If you haven’t read “My Green Manifesto” by David Gessner, I suggest you do so. The book is beautifully written about a compelling and urgent subject. The subtitle is: “Down the Charles River in Pursuit of a New Environmentalism.” Gessner covers a lot of territory that has resonance for church folk. He plumbs the importance of language. He upholds the power of common vision moved forward by groups of committed people. His traveling companion is an environmental planner – who is also a prophet in some ways. As they paddle, they talk. At one point, Gessner’s green prophet proclaims, “We need hypocrites!” “We are all hypocrites, of course,” he says. “We are all hypocrites. None of us are consistent. The problem is that we let that fact stop us. We worry that if we fight for nature, people will say, ‘But you drive a car,’ or ‘You fly a lot,’ or ‘You’re a consumer, too.’ And that stops us in our tracks. It’s almost as if admitting that they are hypocrites lets people off the hook.” He … [Read more...]
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Editorials 1 min ago
We need more hypocrites
If you haven’t read “My Green Manifesto” by David Gessner, I suggest you do so. The book is beautifully written about a compelling and urgent subject. The subtitle is: “Down the Charles River in Pursuit of a New Environmentalism.” Gessner covers a lot of territory that has resonance for church folk. He plumbs the importance of language. He upholds the power of common vision moved forward by groups of committed people. His traveling companion is an environmental planner – who is also a prophet in some ways. As they paddle,… continue reading... -
Commentary 3 days ago
Why I marched, what I saw
Guest commentary by John M. Cleghorn “My feets is tired, but my soul is rested.” Those words from Mother Pollard, who participated in the 1955-56 Montgomery bus boycott by walking to work every day at age 72, inspired Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. as he led the civil rights movement. This morning, I know a little about how Mother Pollard felt. Last night (Sept. 22), I was able to take part in the peaceful protest in Uptown Charlotte in the wake of the police shooting of Keith Lamont Scott, the… continue reading... -
Editor's viewpoints 3 days ago
Please support the Outlook
Friends, It is with heart-felt gratitude that I write to you. Thank you for your support of the Presbyterian Outlook. Your subscriptions, donations, comments and prayers enable our ministry to thrive. Since I last wrote to you, the 222nd General Assembly is in the books. I hope you found our coverage before, during and after the assembly informative and useful. Many of you availed yourselves of the webinar with Moderator Heath Rada in preparation for GA and our wrap-up bulletin inserts following the eventful week in Portland. Even more of… 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 Uncategorized79 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 Reviews75 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 Reviews76 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.
Mission Agency board to meet this week in new structure September 12, 2016 Outlook Reporting3 comments
LOUISVILLE (Outlook) – Hoping to spend more time thinking about big issues facing the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), the Presbyterian Mission Agency board will at its meeting this week put into play a new committee structure and a new way of doing business.
The basic idea: Spend less time at meetings on routine business and more on “generative thinking.”
The agenda for the board’s meeting Sept. 13-16 will be a mix of idea...
Stony Point to work toward financial self-sufficiency June 9, 2014 Outlook Features3 comments LOUISVILLE, KY - After a long and somewhat contentious stretch of trying to figure out the future of Stony Point Center, a plan seems to have emerged — a roadmap for trying to make Stony Point financially self-sufficient within the next three years.
The Presbyterian Mission Agency Board voted April 24 in favor of a plan that:
Affirms the mission, including interfaith work, of Stony Point Center, a Presbyterian conference center outside New York City. Rick and Kitty Ufford-Chase, Stony Point’s co-executive directors, described as crucial the willingness of the leadership of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) ...
Adopting Belhar, the 222nd General Assembly makes history June 23, 2016 Outlook Reporting2 comments PORTLAND, Ore. – The 2016 General Assembly made history by voting June 22 to add the Belhar Confession – a moving call for reconciliation, and a condemnation of racial injustice written in the crucible of the struggle over apartheid – to the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)’s Book of Confessions. Belhar becomes the first confession from the global south the mostly-white PC(USA) has ever adopted – and the PC(USA) has done so at a time when racial tension, injustice and violence in the United States make headlines nearly every day.
Christians from South Africa told the assembly they have been waiting for this da...
