BIRMINGHAM — The General Assembly Procedures Committee turned back concerted efforts to overturn the plan of the Committee on the General Assembly to close the office of the Presbyterian Historical Society at Montreat, N.C.
COGA’s recommendation, to move the historical materials presently housed in Montreat to the central facility in Philadelphia, will be considered for final action by the whole General Assembly on June 21.
The committee’s vote was 27-14. Six persons abstained.
The committee added to the original proposal an amendment that directs COGA, the Montreat Conference Center, Columbia Theological Seminary, and the Friends of the Historical Foundation at Montreat to develop programs and resources together.
The committee voted on this matter twice. In the afternoon the committee voted to reject the proposal, but in the evening they voted to reconsider the earlier action. After further discussion, the final committee vote was taken.
The original decision of COGA was made, according to Stated Clerk Clifton Kirkpatrick, because “the Book of Order requires the denomination itself to manage all historical records not handled locally by respective presbyteries or sessions.”
Financial considerations also played a part in the decision. Frederick J. Heuser Jr., director of the Presbyterian Historical Society, said: “There is no doubt that COGA’s decision was a bitter, difficult decision. There was no intent at the beginning of the task force’s agenda as it began its work. They got to that point, came to the conclusion that we didn’t have the per capita funds to support it . . . .It was a painful decision to make. The staff there are my friends and colleagues. This was a gut-wrenching, painful decision, one made not easily.”
Referring to a recent Outlook editorial, Heuser said, “There may be some folks who think that there is a conspiracy at work to shut down the PHS center. There was no conspiracy theory at work. We’ve put forth great effort to keep this open for these past 16 years. Twenty years ago there was another consultant study that said, ‘Long term, you’re going to have a difficult time maintaining the two facilities,’ but we ignored it. In 2001 another study said the same, but we ignored it then.'”
Ten presbyteries had sent overtures, requesting that the General Assembly reject the recommendation of COGA. An organization of Montreat supporters, The Friends of Montreat, asserted that the center there could continue operating without utilizing per capita funds, or any denominational funds whatsoever. In just the past three months, they reported, they have raised $900,000 in pledges to operate the program.
In addition, overture advocate Barbara Cane, a professional archivist from Raleigh, NC, assured that the large volunteer base living in Montreat could make great strides in data gathering and input. She also added, with some exasperation, “The staff at Montreat who know the collection so well was not included in the negotiations that have led to the recommendation to close the facility.”
Amid the intense debate some laughter arose in response to comments from overture advocate, Tim Filston of Signal Mountain, NC. Referencing the large outpouring of concern along with many offers of volunteer support and funds, he said, “I’m not a lawyer. I don’t know about the constitutional issues. I’m just a young pastor. It may be a difference in leadership style, but the older generation seems to be more control freaks. I’m perfectly willing to delegate responsibility to people who are passionate about their responsibility.”
