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minute for mission
Bill and Lori Picard, Nez Perce tribal members of Lapwai, Idaho, exemplify concerned and visionary discipleship. In 1997 their son Quanah died in an automobile accident. Three years later their son Skylin also died in an automobile accident. But God called the couple to turn tragedy into discipleship.
Do not stand idly by when your neighbor’s life is threatened. (Leviticus 19:16 NLT)
Do Not Stand Idly By (DNSIB) is more than a catchy phrase; it is a biblical mandate and founding principle that guides the work of a campaign started by the Metro Industrial Areas Foundation, an ecumenical coalition of congregations across the country. We seek to stand with and work on behalf of those who have been impacted by gun violence. This national campaign seeks to get safer, smarter gun technology into the marketplace and to pressure manufacturers to work toward safer, smarter dealer networks.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. (Matthew 5:9)
Everyone can do something for peace.
What can one person do to advance world peace? Elizabeth Meehan, an elder at Presbyterian-New England Congregational Church of Saratoga Springs, New York, learned. Eight years ago, Meehan wanted to get involved in peacemaking, a cause that touches the environment, equitable access to resources, hunger, and many other topics. Meehan gained the support of her church’s Social Concerns Committee, and the Peace Fair was born.
Do you call today’s Gospel reading (Luke 16:1–13) the parable of the Dishonest Steward, the Shrewd Manager, or something else? Either way, in the end, this servant pleases the master in the story with his more abundant view of the economy and in spite of unjust accounting to gain friends and shelter. We could call the servant a shrewd investor in eternal homes.
Mark Hinds remembers the effect that confirmation had on both himself and his brothers.
“In our family, it had a 30 percent success rate,” Hinds told a room full of Christian educators at the 2016 Association of Presbyterian Church Educators gathering in Chicago. “I’m still in the church; my brothers aren’t.”
As heads nodded in response to Hinds’s admission, the room hummed with questions about the efficacy and future direction of the confirmation process in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).
Do churches care about working people? The Social Creed for the 21st Century says yes. Right after its adoption in 2008, for example, it was invoked to support ballot initiatives to raise the minimum wage. So how did the 33 churches in the National Council of Churches reach agreement to update the original Social Creed of 1908? The answer is threefold and gives us hope for ecumenical cooperation to advocate for working people.
Philadelphia Presbytery has hosted International Peacemakers for two consecutive years, and the impact of these visits has been profound. In 2014 the peacemaker was James Ninrew from the Presbyterian Church of South Sudan. Last year the peacemaker was Rami Al Maqdasi from Iraq. These two countries, though continents apart, have both suffered the burdens of war.
Minute for Mission: Public Education
In the summer of 2013, Nikkitta Jacobs of Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina, received news that her son, Jaden, who had just turned three, would not have a spot at the Clara Hearne Head Start Center that fall. Facing a $267,000 budget reduction, the center had to cut 37 children from its incoming class.
Minute for Mission: Youth in the Church and World
Vikita Sihali was a “young” young adult at the 2013 Presbyterian Youth Triennium. She serves her home presbytery, Amatola, in the Uniting Presbyterian Church in Southern Africa and her home congregation as a youth leader. She shared the following words with the presbyteries of Northern New England and Boston after the Triennium:
The Lord’s Day
“So, what exactly does a chaplain do?”
It’s a question I’m often asked when I tell people that I’m a college chaplain. I don’t really have “typical” days. Like most pastors, chaplains do a little of everything. We put together programs, organize and lead worship (weddings and memorials included) and counsel students.