We need more hypocrites
Presbyterians to hear firsthand account of Syrian Refugee Crisis
(PNS) As Syria’s fragile U.S./Russian negotiated cease fire agreement hangs in the balance, Presbyterian congregations are hearing about the work to help refugees who have remained in the region. Dr. Mary Mikhael, the first female president of a Middle East seminary and ruling elder with the National Evangelical Synod of Syria and Lebanon (NESSL), has begun a two-month visit across the country to share stories as well as encourage churches and other ecumenical groups to support those displaced by the armed conflict. “Millions of people have been displaced. The church is doing its best to help but it is just a drop in the bucket,” said Mikhael. “There are a lot of needs to meet and the people are desperately in need.” Since the conflict began in 2011, as many as 350,000 people have died and 11 million people have been forced to leave their homes. Many have relocated to Lebanon to avoid bloodshed while others have reached out to various countries including the U.S. Mikhael and … [Read more...]
African American Consultation focuses on Black Lives Matters
LOUISVILLE (PNS) – As a part of the first Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) Racial Ethnic & Women’s Ministries African American Consultation, African American leaders gathered for a session to discuss the Black Lives Matter movement. The September 20 discussion was led by Robina Winbush, director of the Department of Ecumenical Relations and Associate Stated Clerk in the Office of the General Assembly. The Black Lives Matter movement came into being in response to the acquittal of George Zimmerman for the murder of unarmed African American teenager, Trayvon Martin. Following the incident, three African descendant queer women—Alicia Garza, Opal Tometi, and Patrice Cullors—used their community organizing skills and modern technology to launch a movement and publicly counter the emerging narrative that Black Lives don’t matter and can be extinguished without accountability. The movement is based on thirteen principles that include diversity, globalism, black women, black villages, … [Read more...]
Expanding the PC(USA) ministry of educational debt assistance
LOUISVILLE (PNS) - As a new class of PC(USA) seminary students matriculates this fall, many find themselves entering graduate school not only with great anticipation and an unwavering commitment to serve Christ’s church, but also with unprecedented student loan debt. But they need not worry unduly. In the church, there is good news. And in the church, there is forgiveness—student loan forgiveness. “Not all of the news about student loans is bad news,” said Laura Bryan, coordinator of the Presbyterian Mission Agency’s (PMA) office of Financial Aid for Service in the Theology, Formation, and Evangelism ministry area. “The good news is that there are more repayment options than ever before, and our office, in order to be responsive both to need as well as to borrowing trends, has been moving in the direction of student loan forgiveness for several years.” In fact, Bryan said the PMA’s growing portfolio of loan assistance programs was the inspiration behind changing the office’s … [Read more...]
Why I marched, what I saw
Guest commentary by John M. Cleghorn “My feets is tired, but my soul is rested.” Those words from Mother Pollard, who participated in the 1955-56 Montgomery bus boycott by walking to work every day at age 72, inspired Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. as he led the civil rights movement. This morning, I know a little about how Mother Pollard felt. Last night (Sept. 22), I was able to take part in the peaceful protest in Uptown Charlotte in the wake of the police shooting of Keith Lamont Scott, the latest in a deeply-troubling string of similar incidents that is tearing our country apart. Today, after the protest that one colleague likened to a five-mile strolling party, my feet are tired but my soul is rested, at least a little. Why did I march, many of my friend and family, of varying political persuasions, might ask? What was I doing out last night with a stole around my neck bearing crosses and the seal of the Presbyterian Church (USA), many protestors asked me along the … [Read more...]
Please support the Outlook
Friends, It is with heart-felt gratitude that I write to you. Thank you for your support of the Presbyterian Outlook. Your subscriptions, donations, comments and prayers enable our ministry to thrive. Since I last wrote to you, the 222nd General Assembly is in the books. I hope you found our coverage before, during and after the assembly informative and useful. Many of you availed yourselves of the webinar with Moderator Heath Rada in preparation for GA and our wrap-up bulletin inserts following the eventful week in Portland. Even more of you visited our website daily the week of GA and read articles about not only the actions of the assembly but the people there faithfully wrestling with them. Again, thank you! As we move forward with new leadership in Louisville, a new confession in our constitution, appointed committees starting their work and overtures headed to presbyteries, our thoughtful and thorough coverage will continue – but not without your support. To be frank, … [Read more...]
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