# The Honorable Fred Greco



## Reepicheep (Jun 13, 2008)

Let me tell you brothers, the Puritan Board's own Fred Greco did an absolutely fabulous job as the chairman of the PCA Overtures committee that just met in Dallas for the General Assembly. 

As a member of the committee I am very grateful for His godly handling of the entire 13 hours of meetings and his masterful defense of the committee's recommendation to the GA to _not _form a study commission concerning women deacons. 

Further, and more personally, as a fellow Buffalo (NY) Yankee (who graduated from the same High School), I was tremendously proud of Fred's god-honoring work. You really need to listen to the webcast of Fred's speech against the minority report concerning the overture requesting a study commission be formed concerning women deaconnesses. His 5 minute closing was even more powerful. I'm telling you, Fred was awesome- by God's grace and for God's glory, of course.

I've been attending GA's since 2000 and I can truthfully say I haven't seen a chairman do a more skillful, yet gracious job than Fred Greco did in Dallas this past week. 

Praise God.


----------



## HaigLaw (Jun 13, 2008)

Amen to all that, except the part about him being a Buffalo, NY, yankee.

I don't know anything about that. Surely, being from Texas now has improved him somewhat.


----------



## DMcFadden (Jun 13, 2008)

Congrats to the good gentleman from Buf . . . er, ah, I mean Tex . . . oh well. Let's hear it for Fred!


----------



## Romans922 (Jun 13, 2008)

It seemed like Fred was preaching when I was watching yesturday. The Holy Spirit is wonderful. Praise God!

Fred Greco *Cough Future Moderator *Cough




Reepicheep said:


> Let me tell you brothers, the Puritan Board's own Fred Greco did an absolutely fabulous job as the chairman of the PCA Overtures committee that just met in Dallas for the General Assembly.
> 
> As a member of the committee I am very grateful for His godly handling of the entire 13 hours of meetings and his masterful defense of the committee's recommendation to the GA to _not _form a study commission concerning women deacons.
> 
> ...


----------



## turmeric (Jun 13, 2008)

Yes, now that Fred has become better-known in the PCA, he may get too busy for the likes of us! Wishing him all the best!


----------



## Cotton Mather (Jun 14, 2008)

Praise God for modern day reformers like Fred. It's truly encouraging to see such a wonderful work in the PCA through men like him. May God be praised that the GA went so well.


----------



## DMcFadden (Jun 14, 2008)

Fred,

Remember us when you come into your kingdom. 

Hey, wait a minute! I respect Fred! Why would you want him to become a denominational bureaucrat? Oh, wait a minute. You you folks in the orthodox denoms do things completely differently from the mainlines, don't you? If this were my old mainline group, Fred would need to go into training in order to be a good candidate for national offices. He would need to get divorced and remarried, bankrupt a judicatory, or get caught in some shenanigans. And, he would be expected to have universalistic soteriological tendencies, an aversion to saying "Father, Son, and Holy Spirit" (too sexist), and be expected to look the other way when congregations ordained gay men and women as pastors while explaining to conservatives that Baptists believe in local autonomy after all.

Did I mention that the PCA keeps looking better and better to me?


----------



## HaigLaw (Jun 14, 2008)

DMcFadden said:


> Congrats to the good gentleman from Buf . . . er, ah, I mean Tex . . . oh well. Let's hear it for Fred!



 Lest you gentlemen get too carried away (which I notice below you are certainly doing), lemme say Fred still admits having feet of clay. One of the two times his rulings were reversed by the committee, he thanked us for the correction and said he was not made of glass and would not break when corrected. 

Lemme also share another vignette: when we minority reporters were meeting, he and his minutes subcommittee were meeting on the opposite side of the room, and he came over and made a suggestion or two to help us clarify and strengthen our minority report, and we welcomed him and his suggestions. So, I think I could say with confidence that he was more concerned with truth on both sides than solely with being the advocate of the majority report. 

One of the reasons I love the man is that he is not running for papal infallibility in any respect.


----------



## HaigLaw (Jun 14, 2008)

DMcFadden said:


> Fred,
> 
> Remember us when you come into your kingdom.
> 
> ...



Sorry, Dennis, I could not bear quoting some of that. But I can  at what I have quoted.

It seems to me you are, again, almost persuaded. Pilate was, only once. Does that mean there still is hope for you?


----------



## turmeric (Jun 14, 2008)

Mr. Haig, sir, I think that was Felix who was "almost persuaded". A felicitous error, since it allows me to make a pun.


----------



## Ivan (Jun 14, 2008)

turmeric said:


> Yes, now that Fred has become better-known in the PCA, he may get too busy for the likes of us! Wishing him all the best!



Naw...he'll drop by from time to time to straighten us out.

Congrats, Fred, on a job well done.


----------



## HaigLaw (Jun 14, 2008)

turmeric said:


> Mr. Haig, sir, I think that was Felix who was "almost persuaded". A felicitous error, since it allows me to make a pun.



And I stand felicitously corrected. 

Like Fred, I'm not made of glass and don't break when reversed.

