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Auburn Seminary launches the Auburn Coaching Institute

Auburn Theological Seminary in New York City introduces a new program bringing the best of business and professional coaching into the sphere of theological education and ministerial support. 

The Auburn Coaching Institute is designed by and for people dedicated to furthering the mission of the church through effective leadership and ministries. Church leaders from across a spectrum of backgrounds and locations have experienced coaching through classes at Auburn and through the New York Sabbatical Institute, a program funded by the Lilly Endowment, Inc. and administered by Auburn in partnership with Union and New York Theological Seminaries. 

Communicators should challenge ‘false religion’

CLEVELAND -- President Michael Livingston of the National Council of Churches (NCC) has urged church communicators to "tell our story -- by any means necessary."

Livingston, a Presbyterian minister who also serves as executive director of the International Council of Community Churches, said: "Mainline Protestant and Orthodox churches have been pounded into irrelevancy by the media machine of a false religion."

He described what passes as religion to be "a political philosophy masquerading as gospel; an economic principle wrapped in religious rhetoric and painted red, white and blue."

Bill would ban protests at soldier funerals

(RNS) Legislation that would slap protesters at funerals of U.S. soldiers with hefty fines and federal jail time is on the fast track in Congress.

Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Mich., the bill's main sponsor, said he hopes the House and Senate will approve the bill by May so President Bush can sign it into law before Memorial Day.

In the last month, protests at military funerals around the country have angered state and federal officials. The protests were led by the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan., which argues that the war in Iraq is God's way of punishing the United States for tolerating homosexuality. The church is led by its controversial pastor, Fred Phelps.

Presbyterian leaders weigh in on the report of the Theological Task Force on Peace, Unity and Purity

Check back for updates as additional items are received (Last Update 5/3/06)

• "Unaligned" PC(USA) pastors support P.U.P. Task Force Report
• AN OPEN LETTER TO OUR SISTERS AND BROTHERS IN THE PCUSA
• A Statement in Support of the Theological Task Force Report
• General Assembly Moderators Support the Report of Theological Task Force on Peace, Unity, and Purity of the Church
  

Women of Faith Award recipients announced

LOUISVILLE - Two deacons, two elders and two ministers have been named recipients of the 2006 Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) Women of Faith Awards.

They are:

Deacon Betty L. Grunstra, of Brookville (PA) Presbyterian Church in

Kiskiminetas Presbytery, who gives much of her time to a visitation

program, primarily in nursing homes, and who has established an annual

Thanksgiving dinner for those who have no one with whom to celebrate the

holiday;

Deacon Dawn Harvin, who as chair of the board of deacons at Grace

Memorial Presbyterian Church in Pittsburgh (Pittsburgh Presbytery) has

led her congregation into increasing community service ministries;

Elder Evelyn Bonner, of First Presbyterian Church, West Point, MS (St.

Andrew Presbytery), who has served as a volunteer leader at Sheldon

Jackson College in Sitka, AK, and at Mary Holmes College in West Point,

among others;

Elder Grace S. Kim, of Davis (CA) Community Church (Sacramento

Presbytery) who, because she has also lived in China and Korea, has been

a leading advocate for overseas and multicultural mission;

The Rev. Betty Meadows of Louisville (Mid-Kentucky Presbytery), who

first as an associate executive of Greater Atlanta Presbytery and now as

executive presbyter of Mid-Kentucky Presbytery has inspired growth in

evangelism, new-church development and spiritual renewal for pastors,

educators and church members; and

The Rev. Carmen Rosario-Reyes, parish associate at Jamesburg (NJ)

Presbyterian Church (Monmouth Presbytery), whose passion for including

Hispanic women and men into the life of the PC(USA) led her to found the

Hispanic Leadership Development and Enhancement Program at Princeton

Theological Seminary.

Princeton professor honored at YWCA banquet

Katharine Doob Sakenfeld, Princeton Seminary's William Albright Eisenberger Professor of Old Testament Literature and Exegesis and the director of Ph.D. studies, was honored March 8, at the Princeton YWCA Tribute to Women 2006 Awards Dinner.

The YWCA honored sixteen women and the organizations that have stood behind them for the women's contributions to their professions, communities, educational institutions, or organizations.

