Human beings often forget that all life is sacred.
On this day in 1948, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) declared the sacredness of all human life due to its “inherent dignity” and its “equal and inalienable rights.”
Add churches — and more and more Black churches — to the list of organizations that are seen by social impact investors as financial anchors in their neighborhoods and communities.
Posting your ministry happenings on social media is great, but it can be even better (translation: more folks seeing what you have posted) with the use of a hashtag.
My Christmas ritual is viewing “Black Nativity: A Gospel Christmas Musical Experience.” Adapted from Langston Hughes’ Christmas classic “Black Nativity,” the production is a powerful rendition of the Christmas story. It is filled with thrilling voices, exciting dance, spectacular costumes and glorious gospel music. Hughes originally wrote “Black Nativity” in 1961, at the height of the civil rights movement; it is more moving with every production.
When heavy rain led to flooding in the Mississippi Delta in June, members of First Presbyterian Church of Cleveland, Mississippi, were among the volunteers who streamed into nearby Mound Bayou to help residents begin the process of recovery.
About 20 minutes into a recent webinar on prophetic preaching, the Rev. Dr. Kenyatta Gilbert paused to answer questions. After one about preaching in “purple” churches (a mix of political conservatives and progressives in the pews), Gilbert got this question from one of the 30 participants, a pastor also serving a purple congregation: Have I spent enough time understanding the complexity of the lamentation of these people?
Over the course of the past 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 worshiping communities. As the pandemic pushed churches to make difficult decisions, many churches saw an opportunity to try new things.
First Presbyterian Church of Yorktown in Yorktown Heights, New York, recently became a Hunger Action Congregation, capping off a long tradition of serving the community through a food pantry and other endeavors.
For a minister of music who’s also a choral music and conducting professor, Tom Trenney is a born storyteller.
During the fourth of his five Routley Lectures delivered to the Presbyterian Association of Musicians’ Worship and Music Conference, Trenney told this story about a man he’s long admired, the Presbyterian pastor and children’s television pioneer Fred Rogers.
During a worship service at the Presbyterian Association of Musicians’ Worship and Music Conference, the Rev. Cecilia (Ce Ce) Armstrong told those gathered in person and online that she was not going to preach a devotional sermon.
