LOUISVILLE (PNS) — Imagine attending the 224th General Assembly in Baltimore and seeing the speaker’s slides appear on separate screens simultaneously in English, Spanish and Korean. This idea is more than a hope; it’s a plan that may be ready to unveil by June 2020 or, if not, definitely by 2022, said Jason Raff, manager of Global Language Resources (GLR) for the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)’s Administrative Services Group (ASG). Raff, whose background is in legal translation and classical music, came onboard in this newly created manager’s role last October. In just a few months, he has perceived that effective language access is key to reconciling division and uniting the PC(USA) as a multilingual global denomination. “I think it’s important to set a vision that goes beyond the nuts and bolts administrative aspect of global language access,” Raff told the A Corp board on Thursday. He said when God and the angels came down to confuse human languages in Genesis 11, they … [Read more...]
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Outlook Reporting 2 days ago
Moving Forward commission narrows list of final recommendations
LOUISVILLE – The Moving Forward Implementation Commission is moving closer to finalizing its recommendations to the 2020 General Assembly. During its Jan. 24 meeting in Louisville, the commission formally voted on one recommendation, and reached “agreement in principle” on others, with a final vote to come later via conference call. It’s leaning towards offering comments to the Special Committee on Per-Capita Based Funding and National Church Financial Sustainability – in part explaining how some of the special committee’s potential recommendations on denominational restructuring and creating campaigns to better explain per capita… continue reading... -
Outpost Blog 2 days ago
People of the words: On paradox
This week, Andrew Taylor-Troutman reflects on words that guide people of faith. Find his blog series here. In a poem, author Brian Doyle wrote, “Wondering why the definitions of love are so often also the definitions of pain.” That is a paradox. Image by Nick Youngson CC BY-SA 3.0 Alpha Stock Images Derived from the Greek para- (contrary to) and dokein (to think, seem or appear), a paradox is something that can’t possibly be true. Except, of course, that it is. Physicist Niels Bohr said that the opposite of a profound… continue reading... -
Looking into the lectionary 2 days ago
3rd Sunday after Epiphany — January 26, 2020
Isaiah 9:1-4; 1 Corinthians 1:10-18; Matthew 4:12-23 Ordinary 3A Jesus proclaims, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Jill Duffield’s lectionary reflections are sent to the Outlook’s email list every Monday. The time of Jesus’ public ministry is upon us; no longer is the kingdom near, the kingdom is here and now. I wonder sometimes if we postmodern people with all of our technology and distractions, our comforts and connections, our 24-hour news cycle and on-demand everything, ever consider that Jesus is in our midst even as he… continue reading...
Parties in Stamford case had tried to expedite process in order to get a ruling on the merits of the case January 1, 1995 Uncategorized115 views The General Assembly Permanent Judicial Commission -- in sidestepping the question of exactly how deeply a session should be required to probe into the private life of a gay elder who has acknowledged being in a committed, life-long relationship but has declined to say whether he is sexually active -- has put the question off but has not put it to rest.- Ministering with the Earth January 1, 1998 Book Reviews114 views By Mary Elizabeth MooreChalice. 1998. 226 pp. Pb. $19.99. ISBN 0-8272-2323-4 Ministering with the Earth is a quiltwork, both the on-the-ground activity and Moore's book about so ministering. Moore, professor of theology and Christian education at Claremont School of Theology, is fond of the metaphor, suitably pastoral and feminist.
- Remembered Voice: Reclaiming the Legacy of 'Neo-Orthodoxy' January 1, 1998 Book Reviews118 views By Douglas John HallWJKP. 1998. 145 pp. Pb. $18. ISBN 0-664-25772-0 It was in this order. I first read Tillich's Dynamics of Faith. Riveting. Next came The Courage to Be. Gripping. Then I went back and read the first volume of the Systematic Theology. Things began to make sense. Next came Biblical Religion and the Search for Ultimate Reality. Positive.
Wholeness & faith — Jan. 13, 2020 January 9, 2020 Digital Issues1 comment How do we maintain health and wellness? What makes for good relationships? Where do we find purpose throughout the span of our lives? This issue of the Outlook invites you to delve into these questions and consider how our faith impacts our well-being and the lives of others.
Click here to read the issue in the Uberflip reader.
Presbyterian churches promise to help families experiencing homelessness Family Promise partners with churches acr...
Take Me January 10, 2020 Commentary1 comment Take my fervor, take my will.
Make me silent, yielded, still;
wounded, if these wounds may be
windows to eternity.
Take my talent. What’s it worth?
Nothing, save Your humble birth
lights the chamber of my heart,
truth and meaning to impart.
Take my ego. Take my pride.
Let docility abide
in the soul of who I am,
kneeling by my brother Lamb.
Take my intellect and find
faith and trust and peace of mind,
making me content to see
mercy as a mystery.
Take my dwelling. Take my land,
offered to an Unseen Hand
that will give them back to me,
anchored in eternity.