A judge who never gets reversed will lie about other things too.


----------



## BJClark (Jun 14, 2008)

Wonderful news of such a spiritually discerning man in God's kingdom!!

May God continue to use him for His Glory in the PCA in encouraging this body of believers to remain faithful!!


----------



## Jon Peters (Jun 14, 2008)

He brings a good name to all of us lawyers in the crowd! One can only hope that more lawyers get into positions of power and authority in this nation!


----------



## Backwoods Presbyterian (Jun 14, 2008)

Yeah if only


----------



## DTK (Jun 14, 2008)

I have always been fond of Fred, and having had the privilege of knowing him, nothing regarding his proficiency to do this or that ever surprises me any more. He is one of Christ's gifts to His church, for which I give thanks.

I love and appreciate you Fred. May our Lord guard and direct your steps always as together we all pursue the interests of Christ's kingdom.

DTK


----------



## timmopussycat (Jun 14, 2008)

Jon Peters said:


> He brings a good name to all of us lawyers in the crowd! One can only hope that more...



...godly...



Jon Peters said:


> ... lawyers get into positions of power and authority in this nation!


----------



## Presbyterian Deacon (Jun 14, 2008)

joshua said:


> joshua said:
> 
> 
> > Reepicheep said:
> ...




I don't know for sure, but it seems to me that you might find it by going to the PCA website.



Not much help, I know..but worth a look.


----------



## Reepicheep (Jun 14, 2008)

It seems you have to order it here.

Perhaps it will become available somewhere else also?


----------



## HaigLaw (Jun 14, 2008)

Jon Peters said:


> He brings a good name to all of us lawyers in the crowd! One can only hope that more lawyers get into positions of power and authority in this nation!



So, now you're tellin' me that not only is he a yankee, but also he's a fellow lawyer!?

Will wonders ever cease? A lawyer-preacher!?


----------



## Craig (Jun 14, 2008)

I chose this clip and started forwarding as it loaded...around minute 30 (almost exactly), Fred approached the stand...after his prayer, he started forwarded talking about the Deaconess overture...not sure if this is the clip people have alluded to...currently watching.


----------



## HaigLaw (Jun 14, 2008)

I wanted to listen to part of the assembly I missed, and found the downloads from byFaith cumbersome. You can click on a link supposedly for the 10 minutes you want, but find that the av file you get is 200 minutes long, and all you can do is keep moving the scroll bar to the right, once more of it downloads, until you find what you want.


----------



## doctorcello (Jun 14, 2008)

*Photo of F G*

Here's a photo of FG praying before speaking, which is always a good idea...


----------



## PuritanCovenanter (Jun 14, 2008)

I am grateful for Fred's wisdom and tact. He is a valuable asset to the Kingdom of Christ.


----------



## HaigLaw (Jun 14, 2008)

Yes, good that all committee reports are begun and ended in prayer.

Great picture of Fred, sandwiched in between the moderator and stated clerk! Where did you get that?


----------



## DMcFadden (Jun 14, 2008)

HaigLaw said:


> DMcFadden said:
> 
> 
> > Fred,
> ...



Sorry, Dave,

As my old Baptist hymnal used to remind me frequently: "Almost persuaded . . . almost, but lost." There is that pesky thing about water (and wine too for that matter).

In the next few months I plan to be doing some distance education classes in Covenant Theology, The Westminister Assembly, and Justification (particularly with reference to the FV controversy). If anything other than fellowship with Godly Reformed folks on PB can convert an old Baptist, it would be reading people like Golding, Ball, Boston, Witsius, Karlberb, Robertson, Lillback, Mitchell, Hetherington, Barker, Gillespie, Struthers, Warfield, Hodge, Reed, Owen, White, Buchanan, Waters, Otis, and Waldron (on justification, not baptism).

But, finding so many attorneys on the PB is a frightening thought that may temper my enthusiasm a bit. I always thought Christian attorney was enough of an oxymoron, let alone "Godly attorney"!!! Fred is exemplary, but Dave, you are a case.


----------



## doctorcello (Jun 14, 2008)

*Lots of Pictures*

I took several hundred photos at GA, and will be publishing a good number of them on my church website. I will post a link here asap.


----------



## HaigLaw (Jun 14, 2008)

Well, Dennis, I appreciate your scholarship summarized in #28, but I was just teasing.

Your being frightened by so many attorneys here reminds me of a favorite lawyer joke: what's 100 of them at the bottom of the ocean? Answer: a good start. 

And, yes, Christian attorney or honest lawyer is usually considered an oxymoron.

But, seriously, is Fred a lawyer too?


----------



## Pilgrim (Jun 14, 2008)

HaigLaw said:


> Well, Dennis, I appreciate your scholarship summarized in #28, but I was just teasing.
> 
> Your being frightened by so many attorneys here reminds me of a favorite lawyer joke: what's 100 of them at the bottom of the ocean? Answer: a good start.
> 
> ...



He is. He was a lawyer and an RE before going to seminary.


----------



## NaphtaliPress (Jun 14, 2008)

Indeed. I saw a list of Fred's degrees once but fell asleep before I got to the end.


