Travelers, not unexpectedly, arrive with baggage. And as pastors and church leaders regularly navigate the daily landscape of life and ministry under tremendous pressure and stress, they may find themselves carrying more than their usual share to the Presbyterian Mission Agency’s annual Disciple-Making Church Conference on January 16.
Imagine what type of ministry you would start if you had no fear of failure or financial limitations. That’s exactly what the Synod of the Northeast is asking people to consider as it receives another round of Innovation Grant applications.
There is still time to register for the 2017 Disciple-Making Church Conference, “Abide in Me… A Spiritual Purging,” to be held January 16–19, 2017, at the TradeWinds Island Grand Resort in St. Pete Beach, Florida.
The day following an unprecedented election of this nation’s 45th president, many were left wondering about the state of cultural diversity and immigrants in the U.S. To help the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) move past cultural differences, 22 coaches from across the country met in Louisville, November 9-11, 2016, for Racial Ethnic & New Immigrant coaches training.
If it’s true that the U.S. is a mission field, then the Rev. Gisonga “Aaron” Ruvugwa is a man on a mission. Ruvugwa immigrated to the U.S. with his family as refugees in 2003.
The Presbyterian Mission Agency’s 1001 New Worshiping Communities is offering a series of webinars to prepare and equip members of the church for ministry. All webinars are available at no cost, and up to 100 registrants can listen and learn to each live presentation.
In the words and experience of the Rev. Jim Moseley, executive presbyter of New Castle Presbytery, “Every great effort in ministry requires both strategic thinking and ‘daring’ in equal amounts.” And maybe just a few peaches.
In an open letter to the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), the church’s National Urban Ministry Network honored the memory of the recently passed Rev. Eugene “Freedom” Blackwell and encouraged readers to join them in continuing his fight for social and racial justice “for all of those who suffer in our cities.”
In the northeast corner of the country, the Presbytery of Cayuga-Syracuse made a dramatic decision. It reduced presbytery staff to just one person and got rid of its office space. Today, Cayuga-Syracuse Presbytery has no building. The office is a laptop, and its number rings to a cell phone in Steve Plank’s pocket.
