The Rev. Brad Sheppard, pastor of Immanuel Presbyterian Church in Cincinnati, received an email one Sunday from the church’s accompanist, Diana Chubak, a doctoral student at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. Earlier that day, Sheppard had asked Chubak to suggest organizations to support in the wake of the Russian invasion of her native Ukraine.
The Rev. Dr. J. Herbert Nelson, II told the triennial gathering of Presbyterian Women he has fond childhood memories of the bus pulling up to St. Luke Presbyterian Church in Orangeburg, South Carolina, the church where his father was the pastor. The bus was there to transport Nelson’s mother to PW’s national gathering at Purdue University.
A year of shepherding God’s people through a pandemic has put a strain on pastors as they have had to rethink how to do everything from pastoral care to worship. And the strain of constantly thinking differently and creatively while tending flocks that are eager for some sense of normalcy can result in developing compassion fatigue.
In the fall of 2018, youth at Bon Air Juvenile Correctional Center (BAJCC) in Chesterfield County, Virginia, asked to start a gospel choir. The request reached the Rev. Lauren Ramseur and the Rev. Ashley Diaz Mejias who, along with friends, collaborated to support the initiative. Ramseur and Mejias soon discovered that they were “doing church” — gathering twice a month at the correctional center for a community of worship. The group named themselves the Voices of Jubilee.
As the reality of COVID-19 set in, it forced the postponement of the UKirk Collegiate Ministries Association’s national gathering until this year.
Stephanie Fritz, associate coordinator for Christian Formation, asked the UKirk national board to consider tangible ways to inspire, support and equip network ministries from around the country during the pandemic.
The Rev. Dr. James Reese, now approaching the 70th anniversary of his ordination in the Presbyterian Church, believes learning about stewardship is a cross-cultural exercise. He asserts approaches to charitable giving, especially in the context of the church, are formed by a community ethos — and he has the data to back it up.
It’s been a year since a trio of hurricanes wreaked havoc on Texas, Florida and Puerto Rico, leaving a path of destruction, major power outages and many people without homes. Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria in quick succession, pummeled their targets over several days late last summer.
A dozen tornados slashed through Iowa recently, leaving behind extensive property damage in their wake. Marshalltown, a community of about 25,000 residents, suffered catastrophic damage to its downtown area.
Congregants at Covenant Presbyterian Church in Madison, Wisconsin are getting a snapshot of four countries around the world this month through the lens of Presbyterian mission work. The ministries of Presbyterian mission co-workers in Guatemala, Peru, Indonesia and South Sudan are being highlighted in worship during the first four Sundays in July.
