Today is the International Day of Peace, also known as “Peace Day.” For the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), every day should be Peace Day, but this is a special day, set aside by a unanimous U.N. resolution in 1981 and observed around the world. It provides “a globally shared date for all humanity to commit to peace above all differences and to contribute to building a culture of peace.” Read more »
August 27, 2019
Minute for Mission: International Day of Peace
Today is the International Day of Peace, also known as “Peace Day.” For the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), every day should be Peace Day, but this is a special day, set aside by a unanimous U.N. resolution in 1981 and observed around the world. It provides “a globally shared date for all humanity to commit to peace above all differences and to contribute to building a culture of peace.” Read more »
I participated in a World Mission global partner consultation this past winter in Nairobi, Kenya. The gathering was attended by Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) mission co-workers serving in Africa and leaders and members of the various African churches and organizations with whom we partner in God’s mission. The purpose of the consultation was to hear about the work and witness of ministry on the African continent, and to gain insight for the development of the future strategy of World Mission. 
Days of Prayer and Action for Colombia (DOPA) are set for Sept. 20–23, 2019, coinciding with the International Day of Peace, Sept. 21. 
As a pastor of Covenant Presbyterian Church in Kansas City, Missouri, my job is to make things happen that are sometimes out of the box — like starting a food pantry for musicians.
Early in 2010, our church drummer, Sam Johnson Jr., wondered if a pantry for musicians could happen. He stated that he “had all these cats to feed.” 
“Flint: The Poisoning of an American City,” a production of Presbyterian Disaster Assistance’s Story Productions, will have its world premiere in the heart of the city whose story it tells. 
The postlude played. I stood at the sanctuary door, greeting congregants as they made their way to coffee hour. On this day, though, I wasn’t sharing pleasantries as I shook hands. I was anointing with oil a hand of each person exiting the sanctuary. As I made the sign of a cross on each palm, I gave a blessing: Be the beautiful you God sees you to be. 
“The Road Ahead” is the theme for the 2019-20 worship series at Maryville College, which will begin on Tues., Aug. 27. 
Women are playing increasingly pivotal roles at every level in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). From moderators, to heads of agencies, stated clerks at the middle governing body level to synod and presbytery executives and pastors, women are at the forefront. And not to be excluded from this wave of women leadership are Native American women. 
After four years of service with the Evangelical Theological Seminary in Matanzas and the Church in Cuba, Rev. Dr. David Cortés Fuentes and Josey Sáez Acevedo have answered God’s call to serve as mission co-workers in the Dominican Republic. 
In 32 seconds, a lone gunman in downtown Dayton, Ohio, injured 27 people and killed nine, including his sister. This mass shooting happened back to back with another shooting 13 hours earlier on Aug. 3 at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas. In that rampage, 22 people died and 26 were injured.