Guest commentary by Pam McVety Editor’s note: For the next several Fridays, we will publish commentary expressing opinions on and responses to the actions of the 223rdGeneral Assembly. “The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A) believes that church investment, as well as personal investment, are more than practical questions. We believe that the Lordship of Jesus Christ is at the heart of all that we do and therefore, directs all aspects of our lives, including how we earn, use and invest our money.” (183rd General Assembly, United Presbyterian Church USA, 1971) As a scientist and grandmother, I am stunned and saddened that the 223rdGeneral Assembly voted to support Mission Responsibility Through Investment’s (MRTI) report calling for more shareholder engagement with fossil fuel companies instead of supporting categorical divestment. Every day for the past 20 years, I have read articles about the worsening effects of climate change and observed that what is happening is … [Read more...]
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Commentary 4 mins ago
Having my say about fossil fuel divestment and shareholder engagement
Guest commentary by Pam McVety Editor’s note: For the next several Fridays, we will publish commentary expressing opinions on and responses to the actions of the 223rdGeneral Assembly. “The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A) believes that church investment, as well as personal investment, are more than practical questions. We believe that the Lordship of Jesus Christ is at the heart of all that we do and therefore, directs all aspects of our lives, including how we earn, use and invest our money.” (183rd General Assembly, United Presbyterian Church USA, 1971) As a… continue reading... -
Looking into the lectionary 1 hour ago
9th Sunday after Pentecost — July 22, 2018
2 Samuel 7:1-14a; Ephesians 2:11-22; Mark 6:30-34, 53-56 Ordinary 16B; Proper 11 God is on the move. Jesus is traveling by sea and land. The Holy Spirit blows where it wills. Once you were aliens and strangers, now you are incorporated into the covenant community. The divine doesn’t hunker down and doesn’t allow us to remain sedentary, either. Like those timers that buzz on your Fitbit or iPhone or computer (you know, the ones that remind you to get up and move), God seems to prod us, refusing to let… continue reading... -
Outlook Reporting 14 hours ago
Structure and statutes: Presbyterian Mission Agency Board approves A Corporation bylaw changes
This makes one more step down the road. The Presbyterian Mission Agency Board voted July 19 to approve a series of bylaw changes for the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), A Corporation, a secular corporation through which the denomination transacts business for the Presbyterian Mission Agency and Office of the General Assembly. The actions that the board took involving the bylaws parallel the decisions regarding the A Corporation that the General Assembly made in St. Louis in June – decisions with which the Presbyterian Mission Agency Board’s Governance Task Force strongly disagreed.… continue reading...
Parties in Stamford case had tried to expedite process in order to get a ruling on the merits of the case January 1, 1995 Uncategorized74 views The General Assembly Permanent Judicial Commission -- in sidestepping the question of exactly how deeply a session should be required to probe into the private life of a gay elder who has acknowledged being in a committed, life-long relationship but has declined to say whether he is sexually active -- has put the question off but has not put it to rest.- Ministering with the Earth January 1, 1998 Book Reviews84 views By Mary Elizabeth MooreChalice. 1998. 226 pp. Pb. $19.99. ISBN 0-8272-2323-4 Ministering with the Earth is a quiltwork, both the on-the-ground activity and Moore's book about so ministering. Moore, professor of theology and Christian education at Claremont School of Theology, is fond of the metaphor, suitably pastoral and feminist.
- Remembered Voice: Reclaiming the Legacy of 'Neo-Orthodoxy' January 1, 1998 Book Reviews87 views By Douglas John HallWJKP. 1998. 145 pp. Pb. $18. ISBN 0-664-25772-0 It was in this order. I first read Tillich's Dynamics of Faith. Riveting. Next came The Courage to Be. Gripping. Then I went back and read the first volume of the Systematic Theology. Things began to make sense. Next came Biblical Religion and the Search for Ultimate Reality. Positive.
Human rights advocate claims death threat after speaking to General Assembly panel June 18, 2018 Outlook Reporting3 comments ST. LOUIS — Threats are nothing new for Bassem Eid. During his 26 years of investigating human rights abuses, he’s gotten a lot of them.
He says he received another one on June 18, when he stepped outside a meeting room in the St. Louis Convention Center where he’d spoken in favor of a measure condemning both sides in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict for indoctrinating and exploiting children in ways that perpetuate violence and hatred.
Eid, 60, is a rare sort of human rights activist — a Palestinian who speaks out as vehemently against Palestinian abuses as he does against those committed by Israelis. ...
Cindy Kohlmann and Vilmarie Cintrón-Olivieri elected co-moderators of the 223rd General Assembly June 16, 2018 Outlook Reporting1 comment
ST. LOUIS — On the fourth ballot, the 2018 General Assembly elected as co-moderators Cindy Kohlmann and Vilmarie Cintrón-Olivieri – a minister and a ruling elder; a mid council executive and an educator; the daughter of a military family, born in Greece, and a Puerto Rican native for whom Spanish is her first language; one from the north (Boston) and one from the south (Florida).
