As the 59th Presidential Inauguration in the United States approached, staff of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) Office of Public Witness had plenty of reasons to be optimistic, despite the tension in Washington D.C. that exploded in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
When the decision was made earlier this year to hold a virtual assembly, not only did Ruling Elder Elona Street-Stewart and the Rev. Gregory Bentley, Co-Moderators of the 224th General Assembly (2020), have to forego a trip to Baltimore, but they also missed out on the time-honored tradition of gathering with their predecessors who have also held the denomination’s highest elected office.
Thanks to #GivingTuesday, their wait is over.
The Rev. Denise Anderson, co-moderator of the 222nd General Assembly, appears in a short film co-produced by Faith in Public Life Action, whose founder and CEO is a former PC(USA) national staff member, the Rev. Jennifer Butler.
As a part of the opening plenary of the Presbyterian Mission Agency Board (PMAB) meeting on Wednesday, board members participated in a panel discussion on cultural humility moderated by the Rev. Denise Anderson, coordinator for racial and intercultural justice, working in connection with the agency’s Compassion, Peace & Justice and Racial Equity & Women’s Intercultural Ministries.
More than 200 people listened in Tuesday while some of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)’s deepest thinkers and most effective practitioners of anti-racism work shared their hearts and their experiences during a 90-minute Town Hall, part of the Presbyterian Week of Action. View the event here.
Part 3 of the Awakening to Structural Racism online conversation Monday dealt with Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) efforts to dismantle structural racism and white supremacy — even when those efforts are placed on hold during the most recent General Assembly, held online and without the usual committee work because of the pandemic.
Calls to defund the police have grown louder in recent months as demonstrators have taken to the streets to protest police brutality and white supremacy following the deaths of George Floyd and other innocent African Americans.
Since the uprising against systemic racism and police violence against people who are Black began at the end of May, Presbyterians across the country have joined in solidarity with their siblings of color in sermons and statements, by joining in peaceful protests, engaging in civic dialogue, and other actions.
More than 260 people spent a remarkable and at times uncomfortable two hours Monday evening in the first of a four-part online series designed to awaken Presbyterians to structural racism.
