Protestants dismayed at new Vatican document

(ENI) Rome-Geneva -- A new document authorized by Pope Benedict XVI restating Roman Catholic views that Protestant denominations are not churches 'in the proper sense' has been criticized as setting back the quest for Christian unity.

'An exclusive claim that identifies the Roman Catholic Church as the one church of Jesus Christ, as we read in the statement released today [10 July], goes against the spirit of our Christian calling towards oneness in Christ,' said the Rev. Setri Nyomi, general secretary of the Geneva-based World Alliance of Reformed Churches. The alliance groups together 214 churches with roots in the 16th century Protestant Reformation.

Nyomi made his comments in a letter to Cardinal Walter Kasper, the Vatican's top official for promoting Christian unity, following the release in Rome of the Vatican document, which sets down questions and answers about the doctrine of the church.

Voices

We can’t have it all

Recently I read again a folk story about a couple whose home was set amidst unbelievably beautiful surroundings. Four sparkling streams irrigated the land and danced across the rocks and flowed over the sand. Orchards and vineyards spangled the terraces. A menagerie roamed virgin forests and meadows. Birds fluttered from tree to tree.

The water was not polluted by the slime from dirty factories and the refuse of urban sprawl. The air was not polluted with carbon monoxide exhaled from thousands of automobile exhausts. The ground was not cluttered with beer cans, pop bottles, Styrofoam containers, and thousands of other items of trash and junk.

Theirs was a garden paradise. But the story does not end with, "They lived happily ever after."

Voices

Listening Church

I asked 5,000 readers what questions they would ask of God. Their responses undid me.

Not a single question about church doctrine or the inerrancy of Scripture. Only one question in 1,600 referred to gay bishops. Less than 1% mentioned church controversies of any kind.

Instead, people asked basic, down-to-earth questions, such as "Who are you, God?" "Where do you live?" "Will I ever get married?" "Why did my wife die so young?" "Will we ever have peace in this world?" "Where is heaven?" "Why do children suffer?" "Will I ever find someone to love me?"

These questions came from Episcopalians, Presbyterians, Baptists, Methodists, Roman Catholics, and Lutherans. They came from laity and clergy.

Editorials

Retirement: Who would have thought?

"I'd rather burn out than rust out."

"I've just accepted another interim pastorate. I'm flunking retirement."

"There's no such thing as retiring from the service of the Lord."

"Where do you find retirement in the Bible?"

Church leaders -- pastors, elders, educators, and others -- blurt such lines often. Some of their comments reflect a genuine love of ministry and the physical constitution to sustain it. Other times their words reveal a restless soul adrift on what, from their vantage point, looks like dead calm waters. The final questioning quote bespeaks the need to use a Bible concordance.

Book Reviews

Christianity for the Rest of Us: How the Neighborhood Church Is Transforming the Faith

by Diana Butler Bass. HarperSanFrancisco, 2006. ISBN 0-06-083694-6. Hb., 336 pp. $23.95.

When I read Christianity for the Rest of Us by Diana Butler Bass I recommended it to all of our clergy, gave a book review, led a session retreat on its contents and bought it for a few good folks whose book budgets were stretched. The Presbytery of Mid-Kentucky then paid for eleven people to hear Diana at Columbia Theological Seminary at the end of January. Both the book and Diana made an impression not only on me but on our good people!

Over a three-year period, Bass studied 50 old Protestant churches that were renewing themselves in mission and identity while exhibiting a new spiritual vibrancy, often coming from dire circumstances of decline and crises. Ten of these congregations became the key to her research. The churches were theologically moderate to liberal and none was the largest in town, but they did range in size from 35 to 2,500. They were Presbyterian, United Church of Christ, Methodist, Lutheran, and Episcopalian.

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20 minutes with Baghdad’s Armenian Archbishop Avak Asadourian

"I come from a wounded Iraq and a severely wounded Baghdad," said the man in black habit standing in front of some 130 silent church representatives from six continents gathered for a peace conference on the Middle East. "The situation in my country is tragic," the man continued. "We were promised freedom, but what we need today is freedom to have electricity, clean water, to satisfy the basic needs of life, to live without fear of being abducted."

The man addressing the World Council of Churches (WCC) June 18-20 international conference "Churches together for peace and justice in the Middle East" in Amman, Jordan, was Baghdad's Armenian Archbishop Avak Asadourian, primate of the Armenian Apostolic Church (See of Etchmiadzin) in Iraq.

Asadourian was in Amman representing the Council of Christian Church Leaders in Baghdad. Created in June last year, it is a body made up of 17 church leaders, including two patriarchs, from four Christian families: Catholic, Oriental and Eastern Orthodox and mainline Protestants. The Armenian primate is its general secretary.

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Former GAC member Bruce R. Kennedy dies in plane crash

LOUISVILLE -- Presbyterian Bruce R. Kennedy, who led the expansion of Alaska Airlines as its chief executive before stepping down in 1991 to pursue humanitarian interests, was killed June 28 when the single-engine airplane he was piloting crashed in central Washington state.

