(ENI)--Human rights advocates are praising the decision of a Spanish judge to formally investigate the role of Salvadoran military members in the 1989 murders of six Jesuit priests and two others during El Salvador's 12-year civil war.
Reading and reflecting on Erwin C. Barron’s three-part essay on the perennial controversy over ordination of gay and lesbian pastors — (November 10, 17 and 24, 2008 issues of The Presbyterian Outlook), as well as subsequent related letters from readers — has been a discouraging experience for this observer. A highly contentious vote of the presbyteries is coming, and a basis for genuine consensus does not exist. No matter which side “wins” the presbytery balloting in coming months, the issue will not be settled and will not go away. It seems probable that continuing contention in the short term will only delay the adoption of a widely accepted way forward, but that forbearance in the short term could favor success over time.
I was five when I was baptized. I don't know why they waited, but one Sunday my parents took me and my little brother to the local Presbyterian Church. I vividly remember standing in front of the congregation, excited, knowing something very special was happening but entirely unsure of what it was. An elder from the Session gave us each a tiny embroidered rainbow as a reminder of God’s Covenant. It still hangs in my childhood room in my parents’ home.
Anne Martin Wilson Rowe, 74, of Fredericksburg, Va., died January 24 at home after a long illness. A funeral service will be held at 11 a.m., Friday, January 30 in The Presbyterian Church in Fredericksburg.
(ENI)--Groups campaigning for changes in the Roman Catholic Church plan to convene a "worldwide assembly of the people of God" in Rome in 2015 to mark the 50th anniversary of the conclusion of the Second Vatican Council.
LOUISVILLE — Twenty years ago, Brad Smith, a seminary intern at Spring Valley Church in Columbia, S.C., asked worshipers to bring donations of canned goods and money on Super Bowl Sunday to help feed the local hungry.
In 1944, global economic leaders gathered at Bretton Woods to plan the massive economic recovery that would be necessary after the destruction of World War II. Out of that meeting came such financial institutions as the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade.
If the chief end of man [and woman] is to glorify God, then the central purpose of worship must be the same. While pursuing that purpose, would it be inappropriate for worshipers to enjoy God as well? Reformed worship proclaims God’s greatness. It also teaches participants to order their beliefs and behaviors in godly ways. It calls believers to gather in community and to scatter into mission. But enjoy God? Not in First Presbyterian Church!
A new research study has found distinct changes in the worship life of American congregations – including an increased reliance on technology and a growing informality in the way congregations worship.
After this year’s General Assembly, Lisa Larges, minister coordinator of That All May Freely Serve and Mieke Vandersall, coordinator of Presbyterian Welcome, realized that they shared an overwhelming desire: to bring change to the ongoing debate over homosexuality and ordination standards. “We need to change the tenor by giving people an opportunity to talk and listen to each other, one on one,” explains Paul Mowry of Presbyterian Welcome. “It’s easy to find out each other’s position on the issues,” Mowry continued. “But we wanted to help people find each other in true fellowship.”
Reprinted with permission from Presbyterians Today, 100 Witherspoon St., Louisville, Ky. 40202-1396. This article originally appeared in the December 2005 edition of PT. Subscription information is available at 1-800-558-1669.
During my theological education and early in my pastoral ministry, “multiculturalism” and “diversity within unity” were fashionable issues in seminaries and some church denominations. Then, some of the same church leaders and congregants who had made a public point to develop cross-cultural sensitivity among Christians turned their attention to developing “contemporary worship.”
There are three reasons for revising the language of G-6.0106b. First, the warrants adduced in the current version are flawed. Second, the requirement that an entire category of persons must take a vow of celibacy as a condition of living a Christian life (and thus qualified for leadership) denies a basic tenet of the Reformation heritage. Third, the ethical question regarding the morality of homosexuality cannot be decided merely by exegesis of the Bible.
This essay is adapted from a lecture presented at the 2008 Gathering of the Presbyterian Coalition, and adapted with permission from a workshop presentation at the Presbyterian Coalition Gathering, October, 2008, in Newport Beach, Calif. It was published in Theology Matters, Vol. 14, No. 5, Nov/Dec 2008. It is reprinted here with permission from each organization/publication.
In an age of “TMI” — “Too Much Information” — it is critical that all church communications acknowledge “brevity (as) the soul of wit.”
Hey You –
Close to real skin color David —
What slingshot will you use to fight our ailments?
Bethany R. Furkin, a recent honors graduate of the E.W. Scripps School of Journalism at Ohio University, has been named a reporter for the Presbyterian News Service. She begins work Feb. 2.
(ENI-ALC)--The founders of the Reborn in Christ Church (Renascer) have said they were dismayed and saddened by the deaths of nine people in one of the denomination's churches after a roof collapsed in Brazil’s largest city.
(ENI)--On the third day of an Israeli-Hamas ceasefire in Gaza, Palestinians were only beginning to realize the scope of their losses from a three-week Israeli onslaught, said the director of the Anglican Al Ahli Arab Hospital.
The media have been full of stories and commentaries on the water landing of a US Airways passenger jet that resulted in no fatalities, and few serious injuries. Often, almost too often, the outcome of this potential mass tragedy has been proclaimed to be a miracle. One commentator said that the happy ending was the result of a series of small miracles.
(ENI) -- Roman Catholic monks in Bosnia-Herzegovina have resumed production of a world-famous cheese after they were forced to stop by the Balkans war in the mid-1990s.
"Our numbers fell and we were forced to cut back — and in 1996, we stopped making it completely when the last brother who knew the recipe died," explained Zvonko Topic, one of two surviving Trappist monks at the Marija Zvijezda, or Mary Star, monastery near Banja Luka. "But we've now decided to bring it back to consumers here, and we'll be opening a small shop soon for tourists and visitors."
(ENI)--The All Africa Conference of Churches is calling for global prayers for Zimbabwe on January 25, while reiterating the crisis in the southern African country stems from dishonest leadership.
LOUISVILLE — An early morning fire in sub-zero weather destroyed historic Portland Avenue Church in western Louisville today (Jan. 16).
Two primary authors of “A Social Creed for the 21st Century” have sent an open letter to President-elect Obama advocating the social policies outlined in the creed.
LOUISVILLE — A hardy band of about 75 Presbyterian Center employees and others from around town braved near-zero temperatures today (Jan. 15) for a “Justice Walk” to commemorate the birthday of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.
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