The role that evangelism plays in Christian formation and in other facets of Christian ministry was at the center Tuesday of a thoughtful and lively edition of The Scattered Church, offered periodically by the offices that make up the Theology, Formation & Evangelism ministry area of the Presbyterian Mission Agency.
As he began to talk exclusively with unchurched people, Dr. Tom Bagley heard the same thing again and again from people who were spiritually curious about God and faith: They wanted nothing to do with the church because of its hypocrisy, judgmentalism and exclusivity.
Separated by an entire continent, a pair of prominent Presbyterians — the Rev. Bruce Reyes-Chow and the Rev. Aisha Brooks-Johnson — were of one heart and mind Monday leading opening worship for the REvangelism conference exploring the 8 Habits of Evangelism.
Had he been told in advance about the death and heartache wreaked by the pandemic, the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol and the killings of people of color over the past months, “I’d be tempted to run away, to cower in anxiety and fear,” the Rev. Eugene Cho, president and chief executive officer of Bread for the World, said during a sermon featured in the recent Festival of Homiletics. “I’m grateful that God, out of God’s goodness and grace, has invited all of us to be leaders in a church that serves through humble servant leadership.”
Each Sunday for the past few weeks, the Rev. Robert Felix has been giving parishioners at Chandler Presbyterian Church in Chandler, Arizona, real answers to honest questions. The way he goes about providing those answers — producing a short film each week based on a top faith question identified on Google Trends, then discussing the film and the question together — has proven to be an effective and innovative platform for, as he says, “figuring out how we share the gospel in Chandler and the world.”
Over the course of the last year, churches across the globe have wondered what coming out on the other side of the COVID-19 pandemic looks like. Many have wondered how to make the best decisions for their worshipping communities. As the pandemic pushed churches to make difficult decisions, many churches saw an opportunity to try new things.