Pilgrim said:


> HaigLaw said:
> 
> 
> > Well, Dennis, I appreciate your scholarship summarized in #28, but I was just teasing.
> ...


----------



## Stephen (Jun 14, 2008)

Pilgrim said:


> HaigLaw said:
> 
> 
> > Well, Dennis, I appreciate your scholarship summarized in #28, but I was just teasing.
> ...




Yes, I was on the Overtures Committee and Fred did a great job of moderating the meetings. Thank you Fred. It helps to have a background in law in order to understand all the procedures,


----------



## Pilgrim (Jun 14, 2008)

NaphtaliPress said:


> Indeed. I saw a list of Fred's degrees once but fell asleep before I got to the end.


----------



## DMcFadden (Jun 14, 2008)

Craig said:


> I chose this clip and started forwarding as it loaded...around minute 30 (almost exactly), Fred approached the stand...after his prayer, he started forwarded talking about the Deaconess overture...not sure if this is the clip people have alluded to...currently watching.



Wow! Thanks for the clip. What an illuminating experience! I have an entirely different impression than from the press release by the PCA sources. The presentation by the majority (Fred) and by the minority were done so much more "decently and in order" than anything I have ever witnessed at a national denominational level. I am most impressed! You guys do it really, really, really . . . Christian. Even the people who spoke from the floor were so very much more Christian than my experience in a different tradition.


----------



## greenbaggins (Jun 14, 2008)

Yes, it was done very well on both sides, I thought. In the interests of full disclosure, however, it should be noted that it doesn't always happen that way. It was much more tense last year with the study committee report on FV and NPP.


----------



## Pilgrim (Jun 14, 2008)

Here's what Ligon Duncan posted on the Ref 21 blog: 



> 3. Bryan Chapell delivered the most eloquent and gracious presentation of a Minority Report in the history of the Presbyterian Church in America (and maybe modern American Presbyterianism). How the Assembly managed to resist the persuasiveness, substance and tone of his argument, I still don't know.
> 
> 4. Fred Greco, the Chairman of the Overtures Committee was masterful (to the point of hyper-competence), fair, firm and kind. How he got words out of his mouth after Bryan's speech, I don't know. I couldn't speak or think for ten minutes after Bryan was done. Fred had to, on the fly. Fred, you are a better man than me!


----------



## DMcFadden (Jun 14, 2008)

Duncan captured my feelings watching the video feed.

BTW, now I know why so many of you PB folks (at least the PCA ones) are attorneys! It certainly confers a definite advantage over seminary in dealing with these kinds of church structures.



> How the Assembly managed to resist the persuasiveness, substance and tone of his argument, I still don't know.



It was obvious, actually. If the vote had been taken immediately after the majority and minority reports, you might have had a different result. Given the breaks in flow for divisions of the house, etc., it gave people time to forget the emotion as well as the substance of both sets of arguments. In such a setting, it is more likely that people will vote with the "majority."

Nevertheless . . . once again, *nice* job Fred.


----------



## PuritanCovenanter (Jun 14, 2008)

The order and cohesiveness of the Presbyterian system is something I think the associations lack. But it obviously isn't a stalwart system that keeps bad theology and emotions in check all of them time. If it was the OPC and the PCA wouldn't exist today. I believe Confessionalism is of utmost importance. The older I get the more I love my Confession of faith. I am grateful for men who love their confessions and defend them. 

Thanks for all of your work PCA guys. I fall deeper in love with you every passing year as I do the with my 1689 LBCF guys.


----------



## a mere housewife (Jun 14, 2008)

I tried several times to watch the video but it kept restarting at minute 30. It is great though to see things being done not only decently and in order but so openly.


----------



## doctorcello (Jun 14, 2008)

*Here are all my GA photos*

Here are my GA photos, eleven pages with some running commentary...

http://www.waysidechurch.org/2008ga/ga01.htm


----------



## HaigLaw (Jun 14, 2008)

a mere housewife said:


> I tried several times to watch the video but it kept restarting at minute 30. It is great though to see things being done not only decently and in order but so openly.



Heidi, that happened to me a time or two also before I figured out how to click on the icon indicating the progress of the video and drag it to the end of what's been downloaded. Keep doing that until you get what you want.


----------



## HaigLaw (Jun 14, 2008)

DMcFadden said:


> Wow! Thanks for the clip. What an illuminating experience! I have an entirely different impression than from the press release by the PCA sources. The presentation by the majority (Fred) and by the minority were done so much more "decently and in order" than anything I have ever witnessed at a national denominational level. I am most impressed! You guys do it really, really, really . . . Christian. Even the people who spoke from the floor were so very much more Christian than my experience in a different tradition.



It was indeed a marvelous experience to be there and hear these presentations.


----------



## Kevin (Jun 15, 2008)

doctorcello said:


> Here are my GA photos, eleven pages with some running commentary...
> 
> http://www.waysidechurch.org/2008ga/ga01.htm



Thanks for the photos. That was a great view on the GA. (nice to see all the Tn Val people, as well!)


----------

