International Council in Session This Week
Cleveland, TN—Leaders from around the world are gathered at the International Offices for the bi-ennial meeting of the Church of God International Council.
Assistant World Missions Director Victor Pagan, second from right, leads the International Council in an opening prayer.
The Council meets September 20 and 21, and will be in joint session with the International Executive Council on Tuesday, September 22.
The International Council is a group of appointed leaders from strategic areas of the globe who come together to discuss matters of the Church of God related to its world-wide mission. The meeting includes an agenda of items for consideration and debate, as well as reports from the various regions of the world. Among the attendees are representatives of various ethnic and racial groups as outlined by the General Council of the Church of God. The Council includes the field directors of the various geographic regions of the world and one selected representative from those areas. The group meets every two years, in between the General Assembly period.
Attending the Council are members of the International Executive Committee: Raymond Culpepper, Tim Hill, Mark Williams, David Griffis and Wallace Sibley; World Missions director and assistant director Douglas LeRoy and Victor Pagan; Moderator of the Full Gospel Church of God in South Africa, Anton van Deventer and Missions/CE director R.H. Roberts; Overseer of Indonesia Jacob Nahuway; African American and Hispanic representatives Jimmy Campbell and Fidencio Burgueno; Africa Field Director Peter Thomas and Ethiopia Overseer Hiruy Tsige; Asia Pacific Field Director Harold McLeod and overseer of Korea Sang-Ehil Han; Canada Quebec/Maritime overseer Jacques Houle; Caribbean Field Director Fedlyn Beason and Trinidad/Tobago Overseer Stephen Mohammed; Central America-Mexico-Brazil Field Director Kenneth Anderson and National Overseer Otoniel Collins; Europe Central and Eastern/CIS Field Director Dieter Knospe and overseer Erich Schneider; Europe Western, Mediterranean and Middle East Field Director Larry Hess and overseer Martin Mutyebele; South America Field Director David Ramirez and Special Project Coordinator Eduardo Drachenberg.
The International Council (IC) agenda included 11 items which the IC will discuss and debate prior to their joint meeting with the International Executive Council on September 22. The items include three under ministerial credentialing: 1) That each field area process their own applications and grant the first level of ministerial credential rank of Exhorter. Ordained and Bishops would continue to be processed through the International Offices; 2) That women be eligible for ordained bishop and 3) that the ordained bishop name be eliminated. Under the category of International General Assembly, the IC is to discuss, “That the International General Assembly be conducted every four years.”
Other agenda items include the recommendation of an amendment to the MINUTES that women be allowed to serve on the Church and Pastor’s Council. Under Ministerial Discipline, an item to be considered is, “That any appeal of a decision of a trial board must be presented first to the next level of administration. An appeal to the General Overseer is only offered as the last stage of appeal.” Under the category of Ministerial Reporting, the IC is discussing, “Recommendation to develop a more accurate reporting system for Church of God credentialed educators. The format currently used does not adequately detail the ministerial activities of educators.”
Under the topic of World Missions, the IC is considering amendments to the MINUTES for, “Recommendation to change the name Field Director to International Area Administrative Bishop,” and “Recommendation to include the position of Field Directors in the general structure of the Church of God Minutes.” The IC is also considering an item which states, “That national overseers have unlimited tenure, except in countries where a tenure has been agreed in their constitution. Further, that ministers vote every two years. Two thirds of ministers must vote.”
A final agenda item to be considered by the IC is for a Global Missions Strategy which recommends, “That a representative, creative team be appointed by the General Overseer to study and make possible proposals regarding a global initiative for World Missions for the 21st Century.”
The International Council will decide which of the items considered could go before the International Executive Council which will decide which, if any, recommendations will be placed on the final agenda which would then be presented for consideration to the General Council of the Church of God at the 73rd International General Assembly in Orlando, Florida July 27-30, 2010.
—Cameron Fisher, Church of God Communications
