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The 224th GA — August 3, 2020

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What happened at the historic virtual 224th General Assembly? While votes were taken and business was completed, what did not happen and how the meeting was conducted may prove to be more noteworthy. This issue details some key moments and important take-aways from the assembly.  Find all of our GA coverage at pres-outlook.org/GA224. Click here to read the issue in the Uberflip reader The inherent problem of whiteness in our polity Jill Duffield considers: Does PC(USA) polity work well in the current faced-paced world? New GA co-moderators Elona Street-Stewart and Gregory Bentley were elected on the first ballot. Per capita  GA approved a small increase to per capita for the next two years. GA affirms Black lives matter The assembly approved a resolution pledging to confront and dismantle systemic racism. The unfolding of an assembly This GA invited an examination of privilege, power and procedure. What are the lessons from the 224th GA? The Committee on the Office … [Read more...]

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Do we have real plans for justice?

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I, along with members of our board and staff, participated in Eddie Moore’s “21-Day Racial Equity Habit Building Challenge.” Every day for 21 days we read or listened or watched something that we hoped would expand our understanding of historic and present racist realities in our country and in our churches. In the first week I read “Instead of ‘We can no longer be silent,’ try ‘We got it wrong’” in Sojourners magazine, written by Marc Antoine Lavarin. The following lines continue to haunt me: “Before your church decides to go out and protest, consider protesting your own theology that continues to intentionally and unintentionally do harm to black and brown bodies. Before taking a knee and holding a prayer vigil, consider this — there is no real substantive difference between a racist bigot holding a Bible in front of a church and a Christian holding up a #BlackLivesMatter sign with no plans to parse out the practical implementation of the holy truth of justice.” Lavarin’s article, … [Read more...]

Giving thanks for Marj Carpenter

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We give thanks for the life and witness of Marj Carpenter. For many years Marj contributed “Presbyterians In Action” and “In This Corner” to the pages of Presbyterian Outlook. She died June 13 in Big Spring, Texas, following a long illness. She was 93. We will miss her thoughtful, witty contributions to our pages and her stalwart support of our mission.  Carpenter was a ruling elder at First Presbyterian Church in Big Spring, Texas. A native Texan, she was a newspaperwoman for 28 years before she began working for the Presbyterian Church. She holds a degree from Texas College of Arts and Industries and was a recipient of an honorary doctorate from Austin College. She has served First Presbyterian Church on the board of deacons and as chair; on the session and as clerk; and has served on the session of North Decatur Church in Georgia. She was active in other churches in Texas, Georgia and Kentucky. She taught Sunday school, led youth work, directed choirs, held office in … [Read more...]

What’s right about Louisville Seminary?

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Louisville Seminary — Louisville, Kentucky After classes at Louisville Seminary went online in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it became clear that a formal graduation ceremony would not be happening for the class of 2020. Luckily, the graduating students at Louisville Seminary had a caring group of peers, faculty and staff that started to think creatively about how to make graduation special. By the day of graduation, donations from over 20 people including faculty, staff and students had come in to cover the entire cost of care packages for each graduate. These graduation care packages included: doughnuts, a sparkling beverage, a mini cake and a card. A group of seven student volunteers gathered with masks and gloves to deliver packages to the doorsteps of every graduate of the seminary that lives locally in Louisville. Graduates celebrated this milestone safely at home, but surrounded by the love of their community. — Rachel Potts-Wells, current student Read more about … [Read more...]

A 5-year-old student ….

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A 5-year-old in Oklahoma got impatient with his Sunday school teacher when she was typing. The lad said: “Let me type it. I type on Daddy’s typewriter all the time.” The teacher reluctantly sat him at the table and he typed away. The teacher said: “Good for you. Read that back to me please.” And he quickly answered, “I can’t, because I can’t read yet.” … [Read more...]

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