General Assembly: Top Three Wastes of Time

Jedi Rev also experienced a lot of time wasted at the General Assembly.   Here are the top three wastes of time:

1. What will we call the joined congregation of Dowan Vale and Paisley?

There’s some background to this – DV was formed a few years back through the merger of congregations in Partick, Drumchapel and Govan.   The Drum and Govan churches were at first used as bases for Christian work – Open Doors Trust in Drum, and some youth work in Govan.   Eventually, both these works ended.   The buildings were sold, and DV now has a lovely building.   That is completely separate to the fact that DV has grown, there have been conversions, and it’s all good.  The reason Jedi Rev say it’s separate is because you could probably put Kenny Stewart in a tin shed and some people would flock to hear his preaching, and it would be blessed to the conversion of many.

Now there’s a plan to link Paisley with the DV congregation.   DV, it seems, want to focus on the needs of their own community – and Jedi Rev agrees, this should be the Church’s priority for them.   They have shown no long term commitment to other areas – Govan and Drum being clear examples.   They want to reach out to the people of Partick.   Give them an assistant pastor to help in that!   But DV feel compelled to answer this cry for help.   The General Assembly were being asked to approve the linkage.

What makes this a waste of time?   The home Missions Board were concerned that the name of the new joined congregation should reflect the geography – so they wanted it called Dowan Vale / Paisley Free Church.   Ugly, but necessary, Alex MacDonald argued, to preserve the identity of the Paisley Free Church.   An interesting point of view.   But what left Jedi Rev reeling was not the name, but the specifics of how the new congregation would work.   Paisley is not the nicest of towns.   Sorry, but there’s a nub of truth there.

Paisley has problems.   Social problems, economic problems and dire spiritual problems.   The question Jedi Rev had was, “What sacrificial commitment was the DV congregation going to make to help the work in Paisley?”   The answer was, incredibly, that DV will support the prayer meeting in Paisley as they would support their own.   Don’t get me wrong – pray is important.   But Israel did not beat Amalek through prayer alone – Moses, Aaron and Hur had their part to play, but so did Joshua and his army.

Jedi Rev’s verdict: Why was the Assembly wasting it’s time on the name of this partnership, and not closely examining the detail of what we’re being asked to approve?   It was a rubber stamp moment – and a waste of our time.

2. Was the synagogue worship a wake?

This came just before lunch on Wednesday.   We were hearing the report of the Board of Trustees, which included the plan to engage in a weighty discussion of our form of worship, culminating in a plenary assembly to settle the issue sometime in 2010.   Dr. Iain D. Campbell had moved an amendment to pass from this matter, and end the discussions now.   Jedi Rev recognised some problems with this – but so too did many other commissioners, so the amendment was happily withdrawn.   This was not, in itself, a waste of time.   Jedi Rev feels the church needed to be reminded of the importance of this, and give a strong mandate to the Board of Trustees as they go about this business.

The waste of time came when a commissioner missed the point of the discussion, and felt now was the time to start tearing into the specific questions of our form of worship – based, some would say, in part upon the synagogue worship of Judaism.   Jedi Rev is sure there is a place for such discussion – in reports, academic papers, smoke filled rooms with glasses of brandy in hand, perhaps even the Chalmers Hall, or the Church History class room.    But the floor of the Assembly was the wrong place.

3. How many flats, exactly, should be retained as student accommodation in Edinburgh?

Jedi Rev was subject to a riveting discussion, nay, argument between the Board of Ministry and the Board of Trustees.   The Trustees want to dispose to some flats in Edinburgh – they are grotty, and in a poor state of repair.   Jedi Rev knows, he lived in one for three years.   But they are willing to retain at least 12 – and despite this, can’t sell any right now due to the depressed housing market.   The Board of Ministry want some flats retained, at least 9, to cater for the needs of students at the Free Church College.

The procedure here was wrong – the Board of Ministry should have sought to amend the Trustees proposal.   But the real problem was that these two committees couldn’t get their heads together on this in advance, and brought this pointless discussion to the floor of the Assembly.   Jedi Rev was close to tears, and asked if this matter could be dropped, and discussed in a small room with representatives from both Committees present.   The moderator indicated this was the last speaker on this matter – but the discussion then dragged on for a while.   The words of 1 Corinthians 6:2 came to mind – Do you not know that the saints will judge the world… are you incompetent to try trivial cases?

Jedi Rev would like these words framed and put over the doors to the Assembly Hall.