Thursday afternoon, the 42nd General Assembly (GA) affirmed the recommendations of the Overtures Committee with one exception. In the case of Overture 43, the GA voted to accept the minority report which moved the following as a substitute motion:
Be it resolved that the Presbyterian Church in America expresses its gratitude to the Lord for sustaining by His grace ministers of the gospel, chaplains, and Christians serving in the public sphere who are experiencing ostracism, penalties, and persecution for taking a Biblically faithful stand for the sanctity of human life and declining to participate in the cultural redefinition of marriage; and
Be it further resolved that the General Assembly pause and offer prayer to the Lord on
behalf of such ministers of the gospel, chaplains, and Christians.
The following recommendations were affirmed by the GA:
- Overture 6 – answer in the affirmative, with amendments (amended version is forthcoming)
- Overtures 7, 12, 18, 19, 21, 23, 24, 30, 33, 34, 35, 36, 38, 39, 41, 42, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 50 – answer with reference to the Assembly’s action on Overture 6
- Overture 22 – answer in the negative
- Overture 31 – answer in the negative
- Overture 32 – answer in the negative
- Overture 37 – answer in the affirmative
- Overture 49 – answer in the affirmative
- Overture 13 – answer in the negative
- Overtures 3, 8, 11, 15, 17, 20 – answer with reference to the action taken on overture 13
- Overture 40 – return to the teaching elder who submitted it
- Overture 9 – answer in the negative
Overtures 2, 5, and 14 were ruled out of order by the moderator.
Click here for links to all the overtures.
Following a 4:30 worship service, the 42nd General Assembly will be adjourned.
