Organizers of a petition signed by 189 former and current members of Cedar Park Church are feeling underwhelmed by the BCMB response to their request the Conference drop the charge of being a “false teacher” against their former pastor, Lee Kosa.
Calling it both a “very serious charge that has implications for Lee’s well-being and future” and “not true,” the petition calls for it to be retracted.
“He is not, nor has he been, a false teacher, nor did he promote false teaching,” the petition states, adding “we attest that we have never heard him preach against” the Confession of Faith.
“A serious charge like this must present evidence and must call witnesses if it is to stand,” it added.
In response, Simpson indicated there was a miscommunication around the false teacher accusation, which was made by Conference Minister Rob Thiessen and then repeated by Pastoral Ministries Committee member Eldon Fehr at an emotional April 3 CPC congregational meeting with BCMB leadership.
The intent, she said, was to investigate Kosa’s “alignment with the MB Confession of Faith and not to label [him] as a false teacher. Conference Minister Rob Thiessen, apologizes for this miscommunication.”
She did not, however, retract the accusation, going on to say “BCMB’s concerns have always been specific to Lee Kosa’s theological convictions as they relate to alignment with the MB Confession of Faith, in particular Articles 10 and 11.” (About sexuality and marriage.)
As for Fehr’s pronouncement at the April 3 meeting, where he affirmed the charge of false teaching, that exchange “was unfortunate,” Simpson said, “and the view expressed was not intended as a declaration or assessment of Kosa’s years of teaching ministry at Cedar Park Church.”
She went on to say Fehr’s remark was attributable to the meeting being “a highly emotional space” and to Kosa’s “continual and sustained pressure” on Fehr for a response.
“Under that significant pressure,” Fehr gave an answer “related solely to Lee’s expression of his convictions with respect to human sexuality.”
An offer to talk to Kosa about that exchange has so far not been accepted by Kosa, she said.
The petition also asked BCMB to give Kosa the opportunity to surrender his credentials, not just have them taken by the Conference.
Simpson responded by saying they were taken because “it was made clear by Lee that his convictions with respect to human sexuality no longer align with the MB Confession of Faith,” a process which was confidential but “fair and clearly outlined.”
Organizers of the petition also took issue with how the letter from Simpson characterized the church as “being emotionally charged and deeply divided.”
While it certainly is divided now, with the majority of members no longer associating with Cedar Park, for over 40 years the church faced many issues but “always found a way to navigate through these difficult discussions and have come out stronger at the end of the day,” they said—something it could have done again if left alone by BCMB “to figure this out among ourselves.”
It was conference intervention that “drove a wedge in too deep for us to overcome,” they said, while acknowledging the issue would have been hard for some members.
“But the majority would have come together. Today that is not possible,” they said.
The organizers noted the petition was signed by those who stayed at the church and those who did not, adding “This was an action of unity. We felt that the Conference should have understood that and acknowledged it.”
They acknowledged the response from Conference Moderator Sharon Simpson offered a conciliatory tone to the signers, and was better than some previous communications in the past.
But their assessment is while the tone of the response is better than some previous communications from BCMB, “it just didn't go far enough.”
Below find the petition to the Conference, and the response from BCMB.
* * *
April 14, 2022
Dear BC MB Conference leaders,
We, the undersigned of Cedar Park Church, come to you with two urgent requests.
The first, and most important, request is that the accusation about Lee Kosa, our pastor of 9 years, being a false teacher, spoken at the congregational/conference meeting April 3, be retracted. Please do so in writing to Lee and to Cedar Park Church congregants.
The second is that you withdraw the revocation of Lee Kosa’s credentials so he can surrender them as requested.
The second is an obvious Christian courtesy that should be extended to his request.
The first is a VERY serious charge that has implications for Lee’s well-being and future. The reason it is so serious, however, is that it is not true. He is not, nor has he been, a false teacher, nor did he promote false teaching. By biblical measure, his faith (see I John 4:1-3), the fruits of his ministry, and his character testify otherwise. Further, we offer our witness to this. (If the Confession of Faith is the measure, we attest that we have never heard him preach against it.)
A serious charge like this must present evidence and must call witnesses if it is to stand. We ask you to resolve these two matters before the BC AGM at the end of the month.