The 68-year-old resident of Burien, Wash., was a longtime member and elder at John Knox Church in suburban Seattle, and served on the General Assembly Council (GAC) of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) from 1993-1999.

"While we are deeply saddened by the loss of someone we love and admire so much, we rejoice in the knowledge that Bruce is united with his Lord Jesus and take comfort in the fact that he died doing something he loved and in which he took great pleasure," his family, including his wife Karleen, said in a statement released by Alaska Airlines.

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Voices

To the “aging” church: Be what you are, not what you aren’t

For years, a church's declining membership concerned its leaders. Their solution -- a youth ministry. After several years, the church pastor acknowledged that the effort invested to attract young families was not working. The pastor's conclusion was simple and refreshing: "I have been telling the session that perhaps it's time to be who we are, a church for older adults."

The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) has been facing similar changes and its response has paralleled that of many of its local churches. However, the General Assembly's Older Adult Ministries Office indicates the changes facing our denomination are a reflection of the nation as a whole.

The lengthening of the average human lifespan is one of the remarkable achievements of the 20th century. In 1900, life expectancy was only 47, but over those 100 years, it rose to 75 for men and 78 for women. The percentage of older persons in our global society is growing and expected to nearly double between 1990 and 2030.

This trend is no less apparent here in the United States and is especially noticeable within our own congregations of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), where the average age of worshipers is 58 -- and rising. For every worshiper under the age of 25, there are more than six worshipers over the age of 65, which account for 35% of all Presbyterians.

-- Older Adult Ministries Office

Voices

Monday Mourning: Negotiating losses in retirement

For some persons, retiring from public work fulfills a nearly life-long dream. Retirement brings opportunities, perhaps long-delayed, for travel, relaxing, spending more quality time with friends and family, increasing one's involvement in church and community life, and indulging established interests while cultivating new ones. I recall a former parishioner saying to me, "I retired early, ten years ago, and haven't looked back once!" For persons so inclined, retirement often brings a new lease on life.

For others, retirement may prompt a different experience. Even if it brings a measure of excitement over opportunities for new experiences and relief from the daily grind of working life, retiring may also issue a deep sense of loss. Perhaps this feeling of loss involves the changes in one's former routines. The loss may derive from less contact with valued colleagues and work-related acquaintances. Maybe one's sense of loss revolves around modifications in lifestyle that are required for most people with a retirement income. Frequently, a sense of loss centers on uncertainty about one's identity, sense of purpose, and feelings of accomplishment that have long been linked with one's labors.

Book Reviews

The Christening of Harry Potter — Beyond a “Mere” Christianity

The following reflections will give away some key elements of the plot that the reader may wish to resist reading till completing the book!

The Boy-Who-Lived, and lived, and lived, and lived again, lives! After finishing the incredibly satisfying Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows I went back and counted. At least nine times in the seven books Harry Potter survived direct personal attempts of Voldemort to capture and kill him. Four of those attempts come in the final volume. What is more, in none of those attempts does Harry ever attempt to do anything more than defend himself. Harry Potter never intentionally kills anyone... though admittedly he is sometimes tempted.

Many readers around the world have been rather stunned by the unmistakably Christian elements in the final showdown between Harry Potter and Voldemort. I must admit that I was not. Thanks to the insights provided though the various books and essays of John Granger -- no relation to Hermione -- I've been expecting this for several years. (See bibliography below.) As usual Joanne Rowling gets at least an "E" (Exceeds Expectations) on her "N.E.W.T." volume -- and I'd say she gets and "O" (Outstanding).

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On Broadway

WEST LAFAYETTE, IN -- Worship went show biz Thursday July 19 as Goose Chase, Inc. -- the highly inventive theatrical troupe that..

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Jesus sightings

WEST LAFEYETTE, IN -- Their dramatic interpretations of Bible stories have been inspired throughout the 2007 Presbyterian Youth Triennium here, but Saturday..

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Working in the dark

WEST LAFAYETTE, IN - Mark Yaconelli tries to discourage those who call him the 'guru' of Presbyterian youth ministry. 'You know, we're..

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College fair draws crowd at Youth Triennium

WEST LAFAYETTE, IN - The steady stream of Presbyterian high school students roaming around the College and Seminary Fair at the 2007..

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Peace and quiet

WEST LAFAYETTE, IN -- Ever seen absolute silence out of 4,500 teenagers? After a week of vociferous, raucous, celebratory worship services at..

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‘Holy hope’

WEST LAFAYETTE, IN - More than 4,000 Presbyterian teenagers from all over the country and around the world streamed into the Elliott..

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Keep on truckin’

WEST LAFAYETTE, IN - Nancy Sullivan is 86 years old. She is forced to use a walker to get around. She's 2,000..

