Presenters during the “Tools for Thinking, Praying and Living the Faith Day by Day” workshop at the Moderators’ Conference included the Rev. Dr. David Gambrell, center, and the Rev. Dr. So Jung Kim, both in the Office of Theology & Worship. Photo by Rick Jones.
The Office of Theology & Worship in the Presbyterian Mission Agency offered up a workshop during last weekend’s Moderators’ Conference designed to give incoming mid council moderators tools for thinking, praying and living the faith day by day.
The conference, sponsored each year by Mid Council Ministries in the Office of the General Assembly, bore the theme “Unbounded We Thrive.” It was offered at the Presbyterian Center in Louisville, Kentucky, and online to the moderators of presbyteries and synods, especially those new to the role.
“Tools when used well help us build lives of faithfulness,” said the Rev. Dr. Barry Ensign-George, coordinator of the Office of Theology & Worship. “The tools can help us identify what to listen to and how.”
Organizers called their workshop “Tools for Thinking, Praying and Living the Faith Day by Day.” Each of the three strands is “deeply interwoven,” Ensign-George said.
The workshop attracted mid council moderators eager to learn more about putting on meaningful worship services. Photo by Rick Jones.
The workshop attracted mid council moderators eager to learn more about putting on meaningful worship services. Photo by Rick Jones.
The Rev. Dr. So Jung Kim, Associate for Theology in the Office of Theology & Worship, asked participants a number of questions, including “How does interaction with God and neighbor happen in our lives? It’s a crucial question to ask, especially in this divided time in our country.” It’s not just words, but “body language as well,” Kim said.
The varied ways we communicate led Kim to create the series Everyday God-talk. Episodes featuring interviews with theologians and practitioners of the faith can be seen here.
The Rev. Sally Ann McKinsey, editor of “Call to Worship: Liturgy, Music, Preaching and The Arts,” talked about the new website where journal articles and more are offered here. “It’s everything you’ll find in the print issue and more, including full liturgies for services,” McKinsey said. Contributors are writing new liturgy every year, and online, those are full liturgies. The website includes an online art gallery and a community tab that allows for private discussions among subscribers.
McKinsey also talked up Town Hall Forums that “Call to Worship” hosts along with the Presbyterian Association of Musicians.
The Rev. Dr. David Gambrell, Associate for Worship in the Office of Theology & Worship, asked moderators if they’d noticed the Book of Order got “a little skinnier” over the past few years. It’s now 10,000 words — more than 30 pages — briefer than it was, making it more streamlined and accessible, with an increased focus on theology, the practice of worship, “and how we live in the world,” Gambrell said. Included is a section on language “and why it’s important to worship in the vernacular.”
“One comment I often get is ‘I can imagine different kinds of churches when I read these pages — storefront churches, country churches,’ and all kinds of new worshiping communities are envisioned,” Gambrell said. “We hope you will find your presbytery’s congregations reflected in this document.”
The Book of Common Worship was revised in 2018. “You probably are planning ordination and installation services. It’s all in the revised Book of Common Worship,” Gambrell said. “You’ll find different voices, different styles and different approaches to prayer. We hope it reflects the big tent that is the PC(USA).”
Gambrell also discussed daily prayer services found in the Book of Common Worship and elsewhere. “I want to commend this to you for brief worship services,” he told moderators. In addition, daily online readings are available here.