30 years ago — March 13, 1989 “Healing, hope and community are recurring themes in the conversation of members of the Committee on a Brief Statement of the Reformed Faith, which completed its five-year task in January and will report to the 201st General Assembly in June.” The committee sought input from individuals across the denomination through a variety of meetings and gatherings and sifted through 16,000 letters of comments about the various drafts of the new statement of faith. These letters and hearings helped the committee to discern the issues facing Presbyterians in the present and how the church’s faith can address them. The words of the Brief Statement also speak to the two streams of Presbyterian heritage that are seeking to heal the separation of more than a century. Through conversations, debates and worship, the committee sought common ground on the theological themes of the statement that are woven together to address the church and the world. From “The search … [Read more...]

20 years ago — February 1, 1999 “‘What does the Lord require of you?’ Micah stated that a relationship with God depends on performing acts of justice, mercy and humility.” Micah 6:8 was the focus of Archbishop Desmond Tutu’s address to a group of more than 1,300 college students gathered at Celebrate III, an ecumenical conference in North Carolina. Tutu suggested a reversal of the words “to make walking humbly with God the first prerequisite for an authentic religious existence. ‘The true Christian life is impossible unless at its heart beats an engaged spirituality,’ he said. … The archbishop told the students that they, like God, must be among those who are hurting, who have been diminished and dehumanized. ‘For what we do to rehabilitate them, to serve them, we are doing as to our Lord himself,’ he said.” Tutu cited Jesus’ command to love that would bring meaning to Micah 6:8: ‘Love God and love neighbor.’ These are two sides of one coin… one ‘on its own is not legal tender. It … [Read more...]

10 years ago — January 19, 2009 “Some convergences of timing … reflect little more than a coincidence. That an African-American would be inaugurated as the president of the United States just 23 days before the 200th birthday of the president who proclaimed emancipation for African-Americans is just such a coincidence.” The Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies chose “A New Birth of Freedom” as its theme. “Those words came from the Gettysburg address, wherein Abraham Lincoln expressed hope that the sacrifices of those who died to preserve the union shall lead to ‘a new birth of freedom’ for America.” Just as Lincoln selected rivals to be part of his cabinet so too has the president-elect. The hope is that out of the varying points of view will derive direction for our nation. In the church we too need to hear the variety of viewpoints. It is our Lord who brought us together into this family. The hope for the new year is that we can hear and appreciate the variety of … [Read more...]

70 years ago — January 17, 1949 Peter Marshall, Presbyterian minister and pastor of New York Avenue Church in Washington, D.C., was retained by the U.S. Senate as Senate chaplain. “Dr. Marshall’s short, pungent and pithy – and deeply reverent – supplications are well calculated to stir his Senate listeners. Consider a sentence from his invocation at the opening session Monday: ‘May they (the Senators) be aware of a mandate higher than that of the ballot box, a mandate from Thee to legislate wisely and well.’” The Manchester Guardian shares a “story of the young preacher in the North of England, whose petition was reminding the Almighty that He was omnipotent and omniscient, eternal and infinite when a devout old saint in the front, after waiting patiently for a time, interrupted with: ‘Eh lad! He knows He’s all that. Ask Him for summat!’ In simple language, with a keen awareness of the needs of the legislators to whom he ministers the Rev. Dr. Marshall usually asks the Lord for … [Read more...]

40 years ago — November 6, 1978 As almost every Presbyterian knows, our denomination is made up predominantly of smaller congregations. Without them, we would be vastly poorer not only in spirit, but also in size. … There are possibilities inherent in a small church situation that are very difficult to come by in a large congregation: opportunities for small-group closeness … strong personal ties between pastor and people … and … less of the “red tape” … . Many in our ranks seem to be rediscovering the biblical truth that “bigness” is not necessarily “best”; and thus they are starting to see that smaller churches both need and deserve ministers who are the most competent, not the least. … It’s not surprising to find that the smaller church has its not-so-favorable side … . Smallness of size is used as an excuse for smallness of mind. … And an atmosphere conducive to personal growth degenerates into an arena for personal conflict. … The smaller church has an almost limitless … [Read more...]