6/07/2008

The Memorials

My reporting from the floor will be by cell phone text messaging (there is no Internet access in the conference center) however form my hotel room I do have Internet acess..so here are the actual memorials, presumbably in the order we will consider them.


To print out your own copy of the PDF file of these memorials paste the following URL into your browser)
http://www.wesleyan.org/gc/assets/downloads/down.php?dfile=A - Official final version - memorials for 2008.pdf

Only recommended memorials are forthrightly considered unless someone move the adotion of a non-recommended memorial or offers it as a substitute. I have marked those memorials not recommended by the GBA and written my own take on the effect of each). print out your own pdf file from the above link to follow along during the debate since my text messaging from the floorr will be short.

mem # Effect
1. Chair empowered to appoint a journal committee.

3. Empowers GBA to do unfinished business after June 11

5. REPORT: Task force on Ministerial-lay ratio imbalance at District conference called for by 2004 conference … (memorial recommends no change—see 215)

215. Changes Discipline so that DBA may reduce number of lay delegates to DC downward to not less than highest number of ministerial delegates answering roll call each of last three years.

315. NC East solution to above problem—NOT recommended

316. W Mich memorial on GBA representation—NOT recommended—(GBA’s alternative plan is in 317).

317. Does away with the four past representative areas (NE, S, NC, W) and collapses them into the three administrative areas the GSs supervise without changing anything for the college areas.

50. Changes General Conference from every four years to every five years, extending the terms of general officials to five years too. (CONSTITUTIONAL—if passed by GenConf will also have to get a 2/3 aggregate vote of all district conferences)

375. Officially changes the name of “World missions” to “Global partners” which has already been effected practically-speaking.

55. Eliminates representative to gen conf from missions fields and makes the NA gen conf those form NA assuming international delegates go to the international conference instead of NA conference. (CONSTITUTIONAL)

58. Authorizes the new Gen Sec of Communications to be also the General secretary of the church and be elected by the GBA, not general Conference. (CONSTITUTIONAL)

77. Penn-Jersey’s recommendation on members watching leisure time activities (NOT recommended—GBA recommends their own revisions in 78)

78. The GBA’s changes in the “Special Directions” a)kicking off the statement with words on “personal convictions” and “collective witness” which we voluntarily accept; b) substance abuse “encouraging members” to self-discipline in eating, exercise and rest with more specific statements saying we “oppose” alcoholic beverages, tobacco, unprescribed drugs c) revised statement on Lord’s Day d)Changes statement on reserving right of parents to keep their kids out of dancing at school replacing it with more generic statement not mentioning dancing; e) entertainment—a generic-subjective statement except for gambling which calls for “total abstinence.” (See PDF copy

76-L [late memorial] Central Canada’s memorial cleaning up references to the USA and US constitution in the Discipline.

116. The GBA’s three-page plan for restructuring membership (see PDF file above for details) but includes Covenant, Community and student membership extending broader local voting rights to community members including voting on the p[astors and election of LBA. Effect is to make covenant membership the standard for leadership and expand voting rights of community members and make it completely transferable to other churches. This GBA-written memorial is considered the omnibus memorial that cares for many or most of the following memorials from the various districts.

60. Pacific SW memorial dealing with membership—NOT recommended

61. Dakota memorial on same—NOT recommended

62. Pacific SW memorial dealing with membership issue—NOT recommended

110. West Michigan memorial expanding voting rights of community members—NOT recommended

113. W Michigan memorial on community members (NOT recommended)

115. W Michigan memorial calling for a study committee on membership. (NOT recommended)

101. South Coastal’s memorial on reclassifying a church (NOT recommended—see GBA memorial103)

103. Chesapeake memorial empowering the DBA to reclassify of a church from being an “established church” to “developing church” if they do not accomplish “evangelism.”

102. Chesapeake’s memorial increasing from 10 to 25 the number of covenant members required to move to established church status.

100. Central NY memorial allowing for a LBA (with DS approval) to invite multiple staff to stay for one more year when a Senior pastor resigns rather then being forced to resign too. (NOT recommended)

144. Western NY’s memorial allowing for the firing of assistant pastor at any time with approval of DS. (NOT recommended)

146. Western NY’s memorial allowing for the firing of lay assistant at any time by senior pastor of LBA. (NOT recommended)

125. GBA’s memorial forcing local church to get DS approval for a special session of local church conference.

140. Central NY memorial allowing for members living away to vote electronically by email etc.. (NOT recommended)

142. Greater Ohio’s memorial making initial pastoral call 4 years (NOT recommended)

164. Central NY’s memorial providing 3-year rotating terms for LBA members.

165. Central NY’s memorial option for 3-year terms for DBA (NOT recommended)

166. Penn-Jersey’s memorial eliminating requirement of distributing finances report monthly to making them available upon request.

