WASHINGTON (RNS) — In an exclusive interview with Religion News Service, President Trump said in a written statement that he no longer identifies as a Presbyterian and now sees himself as a non-denominational Christian. “Though I was confirmed at a Presbyterian church as a child, I now consider myself to be a non-denominational Christian,” Trump, who has repeatedly identified as a Presbyterian in the past, said in a written response to RNS. Saying that his parents “taught me the importance of faith and prayer from a young age,” Trump went on to say that “Melania and I have gotten to visit some amazing churches and meet with great faith leaders from around the world. During the unprecedented COVID-19 outbreak, I tuned into several virtual church services and know that millions of Americans did the same.” The revelation about Trump’s religious identity appeared in an interview that was conducted in writing and covered a variety of faith topics, ranging from the president’s own … [Read more...]

(PNS) Hurricane Delta clobbered southwest Louisiana on Oct. 9, making landfall just 13 miles east of where Hurricane Laura came ashore as a strong Category 4 storm just six weeks earlier. And, between these two direct hits, Hurricane Sally, a Category 2 storm with 105 mile-per-hour winds, dumped double-digit rainfall totals from Gulf Shores, Alabama, to Pensacola, Florida. Small, slow-moving Tropical Storm Beta caused severe flooding along the Texas and Louisiana coastlines. “In the past, we have relied on people from outside the area,” Drake said. “COVID has forced us to really implore local congregations to step up to help.” Drake is working part-time and remotely from Pennsylvania with the help of two volunteers in Louisiana. She has watched the presbytery come together to engage congregations in the response effort and is inspired by pastors and other volunteers. They remind her of her first experience with disaster work after Hurricane Katrina. “I came for one AmeriCorps … [Read more...]

LOUISVILLE (PNS) Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary will participate in the Wabash Center for Teaching and Learning symposium, “Becoming Antiracist and Catalysts for Change. Through a series of cohort sessions and participant projects, the symposium will provide guidance on how to design initiatives and implement measures to address the nature and workings of race, racism, and white supremacy in academic settings. Participation in the symposium is a component of Louisville Seminary’s larger initiative to implement anti-racism measures as part of the seminary’s Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP) for which accreditation bodies will hold the seminary accountable. “We don’t just want to teach our students to be anti-racist,” said Debra Mumford, Louisville Seminary’s Academic Dean. “We have the larger goal of becoming an anti-racist institution. The Wabash Symposium will help us make progress toward this goal.” Mumford, along with Justin Reed, Assistant Professor of Hebrew … [Read more...]

(PNS) Major General Kermit D. Johnson, the Army’s former Chief of Chaplains who served for two years at the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)’s Office of Public Witness, is being remembered by the United States Army Chaplain Corps Regimental Association following his Jan. 9 death at age 91. According to his remembrance, Johnson read the book “West Point Today” as a high school sophomore and began dreaming of attending the United States Military Academy. While studying there he was an average student who took up squash after injuring himself boxing. By his senior year he was Army’s top squash player and ranked sixth in the nation. Also while studying at West Point he read the Bible and committed his life to Jesus Christ. Upon graduation he was commissioned a second lieutenant in the infantry. He took jump training followed by a short stint in the 82nd Airborne Division. It was at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, that he told his wife Lynn, “There’s one thing I will never be and that’s … [Read more...]

(PNS) The Rev. Denise Anderson, co-moderator of the 222nd General Assembly, appears in a short film co-produced by Faith in Public Life Action, whose founder and CEO is a former PC(USA) national staff member, the Rev. Jennifer Butler. “Faith Vote 2020: Answering the Urgent Call of Justice,” also co-produced by The Resistance Prays, features a number of ordained and lay faith leaders discussing experiences and teachings that led them to believe that voting is an important part of their faith practice. The film is set to premiere at 8 p.m. ET Wednesday, Oct. 21 on both Faith in Public Life Action and The Resistance Prays Facebook pages. Click here to see the trailer. “Everything that has to do with people is political,” said Anderson, who is now Coordinator for the PC(USA) Office of Racial and Intercultural Justice, in a preview version of the film. “I take very seriously Jesus’ command to love God, and to love one another as we have been loved by Jesus. Part of that is to … [Read more...]

LOUISVILLE (OGA) The Stated Clerk of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) says churches are standing strong despite the COVID-19 pandemic. In a new video, the Reverend Dr. J. Herbert Nelson, II, speaks directly to churches, thanking leaders and congregations for continuing to be church over the last seven months, despite the obstacles. … [Read more...]