Worshiping Communities Archives

Workshop focuses on identifying talents, then putting them to work in group settings

Posted April 15th, 2021

It’s the Year of Leader Formation in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), and on Wednesday about 225 Presbyterians celebrated by tuning in to hear the Rev. Michael Gehrling deliver an engaging 90-minute talk on identifying and cultivating one’s individual talents and then coalescing those talents in a group setting, such as a church session, board of deacons or ministry team.

A welcoming sanctuary for every soul

Posted April 9th, 2021

In the Presbytery of Sacramento, ἴama Yoga, a 1001 new worshiping community in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) will soon rise up to connect people to God and one another through the Christian spiritual practice of yoga.

‘Born out of desperation’

Posted April 7th, 2021

The Rev. Colin Kerr of Parkside Church in Charleston, South Carolina is in awe of what happened at the church plant he serves. When this new church development began, it began growing steadily. But just six months into that growth, the pandemic hit.

A Matthew 25-inspired Stations of the Cross

Posted March 31st, 2021

For the Rev. Jeanie Shaw, leader of Eventide Community, a new worshiping community in Sacramento, California, Holy Week has a whole new meaning this year. As an active member of the Presbyterian Disaster Assistance National Response Team, people in her community are used to being sent into neighborhoods across the nation and around the world to work on PDA-connected projects.

Nearly two dozen new worshiping communities receive Mission Program Grants

Posted March 29th, 2021

On behalf of the Presbyterian Mission Agency, the Mission Development Resources Committee (MDRC) has approved Mission Program Grants to 23 new worshiping communities.

If the land could speak, what stories would it tell?

Posted March 19th, 2021

After COVID-19 forced the cancelation of planned projects and in-person worship, Coastland Commons, a 1001 New Worshiping Community in Seattle Presbytery, moved to Zoom discussions about their city’s history of land use by Black, Indigenous and people of color communities. After about six months of Zoom gatherings, they figured out a safe way to see Seattle anew through socially distanced community walks. They reached out to the Museum of History and Industry (MOHAI), which organizes redlining tours in Seattle’s Capitol Hill and Central District neighborhoods.

Lenten laments for racial injustice

Posted March 11th, 2021

Jessie Bloss remembers how helpless she felt. “It was that overwhelming feeling of not knowing how to respond,” she said.

1001 Refresh Retreat set to explore ‘Attaining Resurrection’ amid challenging times

Posted March 9th, 2021

Attaining Resurrection — a virtual Refresh Retreat — provides an opportunity for 1001 New Worshiping Community leaders to replenish and reclaim their spiritual grounding in a time of pandemic. There will be three of these retreat opportunities this year, with the next scheduled for April 12–13. Leaders will have a chance to choose their start time, based on Eastern or Pacific time zones.

Join 1001 New Worshiping Communities for an unConference

Posted February 18th, 2021

Together with partners also engaged in church planting and revitalization, 1001 New Worshiping Communities of the Presbyterian Mission Agency is sponsoring an upcoming Hopeful Economics UnConference on March 3-5.

Experience ‘Fury and Grace,’ a podcast from prison

Posted February 17th, 2021

The recently released book, “Fury and Grace: 40 Days of Paintings and Poetry from Prison,” edited by the Rev. Riley Pickett and the Revs. Layne and Crawford Brubaker, is now a podcast, too.