On day one of the 2020 Virtual Vital Congregations Gathering, four panelists from Trinity Presbytery described how beginning the two-year VC initiative in January 2020 — and its Seven Marks of a Vital Congregation — helped prepare them as church leaders for the pandemic.
Church and worshiping community leaders, are you looking for ways to support families in faith formation at home during a time of pandemic? Would you like your community to have access to a children’s Bible, hymnal and prayers in their home?
While the apocalyptic genre might seem relatable in some ways during these times we’re living in, the characters I have found myself relating to most during the pandemic are those found in Laura Ingalls Wilder’s account of life in 19th century America that she writes about in “Little House on the Prairie.” Letting out the hem of last year’s dress to make do for a growing child totally makes sense now. Who needs new clothes when you never leave home? Sitting around the fire at night for a sing-along with Pa while Ma does the mending?
The eventual idea to provide Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) congregations with a video worship service for use after Easter this year came to the Rev. Katie Barrett Todd in the playroom of her house, which is just above the garage.
During a recent online forum held in the Presbytery of St. Augustine on racial and ethnic tensions, a woman named Kristen shared her family’s story: “I didn’t really know what systemic racism was. Then my father, who wore hearing aids, was arrested during a traffic stop when he didn’t understand the rules for including his adaptive devices on his driver’s license.”
The Rev. Edwin Gonzalez-Gertz at Light of Hope Presbyterian Church in Marietta, Georgia, says the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)’s Matthew 25 invitation has given the congregation language to articulate what they’ve been doing for a while — out of necessity.
Speaking during a Facebook Live event on the topic “Courageous Leadership Matters,” the Rev. Stephen Lewis, president of the Forum for Theological Exploration, told host the Rev. Dr. Lee Hinson-Hasty that in many ways, “our future is rooted in the labors of those who came before us.”
Pastors and Christian educators from around the country as well as Canada and the United Kingdom joined for a webinar Monday to find out from one another how they’re creating community among the generations during the pandemic and, just as importantly, once it’s over.
The COVID-19 era “is going to radically push what the church is in the future,” the Rev. Dr. Jason Brian Santos recently told the Synod of Lakes and Prairies’ Synod School.
Although mission co-workers Rachel and Michael Ludwig were pained to leave Niger when the State Department ordered citizens to return to the U.S., they believe they are still having a lasting impact through partnership bridges they have built since they answered the call to serve there in 2014.
