More than 150 Hispanic pastors and leaders met here July 29-Aug. 3 for the 32nd Hispanic Pastoral Development Seminar.
The Seminar drew Hispanic clergy and laity from the continental United States and Puerto Rico, along with Spanish-speaking colleagues from other ethnicities who participate in ministry with Hispanics in the United States.
It was the first time in history that Hispanic Presbyterian ministers from the continental U.S.A. joined together with Hispanic Presbyterian ministers from Puerto Rico for an event of this kind.
Through lectures and workshops centered on the life and legacy of John Calvin, participants explored what it means for …
Comparative Statistics, an annual publication of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)’s Research Services, provides a yearly snapshot for tracking denominational trends across a spectrum of statistical measurements.
But the current release — Comparative Statistics 2008 — takes this analysis a step further. For the first time and in one place, the new book gathers comparative data going back to Presbyterian reunion in 1983 on membership, congregations, baptisms, women in ministry, and financial contributions.
In addition, the new publication traces trends in two categories dating back to when data were first reliably collected: attendance (1990), new church developments (1992), and …
A lightning strike Thursday night (Aug. 20) set First Presbyterian Church of DeBary, FL, ablaze, destroying the 50-year-old building.
No one was reported injured in the blaze, which burned for more than three hours. The estimated cost of damages was not immediately known.
Witnesses told the Associated Press they saw numerous lightning flashes shortly before the DeBary church caught on fire. Local weather officials said there were more than 1,100 lightning strikes across Florida between 7 and 11 p.m. Thursday.
The 238-member First Presbyterian Church of DeBary is a member of Central Florida Presbytery. The pastors is the Rev. John …
Tucked in a corner of Portland, one of Louisville’s most economically challenged areas, is the Neighborhood House. The outside of the red brick building is fairly unassuming.
Inside, it’s quite different. There are bright colored posters and banners hanging, girls laughing and talking on the couches in the lobby, a basketball game going on in the gym, piano playing from the music room, and a water balloon fight taking place on the playground on this hot August day provides welcome relief. Most everywhere you look there are bright young faces.
One belongs to Miranda Fitz, a sophomore at the …
An estimated 140,000 people of faith gathered on an historic national conference call with President Barack Obama Aug. 19 to discuss health care reform.
The 90-minute conference call was sponsored by more than 30 churches and other religious groups, including the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). One purpose of the call was to help launch a campaign — “40 Days for Health Reform” — to mobilize people of faith to press Congress to finish work on health care reform when it returns after the Labor Day recess.
A recording of the call is available at Faith for Health or the Blog Talk …
The Form of Government Task Force has unanimously approved and submitted to the stated clerk of the General Assembly the final version of its work to revise the Form of Government of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).
The 11 members of the task force spent a major portion of their August 12-14 meeting here reviewing and refining their work before taking a final vote on Thursday (Aug. 13).
The task force released the initial draft of its work last fall. It invited feedback from across the church, which was taken into consideration as the group made final revisions to this portion …
Editor’s note: This is the latest in a series of stories about congregations engaged in significant outreach and evangelism ministries, reflecting the General Assembly’s commitment to “Grow Christ’s Church Deep and Wide.” — Jerry L. Van Marter
For the past eight years residents of Ellwood City, Pa., have been assisted by “carpenters” of all ages, backgrounds and denominations.
The Carpenter’s Project began as an outreach of Calvin Presbyterian Church in Ellwood City, a small town north of Pittsburgh. Since its inception the project has grown into an ecumenical program that provides free home repairs for residents.
“One of the things …
ATLANTA — Agnes Scott College’s 2009 first-year class is the college’s largest in five years and its most diverse ever. The class is expected to be the fourth largest in the history of the college, according to Agnes Scott records dating back to the 1920s.
The college also received more than 2,000 applications, its highest number of applications ever for the fall. While final numbers won’t be available until after the fall semester begins, roughly 244 first-year students are expected to attend Agnes Scott this fall, up from a previous five-year high of 229 in 2005.
This year’s class …
Women in the small Andean town of Cajamarca and the nearby city of Ibagué, in the central-west Colombian province of Tolima, are leading the struggle against a major gold mining venture that threatens to alter their way of life.
Despite differences in social and economic conditions, one thing that unites women from these two Tolima communities — separated by only a few kilometers on the Pan-American Highway but otherwise worlds apart — is their wariness over a mining project that promises prosperity for a few while posing a threat to the natural environment and rural livelihoods.
It began in 2006, …
Editor’s note: This is the latest in a series of stories about congregations engaged in significant outreach and evangelism ministries, reflecting the General Assembly’s commitment to “Grow Christ’s Church Deep and Wide.” — Jerry L. Van Marter
What do you get when you cross a small church in a small town with a crumbling economy? The surprising answer is opportunity. As in opportunity for growth on both a personal and church level, opportunity for service, opportunity to fulfill a need, and not least of all, the opportunity to lift spirits.
Geneva Presbyterian Church, in the small town of Geneva, Ala., …