News and Articles from the The Presbyterian Outlook
A lot transpired over the course the 223rd General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) during its meeting in St Louis. Participants have their own take on what they saw and heard, and many are touched by the same things. Here are thoughts by some who were in attendance. … [Read more...]
FERGUSON, MO. – When J. Herbert Nelson, stated clerk of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) put out the call for Presbyterians to come to St. Louis as part of the Hands and Feet initiative, Highland Presbyterian Church in Louisville responded. They planned a youth mission trip to St. Louis to spend a few days at General Assembly and a few more days serving with STL Urban Mission, an organization run out of First Presbyterian Church of Ferguson. STL Urban Mission along with Amen St. Louis, a ministry of Oak Hill Presbyterian Church located in the Tower Grove South neighborhood of St. Louis, were two sites identified by the Office of the General Assembly to host mission teams in the year leading up to the General Assembly, as part of an effort to engage more deeply with the host city. Doodle Harris, associate pastor at Highland Presbyterian Church, led a team of youth along with an adult sponsor to St. Louis on Saturday, June 16. They spent two days at with GA at the convention … [Read more...]
ST. LOUIS – The 2018 General Assembly voted June 23 to increase the General Assembly per capita rate to $8.95 per member in 2019 and $8.95 per member in 2020. That’s an increase of just over 15 percent from the 2018 per capita rate of $7.73 per member. The assembly voted 359-43 to approve that. Some commissioners argued that the increase will harm the ministry of presbyteries if congregations don’t send the full per capita amount and mid councils try to make up the difference – sending the money to the national church at the expense of mid council ministry. Others argued that this assembly had voted all week to authorize initiatives they knew carried financial implications – and now the time had come to find the money to pay for it. “I cannot leave here without saying ‘We’ve got to pay for what we’ve done,’ ” said Debbie Cenko, a minister commissioner from the Presbytery of New Covenant in Texas. Lewis Casey Thompson, a minister from Philadelphia Presbytery, said the … [Read more...]
ST. LOUIS – The 2018 General Assembly ended June 23 as it began, with worship — proclaiming though song: “To God be glory forever. Alleluia! Amen!” The service included a dramatic reading of Luke 18:1-8, the parable of the widow and the unjust judge, led by narrator Hannah Dreitcer, associate pastor of Webster Groves Presbyterian Church in Webster Groves, Missouri. Joshua Noah, pastor of Grace Presbyterian Church in Crystal City, Missouri, adapted the text that was used. Along with the text, the participants acted out the meaning of the widow’s persistence in demanding justice from the judge. Their litany: No justice. No peace. Black lives matter. Speak up. What do we want? Justice. When do we want it? Now! The preacher, Ekram Kachu, a native of Sudan, is pastor of First Arabic Presbyterian Church in Waukee, Iowa — and she preached about “the persistent prayer.” Kachu came to the United States in 2001, fleeing violence in her homeland. She sees widows all around … [Read more...]
ST. LOUIS — It was close to midnight June 22 when J. Herbert Nelson, stated clerk of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) sounding solemn, announced from the podium of the 223rd General Assembly that he thought the commissioners had just experienced something never before seen in the history of the church. “Thirty-five minutes to deal with the Middle East,” said Nelson, the church’s stated clerk. The laughter from the assembly floor was colored by the memory of prior years when divisions over how the church should contribute to peacemaking efforts in Israel-Palestine spilled over from committee meetings onto the assembly floor and often seemed to overshadow much of the other business commissioners had to deal with. The contrast with the speed and ease of the assembly’s handling of Middle East issues this year might have been a little misleading. The committee that dealt with those issues had some weighty matters to sort through, but its members were able to come to a … [Read more...]
ST. LOUIS – Late in the evening of June 22, the 2018 General Assembly considered a series of measures related to #MeToo and #ChurchToo in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) – voting to send two proposed constitutional amendments regarding filing disciplinary cases to the presbyteries for a vote. To take effect, those amendments would need approval from a majority of the presbyteries. One proposed amendment would extend the time limits during which people could bring disciplinary actions in certain circumstances. That would apply in cases in which the person alleging the abuse was under 18 at the time of the incident, or without the capacity to consent. The proposed amendment also states “there is no time limit for charging that a person who knew or reasonably should have known of the reasonable risk of sexual abuse of another” and who “failed to take reasonable steps to minimize the risk.” The Advocacy Committee for Women’s Concerns had asked the General Assembly in 2016 to … [Read more...]
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