Telling the Truth

The writer of Proverbs admonishes the reader to “Buy truth, and do not sell it …” Ephesians tells the Christian that they are not to “be carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming,” but are instead to speak truth in love. (Eph 4:14-15)

The absolute lack of such understanding about truth was pictured to me while sitting as an observer in the Ecumenical & Interfaith Committee at General Assembly. My nervousness over testifying against the overture that would declare that Muslims and Christians worship the same God was gone. All that was left was anxiety that the General Assembly would be unfaithful enough to pass the overture.

But I turned my attention to David Thompson, the minister from Westminster Presbyterian Church in Sacramento, wondering if he was testifying on some overture or just observing?

Thompson is the minister, who along with his associates, filed complaints when the Sacramento Presbytery allowed First Presbyterian Church of Roseville and Fair Oaks Presbyterian Church to leave with their property for a sum of money considered a gift. The two Churches in turn dropped their suit for their Church property. They of course had to return to court when the Synod agreed with Thompson, and they won the case.

When the Presbytery voted not to appeal, Thompson filed another complaint, causing the Synod to insist the Presbytery file an appeal. (Stay of Enforcement) Thompson was not finished. He stood before the Ecumenical & Interfaith Committee and testified that the Evangelical Presbyterian Church was stealing churches and millions of dollars from the Sacramento Presbytery.

Thompson was the only one who testified for approval of “On Investigating the Actions and Conduct of the Evangelical Presbyterian Church.” Did he offer proof? Hardly. He talked about web sites where churches can receive information about how to leave the PCUSA.

It can truthfully be stated that First Presbyterian Church of Roseville has a considerable amount of information on their web site which their members used in deciding if they as a church would leave the PCUSA. Included in this information is the web site of the EPC which offers a fifty page booklet entitled, Information Packet for Inquiring Churches

In the booklet is this statement:

“The EPC takes no joy at divisions existing within any body which bear the name ‘Church of Jesus Christ.’ We join our voices in prayer to the many within and without the PC(USA) for God to bring reconciliation, truth and righteousness. The EPC will retain the posture it has in the past toward other denominations with respect to those interested in or seeking dismissal – we do not recruit congregations from other communions but we will respond quickly and helpfully to those who wish to explore a relationship with the EPC.”

I have read most of the material that was offered as handouts at meetings of both Roseville and Fair Oaks. There was certainly no recruiting by EPC but there was plenty of information about the failure of the Presbyterian Church USA to uphold the faith of the Church. And that was not material published or produced by the Evangelical Presbyterian Church but by members of the PCUSA. The failure of the PCUSA to uphold their standards has everything to do with the loss of two very vibrant and evangelical churches from the Sacramento Presbytery.

While I am not a New Wineskin Presbyterian nor am I at this time intending to leave the PCUSA, I now have a picture of what falsehood looks like and am pained that I am part of a denomination that would persecute their brothers and sisters. And I confess part of the confession written by Bonhoeffer in his book Ethics, The Church confesses “She has not convicted the slanderer of his wrongdoing, and she has thereby abandoned the slandered to his fate.”