I have no interest in advocating for a mushy middle way. An insincere, “bless-your-heart” niceness helps no one.  Papering over the cracks where real differences lie is dangerous. Cracks often reveal a problem at the foundation. If the house is to stand secure, we must not ignore the warning signs. So, I have no desire to see us pretend that all is well if mutually incompatible philosophies of ministry or theological convictions continue to divide us. This isn’t an exhortation to simply “play nice” at GA.

Doubtless, we are all aware of the growing polarization characteristic of our current cultural moment. The Left and the Right appeal to the politics of fear in an attempt to drive us towards proposals at the polar extremes. For many, the demonization of the opposition is too tempting a strategy to resist. Sometimes a sad necessity of language, they nevertheless allow us to summarize and identify a party or a position without the tiresome repetition of all the elements involved. But today, more often than not, derogatory labels are hurled at political opponents in the hopes that some of the muck will stick.

As the 46^thGeneral Assembly of the PCA approaches, I’m more conscious than ever of the brinksmanship which is so often a feature of our political discourse replicating itself in the life of the church.  Do not misunderstand: I have no interest in advocating for a mushy middle way. An insincere, “bless-your-heart” niceness helps no one.  Papering over the cracks where real differences lie is dangerous. Cracks often reveal a problem at the foundation. If the house is to stand secure, we must not ignore the warning signs. So, I have no desire to see us pretend that all is well if mutually incompatible philosophies of ministry or theological convictions continue to divide us. This isn’t an exhortation to simply “play nice” at GA.

But it is a plea for a tertium quid. It is a plea for what I’ll call “simple confessionalism”. Neither blindly traditional, nor unquestioningly trendy, I believe that to stand with the Westminster Standards places us neither on the Left nor on the Right. Sometimes I wonder, as I listen to debates around the Church, if we have forgotten that the Westminster Standards express the convictions of the central ground, the main stream of the Presbyterian Church across the ages and around the world.  Understanding that fact alone should change my tone and alter my posture.

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