
to determine which companies (if any) are contributing to injustice. Efforts
will be made to persuade those companies to change their policies, and
divestment will only be recommended as a last resort. No divestment action
can begin unless it is ratified by the next General Assembly in 2006.
In examining these issues, the Task Force concluded that it is appropriate,
in the tradition of God’s prophets, for the church to speak out
against perceived injustice. It also agreed that the GA’s concerns
about injustice suffered by Palestinians are legitimate, and that nobody
should be above criticism. With regard to the action taken by the GA,
however, it was concluded that the resolution as adopted was unwise because
it gave the appearance of being one-sided, because it easily lent itself
to media distortion, and because it was adopted without the prayerful
and thoughtful consideration that should accompany denominational actions,
particularly on issues that have the potential to cause division and threaten
our witness. As a result, the Task Force drafted and Session approved
a letter, expressing our
concerns and desire for corrective and constructive action in the future,
to be sent to appropriate denominational officials. This letter was sent
in January 2005.
Click here for the text
of the letter from the Session of First Presbyterian Church to the General
Assembly Council, its Executive Director, and the Stated Clerk of the
PC(USA).
As a part of its task of communicating to the congregation about these
matters, the Task Force also prepared an article for
the church newsletter (The Flame) presenting the letter and describing
the process by which our church produced this response.
Further questions about this issue may be directed to the members of
the Task Force, or to any of our Pastors or Elders.
Update (Summer 2006)
In June 2006, the 217th General
Assembly adopted a new
resolution on this issue. The 2006 action has the following significant points:
1) It expresses regret for the “hurt and misunderstanding” among
our Jewish friends and others caused by the 2004 General Assembly action.
2) It remains critical of violence and oppression in Israel/Palestine,
whether perpetrated by Israel or by others.
3) It replaces the one-sided divestment instruction from 2004 with
a positive and balanced statement expressing that the church’s investments
in this region should be directed toward “peaceful pursuits.”
This outcome is very consistent with the position expressed by our church
leadership. On this issue, we can be proud of way the 2006 General Assembly
was willing to listen to criticism with humility and correct its previous
flawed action.
Resources
In this section, we provide links to various resources, some of which
are mentioned above, that will aid in understanding this issue and our
church’s response.
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