The Rev. Sando Townsend, the outgoing moderator of the Presbyterian Church of Liberia, has invited the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) to walk alongside the Presbyterian Church of Liberia, and U.S. church leaders are taking him up on his offer.
One of the first Presbytery of San Jose meetings the Rev. Sammie Evans attended as the new pastor at Stone Church of Willow Glen was to hear a presentation from the Rev. Dr. Kathryn Threadgill on Presbyterian Mission Agency’s Vital Congregations Initiative, which is designed to help churches live more faithfully as disciples of Jesus Christ.
How do you preach stewardship to a congregation that’s about to leave the church? In a nutshell, that’s what the writer of Hebrews is trying to do. Hebrews is a long way from the initial excitement, enthusiasm, and the explosive birth and growth of the church recorded in the first chapters of Acts.
It’s November. The air is full of politics across the United States, and the world will be watching to see whether the face of our country will change or will be one more edition of the same old, same old.
How do you preach stewardship to a congregation that’s about to leave the church? In a nutshell, that’s what the writer of Hebrews is trying to do. Hebrews is a long way from the initial excitement, enthusiasm, and the explosive birth and growth of the church recorded in the first chapters of Acts.
Evangelism is good news. The ministry of evangelism was never meant to be a tool by which we reach people to simply fill our churches. Evangelism is a ministry which blesses others. In A Light to the Nations, Michael Goheen writes, “Blessing is a biblical term with rich resonances, implying the reversal of sin’s curse and the restoration of creation’s fullness.” As God in Christ, by the power of the Holy Spirit, is changing our lives, we are invited into God’s mission of changing and transforming our communities and world.
Faith-based organizations have been at the forefront of calls to accelerate HIV testing and treatment for children and adolescents. As gaps in infection and treatment between adults and children have become more apparent, there are now more concerted efforts to “super fast-track” services for children. But will they be enough?
Yes, the title is a tribute to the documentary on Fred Rogers currently in theatres, “Won’t you be my neighbor?” For about 40 years, Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood was featured on Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) stations as a children’s — but really families’ — afterschool program.
It happens quickly, often in a single generation. Yours is the big church on the town square, the church that your family has attended for generations. Once, this church was the spiritual heart of the community. This is where people supported one another in times of crisis, remembered their roots and celebrated their joys. Once, there were jobs in the town, but today young people leave to study and work in the big city. Now, on a good Sunday, 25 or 30 people gather for worship; your church struggles to survive.
Westminster John Knox Press is pleased to announce the release of ‘The Baptism of Your Child: A Book for Presbyterian Families.’ There are few occasions more joyous than the presentation of a new baby or small child for baptism.
