General Assembly 2025
Following up on my recent general reflections on the Church of God Convention in Denver last month, I also want to focus direct attention on the General Assembly meetings that took place there.
Our national gatherings are structured around occasions for worship and preaching, interspersed with the meetings of the General Assembly. The necessity for conducting business may, at this time, actually be the ultimate driving force behind maintaining these biennial conventions. Spread over three afternoons, the deliberations of our national congress set the roadmap for our cooperative efforts over the next two years, and beyond.
Of course, we need a vehicle for setting the direction of and overseeing the legal and operational matters of our movement. Within our polity, shaped by our high view of the church, we assent to the importance of broad input and of accountability of leaders. It is increasingly evident, however, that there is a great disconnect between the ideals behind this structure and its implementation. As I see it, what might have worked in simpler times no longer seems to fit a church body that is much more diverse and dispersed. Consequently, how we organize ourselves, including the General Assembly, needs to be reimagined for our changing world.