(PNS) — As the new year gets underway, the Presbyterian Mission Agency (PMA) is implementing a timely and important change to its funding system in support of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)’s mission co-workers in 80 countries across the globe. Effective immediately — as a tangible way of expressing that the whole church both sends and supports all of its mission co-workers — the PMA now invites the whole church to use one fund, General Sending and Support, E132192, rather than a host of individual accounts, to demonstrate this shared commitment. “When mission co-workers are commissioned at our biennial General Assembly, every Presbyterian joins in affirming that they represent the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) wherever they are called to serve,” said the Rev. Rosemary C. Mitchell, senior director, Mission Engagement and Support. “And as they go forth from the assembly with our prayers, they and their families are secure in the knowledge that they will be wholly supported by our … [Read more...]

(PNS) — Red Clay Creek Presbyterian Church in Wilmington, Delaware, turns 300 this year, and the congregation plans a year-long celebration. On Sunday, worshipers meeting both in-person and online heard an inspiring and heartfelt sermon from one of its favorite sons, U.S. Senator Chris Coons, D-Delaware, who deftly put into historical perspective the church’s lengthy history. “What was here in 1722? A small hardy band of Presbyterian farmers in the new wilderness gathered on the banks of Red Clay Creek to worship without a pastor or a building for the first three decades,” said Coons, a product of both the Yale Divinity School and Yale Law School. By the time a small group gathered at the Golden Fleece Tavern in Dover to ratify the U.S. Constitution and make Delaware the nation’s first state, “Red Clay was 65 years old,” Coons noted. “I have great confidence in the spirit that has informed and sustained this congregation from the very beginning to today and into its future,” … [Read more...]

(PNS) — The Presbyterian Writers Guild (PWG) is accepting nominations now for its 2022 Best First Book Award, honoring the best first book by a Presbyterian author published during the calendar years of 2020–2021. The award — sponsored by the Presbyterian Publishing Corporation in partnership with the PWG — is given biennially and will be presented in late August after the 225th General Assembly. A specific date and time will be available later on the PWG website. The deadline for submissions is April 1, 2022. The Presbyterian Publishing Corporation Best First Book Award was established in 1996 by the Guild and the estate of the late James W. Angell, a prolific and respected Presbyterian writer, as a means to recognize and encourage new writers. Books may be of any type: fiction, nonfiction, theological, how-to, photos with commentary, poetry, etc. Entries may be submitted by the authors or by others on their behalf. Three copies of the book and a brief statement … [Read more...]

Nearly two years into the COVID-19 pandemic, churches across all denominations are still dealing with the fallout. Many members continue to worship from home or not at all, while pastors and church staff face mounting pressure to meet the needs of their congregations and communities in a different way. The Rev. Dr. J. Herbert Nelson, II, Stated Clerk of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), says innovation and re-thinking ministry should be part of every church’s plan for the coming year in a recent video. https://vimeo.com/663461606?embedded=true&source=vimeo_logo&owner=22619467 Rick Jones & Randy Hobson, Office of the General Assembly - January 11, 2022 … [Read more...]

(PNS) — Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA) and the Presbytery of Plains and Peaks are responding to wildfires that impacted the area between Boulder and Denver, Colorado in the last days of 2021. More than 35,000 people were forced to leave their homes and nearly 1,000 homes were destroyed in the unseasonal fires that were driven by hurricane-force winds. “It was just absolutely horrific,” said the Rev. Jim Kirk, PDA’s Associate for National Disaster Response. “Size wise, it was not a huge fire. But impact wise, to people, it was. It started in a residential area and greatly impacted several towns and unincorporated areas.” Joyce Glazier, a member of PDA’s National Response Team (NRT) who lives in the Denver and Boulder area, says that 991 homes were destroyed, and more than 100 others suffered damage. “We have a lot of folks that are displaced, and will be for some time,” said Glazier, who is not working with PDA in this situation, but with the Boulder County and … [Read more...]

(PNS) — While in-person preachers have a big toolbox from which to draw, online preachers have just two main tools — their face and their voice. “Natural-sounding speech is more persuasive,” the Rev. Dr. Jana Childers, Professor of Homiletics and Speech Communications at San Francisco Theological Seminary at the University of Redlands, said Wednesday during the monthly Equipping Preachers webinar put on by the Synod of the Covenant. In addition to more than three decades of teaching seminarians how to preach and preaching herself, Childers has worked in television and theater. Even preachers reading from a manuscript “can make it sound natural with some key speech skills, phrasing and emphasis,” Childers said. Childers labeled her nearly 90-minute talk “Preaching the Word … Virtually.” The Rev. Dr. Chip Hardwick, interim executive of Synod of the Covenant, hosted the event, which attracted about 25 participants and can be seen here. Childers called the preacher’s emphasis … [Read more...]