In God’s mission, we show our faith by our obedient service. In other words, as Francis of Assisi is believed to have said, “Preach the gospel at all times; when necessary, use words.” This is the task and mission of disciples of Jesus — to let our lives speak for themselves of the gospel, and if necessary to use words to enhance and amplify our faith.
It’s called the Golden Triangle, a region about an hour and a half east of Houston. Most people had never heard of it until Hurricane Harvey. The communities in the triangle made national news when flooding cut off many residents from immediate help. Like many impacted by Harvey, some homes saw minimal damage, while others had several feet of water.
Meeting for coffee is a Presbyterian tradition. Whether it’s in a fellowship hall, a Sunday school room or an espresso shop, coffee and community are often connected. First Presbyterian Church in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, is hoping that a new coffee shop will help connect college students from the University of Alabama with Christ. Named UPerk, the venture is an outreach of the UKirk program, a ministry that seeks to empower members of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) engaged in campus ministry.
The hymn “Here I Am, Lord” recently floated through the sanctuary at Las Placitas Presbyterian Church in New Mexico, and just moments later, Dori Kay Hjalmarson walked down the aisle into her ordination and her new role as a mission co-worker in Honduras.
First Presbyterian Church in the City of New York is hosting a two-day symposium on the challenges facing LGBTQ refugees and asylum seekers. The church, working alongside several ministries within the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), will be the site of the gathering, titled “Love Welcome,” on October 20 and 21.
In response to an invitation from the pastor of the Presbyterian church in Baghdad, the Rev. Dr. Joanne Sizoo, pastor of Grace Presbyterian Church in Fort Mill, South Carolina, and coordinator of the Iraq Partnership Network (IPN), is requesting that every city in Iraq be covered in prayer by congregations in the U.S.
A group of Presbyterian educators and ministers gathered recently at Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary to look at how to engage the larger church on the issue of education. The newly formed Educate a Child Round Table met for the first time to organize and determine first steps. Participants came from across the country, including California, New York, Tennessee and Michigan.
The chapel of the Presbyterian Center was recently filled with voices singing the hymn God the Creator in observance of Native American Day at the Presbyterian Center. The chorus of the hymn reminds us that “we’re brothers and sisters in God’s love” in spite of our differences.
In late October 1517, an obscure Augustinian monk teaching at a minor German university offered a set of propositions, inviting an academic debate. Many Presbyterians can picture Martin Luther nailing his 95 Theses on the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, but we are hard-pressed to say what the theses were about, and why they sparked a movement that both reformed and divided the church.
In 2008, Dorene Seidl, a beloved, longtime member of Briargate Presbyterian Church in Louisville, Kentucky, was killed by her husband when she was attempting to leave their relationship of over 40 years.
That’s when domestic violence visited our church. It was heartbreakingly real.
