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big tent
On the heels of the Big Tent conference in St. Louis, the ongoing PC(USA) Facing Racism campaign has released resources from the event with the theme “Race, Reconciliation and Reformation.”
As the Rev. Stephen McCutchan, an honorably retired PC(USA) minister in St. Petersburg, Florida, and a member of the Presbyterian Writers Guild (PWG) Board, considered some months ago what workshop he might offer at the PC(USA) Big Tent event, he immediately thought of his longtime friend and former pastoral colleague, the Rev. Dr. Samuel Stevenson, honorably retired in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
At Friday’s Big Tent workshop, The Church’s Stories of Struggle and Reconciliation, representatives of the Presbyterian Mission Agency’s (PMA) World Mission talked about the accompaniment of global partners in the work of peace building in South Sudan, Cuba and Israel-Palestine.
Dismantling racism was a popular topic at Big Tent 2017. The workshop Disrupting Racism: Building the Intercultural Community was attended by 50 percent more people than had registered.
General Assembly Stated Clerk J. Herbert Nelson II told a Big Tent workshop here Saturday morning (June 8) that his recent trip to Wittenberg, Germany reminded him once again that ‘the Protestant Reformation occurred over a long period of time … that it wasn’t like two weeks and – bam – we’re done.’
This year Presbyterians join Christians around the world in celebrating the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation. But the Reformation is not over. It’s important to remember that the church — and its worship — are continuing to be reformed, said David Gambrell, associate for worship for the Presbyterian Mission Agency and co-author of the revised Book of Common Worship.
Participants attending the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) 2017 Big Tent event “What if the Women Left? Shattering and Reframing the Stained Glass Ceiling” waited expectantly to hear what presenters had to say about gender discrimination within the denomin
2020 Vision Team discusses a church-sponsored coffee shop where the baristas are trained in pastoral care; a new congregation worshiping in a shopping mall; churches using their resources creatively — transforming unused buildings into affordable housing or incubators for faith development and spiritual practices.
In the New Testament, Jesus shared the Parable of the Sower with his disciples. In that story, Jesus explains that as the sower sows the seeds, some may fall on rocky ground or among the thorns, while other seeds flourish in rich soil.
Nearly 300 Big Tent participants were treated to Friday evening visits at one of five area Presbyterian congregations to hear various St. Louis experiences of racism and to begin processing the “Holy Conversations around Race” that began during this week’s event.