The changing face of American Presbyterianism (1706-2006), Part 2

Editor's note: Three hundred years ago this year, the first presbytery was organized in what became the United States of America. This article is the second in a series exploring the historical overview of the Presbyterian presence in our country. The first installment ran in the Outlook issue of Feb. 20, 2006 (Click here to read the first installment).

IV

Americans moved on after the Civil War, and so did Presbyterians, to face the challenges and changes of industrialization, urbanization, and globalization. We were heavy hitters in dealing with these challenges. After Lincoln, several other Presbyterian Presidents helped shape these years. Grover Cleveland, for example, presided over the Spanish-American War, and we extended our presence to places around the globe, for example, in Hawaiian Islands and the Philippines. He was a Democrat. Benjamin Harrison was a Republican, while Woodrow Wilson was another Democrat. William Jennings Bryan, an "also ran," was known as the "Great Commoner" with a "golden tongue."  

Atlanta pastor is 4th candidate for moderator of General Assembly

The Presbytery of Greater Atlanta has unanimously endorsed Joan S. Gray as a candidate for moderator of the 217th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).

Gray is the fourth candidate for moderator. She joins Kerry Carson, pastor of First Church in Conrad, Iowa; Tim Halverson of Faith Church in Cape Coral, Fla.; and Deborah Block, pastor of Immanuel Church in Milwaukee, Wisc.

The election will be held at the start of the Assembly on June 15, in Birmingham, Ala.

Gray is a graduate of Columbia Theological Seminary (1976) who has served as an adjunct faculty member there and also has taught as adjunct faculty at Johnson C. Smith Seminary. She has taught at Princeton Theological Seminary in the continuing education department. She was ordained by Atlanta Presbytery of the former Presbyterian Church in the United States in 1978.

The Rev. William Sloane Coffin, Controversial Social Activist, Dies at 81

c. 2006 Religion News Service

The Rev. William Sloane Coffin Jr., a fiery and controversial social activist, Presbyterian minister and author who saw social justice 'at the heart of the Gospel,' died Wednesday (April 12). He was 81.

Coffin, who had been suffering from congestive heart failure, died at his home in rural Strafford, Vt.

He rose to prominence in the 1960s as Yale University's chaplain, a position he used to great effect to campaign against the Vietnam War and fight for civil rights for blacks.

A natural leader for the protesting students of the 1960s, Coffin took his first 'Freedom Ride' to Montgomery, Ala., in 1961 to challenge the segregation of Southern buses. In 1968, Coffin was indicted on charges of conspiring to counsel draft resistance.

What is a megachurch? Characteristics identified

Say "megachurch" and "small country church" and just think of the comparisons those words conjure up. Let the "Six Flags over Jesus" jokes start now.

But new research has found that many of the ideas folks have about megachurches don't match the realities. Among the misconceptions: that most megachurches are nondenominational; that they're too "seeker-friendly" and not serious enough about theology; that they're all huge and all alike.

The stereotypes are easy to slide into. But both the megachurch researchers and people involved with some of the largest Presbyterian churches say there is much that congregations of all sizes can learn from the megachurch experience.

That's not a one-way street. Other studies have found that small congregations have real strengths too and much to offer -- for example, in terms of helping people grow spiritually and involving people in congregational life. The Research Services office of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) says about six in 10 Presbyterian churches have an average worship attendance of fewer than 100 people.

But for those willing to put aside their preconceptions and pay attention, the growth of the nation's largest churches can say a lot about the role of church in today's culture. And growth is evident. The number of congregations of more than 2,000 members increased by nearly 50 percent between 2000 and 2005.

Presbyterian churches minister by megachurch principles

While relatively few American megachurches come from mainline denominations, some do -- and that includes Presbyterian congregations from Florida to Washington state.

Leaders from some of those congregations say people do tote around a wheelbarrow of misconceptions about big churches. They also say some of what works for them could work for congregations of any size -- and that they can learn valuable lessons from smaller, more intimate churches too.

Here's a glimpse inside a few Presbyterian megachurches -- all big, but all different.

Weeks announces retirement plans

Louis B. Weeks, president of Union Theological Seminary and Presbyterian School of Christian Education, has announced plans to retire from the seminary June 30, 2007.

Weeks was named the sixth president of Union in May 1994.