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Presbyterians prepare to vote for new Moderator

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William Crawley | 18:18 UK time, Friday, 29 January 2010

s_carson-1.jpgIt's that time of the year again. Just as we were getting used to one Moderator -- and just as he was getting used to being Moderator -- the Presbyterian Church is about to vote on his replacement.

Next Tuesday evening, all 19 presbyteries will vote on a shortlist of six candidates. Each presbytery will register their preferred candidate with Church House (one vote per presbytery), and the candidate with the most votes will be elected. We should know the identity of Dr Stafford Carson's successor by about 9.30 pm. The new Moderator will be installed at the church's General Assembly in June. In the event of a tied vote, all those sharing the same number of votes will be voted on again at the March Presbytery meetings.

The Presbyterian Church has released the names of those on the shortlist: "Rev Norman Hamilton (Ballysillan) and Rev Derek McKelvey (Fisherwick) who received five and six nominations respectively in last years election. Dr Carson received 10. New names on the list are Rev Norman McAuley (Greenwell Street, Newtownards), Rev Roy Mackay (Second Comber) and Rev Ivan Patterson (Newcastle) along with Rev Ruth Patterson (Restoration Ministries) who has received several nominations in previous years."

So, how is this likely to go? If Norman Hamilton and Derek McKelvey hold on to their votes from last year (which can't be taken for granted), that leaves 8 decisive presbytery votes to win.

Norman McAuley is by far the most theologically conservative minister on the list, and one might expect him to win the support of the church's large conservative base. On the other hand, Norman McAuley may be perceived as too conservative for some of the conservatives, in which case their support may move to Norman Hamilton or (perhaps more likely) to either Ivan Patterson or Roy Mackay. Ivan Patterson and Roy Mackay could be described as mainstream evangelicals -- congregational ministers with denominational experience but no public profiles.

Dr Ruth Patterson was the first women to be ordained in the history of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland, and her work in reconciliation ministries has been honoured by the state (OBE) and by the Presbyterian theological college (with an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree). Nevertheless, she is unlikely to achieve more than a single presbytery's support in this election.

Derek McKelvey is perceived as a more liberal candidate by many conservatives, but not too liberal to frighten the horses. He has been a leading figure in the charismatic renewal movement for some years, including the Toronto Blessing movement, which will appeal to some, while alienating others. His intervention at last year's General Assembly, during which he argued that it would be "unbiblical" for Presbyterians to sue each other as a consequence of the Presbyterian Mutual Society crisis, won him rousing applause.

Norman Hamilton is a well-known evangelical -- perhaps on the progressive wing of evangelicalism -- who in recent years has become a significant public figure as a result of his involvement in the Holy Cross dispute (and was appointed an OBE for his community work). He is highly regarded as a public performer by many, while some conservatives think he has become too politicised.

The upshot here is a three-way split conservative vote between McAuley, Patterson and Mackay, which could leave either McKelvey or Hamilton as Moderator. If conservatives organise a consolidated vote for McAuley, he could come through in a tight election. In other words: it's too close to call. If I was a betting man (which I'm not), I'd expect the election to continue into March.

Comments

  • Comment number 1.


    I think both McKelvey and Hamilton are too 'progressive' for most old Presbyterians. Course, that's exactly why I'd hope either of them could be Moderator. (Not that the moderator gets to impose his or her style of 'doing things' upon the church.)

  • Comment number 2.

    Did they not use to have a protocol of alternating from year to year? I seem to recall at oecumenical events some years you would have the Moderator and other years the former Moderator. Seemed like a good system.

  • Comment number 3.

    This comment has been referred for further consideration. Explain.

  • Comment number 4.

    I wonder if any of the candidates are YECs ?

    I really do think the presbyterian Church in Ireland need to debate this subject as more and more congregations appear to be adopting young Earth creationism as doctrine, despite what I've been told :



    Wednesday 24 March 2010
    8.00pm United Midweek Rally, Moira Presbyterian Church, Ph: 028 9261 1252
    Meeting Street, Moira, Craigavon, BT6 0NR
    Robin Greer


  • Comment number 5.

    "Presbyterians prepare to vote for new Moderator"

    Can't everyone vote for a new moderator? OK, I cast my vote yes. The one ´óÏó´«Ã½ has on this blog now censors too many postings :-)

  • Comment number 6.

    'Did they not use to have a protocol of alternating from year to year?'

    Christopher, I don't think that tradition was ever an official protocol; more happenstance, I reckon.

  • Comment number 7.

    Has it not dawned on PCI that this whole process is irrelevant & of no real interest or consequence to even the majority of Presbyterians? Have just finished reading Valerie Tarico's, The Dark Side: How evangelical teachings corrupt love and truth. PCI's evangelicalism is its greatest intellectual weakness and the core of its irrelevance for today.

  • Comment number 8.

    SG;

    "PCI's evangelicalism is its greatest intellectual weakness and the core of its irrelevance for today."

    You know SG, that is exactly what evangelicals would say about your religion...whatever it is. How do I know who is right?

  • Comment number 9.

    I am sorry for appearing slightly ignorant, but why do moderators only sit for one year? Surely as you pointed out, the current moderator is only just settling in and now he is 'out' - would it not be more beneficial to society if they had a longer term in 'office'?

  • Comment number 10.

    altec415,

    I see the point of the first part of what you say, but draw a different conclusion from yours:

    "would it not be more beneficial to society if they had a longer term in 'office'?"

    Beneficial to society?! Look at uncle Joe Ratzinger. He doesn't have to get re-elected every year. The result ain't pretty. The less these heads churches have time to get into it, the less efficient they can become within their tenure, the better.

  • Comment number 11.

    All this user's posts have been removed.Why?

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