When she sat for a recent interview, the Rev. Sarah Hegar, who directs congregational ministries at First Presbyterian Church in Mt. Pleasant, Iowa, was still basking in the glow of having welcomed six confirmands into membership the previous weekend. They got there in part by studying Matthew 25 confirmation materials that asked the youth: How do you change the world?
Most people pass by First Presbyterian Church in Manitowoc, Wisconsin, noting its beautiful historic sanctuary.
It sat on a one-way street, and the 1950s addition to the much larger sanctuary barely merited a backwards glance.
But when the city of Manitowoc changed the street to a two-way, Rev. Matt Sauer, the church’s pastor, began to see that 1950s addition as a blank canvas — and an opportunity.
“We’re not going to have change or create change unless we vote,” says Lolita Watkins, a member of Saint James Presbyterian Church of Greensboro, North Carolina, in her opening statement for a Matthew 25 video posted to the Presbyterian Church (USA)’s Facebook page on Nov. 3. Watkins, who is the co-coordinator of the social justice advocacy committee at Saint James Church, goes on to explain how voter engagement is key to her congregation’s embodiment of Matthew 25.
Representatives from among the PC(USA)’s most diverse and innovative faith gatherings — its 1001 New Worshiping Communities — joined virtually Thursday during the “Being Matthew 25” monthly broadcast to celebrate the 10th year of the initiative. Watch the 42-minute conversation here.
On the latest edition of Everyday God-talk, the Rev. Dr. Diane Moffett, president and executive director of the Presbyterian Mission Agency, discusses the church’s Matthew 25 vision and those who influenced her theologically to become an agent of change.
