The 213th General Assembly offered the church a true middle ground for our long-running debate on ordination standards. Neither requiring nor forbidding particular ordination decisions, Amendment 01-A builds on the traditional Presbyterian values of mutual forebearance and freedom of conscience in interpreting Scripture.

On the eve of the Assembly, Freda Gardner and Douglas Oldenburg invited a spirit of hope and trust. Their stirring addresses, excerpted inside, can equally guide our debates in the coming months -- particularly the reminder that "while some convictions can never be reconciled, the people who hold conflicting convictions can be reconciled in Jesus Christ."