In her sermon during Tuesday morning worship at the 220th General Assembly, the Rev. Margaret Aymer declared—with many “Amens” in response—that Jesus doesn't look at our identity. Rather, he looks at our faith as described in Mark's Gospel story of the faithful four who lowered the paralyzed man through a roof to see Jesus.

During open hearings on Monday, the 220th General Assembly Civil Union and Marriage Issues Committee heard from advocates and opponents of proposed changes to the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)’s definition of marriage.

Members of the 220th General Assembly Middle East and Peacemaking Issues did not see much business completed by Monday's dinner break, but they experienced a lot of passion and asked numerous questions as they worked to get a picture of the history and strategy for peace in the Middle East.

The Church Polity Committee of the 220th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) maintained what many of its commissioners called the “flexibility” of the Form of Government.

The committee rejected a series of overtures that could have had the impact of making some sections of the Book of Order more precise, but commissioner Tara Brown (Indian Nations Presbytery) said changes seemed to interfere with flexibility. “We have the flexibility to do what we do best. Let’s get back to letting a congregation do what it feels is best,” she said.

The 220th General Assembly Church Orders and Ministry Committee jumped ahead in its agenda Monday evening and entertained a motion to approve an amended version of an overture from Sacramento Presbytery.

The 220th General Assembly Committee on Authoritative Interpretation Review completed its work Monday, recommending that about 20 percent of the 300+ constitutional interpretations issued since Presbyterian reunion in 1983 be “removed” because they reference sections of the Book of Order that no longer exist.

The 175 years of Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) world mission have been characterized by the planting of churches in other countries that eventually moved from dependence on Presbyterian missionaries to independence as full partners of the denomination.

On July 2, members of the Assembly Committee on Ecumenical and Interfaith Relations celebrated milestones with two of those partners―the National Evangelical Presbyterian Church of Guatemala (IENPG) is celebrating its 50th anniversary and the Presbyterian-Reformed Church in Cuba (PRCC) is celebrating its 45th anniversary.

On Monday, the 220th GA Mission Coordination Committee voted 47-3 to recommend to the Assembly that the name of the General Assembly Mission Council (GAMC) be changed to the Presbyterian Mission Agency.

Near the end of the day on Monday, the 220th General Assembly Social Justice Issues Committee had made headway on a lengthy docket.

The committee voted to recommend that the Assembly approve resolutions endorsing a fifty-year farm bill, supporting the work of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and a resolution calling for justice for survivors of sexual assault.

As the Church Growth and PILP (Presbyterian Investment and Loan Program) Committee was wrestling with the report of the GA Special Committee on the Changing Nature of the Church in the 21st Century, one of its members quipped, “I have a plane to catch on Saturday afternoon.”