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Anniversaries
On Sunday I'll be attending a worship service commemorating the 150th anniversary of the Germonds Presbyterian Church, in New City, N.Y.
It will be the first of several upcoming anniversaries -- the 50th anniversary of Faith Presbyterian in Indianapolis, the 300th anniversary of Pencader Presbyterian in Wilmington, Del., the 200th anniversary of United Presbyterian in Princeton, Ind., just to name a few.
These occasions certainly are a time for celebrating God's providence, and giving thanks for the faithful men and women who labored in that particular corner of Christ's kingdom, in good times and in bad times, to proclaim God's Word.
But we have to be careful that in celebrating these anniversaries we don't end up worshipping the church rather than worshipping God. A congregation that doesn't make it to a 50th, or 150th, anniversary hasn't necessarily failed, or somehow been less effective than one that does reach such a milestone. What matters more than longevity is effective mission and ministry in a particular place and in a particular time.
One of the great benefits of our connectional system is that congregations aren't on their own in figuring out if they are still effectively doing mission and ministry -- they can turn to the presbytery for help and resources in evaluating their effectiveness and in making hard decisions. Nothing is more valuable or necessary to our ongoing denomination than competent, effective presbytery staff who work prayerfully with congregations as they assess their current life and their future.
So we justifiably celebrate, and give thanks, for church anniversaries -- but we also celebrate, and give thanks, for those congregations whose season for ministry has ended. They too served the Lord.
September 6, 2010
Sola Scriptura
Does Sola Scriptura still mean anything to us as Presbyterians? The Vice Moderator, the Rev. Landon Whitsitt, and I had a conversation about "the solas" with Jody Harrington, who blogs as Quotidian Grace. I'm not sure we changed anyone's mind,...- Posted at 1:05 p.m.
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September 3, 2010
Report from Nashville
I'm just back from Nashville, where I worked with folks from New Providence Presbyterian Church, in Maryville, Tenn., and staff from the Office of the General Assembly, including Stated Clerk Gradye Parsons, in helping to rebuild homes destroyed by the...- Posted at 3:25 p.m.
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August 27, 2010
Off to Nashville!
On Monday I head off to Nashville, on my first official trip as Moderator. I'm headed there, along with Stated Clerk Gradye Parsons and other OGA staff members, to do flood relief work. We're going to team up with a...- Posted at 1:33 p.m.
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August 26, 2010
Faith is Not a Political Issue
The attacks on President Obama's Christian faith have prompted the issuance of the following letter, which I, along with Gradye Parsons and Linda Valentine, have signed: Download Faith is not a political issue- Posted at 12:59 p.m.
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