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Worship at the confluence of three rivers

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As the worship planning for the 223rd General Assembly has moved through the past two years, I have had the unique vantage point of being co-chair of the Committee on Local Arrangements (COLA) worship committee while serving as a member of the executive board of the Presbyterian Association of Musicians. We have worked with the Office of the General Assembly, the current co-moderators and the Office of Theology and Worship to plan worship that is inspiring, exciting, faithful to the Reformed tradition and reflective of the diversity of the church, while utilizing as many local resources as possible. General Assembly will meet in St. Louis at the confluence of three rivers. As worship follows the path laid out for us by God’s Word, through the texts chosen by the preachers of the week, we hope you will experience how God is working among us, calling us forward to a fuller expression of the kin-dom. The Presbyterian Association of Musicians has been an important resource and of … [Read more...]

Tagged With: GA223 • music

Barbara Oakley

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“Understanding doesn’t build fluency; instead, fluency builds understanding. In fact, I believe that true understanding of a complex subject comes only from fluency.”  — Barbara Oakley, professor of engineering at Oakland University in Michigan, on how people learn (writing in Nautilus) … [Read more...]

GA 30 years ago

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30 years ago — June 1988 Thirty years ago, the 200th General Assembly met in St. Louis. The June issues of the Outlook were full of the news of the time. The National Black Presbyterian Caucus announced the presentation of the Edlar G. Hawkins Award for “extraordinary service in helping to achieve full and equal participation by black Presbyterians” to four people: H. Eugene Fairlough, pastor of Sojourner Truth Presbyterian Church in Richmond, California; Robert Coleman, Synod of the Trinity; Jesse C. Swanigan, consultant for McDonell-Douglas Aircraft in St. Louis; and Otis Turner of the denomination’s racial/ethnic ministry unit. The Outlook announced a new editor, Robert Bullock Jr., pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Allen, Texas, to replace retiring editor George Hunt (honored by the assembly for his service to the church). The assembly elected C. Kenneth Hall, pastor of Hill United Presbyterian Church in Butler, Pennsylvania, as moderator and re-elected James E. Andrews for … [Read more...]

Welcome to GA — June 11, 2018

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St. Louis will know the Presbyterians are in town — not just because restaurants are busy and hotels are booked, but because as the commissioners make decisions inside the convention center, others will be on the streets, marching and serving. The Outlook’s“Welcome to GA” issue gives you a glimpse of what to expect as we meet in St. Louis for the 223rd General Assembly. Click here to read the issue in the Uberflip reader. (Almost) 104 weeks later Denise Anderson and Jan Edmiston reflect on their term as co-moderators of the 222ndGeneral Assembly. More than church as usual in St. Louis Presbyterians attending GA will be involved in Bible study and assembly-related events focused on alleviating systemic racism and injustice in the community. Prayer practices for GA There are several ways to pray for the assembly – in person and from home. Discerning the way through GA Commissioners are called to discern God’s will for the national church. GA and climate changeTwo … [Read more...]

Tagged With: GA223

Showing up and walking

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Guest commentary by Angela Williams, written for the Presbyterian Outlook in the midst of the PC(USA) Walk for a Fossil-Free World from Louisville, Kentucky, to St. Louis where General Assembly will be held. “What are y’all doing?” “We’re walking to St. Louis!!” This conversation happens about every mile or so, typically from someone in a car that slowed down along highway 50 or someone mowing their grass. We usually get looks of confusion or exasperation. Why would anyone choose to walk from Louisville to St. Louis? Certainly there are more scenic routes to take. The story of why I walk begins three and a half years ago on the streets of Tacloban, Leyte, a city on an island that was my home in the Philippines for my year of service as a Young Adult Volunteer (YAV). I was in Tacloban for an ecumenical memorial service remembering the thousands of lives lost when Typhoon Yolanda/Haiyan wreaked havoc one year earlier. At the time, Typhoon Yolanda was the strongest storm to … [Read more...]

Tagged With: fossil fuels • GA223

Singing the faith to our children

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“Go in peace, go in love, go with blessings from above. Help a friend, say a prayer for the children everywhere. Amen. Amen. A-a-a-a-a-men.” Have you heard that one? Or maybe: “Raindrops, oceans, lakes and rivers; welcome, child of God. Mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters; welcome, child of God. When the world feels wide around you, when the dark of night surrounds you, we are here to tend and guide you. Welcome, child of God.” For our two daughters, Hannah and Catherine who are now seven and five, these two songs were as ubiquitous as the books “Goodnight Moon” and “Moo, Baa, La, La, La.” They were both a part of our regular nighttime routine: the first one at dinner, the second just before bedtime. “Welcome, child of God,” sung to the familiar AR HYD Y NOS hymn tune (“All Through the Night”) was introduced to us through a short children’s book given at Catherine’s baptism. It remains one that she pulls off of the bookshelf regularly for us to sing before going to … [Read more...]

Tagged With: family life • music • parenting

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