The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) has been among the strongest supporters of human rights law, an area of significant success in 20th Century Protestant Christian witness generally. One part of this has been our now 20-year history of preparing human rights updates for Christian education and public policy use. Previous General Assembly actions are noted in the background materials to this year’s resolution; copies can be found in the Advisory Committee’s Social Policy Compilation.
Along with the resolution and its study paper is printed a second action of the Assembly, a petition calling for a formal congressional inquiry into how torture …
This report and its recommendations are in response to the following referral: 2004 Referral: Item 10-09. On Preparing a Policy Statement on Usury in the United States - From the Presbytery of Utah (Minutes, 2004, Part I, pp. 60, 798-99).
The 216th General Assembly (2004)'s referred Item 10-09, an overture from the Presbytery of Utah as amended (Minutes, 2004, Part I, pp. 60, 798-99), to the Advisory Committee on Social Witness Policy to investigate the question of usury in the United States and to prepare a resolution for the 217th General Assembly (2006) that would achieve the following:
1. More …
It is the responsibility of the Christian church to be a critical participant in every political and economic system. We are not cheerleaders of any status quo, nor are we believers that every social change is good. We do not believe in globalization; we support a particular kind of globalization that reflects justice, community, and sustainability for all creation. This is the vision, rooted in Christian faith, that we urge members of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) to advocate in every social, economic, and political arena.
Almost everyone now is familiar with the power of the world market system; yet the …
The General Assembly is invited to begin where its advisory committee began, by affirming that the church include children, youth, and adults with disabilities, while acknowledging that not every Christian community recognizes its potential for ministry. Hence, a task force of volunteers was asked to develop policy and recommendations for the church to work for justice with persons who have disabilities, both within the church itself and the wider social order. A consultation with informed Presbyterians drawn from the synods enriched the work. This policy of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) confirms that the church—the Body of Christ—is to be a …
The Minutes, Part I, Journal contains the proceedings of the annual meeting (before 2004) or biennial meeting (2004 and beyond) of the general assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). The Journal contains the minutes of the meeting (section one) – but also contains in section two the assembly committee reports (with reports from all the agencies of the church, permanent and special committees, overtures to the assembly, and commissioners’ resolutions). Section three of the book contains supplemental material (i.e. roll of the assembly, standing rules, moderators and clerks, and members of entities elected by the assembly). Beginning with the Journal …
Africa, the birthplace of humanity, is largely unknown to most Americans. We will take a brief historical look at four cities—north, south, east, and west—in Africa, along with a bit of church history as it relates to the continent. And we will get a first glimpse at partnership as it is understood in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).
Africa is our homeland and yet many of us know little about it. Africa is a continent of 30,420,000 square kilometers. Its land mass equals that of the combined mass of China, India, Europe, Argentina, the United States, and New Zealand. In our …
The report affirms procedures for mandating reporting of child sexual abuse and the importance of handling complaints of child sexual abuse according to standards of fair process. By doing so, it seeks to balance the rights and duties of those accused of alleged child sexual abuse with the inherent needs and rights of the protection of children from abuse.
The 209th General Assembly (1997) called for an examination of changing families and social structures that support families, focusing especially on their effects on children, in order to develop principles and recommendations to strengthen the church’s ministry to contemporary families in both the church and society in the 21st century (see Minutes, 1997, Part I, pp. 536ff). The resulting task force was to pursue its work with the understanding that there is a variety of families. Answering this call requires attention to the cultural and socioeconomic contexts of today’s families, and it is of primary importance that we lift …
This resolution is based on the theology, ethics, and social policy stated in the report, Restoring Creation for Ecology and Justice, adopted by the 202nd General Assembly (1990). This resolution is an effort to build on that report to keep the environmental policy of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) current and to address issues that have arisen since the report was adopted.
The theology in the 1990 report is God-centered and speaks of a God who comes to judge the people for tilling without keeping, to deliver the vulnerable earth, and to restore the joy of creation. The theology is …
The Minutes, Part I, Journal contains the proceedings of the annual meeting (before 2004) or biennial meeting (2004 and beyond) of the general assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). The Journal contains the minutes of the meeting (section one) – but also contains in section two the assembly committee reports (with reports from all the agencies of the church, permanent and special committees, overtures to the assembly, and commissioners’ resolutions). Section three of the book contains supplemental material (i.e. roll of the assembly, standing rules, moderators and clerks, and members of entities elected by the assembly). Beginning with the Journal …