“Storm” deepens PC(USA) seminary cooperation
In late January 2009, Kentucky witnessed possibly the worst ice storm in the history of the state.
More Stories from this Author
COTE: parish, seminary dialogue in turbulent times
In November, I will complete a seven year-term as an elected member of the Committee on Theological Education (COTE).
Broke but not broken; unified but not the same
Daniel Aleshire, executive director of the Association of Theological Schools, remarked during a recent interview with The Christian Century that the current financial crisis “is bringing some seminaries together and pushing other seminaries further apart.”
Equipping for the “emergency room”
When someone introduced me recently as “the president of the world’s largest non-denominational seminary,” I cringed a little. There is nothing “non” about my own attitude toward denominations.
After seminary: The hazards and joys of Christian ministry
Editor’s Note: this article is excerpted from the commencement address given at Union -PSCE at Charlotte, N.C., on April 25, 2009.
2009-10: New faculty, programs for PC(USA)-related seminaries
Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)-related seminaries and other affiliated theological schools report new campus faculty and staff changes, and new programs as the 2009-2010 academic year begins:
“You Visited Me … ”
“How do you engage the administrative work of your congregation so it feeds the care of members and makes your church attractive for prospective members?” This was my question as I interviewed pastors, staff members of churches, and lay leaders.
The gospel according to tee ball
Who would have thought that a three-and-a-half year old would be eligible to play organized tee ball?
What makes a church great?
It’s been 27 years since I first joined a Presbyterian congregation.
Asking the right questions
How many people left the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) in 2008 was a recent news release headline. What jumped off the page at me was not the numbers, but the questions Stated Clerk Gradye Parsons thinks are important to ask in response to the membership loss.
Racial profiling continues to be the norm
(ABP) Maybe the Cambridge police did not act “stupidly,” but did they act typically?
Bread for ALL the World
Thirty-five years ago Presbyterians played a major role in the birth of a new ecumenical initiative against hunger: Bread for the World, which now is the nation’s main citizens’ lobby on hunger.
Welcome home, Boomers?
I have a theory, an observation, really, about what’s coming around the corner. Or rather, who is coming; I’ve been watching my people.
When is a seminary like Hogwarts?
I am a belated arrival to J.K. Rowling’s vast world of fantasy. Still about a thousand or so pages from resolving the hair-raising saga between Voldemort — I mean “You-Know-Who” — and Hogwarts’ best student wizard, Harry Potter, I have gleaned insights from this story pertinent to better preparing seminary students for the pastorate.
Choosing a new pastor
My congregation recently elected me to the committee that will nominate a new pastor.
Lightning destroys Florida church; 50-year-old building a total loss
LOUISVILLE — A lightning strike Aug. 20 set ablaze First Church of DeBary, Fla., destroying the 50-year-old building.
PGF consultation: Change with no “master plan”
“Most of us in this room find ourselves living in a world that none of us planned for,” conference speaker Alan Roxburgh told those gathered for the “Moving Back into our Neighborhoods: The Work of the Missional Church” consultation in San Diego, Calif.
PGF: “Experiment” yourselves into new ways of being church, conference participants are urged
[caption id="attachment_20873" align="alignright" width="144"]
-If we don't know how to listen to one another's stories, how will we be able to listen to the stories of those in our neighborhhods- conference participants were challenged [/caption]Most conferences for church leaders include some form of practical take-away for those attending. The Presbyterian Global Fellowship’s fourth regional consultation of the year, “Moving Back Into Our Neighborhoods,” never set out to be ‘most conferences.’
Memories from seminary
As a charter member of a brand new non-denominational church — fresh out of college with a B.A. in religion and philosophy — I held high hopes of becoming the church’s pastor.
Older ministers can nurture young adults ministries
Does a young adults ministry require one or more young adults in leadership? Yes.
“PGF consultation looks to neighborhoods” Presbyterian Global Fellowship consultation opens with call to move back to the neighbourhoods
Editor’s Note: This is the first report of OUTLOOK coverage for the Presbyterian Global Fellowship consultation August 20-22. All reports will be posted on this Web site.[caption id="attachment_20868" align="alignleft" width="216"]
“Alan Roxburgh engages with attendees of PGF’s “Moving Back into our Neighborhoods: The Work of the Missional Church” in San Diego.”[/caption]
Church of Scotland welcomes decision to release Lockerbie bomber
EDINBURGH — The (Presbyterian) Church of Scotland has said it fully supports a decision taken by the Scottish Government on Aug. 20 to release the convicted Lockerbie bomber, Abdul Baset Ali al-Megrahi, on compassionate grounds.
Angolan women count on churches to face a new type of war
(ENI)--The armed conflict in Angola ended seven years ago, but the consequences of four decades of war are felt still today. And women seem to be bearing most of the brunt.
Lutherans approve full communion pact with Methodists
Even as their churches are riven by internal debates over homosexuality, the two nation's two largest mainline Protestant denominations agreed Aug. 20 to share ministers and resources in a "full communion" accord.
Form of government report draft approved by task force
The new Form of Government Task Force has approved final drafts of the report it will submit to the 2010 General Assembly, with only minor editing changes left to be made.