180. Elimination of church periodicals director position.

190. GBA memorial establishing expectation of offering Lord’s Supper as monthly instead of quarterly.

234. Eastern NY memorial requiring DBA members to be active in a local church in that district. (NOT recommended)

245. Pacific SW’s memorial making election of District board of review as needed instead of mandated (NOT recommended)

260. GBA memorial giving GS power to veto nominations for DS by the district DS nominating committee.

300. GBA memorial congratulating Nazarenes for 100th anniversary.

305. GBA memorial transferring “international delegates” from the NA general conference to the international conference.

307. Pacific SW memorial establishing General Conference at 400 members (NOT recommended)

310. Wisconsin memorial that a “plain English” edition of memorials be produced. (NOT recommended)

740. GBA memorial authorizing re-filing articles of incorporation in light of new laws.

319. East Michigan memorial eliminating the automatic assignment of GSs for four years and authorizing the GBA to do this assigning.

324. GBA memorial allowing for electronic notification of GBA meetings.

325. GBA memorial clarifying and outlining how LBA, DBA and GBA can have executive sessions and maintain confidentiality.

335. GBA memorial making Earle Wilson a GS Emeritus.

345. Central NY memorial to make USF contribute some to Global Partners (NOT recommended)

346. Wisconsin memorial to appoint committee to study alternative finding for Global partners. (NOT recommended)

347. West Michigan memorial to change USF percentages to include global partners. (NOT recommended)

350. Central NY memorial requiring that statistical report categories remain unchanged for four years. (NOT recommended)

351. Central NY memorial calling for return of TNT-Campus Challenge to the SF/youth department. (NOT recommended)

353. W Michigan memorial providing for after the elction of GSs then another elction will occur to elect a “chair” of general Superintendents (NOT recommended)

354. GBA memorial removing Wesleyan Native American Ministries from the Discipline and letting the GBA make these policies.

365. GBA memorial that is a position statement on “Creation care.”

366. GBA memorial that is a position paper on domestic violence.

367. GBA memorial that is a position statement on immigration.

348. Central NY memorial instructing the denomination to not use hotels for events when they offer porn channels or if they must make sure the channels are turned off. (NOT recommended)

349. Central NY memorial calling for a variety of more activist approaches to moral issues. (NOT recommended—see next memorial)

352. GBA memorial accomplishing most of what memorial 349 asked for.

385. BGS memorial authorizing editorial changes to reflect Spiritual Formation nomenclature in Discipline.

500. GBA memorial updating the way transfer ministers are received.

525. Pacific SW district memorial allowing for extension of time for ordination process.

850. Indiana Central memorial authorizing funds from sale of property to be used for program—not just new property… with GBA amendment assign ‘written approval of GS.”

852. Kansas memorial allowing a district to allocate 5% of sale of any property asset for compassion ministries.

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See any trends or patterns here?

8 comments:

Burton Webb said...

Having trouble with the .pdf file. Can you email it?

Anonymous said...

Looks like a busy and INTERESTING time will be had by all. Look forward to your updates. I also couldn't open the .pdf file

Anonymous said...

Interesting.

I almost got to go (to work at a booth) and would have looked forward to checking it out and seeing for myself. Thanks for sharing.

theajthomas said...

I had trouble with the PDF link but when I cut a pasted the URL into my browser it worked fine.

Stevan said...

Wisconsin's memorial for "plain English" translations of memorials has been taken care of by your blog, Coach!

Thanks for keeping those of us who can't make it to Conference in-the-know! You're my hero!

Keith Drury said...

I removed the hot link to the pdf file at headquarters and left the URL to paste in..thatworks fine...

If you still can't get it, sed me an email and I'll send it to you.

keith drury

Kevin Wright said...

just read the statement on immigration...nice job whoever wrote that. it's not without problems (relies too much on two kingdom theology), but it accomplishes a lot of good things and leaves the door open for civil disobedience when the laws are unjust. excellent

Elizabeth Glass-Turner said...

Coach, are the immigration/creation care memorials pro, or con, or just "statements"? What do they say?