There was at least one elephant in the room at Chris Pomfret’s workshop at the 2016 ARMSS/POAMN conference.
But an elephant could scarcely have fit into the packed meeting space, which nearly exceeded the room’s seating capacity with conference-goers eager to engage the workshop’s theme, “Making Our Third Thirty a Great Thirty: How to Make the Difficult Decisions.” Read more »
November 16, 2016
Naming and taming the elephant in the room
There was at least one elephant in the room at Chris Pomfret’s workshop at the 2016 ARMSS/POAMN conference.
But an elephant could scarcely have fit into the packed meeting space, which nearly exceeded the room’s seating capacity with conference-goers eager to engage the workshop’s theme, “Making Our Third Thirty a Great Thirty: How to Make the Difficult Decisions.” Read more »
Presbyterians have a long history of helping those in need and have shown time and time again that they are willing to roll up their sleeves and go to work. Presbytery of the Peaks is a good example of people in action. Denise Pillow is the Hunger Action Advocate (HAA) for the presbytery, which includes 125 congregations across Central Virginia. 
Over two mornings at the 2016 ARMSS/POAMN conference—a national event jointly sponsored by the Association of Retired Ministers, Their Spouses or Survivors and the Presbyterian Older Adult Ministries Network — the Rev. Dr. John T. Carroll shared his wisdom in a comprehensive, two-part keynote address with broad implications for his audience of pastors, educators, and others engaged in ministry with older adults. 
Town hard-hit by 9/11 deaths honors service members, veterans
Each fall for five years Westminster Presbyterian Church in Middletown, New Jersey, has assembled a memorable display on its Great Lawn. Beginning in 2012, the church’s Field of Flags has displayed one American flag for every service member killed in the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts. In 2015 the number was 6,841. When the congregation put out flags on Saturday, October 15, this year, the number of service persons killed had grown to 6,860. 
In 2015, Auburn Seminary launched a signature educational initiative: The Auburn Senior Fellows program, gathering some of the most passionate and talented faith leaders working for justice in the United States today. The inaugural group includes people who live out their faith and work as a pastor, a rabbi, a theologian, an activist, a bishop, a nun, an organizer. It includes people from the breadth of Christianity (Protestant, Catholic, Evangelical), and from the Jewish, Muslim, and Sikh traditions. They are Millennials, Gen Xers, and Baby Boomers. 
Niger has consistently ranked at the bottom of the United Nations Human Development Index. Indicators that
reflect that ranking include the following:
• Only 40 percent of men and 20 percent of women are literate.
• There is one doctor for every 50,000 people.
• One in seven women dies in childbirth.
• 40 percent of children under age five are malnourished.
• 20 percent of children die before their fifth birthday.
• Up to 90 percent of the population is involved in subsistence agriculture.
David Greene had a vision. The woodworker, a member of Echo Hill Presbyterian Church in Cedar Rapids, dreamed of developing a team of church congregants to construct quality wooden toys for less fortunate children of all ages. The toys would be non-toxic, environmentally friendly, and creatively constructed to spark the imaginations of the children playing with them. Remembering fondly the hours of fun and creative play with their favorite childhood toys prompted a group of congregants to take a leap of faith to begin the Toy Club. 
The action required to transfer the operations of the Ghost Ranch Conference & Education Center from the Presbyterian Mission Agency (PMA) to the National Ghost Ranch Foundation (NGRF), was approved today by the Presbyterian Mission Agency Board (PMAB). 
To connect with justice is to connect with the heart of God. It is a part of God’s core character. It is not optional but necessary. Jesus, the very fulfillment of Scripture—God on earth, here with us—declared in his first message that justice and compassion would be at the center of his ministry. In Luke 4:18-19 Jesus doesn’t say, “I am here just for your soul.” No, he declared that through the power of the Holy Spirit he was going to set captives free, bring sight to the blind, and break the chains of injustice! 
In 2014, a year before Madison Presbyterian Church’s 200th anniversary, Jill Wiest and I volunteered to see what information we could find to enhance the celebration. After looking through many old files we wondered if we had found everything—after all, there are many nooks and crannies in our 1846 church building. What about that old safe in the small room off the kitchen that had been the pastor’s study in the 1800s?