The Ministers Council of the American Baptist Churches

of Rhode Island

November 15, 2004  

Dear Friends and Colleagues:  

The Executive Committee of your local Ministers Council extends to you an invitation to participate in a Jerusalem Council session to be held at Canonicus on Tuesday, January 11, 2005 (Alternate snow date - Tuesday, February 8, 2005).  This will be an all day session under the leadership of a nationally trained facilitator. Please mark your calendars now and then take time to read the following information pertinent to this session.   

Many of you are aware that at the 2004 Session of the National Ministers Council Senate Session at Green Lake a bylaw amendment proposal was presented to the senate body.  This proposed amendment reads as follows:  

Proposed Section 3

a. Senators will be clergy in good standing in the American Baptist Churches who uphold the Covenant and Code of Ethics for Ministerial Leaders of the American Baptist Churches, and maintain sexual integrity consistent with the teaching of Scripture that sexual intimacy is to be experienced between a man and a woman committed to each other in marriage and with the policy of the American Baptist Churches in the U.S.A. that the practice of homosexuality is incompatible with Christian teaching.

b.  The Executive Committee of the Ministers Council shall ensure that Senators meet the qualifications of this article.

The bylaw amendment process calls for action on the proposed amendment at the next session of the Senate that will be held in August 2005.

In response to this proposed amendment, the Denominational Relationships Committee recommended to the Senate that:

1) Under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, a team of facilitators who are skilled in mediation and group process will be chosen, briefed and dispatched to regional constituent councils to create a sacred space, to hear Scripture and testimony and engage in prayer based on the Jerusalem Council model of Acts 15, between August 2004 and June 2005.

2) Every member of Ministers Council will be invited to respond in writing (500 words or less) on the matter.

The following guidelines are offered as a framework for response

a) Reflect on this issue of homosexuality in light of Christ’s greatest commandments to love God and neighbor.

b) Under what circumstances do you believe you can be faithful to God and remain in fellowship with others who hold strong convictions opposite your own, regarding homosexuality?

3) Throughout the year, intentional prayer and fasting will be organized, giving the outcome of the process to God.

4) A letter will be sent to the President and General Secretary of ABC USA , on behalf of the Ministers Council, requesting the denomination to move from dialogue to resolution.  Due diligence, compliance with established guidelines for policy statements, and a sense of urgency will be communicated to our denominational leaders.

Under the leadership of the Spiritual and Personal Wholeness Committee, guidelines for prayer and fasting are distributed on a monthly basis.  Each senator is paired with a prayer partner with a designated day of the month for focused prayer and contact.  These guidelines are available to you by email.  Please contact me if you are not now receiving them.

Members of the Ministers Council will be invited to submit written responses as described above to the National Ministers Council.  Such responses will be reviewed, with input compiled and analyzed by a professional evaluator.  The separate responses will then be destroyed.  The responses will be maintained in absolute confidence.

When the presented amendment, with any proposed changes, comes to the floor of the senate for action your senator will faithfully attempt to reflect the position of the local council membership.  To facilitate this process and to give each constituency member opportunity for input, your Executive Committee has scheduled this issue for discussion at the March 29 Ministers Council Meeting.

We recognize that our denomination encompasses very divergent views on homosexuality.  The focus of this process is to determine our ability to be faithful to God and to remain in fellowship with those who hold strong convictions opposite our own.  As members of your executive board, we invite you to be in prayer that the Holy Spirit might guide us as we seek discernment within the context our Baptist values of soul freedom and local autonomy.

Your input is valued.  Please set aside Tuesday, January 11, 2005 to participate in this process.  The session, scheduled 8:30 am to 4:30 pm at Canonicus, includes lunch and is hosted by your Ministers Council.  Colleagues from nearby Massachusetts and Connecticut are invited to join us for this session.

Please check the Ministers Council Website - ministerscouncil.com - for further information.

Prayerfully serving you,  

Joyce B. Duerr, Senator
jduerr@riconnect.com