Rear Adm. Margaret G. Kibben relieved Rear Adm. Mark L. Tidd as the chief of Navy chaplains during a change of office and retirement ceremony at the Washington Navy Yard on August 1.

Both Kibben and Tidd are teaching elders in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).

Christian and Muslim aid groups have united to issue an urgent call for action by international organizations to work for an end to the dire and “horrific” suffering in Iraq.

When Samantha Piccolo of the Presbyterian Historical Society (PHS) sat down to interview Dr. Melva Costen for PHS’s Living History film project last fall, she expected to hear about Costen’s experiences chairing the committee that produced the 1990 Presbyterian Hymnal—a process that grew out of the historic reunion of the “Northern” and “Southern” churches in 1983 that formed the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).

Costen did, in fact, reflect on that experience, but she also shared other important stories during the interview now available online, particularly ones relating the personal struggles faced by her and her family during the Civil Rights Movement. …

Dan is now involved in a new project working with several branches of the PC(USA)’s partner church in Madagascar, the Fiangonan’i Jesoa Kristy eto Madagasikara (FJKM). The new project will help the church explore how it can help protect creation and how it can implement innovations in growing fruits and vegetables so that they can benefit pastors, congregations, and  branches of the church.  

Las clases han comenzado en nuestra ciudad. Observo a los jóvenes de nuestro barrio caminar con esmero hasta la pequeña colina en la parte delantera de nuestra subdivisión para ir al autobús. Debido a que toma un tiempo para averiguar qué autobús es el autobús correcto, a menudo se ven a las madres de pie en frente de sus casas para mirar a sus hijos hasta que el autobús llegue. Luego, una por una, toman sus tazas de café y regresan a sus casas.

Estoy aún más consciente de que algunas de las mamás todavía tienen una gran cantidad de …

Don’t discount the power of a frown or a pitchfork and a club. In China, these are the Communist Party’s latest weapons to combat terrorism. Party officials have instructed residents to “give an angry stare” to as a way to strike fear on terrorists planning to launch attacks in China, The Telegraph reports.

Pope Tawadros II, patriarch of the Coptic Orthodox Church in Egypt visited the World Council of Churches (WCC) headquarters here on Monday, Sept.  1. In his reflections, Tawadros spoke about historic contributions of the Coptic Orthodox Church, as among them vibrant traditions of spirituality, theological studies and monastic life. “The Coptic Church is one of the main pillars of Egyptian society,” he said.

The Vatican’s guardian of orthodoxy and the force behind Rome’s investigation of American nuns has renewed his criticism of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR), downplaying the group’s size and importance and arguing that the Vatican is trying to help them recover their religious identity so they don’t die out.

The Presbyterian Ministry at the United Nations and Columbia Theological Seminary have built a tradition that blends two valued Presbyterian hallmarks — public policy involvement and well-educated clergy.

I sometimes think about and long for all of those things that were lost to looting during the continuing battles and insecurity in Malakal.

Then I remember that my colleagues, new friends and the entire population of that town also lost everything, and more: documents, livelihoods, land, crops, sense of well-being and identity, and even their lives or the lives of many of their family members.