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On a Sunday morning in March 2023, people fishing off the coast of Ankazomborona in northwestern Madagascar discovered two corpses floating in the sea. Soon, alarmed villagers were combing the coast in pirogues for signs of mariners in distress. Rescuers eventually recovered 34 bodies, including three children. The dead were determined to have been passengers on a small boat that ran aground on its way to the French island of Mayotte, about 250 miles from Madagascar. Twenty-three survivors were also rescued but fled, fearful of being arrested for evading immigration laws.
“I was glad to see that the church building has become a library to serve the community,” Sara Jean Jackson said as she attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new Audubon Regional Library in Clinton, Louisiana, a town of 1,275 people about 45 minutes northeast of Baton Rouge.
You might have noticed that more people are wearing orange lately. This is not a fashion trend but a movement that began in 2013 as a grief response by friends of a young victim of gun violence. It has grown into a national day, then weekend, then month (of June) to raise awareness about the horrific cost of gun violence. Towns and cities, schools and churches, individuals and clubs are urging us all to wear the bright color that hunters have long worn for safety. It is one small step in bending the moral arc of the universe toward justice.
Given the opportunity to talk about the well-known and well-respected work of Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA), the Rev. Edwin González-Castillo did not hesitate when he took to the Between 2 Pulpits microphone recently.
During a recent webinar offered by Presbyterians for Earth Care (PEC), available here, Avery Davis Lamb introduced participants to Plastic Jesus.
Lamb is co-executive director of a partner of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), Creation Justice Ministries, which developed “Plastic Jesus: Real Faith in a Sinful World,” a prayer, education and worship resource that churches can use. He called his recent talk “From Plastic Pollution to Environmental Justice.”
The work of Susan Krehbiel, associate for Migrant Accompaniment Ministries with Presbyterian Disaster Assistance, is focused on people on the move.
“Rediscovering Lost Treasure: Old Testament Resources for Christian Faith and Life” is the title the Rev. Dr. Dennis Olson gave to an online talk he delivered recently as part of the Synod of the Covenant’s “Equipping Preachers” series. Watch Olson’s talk encouraging preachers to engage Old Testament texts in their sermons — especially those passages that aren’t part of the lectionary — by clicking here.
“When I encounter healthy congregations of any size, I meet ruling elders who understand that their call is not to be on a board of directors but to be spiritual leaders along with the minister,” reflected the Rev. Gradye Parsons, who served as Stated Clerk of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) from 2008 to 2016. “Spiritual leaders tend to want to learn how to be more effective and faithful.”
The Chapel Service celebrating Mister Rogers Day drew out the inner child among the national staff of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) as they celebrated the many gifts given by Fred Rogers, the innovative children’s television pioneer and Presbyterian pastor. Rogers was born on March 20, 1928, and Presbyterians celebrate Mister Rogers Day each year on his birthday.
“So much of our lives is spent in the company of others. These encounters shape us, whether we’re passing time silently next to a stranger in the crowded row of an airplane or in the innumerable moments of life shared between our own roommates, co-workers, siblings or spouses,” the Rev. Sara Hayden, host of the New Way podcast, explains in her introduction to a two-episode interview with the Rev. Troy Bronsink, founder of The Hive, a center for contemplation, art and action.
