Revised Form of Government - Change

We live in a time where change is happening more rapidly than at any other time in human history.

When my children saw a corded telephone in a home of a friend of ours recently they didn't know what it was.

That was only 20 years ago!

Change is our reality.

However, even in the midst of the exponential change we are experiencing, there are certain things that must never change. For if we were to change some things, we cease to be who we are.

This is certainly the case with the life of the church.

While the church is free to change all kinds of things to be as effective as possible in the new emerging world, there are certain things than can't ever change.

• Jesus is Lord
• Christ is the head of the church
• The Bible is the only authoritative word for the life of the church
• There is no other way to God except through Jesus Christ
• The bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ
• etc.

Once the church has identified the things that must never change, then she is free to change everything else.

• Styles of worship
• Media in worship
• Twitter in worship?
• Church without walls
• Church facility usage policies
• etc.

What has happened in the PC(USA) is that through the last several decades, we continue to add more and more procedural items to the Form of Government and made everything in the Form of Government essential, such that it is very difficult to distinguish between things which are essential and standards for the entire church and those things which are procedural in nature.

That is what the the Form of Government Task Force has attempted to provide in the revised Form of Government coming before the General Assembly this summer.