LOUISVILLE – The Moving Forward Implementation Commission is beginning to get a sense of the territory in which it’ll be working until the next General Assembly – somewhat familiar landscape, but with new challenges as well. Some of this work involves monitoring to make sure that what the 2018 General Assembly instructed be done actually comes to pass – for example, to significantly expand translation of materials in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) into languages other than English. “Access is power,” said Julie Cox, a mid council executive from South Carolina who is leading a task force on translation services on behalf of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), A Corporation – the corporate entity for the Office of the General Assembly and the Presbyterian Agency – and who joined the commission via conference call to discuss the work, just getting started.  “I am wearing my necklace that says ‘Hope,’ on purpose,” Cox said. Part of the commission’s work will be collaborative, … [Read more...]

The Moving Forward Implementation Commission held its first meeting by conference call Dec. 17 – a time of introductions and presenting preliminary thoughts about what the commission is expected to do. The 2018 General Assembly created the 12-person commission when it adopted the recommendations of the Way Forward Commission, giving the new commission the authority to take “any and all administrative actions as necessary” to implement the Way Forward Commission recommendations. Four of the 12 members of Moving Forward (Mathew Eardley, Cliff Lyda, Adan Mairena and Jo Stewart) served on the Way Forward Commission, and four (Deborah Avery, Eric Beene, co-chair Marco Grimaldo and James Tse) on the All Agency Review Committee. Three others – co-chair Larryetta Ellis, Madeline Alvarez and Jacqueline Cummings– were commissioners to the 2018 General Assembly, and Rachel Sutphin served as a young adult advisory delegate at that assembly. The co-moderators of the 2018 assembly, … [Read more...]