General Assembly (2014) #17

Marriage: 

A constitutional amendment allowing same gender marriage was approved by the General Assembly with a vote of 429 to 175. It will be necessary for our presbytery to vote on this action and for a majority of presbyteries to approve it before it is added to our Book of Order. In my mind, it is crucially important that the sentence copied here was added and approved also. 

"Nothing herein shall compel a teaching elder to perform nor compel a session to authorize the use of church property for a marriage service that the teaching elder or the session believes is contrary to the teaching elder’s or the session’s discernment of the Holy Spirit and their understanding of the Word of God."

The challenge before us is precisely clear. Can we be one church with two definitions of marriage? I believe we can. I will work for this kind of church. Our ability to do this may be a remarkable witness to the world.