October 28, 2004

CHICAGO - The steering committee of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) Commission for Women wants a proposed redesign of the churchwide organization to replace references to "work on behalf of women" with efforts for "gender justice," said Agnes S. McClain, committee chair. The committee drafted a rationale for the new language at its Oct. 15-16 meeting here.

"'Work on behalf of women' can easily be heard or reduced to 'women's work,' which represents a dangerous misunderstanding" of the commission's mandate, said the rationale. "Work for justice around issues of gender is work done not for the sake of women alone, but for the sake of and for the health of the whole church," it said.

The committee stressed "gender justice" over "work on behalf of women" in the ELCA's efforts toward clergy sexual misconduct prevention. Its rationale said a full-time staff person should direct that work "for the sake of children, men and women."

The steering committee met with the Rev. Charles S. Miller, ELCA executive for administration and executive assistant to the presiding bishop. Miller is spearheading the church's planning process to possibly restructure the churchwide organization. He also serves as an advisor to the steering committee.

McClain, an ELCA associate in ministry and assistant to the bishop of the ELCA Southwest California Synod, Glendale, Calif., said committee members told Miller that, after reading an August draft of the restructuring proposal, "we felt like we had not been listened to in all of the times we have consulted with the planning team."

The proposed churchwide structure does not include the Commission for Women. A companion proposal to reorganize the ELCA's governance does not include steering committees. The ELCA Church Council will consider both proposals at its Nov. 11-15 meeting here.

The commission's staff and steering committee were resigned to the loss of the commission, but it appeared to them as though the current restructuring proposal would lose the work of the commission, too, McClain said.

"We decided that, if we did not let our voices be heard this time, this would be our last shot at trying to make some changes," McClain said. She said the discussion with Miller was heated at times but ended on a positive note. "We felt that he heard us," she added.

ELCA News Service