Registration is open for the 222nd General Assembly (2016) of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), where some 3,000 Presbyterians and others will gather to conduct the business of the denomination, worship, and fellowship.
Mid council staff, theological institution staff, and observers can now go online to sign up for the biennial assembly set for June 18–25 at the Oregon Convention Center in Portland. Commissioners, advisory delegates, General Assembly agency staff and elected members, and other invited guests are receiving emails with special links to use for assembly registration.
Attendees are encouraged, among other things, to review the assembly docket, information about assembly hotels, and the schedule of events prior to registering. Many optional events will require a ticket, which can be purchased during registration. Among them will be a dinner celebrating the ministry of retiring Stated Clerk Gradye Parsons on Wednesday night of the assembly.
Paul Raushenbush, senior vice president for public engagement at Auburn Theological Seminary, will give the address honoring Parsons’ thirty-seven years of service to the denomination. “I’m honored to speak at the dinner recognizing the important contributions of the Reverend Gradye Parsons’ leadership and to address this extraordinary Kairos moment for the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and the Church as a whole,” he said.
From 2009 to 2015, Raushenbush was executive editor of global spirituality and religion at The Huffington Post. The dinner is free for commissioners and advisory delegates, and arrangements will be made for those who wish to attend the celebration without taking part in the meal.
General Assembly attendees will receive an email notification from General Assembly Meeting Service once payment is processed and registration is confirmed; normally within one business day. Those requesting a reservation in an assembly hotel will receive a lodging assignment notice at a later date.
Registration deadlines are:
- April 15 for commissioners, advisory delegates, agency staff, and mid council staff and seminary staff who will have assigned seating,
- May 9 for other participants requesting assembly housing,
- June 3 for advance registration and ticket sales,
- June 3 for cancellation deadline (registration fees, less a cancellation fee of $25 or 15 percent of total registration/ticket fees, whichever is greater, will be refunded if notice of cancellation is received by this date). Other than for canceled events, General Assembly Meeting Service does not refund payment for ticket orders canceled after May 30.