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Rainbows and butterflies

WEST LAFAYETTE, IN - In song, sermon and drama, the 4,400 teenagers attending the 2007 Presbyterian Youth Triennium grappled Wednesday (July 18)..

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Going home

WEST LAFAYETTE, IN -- More than 4,400 Presbyterian teenagers headed for home Sunday (July 22) after a "mountaintop experience" at the 2007..

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Bringing the multicultural church to life

LOUISVILLE -- It wasn't your typical snapshot of a gathering of Presbyterians, or Lutherans or members of the Reformed Church in America, for that matter.

The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), and the Reformed Church in America (RCA) joined together to sponsor and plan "A Racial Ethnic Multicultural Event" in Los Angeles, July 12-14.

The gathering of more than 600 people included a multitude of cultures, races, languages, traditions, and ages. With the theme "Spirit of Wholeness in Christ" as their backdrop, participants worshiped, danced, sang, studied and discussed what it means to be a multicultural church -- not only on paper but also in reality.

Delivering first-night sermons were the Rev. Bruce Menning, the RCA's director of global mission; Mark Hanson, presiding bishop of the ELCA; and the Rev. Clifton Kirkpatrick, stated clerk of the General Assembly of the PC(USA).

Alluding to the Pentecost event in Acts 2, Hanson expressed hoped that the gathering would be a "three-day binge, not on the fruit of the vine, but on the Holy Spirit." Kirkpatrick added that the church today "desperately needs your particular gifts" if the church is to be "passionately on fire for the gospel."

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Johnson — Vermeer ask for prayer after Pakistan crises

The people of Pakistan have faced a series of crises in recent weeks and face daunting continuing circumstances, according to a report this week from Robert Johnson and Marianne Vermeer, mission co-workers in that country with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)

The siege at Islamabad's Red Mosque has ended, but tensions are high and some expect northern and western parts of the country, where the Taliban movement is strong, to experience further violence, according to Johnson and Vermeer. "This is a real fear, and this country needs your prayers for peace to reign," they write.

In addition to this crisis, several natural disasters also have occurred.

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Horizons Bible study author elected vice-president of RCA synod

Carol Bechtel has been elected vice-president of the General Synod of the Reformed Church in America. The election was held June 11 at the General Synod meeting on the campus of Central College in Pella, Iowa.

She will serve a one-year term for the denomination's top governing body along with president, John Ornee. He is pastor of Peace Church in Zeeland, Mich.

Bechtel is professor of Old Testament at Western Theological Seminary and attends Hope Church in Holland, Mich. She also is author of Above and Beyond: Hearing God's Call in Jonah and Ruth, the 2007-08 Horizons Bible study published by Presbyterian Women.

Voices

CLPs serve churches in transition; opportunities in new, old places

Kiskiminetas Presbytery, situated in a rural slice of western Pennsylvania, has 88 churches. Probably only 40 percent of them are served by a full-time minister.

Some are searching for a pastor "and are likely to look for years to find somebody, or they're permanently vacant," said Erin Cox-Holmes, the associate general presbyter. "We're representative of declining, small rural churches that are never going to have a pastor again."

Not, that is, if they have to attract a seminary-trained minister and find a way to pay that person a living wage. But many small Presbyterian churches are finding new life by utilizing commissioned lay pastors -- often people who already live in the area, have other means of support, and who feel called by God to preach and serve a church.

Voices

A former nurse and CLP finds a new way to help heal

She grew up in southern California and became a nurse in Anchorage, where she met the man she'd later marry. She stayed in Alaska, raised three sons and welcomed seven grandchildren. After 37 years in nursing she "felt the call to drop that and go into ministry."

Now Heather Smith is the commissioned lay pastor at Kuukpik Church in the village of Nuiqsut. "We are about as far north as you can go in Alaska," she says, "and then you turn right."

Smith serves a congregation of 42 in a town of about 550. She started as a commissioned lay pastor doing pastoral care in her home congregation, Trinity Church in Anchorage. Then her husband grew ill and died, and she told David Dobler, who then led the Presbytery of the Yukon, that she felt called to work with native people.

Voices

Called again

Smaller churches can offer a pastor great opportunities for service/fulfillment, but lack the budget to pay well. Retired military men and women often take on second careers with a secure income from their retirement.

Does anyone see a potential for a mutual, God-given calling? My response is yes!

As I was finishing my Air Force career in Montgomery, Ala., I saw quaint towns where small churches scramble for ministers and pulpits stand vacant. Presbyterian churches had no full-time pastor due to their small sizes and budgets, and the financial expectations on these churches by the denomination.

Upon retirement in 2005, I returned to my home state, California, with the desire to attend San Francisco Theological Seminary near that city. As I explored northern California, I discovered a similar situation -- dozens of towns with unfilled Presbyterian pulpits in what is called the Northern parish of the Presbytery of the Redwoods.

The Presbyterian Outlook

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