Take my future. Take my past....
MRTI directed to continue policy of corporate engagement for now, companies added to short-list for divestment in 2020 June 22, 2018 Outlook Reporting1 comment ST. LOUIS – No divestment today. On June 22, the 223rdGeneral Assembly elected (with a vote of 409 in favor and 106 opposed) for Mission Responsibility Through Investment (MRTI) to maintain its investments in the fossil-fuel industry, while continuing to vie for more environmentally friendly business practices, and vetting fossil-fuel companies for selective divestment at the 224th General Assembly in 2020.
The assembly passed a significant amendment to the original item. The amendment directs MRTI to report back to the 224thGeneral Assembly in 2020 wit...
Global Language Resources completes ‘intensive period of discovery’
A Corp board gets first look at website designed to ‘help ministry flourish’
LOUISVILLE (PNS) —The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) A Corporation Board got a first look at its new window for the world late Thursday afternoon. As part of a drive toward greater transparency, the denomination’s corporate entity asked for a new website that is “dynamic and engaging,” Melody K. Smith, Organizational Communications Manager for the Presbyterian Mission Agency, said at the meeting. The website was initiated by A Corp President Kathy Lueckert, who started in August. “It’s been a very, very fast process,” said Denise Govindarajan, associate director of information technology. “We’re already in our second iteration.” “They’re just trying to get the message out of what A Corp can offer the church partners and how they can help ministry flourish.” The site, hosted on the Office of the General Assembly’s pcusa.org, opens with a basic primer on A Corp, including an introduction of the A Corp board, its business plan, and an answer to the question, “What is the … [Read more...]
Moving Forward commission narrows list of final recommendations
LOUISVILLE – The Moving Forward Implementation Commission is moving closer to finalizing its recommendations to the 2020 General Assembly. During its Jan. 24 meeting in Louisville, the commission formally voted on one recommendation, and reached “agreement in principle” on others, with a final vote to come later via conference call. It’s leaning towards offering comments to the Special Committee on Per-Capita Based Funding and National Church Financial Sustainability – in part explaining how some of the special committee’s potential recommendations on denominational restructuring and creating campaigns to better explain per capita to Presbyterians in the pews could be answered by the commission’s own work. The commission may also draft its own recommendation, in response to ideas the special committee has been considering regarding creating experiments as potential alternatives to the current per capita funding model. That work was part of the special committee’s mandate from … [Read more...]
People of the words: On paradox
This week, Andrew Taylor-Troutman reflects on words that guide people of faith. Find his blog series here. In a poem, author Brian Doyle wrote, “Wondering why the definitions of love are so often also the definitions of pain.” That is a paradox. Derived from the Greek para- (contrary to) and dokein (to think, seem or appear), a paradox is something that can’t possibly be true. Except, of course, that it is. Physicist Niels Bohr said that the opposite of a profound truth may be another profound truth. The Christian faith is full of paradox: God is three in one and one in three; Jesus is at once fully human and fully divine; the kingdom of heaven is at hand and still to come. To me, at no point is paradox more wonderful than at Christmas: The Creator was born just like everyone else; the Savior has come as a defenseless child. How can such things be true? We should never try to resolve the mystery through sophisticated theological language. That’s why my favorite … [Read more...]
3rd Sunday after Epiphany — January 26, 2020
Isaiah 9:1-4; 1 Corinthians 1:10-18; Matthew 4:12-23 Ordinary 3A Jesus proclaims, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” The time of Jesus’ public ministry is upon us; no longer is the kingdom near, the kingdom is here and now. I wonder sometimes if we postmodern people with all of our technology and distractions, our comforts and connections, our 24-hour news cycle and on-demand everything, ever consider that Jesus is in our midst even as he sits on the right hand of God. Are we aware of the divine right in front of us and the responsibilities our allegiance to the holy requires of us? Who do we think rules our lives and our world, really? What forces and motives, interests and loyalties truly guide our actions? Who in this world has agency and power and influence? And who, alternatively, exists at the mercy or whim of others’ actions? As I read this beautiful passage of comfort from the prophet Isaiah, I’m struggling with the news of states and communities … [Read more...]
Commission members raise questions about possible per capita and restructuring recommendations
LOUISVILLE – Members of the Moving Forward Implementation Commission voiced reservations Jan. 23 about many of the preliminary recommendations from the Special Committee on Per-Capita Based Funding and National Church Financial Sustainability – among them, a proposal for restructuring the top levels of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and the idea of proposing experiments for possible alternatives to the per capita funding system. The commission took no formal votes on the first day of its Jan. 23-24 meeting in Louisville – but the level of skepticism regarding the draft proposals from the special committee was clear, as members raised questions about everything from the cost of the proposals to their effectiveness. “I’m OK with change if there was a good model that made a lot of sense that was clear and easily communicated,” said Mathew Eardley, a commission member from Idaho. But he questioned whether the idea of proposing experiments for alternatives to per capita might … [Read more...]
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