“If there is a theme in what lies ahead for the church as we enter a new year, it is that the white Western Christian bubble that has powerfully shaped Christianity for the past four centuries is now beginning to burst. Future expressions of Christian faith will be shaped by its interactions with non-Western and nonwhite cultures.” – Wesley Granberg-Michaelson, author of “Future Faith: Ten Challenges Reshaping Christianity in the 21st Century” and former general secretary of the Reformed Church in America … [Read more...]
Shalom Farms & UPSem: Cultivating food for life
Since the late spring of 2017, five acres of Union Presbyterian Seminary’s (UPSem) land has been under the care and cultivation of Shalom Farms, a nonprofit dedicated to helping address issues of food justice in Richmond, Virginia. The seminary leases this land to Shalom Farms rent-free in a partnership that enables each organization to pursue its own mission in new and generative ways. The roots of this collaboration stretch back to early 2015 when UPSem’s president, Brian Blount, and Shalom Farms’ executive director, Dominic Barrett, began having informal conversations about the possibility of Shalom Farms using some of the seminary’s land to grow food. As a seminary alumnus and Shalom Farms volunteer, I helped spur these conversations. “We had long wanted to have a significant agricultural presence and operation somewhere in the heart of the city, but only if we could find land and an arrangement that met several key factors,” recalled Barrett. “We wanted a large plot, good soil, … [Read more...]
The core of stewardship is love
Many churches in the United States, from mainline to evangelical and beyond, host a Stewardship Sunday every year. Usually in the fall, Stewardship Sunday typically signifies that a congregation’s stewardship season is underway. The day often includes a series of elements that most churchgoers have come to know well: testimonials during worship from church members who tithe, one brave sermon on money based on a Scripture that includes the phrase “gave her last mite,” “cheerful giver” or “rich young ruler” and an afternoon all-church meeting about the budget. While nothing about Stewardship Sundays is inherently bad, the catch is around what they (and the approach they so often represent) say about the real meaning of stewardship. Personal testimony is inspiring. Talking about money is a critical part of Christian community. Budgets are necessary planning tools. But were you to attend a “stewardship” service, you’d likely leave with the impression that stewardship is mostly the same … [Read more...]
Letters to the church I love
Guest blog by Alissa Conner This month, we invited our bloggers to write a “love letter” to the church. Here are their letters. Dear church, It is so easy to get bogged down in the mire of woe that surrounds the church world — or perhaps the world in general. I hear all around about how small you are getting, or how volunteers aren’t enough, or how we don’t talk like we used to. Still, I see a different side every day and I love you for it. I don’t just see the surface of change, but a depth that is still there and ever deepening. I am constantly astounded by the depths of your love. I watch the surge of care that surrounds a member or even stranger when they suffer tragedy and I am moved. You care so deeply and often silently flow together to take care of an injured party. You provide meals, rides, shoulders to cry on, financial support. It happens so often and so smoothly that often others don’t even know that it occurred. Dear church, In a world where most people … [Read more...]
The particular Presbyterian call to creation care
Grover Cleveland, William Harrison, Theodore Roosevelt. John Muir, Rachel Carson, David Brower. At first glance, we might say that what connects these names is their environmental legacy. On closer examination, we learn that each of them, president or activist, was raised Presbyterian. Lapsed or active in their faith, each shaped our nation’s relationship with nature. Their efforts challenge the influential argument made by another lapsed Presbyterian, Lynn White Jr., in his 1967 article in Science, “The historical roots of our ecologic crisis.” White contended that Christianity bore the blame for our environmental crisis by championing consumerism over stewardship, and his assertion has influenced subsequent scholarship. Historian Mark Stoll shatters the argument that people of faith are the death of creation. In “Inherit the Holy Mountain: Religion and the Rise of American Environmentalism,” Stoll demonstrates that a Calvinist, Reformed upbringing profoundly influenced the values … [Read more...]
What’s right about Wizard’s Wardrobe in Albany, New York?
Seven years ago, after a year-long discernment process, a number of us started tutoring at a nearby public school. Within a year, First Presbyterian Church and Giffen Memorial Elementary School formed a partnership that extended past tutoring. We helped build playground equipment, repaired instruments and organized a special day that brought several authors and illustrators each spring to do small presentations and sign books that the children received for free. However, we always wanted to do more. About two years ago, we formed a not-for-profit, free, after-school tutoring program. The students come twice a week and each works with his or her own tutor on reading, writing and problem-solving skills for 90 minutes. The Wizard’s Wardrobe uses a creative atmosphere to encourage our students to take risks and let their imaginations soar. Our goal is that every 1st and 2nd grader who starts with us will be reading on grade level no later than third grade. – Debra Fagans, volunteer … [Read more...]
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