Mid-Week Moods And Reflections

As the General Assembly reconvenes, and all of the commissioners leave behind their individual committees to work as one, the mood of the gathering will change considerably.

Here are a few thoughts on the 219th General Assembly so far...

1. There is less of an adversarial atmosphere from either the extreme left or the extreme right. That may change as some issues come to the floor for voting.

2. Many people were surprised that a single candidate for the moderator stood out as a leader on the first ballot.

3. There is general agreement that the new moderator is well qualified by lacks charisma or the leadership personality.

4. Many have commented that the leadership is ill prepared. Moderators of various committees seem poorly trained. In some committees there was occasional confusion as to what to do or how to handle certain procedures. The Stated Clerk of the General Assembly asked that committee to reconvene this morning.

5. Poor preparation seems to be prevalent in many aspects of the GA this year. There were several small glitches in worship. It did not impair our worship, but I noticed it. In the Call to Worship, we were told to turn North, then East, South, and finally West as we moved through the readings -- but no one knew which direction was which, including the worship leaders who turned in various directions. There were mispellings in the lyrics of hymns being projected.

6. Use of the electronic voting machines is a major concern. We've used these at General Assemblies for several years, but they did not work well this year when the moderator was elected. I'm told it is because this is the first time the machines have used wireless technology. Many of the commissioners express confusion about how to use them. My wife says they are the same things used in her first grade class. Well, we'll see what happens tonight when the assembly begins using the machines once more.

7. I do not have press credentials this year - I've had them in the past. But I did go to the Press Room one night, and found that the members of the media were not happy with the preparations. There were only two outlets in the room and one single extension cord - so who gets to plug in their laptop? Another sign of lack of preparation.

8. The volunteers are doing a great job. I asked three where the Prayer Chapel was located (there is one at every GA). They did not know, but a fourth one found it listed in a room guide - room 212. It is actually in room 209.

None of these indications of preparation being imperfect have the power to spoil the meeting, but as they add up, commissioner frustrations may begin to rise - especially if there continue to be glitches with the voting machines.