Unscripted

Monday, Tuesday and part of Wednesday are reserved for General Assembly committee meetings. This is the time when commissioners and advisory delegates wade through the often large and complex agendas with the goal of recommending specific actions to the full assembly in plenary session which will begin on Wednesday evening.

Since very few executive presbyters ever represent presbyteries as commissioners, these two and a half days allow for significant periods of “unscripted” time. Some of this unscripted time is used for stuff clearly related to being an EP – interviewing pastors who are looking for interim work or new calls; monitoring committee doings (particularly in those committees dealing with “hot button” issues) to being the process of trying to imagine what effects on a presbytery’s congregations might ensue should the assembly vote one way or another; consulting different national staff about new initiatives and programs; and networking with other EPs, sharing experiences over vexing issues, or even commiserating with others who understand the work’s particular and peculiar travails and frustrations.

But beyond all of that, for me, this unscripted time offers a tangible and important reminder of one of the hallmarks of Presbyterianism – that we are a church of connection.

I get to spend time in conversation, support and prayer with colleagues who, were it not for these opportunities, would be little more than disembodied voices on the telephone or completely impersonal written lines of an email. While this might seem for some, on the surface, as of little consequence, it is important to remember that from the practical perspective alone, in order to truly usefully assist each other in ministry, we need to trust each other. How better to do this than to spend time together?

But even more importantly than the practical, is that our connections with each other embody the early church’s history of how nascent and often-persecuted Christian communities supported each other – think of Paul’s letters to the church in one place engendering support for the church in another. And perhaps embody is not a strong enough word. Perhaps witness is.

And beyond my connecting to others during this time at General Assembly, I get to witness others connecting with each other.

Feels like church.