To many Presbyterians, polity is synonymous with rules—“things that confine approaches to ministry,” said Jihyun Oh, Director of Mid Council Ministries (MCM) in the Office of the General Assembly.

But Oh and others in MCM view polity as much broader than that, and more generative than restrictive. Beyond providing governance for Presbyterian leaders and councils, polity is a source of encouragement and inspiration to those reimagining their work in ministry.

Anthony was dealt a bad hand in life. Looking intently into the eyes of the Rev. Charles Harrison, pastor of Barnes United Methodist Church in Indianapolis and president of the board of the Indy TenPoint Coalition, the young man visiting from Chicago made his tearful confession.

Before the end of her final sermon as pastor of the Presbyterian Church of Teaneck, New Jersey, the Rev. Dr. Gloria Tate capped off her nearly 30 years in the PCT pulpit by urging the congregation “to finish the race” despite her retirement.

Over the weekend and at other times of their choosing, chapters of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) held webinars and in-person gatherings in honor of National Faith Day. On Saturday, the Rev. Brooke A. Scott, pastor of the Church on Main, a worshiping community in Middletown, Delaware, spoke during “Pathways to Hope,” the NAMI Delaware gathering.

Many people — even many people of faith — think diversity and inclusion are the same thing. They’re not, as the Rev. Samuel Son explained this week on “A Matter of Faith: A Presby Podcast,” hosted each week by the Rev. Lee Catoe of Unbound: An Interactive Journal of Christian Social Justice, and Simon Doong of the Presbyterian Peacemaking Program.

Churches in the Presbytery of Denver are reaching out to their neighbors without homes in traditional and even system-altering ways, including a successful effort to get the Aurora City Council to alter zoning on a tract of land to permit development of much-needed affordable housing in what’s become the seventh most expensive place in the nation to own or rent a home.

The Presbyterian School of Kabuga in Rwanda discovered that gardening helps primary school students to demonstrate greater responsibility at school and at home. It is a crucial part of teaching because it leads to creativity and innovation. It is a valuable life skill tool which can influence all aspects of life.

당신은 열정, 지성, 상상력, 그리고 사랑으로, 사람들을 위해 기도하고 그들을 섬기기 위해 노력하겠습니까?

2022년 8월, 장로교 신학자이자 작가인 프레데릭 뷔크너가 96세의 나이로 소천했습니다. 아마 여러분도 뷔크너의 글을 접한 적이 있을 것입니다. 설교자나 교사들이 설교나 수업 중에 뷔크너의 글을 자주 인용하기 때문입니다. 여러분들은 신학적 진리와 풍부한 이야기 전개를 멋지게 혼합하는 그의 솜씨에 매료되어 귀를 쫑긋하고 들었을 것입니다.

¿Orará y buscará servir al pueblo con energía, inteligencia, imaginación y amor?

En agosto de 2022, el teólogo y autor presbiteriano Frederick Buechner murió a la edad de 96 años. Es posible que se haya beneficiado de su prolífica escritura en un sermón o lección cuando un predicador o maestro lo citó, y sus oídos hormigueaban con su notable manera de mezclar la verdad teológica y la rica narración de historias.

Will you pray for and seek to serve the people with energy, intelligence, imagination, and love?

In August, Presbyterian theologian and author Frederick Buechner died at age 96. You may have benefitted from his prolific writing in a sermon or lesson when a preacher or teacher quoted him, and your ears tingled with his remarkable way of mixing theological truth and rich storytelling.