Presbyterian Giving Catalog expands reach into Korean and Latinx congregations

Newly available downloadable resources promote deeper engagement with catalog’s gift recipients

by Emily Enders Odom | Presbyterian News Service

LOUISVILLE — When it comes to the Presbyterian Mission Agency’s increasingly popular Presbyterian Giving Catalog, the time-honored saying that “people give to people” has never been truer.

And now, with the catalog’s recent release in Korean and Spanish, the relationships that people forge with people will extend farther than ever before.

Currently in its seventh, record-breaking year, the Presbyterian Giving Catalog — which offers a wide variety of gifts that provide real and positive impact around the world — holds the key in reaching an ever-growing number of donors.

“By giving individuals, congregations and mid councils a great way to initiate and build relationships with their neighbors across the street or across the world, the catalog appeals to people in a different way than our PC(USA) Special Offerings,” said Teresa Mader, project manager for the Presbyterian Giving Catalog. “Not only is it invitational by its very nature, but now, thanks to the broadening of our resources in Spanish and Korean, congregations, mid councils and members of all kinds have access to celebrating the catalog.”

the Rev. David Yi

Among the catalog’s most enthusiastic supporters is the Rev. David Yi, a Korean immigrant originally from Seoul who came to the U.S. in 1981 at the age of 27. Yi, who was a businessman for 17 years before entering Princeton Theological Seminary at the age of 43, currently serves Top Stone Presbyterian Church, New Milford, N.J., where he is the founding pastor.

Yi said he endorses the Presbyterian Giving Catalog for two main reasons. “During COVID-19, when everything had pretty much stopped, I asked myself, ‘What is the best way for the congregation to do mission?’” Yi said. “The catalog seemed perfect.”

The second most important reason Yi cited is that the catalog is very practical. “For $25, you can get a water can,” he said. “People can see what they are donating. They see what they are doing.”

Available since December 2020 for immediate download in Spanish and Korean, the 2020-2021 edition features the catalog’s most popular opportunities for donors to provide aid for refugees, give communities access to clean water and help to end hunger.

The catalog is also garnering strong support from mid council leaders, among them the Rev. Dr. David Kang, executive presbyter of the Atlantic Korean American Presbytery.

the Rev. Dr. David Kang

Kang, a second-generation Presbyterian who also hails from Seoul, served congregations in Nevada, Indiana, Ohio and Colorado before accepting his current call. Kang applauds the growing number of PC(USA) resources that are available in Korean.

“As an executive, I really recommend and encourage our presbytery members to support the direction of our denomination,” said Kang. “The PC(USA) really does a wonderful job in translation. The resources in Special Offerings are wonderful. I really recommend them to my colleagues. I am so satisfied with the catalog in Korean.”

By offering an increasing number of materials in Korean and Spanish, the PC(USA) is engendering increased support for churchwide initiatives while simultaneously — and most importantly — honoring and celebrating the cultural and linguistic heritage of all its members.

Yi, for one, finds the catalog to be an excellent mission tool in working with the denomination.

“The catalog sends a message to congregations,” he said. “It’s one of the best tools we have to do mission overseas. I am appreciative of the denomination giving us this opportunity, which I will do again in 2021. I think it’s a great way to make a bridge connecting the Korean church and the denomination.”

Now is the time to unite with thousands of others using the Presbyterian Giving Catalog to support the ministries closest to their hearts: feeding the hungry, comforting the brokenhearted and sharing our faith with young and old. Give today by clicking here.