The twenty-four members of the Standing Judicial Commission (SJC) have processed over thirty cases (and ruled on the admissibility of a similar number) since the meeting of the 47th General Assembly. The cases dealt with issues ranging from ministerial and sessional dispute to moral, marital, and doctrinal matters. In his report prepared for the General Assembly, Stated Clerk Pro Tempore Bryan Chapell says, “We are blessed by having detailed procedures and honorable men on this Commission who are dedicated to rectifying possible injustices and maintaining the faithfulness of Christ’s church.”
A matter that has received much attention relates to Missouri Presbytery’s dealings with a minister who has remained celibate while acknowledging internal struggle with the sin of same-sex attraction. This matter is still being processed by the SJC. With 1000-plus pages in the Record of the Case and multiple briefs on the issues that have required extensive review and multiple Commission meetings, SJC members have exercised great diligence to be fair to all parties.
Additionally, three presbyteries outside of Missouri have asked the General Assembly to assume original jurisdiction of this matter (per BCO 34-1). It is possible that one result of these actions would be a procedural path requiring a vote by all commissioners on the floor of General Assembly. However, because the SJC is still processing an ongoing Complaint from within Missouri Presbytery regarding this case, the SJC has yet to address these original jurisdiction overtures since our standards only allow such action after it can be established that a presbytery “refuses to act” on a matter. The SJC has determined that question is not properly before it until the Missouri Presbytery processes are concluded. Therefore, it is unlikely that the General Assembly, as a whole, will be asked to take up this matter at this 48th General Assembly.