If you require further conversation or a meeting, please let us know asap. However, we are convinced this can be done quickly and without a great deal of back-and-forth, because it is the right and just and true thing to do.
April 26, 2022
To the 189 Cedar Park
Church congregants who signed the letter to BCMB dated April 18, 2022, Thank
you for reaching out to myself and the British Columbia Mennonite Brethren
Executive Board (BCMB EB) with concerns that you share with respect to your two
requests.
It is clear to all the
members of the BCMB EB and the Pastoral Ministries Committee (PMC) that Lee
Kosa is a dearly loved and cherished pastor who has shepherded and taught your
congregation for 9 years. There is no dispute that he has greatly impacted
lives through his ministry within your community of believers. Many members of
the CPC congregation have shown us that they care deeply for Lee. Your love and
concern for him in the writing of this signed letter is further evidence of
this.
BCMB’s concerns have
always been specific to Lee Kosa’s theological convictions as they relate to
alignment with the MB Confession of Faith, in particular Articles 10 and 11.
The PMC expressed its concerns to Lee in a letter that was signed by all PMC
members and all BCMB EB members, dated February 5, 2022. That letter outlined
the unified thoughts of all members of these two groups.
They have not used the
label “false teacher” to express their concerns. 1 Timothy 5 and 6 were
referenced in a communication with Lee to describe the process that BCMB was
following – an accusation against an elder in contrast to the personal conflict
process described in Matthew 18.
The intended focus of
that communication was to explain the process BCMB used to investigate Lee’s
alignment with the MB Confession of Faith and not to label Lee as a false
teacher. Conference Minister, Rob Thiessen, apologizes for this
miscommunication.
Under that significant pressure, the PMC member gave his
response – a response related solely to Lee’s expression of his convictions
with respect to human sexuality. This was immediately followed by his offer to
sit down with Lee to talk about what he meant by this answer, which Lee has not
accepted.
This exchange was unfortunate, and the view expressed was
not intended as a declaration or assessment of Lee Kosa’s years of teaching
ministry at Cedar Park Church.
As you may recall, Lee
was asked during the meeting whether he would permit full disclosure of the
dialogue and interactions between him and BCMB EB or PMC. Lee did not wish to
do so, as is his right.
Our credentialed pastors need to align with the shared
convictions of the Canadian Mennonite Brethren denomination as expressed in the
MB Confession of Faith. While I am constrained as to how much information I can
disclose without Lee’s consent, the process was fair and clearly outlined.
BCMB did not make an
announcement nor publicize the revoking of Lee’s credentials. He chose to make
that public himself. There is also a concern about the timing of the release of
the summary statement of a listening meeting that was held between Lee, Rob
Thiessen (BCMB Conference Minister), and facilitated by Ken Esau (PMC Member).
This was brought
forward at the Special Congregational Meeting as a significant distress to Lee
and failure on the part of BCMB. In examining the email thread, we can see how
Lee was waiting on Rob Thiessen to release the summary while Rob Thiessen was
assuming that Ken Esau's confirmation email sent on May 31, 2021 was the
official go-ahead for Lee to share this summary with CPC.
When the
misunderstanding came to light and that Lee was waiting for another official
email, apologies were offered by Rob to Lee via email on July 24, 2021. This
was an unfortunate miscommunication that has been described as a critical
turning point for Lee and one which BCMB is very sorry took place.
The significant
theological disagreement, along with beliefs and values that are now expressed
among the members of the Cedar Park Church congregation have brought about what
we witnessed as an emotionally charged and divided meeting. This division has caused
much strife and grief. There are significant differences and both sides are
proclaiming the love and grace of Jesus Christ.
Our hope for the future
of the Cedar Park Church congregants is that there will be a determination to
move forward in a way that is gracious toward each other, with the
understanding that some may choose to part ways with Cedar Park Church and the
BCMB denomination of which it is a part. BCMB will continue to support those at
Cedar Park Church who wish to remain aligned to our MB Confession of Faith and
the Mennonite Brethren convictions of biblical marriage and sexuality.
Respectfully on behalf
of BCMB EB and PMC, Sharon Simpson, BCMB Moderator
I have been watching this unfold as I was a member who was removed for being gay. I'm surprised that the church is still so judgemental as that goes against everything Jesus taught.
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