They also elected a team – both in their early 40s — that exuded a sense of warmth, hope, welcome and commitment to justice. After the election, Cintrón-Olivieri and Kohlmann walked to the platform hand-in-hand with thei...
Shuffling the deck: Way Forward votes to reconfigure the PC(USA), A Corporation, board June 19, 2018 Outlook Reporting1 comment ST. LOUIS – The Way Forward Committee of the 2018 General Assembly voted 51-5 on June 19 to approve the recommendations from the Way Forward Commission.
There were some amendments to those recommendations along the way, but the committee essentially voted to ask the assembly to approve all of the report, including a joint recommendation from the Way Forward Commission and the All Agency Review Committee to reconfigure the board of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), A Corporation.
The committee also voted 58-0 to approve ...
Having my say about fossil fuel divestment and shareholder engagement
Tagged With: fossil fuels • GA223
9th Sunday after Pentecost — July 22, 2018
2 Samuel 7:1-14a; Ephesians 2:11-22; Mark 6:30-34, 53-56 Ordinary 16B; Proper 11 God is on the move. Jesus is traveling by sea and land. The Holy Spirit blows where it wills. Once you were aliens and strangers, now you are incorporated into the covenant community. The divine doesn’t hunker down and doesn’t allow us to remain sedentary, either. Like those timers that buzz on your Fitbit or iPhone or computer (you know, the ones that remind you to get up and move), God seems to prod us, refusing to let us get too comfortable where we are. The king may be settled, but God tells Nathan, “I have not lived in a house since the day I brought up the people of Israel from Egypt.” It is almost like God gets the word to King David: “Do you really think I have time to settle down and relax?! Have you looked around lately? There is work to be done! Furthermore, do you remember where you came from and where I’ve been with you? Why would you think I’d want to retire to temple when I … [Read more...]
Structure and statutes: Presbyterian Mission Agency Board approves A Corporation bylaw changes
This makes one more step down the road. The Presbyterian Mission Agency Board voted July 19 to approve a series of bylaw changes for the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), A Corporation, a secular corporation through which the denomination transacts business for the Presbyterian Mission Agency and Office of the General Assembly. The actions that the board took involving the bylaws parallel the decisions regarding the A Corporation that the General Assembly made in St. Louis in June – decisions with which the Presbyterian Mission Agency Board’s Governance Task Force strongly disagreed. The assembly, however, voted in favor of reconfiguring the structure of the A Corporation’s board. And the Presbyterian Mission Agency Board, meeting by conference call July 19, approved a series of bylaw changes to match that new configuration. Also, the voting members of the Presbyterian Mission Agency Board are being asked to resign their seats on the A Corporation board by July 26 – so that the … [Read more...]
United Methodist court filings detail proposals for averting schism on sexuality
(RNS) —Documents filed with the United Methodist Church’s top court are shedding first light on specifics of long-awaited proposals to avoid schism in the second-largest Protestant denomination in the United States. The three plans were published Tuesday (July 17) as part of the docket for the United Methodist Church Judicial Council’s October meeting. The denomination’s Council of Bishops is asking its top court for a decision on whether those plans and related petitions are constitutional. “We are asking for this so that we can gain greater clarity about constitutional issues within the three plans, and in service to and support of the delegations, who will do extremely important work in a very limited amount of time,” Bishop Kenneth H. Carter, president of the Council of Bishops, said in a written statement last week. The Rev. Maidstone Mulenga, director of communications for the Council of Bishops, described the request in an email as “a pre-emptive move by the … [Read more...]
Pro-Choice and Christian: Reconciling Faith, Politics, and Justice
Kira Schlesinger Westminster John Knox Press, 136 pages Reviewed by Judith Fulp-Eickstaedt Have you noticed lately that there are issues we can’t talk about? A colleague recently shared that the pro-life/pro-choice debate is one where he can’t get a real conversation going. Extreme perspectives on both sides have left those who want a measured, informed conversation feeling attacked for whatever they might say or bullied into accepting one of these extremes as “correct.” The result is a culture of silence around reproductive rights, especially in the church. Yet, in a conversation with a parishioner, I was reminded of the need for guidance and support around these issues. This young woman struggled with the fear of passing a devastating genetic mutation to her child. “As I weighed the awful possibilities,” she said, “I was not even aware that being pro-choice was part of the Christian conversation.” My parishioner’s story speaks to the overwhelming nature of the decisions … [Read more...]
Say this, not that
Our words matter. It matters that we speak about God’s call when the nominating committee gets to work. A phone call that asks if we feel called to serve on the Christian education committee feels different then someone begging us to sign up because the committee hardly ever meets and they really need new blood. It matters that we talk about giving generous gifts during stewardship season instead of hearing that the bills are piling up. Most people would rather give with joy than do their duty to contribute to mounting costs. It matters that we pastors call that one precious weekday a Sabbath day instead of a day off. That name helps people better understand why we aren’t in the office and it reshapes how we approach the day from our homes. What we say shapes our reality. Since we are in the business of helping people form and mold their faith, our language has the power to build stronger faith muscles. The words we speak can help people realize that their values are truly … [Read more...]
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