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Communication
Once the American Film Institute came out with its list of the 100 most memorable heroes and villains, the Rev. Mark Bedford did AFI one better: He paired the top good and bad guys and gals Hollywood has to offer with scriptural passages to promote lively discussions during his “Good vs. Evil 2: The Sequel!” class held last month during Synod School.
Born more than 600 years ago and burned at the stake for heresy at age 19, Joan of Arc still had a lot to teach a roomful of Synod School students last month — especially with guidance from Dr. Scott Stanfield, Emeritus Professor of English at Nebraska Wesleyan University and a longtime Synod School participant.
A recent coup orchestrated by Niger’s military has prompted the U.S. State Department to issue a Level 4 (Do Not Travel) advisory to the West African country and order the departure of non-emergency government personnel and eligible family members. The department is willing to assist other U.S. citizens who desire to depart the country. Expected to be included in the evacuation is PC(USA) mission co-worker Jim McGill, who has served in Niger for the past several years. McGill boarded a State Department charter flight earlier today and will be flown to a yet to be determined location.
Susan Stabile, a distinguished senior fellow at the University of St. Thomas School of Law in Minneapolis and a spiritual director and retreat leader, taught a fascinating and helpful week-long class at Synod School last week, “Jesus the Storyteller: Learning from the Parables.”
The Rev. Bill Davnie was a Presbyterian pastor for five years before hearing a different call: he then served 27 years as a career Foreign Service Officer.
Concluding her week-long journey through biblical accounts starting with the letter “c” — Creation, crisis, covenant and Christ came before — the Rev. DeEtte Decker, the preacher during Synod School last week and the communications director for the Presbyterian Mission Agency, concluded worship on Friday with more alliteration: the church as co-creator.
Communion was served to those attending Synod School worship on Thursday. The elements — a small round cracker and a green grape — were distributed in compostable plant starch sandwich bags.
“Y’all responded a little better than I thought you would yesterday,” the Rev. Jimmie Hawkins told Synod School attendees Thursday morning, referring to a talk he delivered Wednesday on whether some symbols belong in church. “So today I thought I’d talk about Christianity and capitalism.”
A time for children during worship Wednesday at Synod School saw about two dozen children make pinky promises before God and the 500 or so people assembled.
The Rev. Jimmie Hawkins warned Synod School attendees that his Wednesday message “might be a challenging. My wife says I’m not everyone’s cup of tea.”
