I am back in an active search for another position. It has been 20 years since I was in the call process and a lot has changed. One thing that has not changed is Presbyterians’ love of TLAs. It is baffling when a congregational search committee uses acronyms that refer to local programs. The congregation I’m leaving, for example, offers ASAP, the After School Activities Program. It’s a great program and is accurately named, but it is not helpful to refer to it only by its initials. Likewise, local Presbyterians know that “SLAP” stands for Synod of Lakes and Prairies. (Being on the SLAP permanent judicial commission sounds like a position of real authority!) In the search process there are only three TLAs whose meaning can be assumed: PIF (Personal Information Form, what candidates send out to churches), MIF (Ministry Information Form, the congregational equivalent of PIFs) and PNC (Pastoral Nominating Committee). All other sets of initials should be defined. TLA stands for … [Read more...]
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Outlook Features 3 hours ago
PNCs, watch the TLAs! — Searching for a call or seeking a pastor in the PC(USA)
I am back in an active search for another position. It has been 20 years since I was in the call process and a lot has changed. One thing that has not changed is Presbyterians’ love of TLAs. It is baffling when a congregational search committee uses acronyms that refer to local programs. The congregation I’m leaving, for example, offers ASAP, the After School Activities Program. It’s a great program and is accurately named, but it is not helpful to refer to it only by its initials. Likewise, local Presbyterians… continue reading... -
Outpost Blog 3 hours ago
What does a pastor really do all week?
This month we asked our bloggers about how they view the role of pastor, how they understand their pastoral identity, or to share what a pastor really does all week. Here’s how they responded. The morning starts. The sun is beautiful. The coffee is plentiful. And all I have to do today is write that blog post for Presbyterian Outlook. . . Suddenly the phone rings. My 10:00 meeting wants to become my 1:30 meeting. I say “no problem” and hang up. I go to change the time on my calendar, but… continue reading... -
Outlook Features 1 day ago
A family systems approach to parking lot meetings
I recently Googled the term “parking lot meeting” and discovered something surprising. A number of business and communication instructors currently employ this term positively rather than pejoratively. They use the term to describe a listening technique by which the meeting’s leader addresses important sidebar issues that surface in the meeting – but are not on the official agenda – by placing such issues in a “parking space.” The leader assures those who raised these concerns that they will either be addressed later in that meeting or at a later date. … 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 Uncategorized71 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 Reviews62 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 Reviews54 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.
‘Connecting the dots’ between faith and climate change September 14, 2018 Religion News Service1 comment LOS ANGELES (RNS) —Tackling issues like climate change or protecting the environment often requires a lot of boring, behind-the-scenes work, far from the spotlight.
But sometimes you have to let your light shine, said the Rev. Susan Hendershot Guy, president of Interfaith Power & Light.
For California faith communities, that means taking a public role in the Global Climate Action Summit in San Francisco this week (Sept. 12-14), offering an interfaith service and faith-based workshops among other events.
The three-day summit, co-chaired by Gov. Jerry Brown and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomb...
Finding an alternative to “incarnational ministry” August 31, 2018 Commentary1 comment Guest commentary by Merwyn S. Johnson
I seek to navigate through the rocky shoals of being Presbyterian and Christian today. By all accounts, we are engulfed in an epochal paradigm shift from one era of church-and-culture to another. Our challenge is to go from the old era to the new one without foundering. That will take an authentically new message of grace and truth, centered in Jesus Christ. The widespread language of “incarnational ministry,” however, confines us to the old paradigm.
I started thinking more deeply about this after reading a review of Samuel Wells’ book “
A priest at every elbow July 10, 2018 Outlook Features1 comment The great Baptist theologian Carlyle Marney used the phrase “a priest at every elbow.” Marney was emphasizing a key theological insight in the theology of Martin Luther and the 16th-century Protestant Reformation: the priesthood of all believers. This was a crucial perception for Luther. It is the vision that all Christians are priests. We are priests to each other.
All Christians are priests
The phrase may sound strange to Presbyterian ears. We are used to knowing Roman Catholic priests and Episcopal priests — and they are clergy. Priests hold a revered place in these traditions. They often wear cle...
PNCs, watch the TLAs! — Searching for a call or seeking a pastor in the PC(USA)
What does a pastor really do all week?
This month we asked our bloggers about how they view the role of pastor, how they understand their pastoral identity, or to share what a pastor really does all week. Here’s how they responded. The morning starts. The sun is beautiful. The coffee is plentiful. And all I have to do today is write that blog post for Presbyterian Outlook. . . Suddenly the phone rings. My 10:00 meeting wants to become my 1:30 meeting. I say “no problem” and hang up. I go to change the time on my calendar, but realize I already have a 1:30 appointment. So I go to call my 10:00 back, but it goes straight to voicemail and I get the dreaded voice that says: “Mailbox is full.” I try again, but still no answer. I’ll try again in a bit. I get a refill on coffee then go back to thinking about that blog post . . . I realize I’m late (again) for preschool chapel. The teacher comes and gently (not so gently) knocks on my door while pointing at her watch. I run to the office to grab the weekly Bible … [Read more...]
Survey shows more pastors preach about abuse in #MeToo age
COLUMBUS, Ohio (RNS) — Half of Protestant pastors say they preach to their churches about domestic and sexual violence, an increase from four years ago, when only a third said they raised the issue, a new survey shows. LifeWay Research took a detailed look at Protestant clergy’s attitudes toward abuse and harassment and what they’ve done about it, surveying 1,000 pastors by phone during the summer of 2018 as the #MeToo and #ChurchToo movements dominated the news. The research results were announced during the annual conference of the Religion News Association and released Tuesday (Sept. 18) by We Will Speak Out U.S., a partnership including the social justice organization Sojourners and IMA World Health, an interfaith health agency, both of which co-sponsored the research. Surveyed in June and July, 51 percent of Protestant pastors said they speak to their congregation about the issues at least several times a year, compared with 34 percent in 2014. Almost two-thirds of the … [Read more...]
PC(USA) celebrates Native American Day
(PNS) “Let us worship our Creator with minds open to the wisdom of all God’s people, remembering that once listening and respect once had no place in our society.” These were the opening words to the Call to Worship led by Elona Street-Stewart, executive of the Synod of Lakes and Prairies, as staff and guests celebrated Native American Day at the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) Center in Louisville on September 12. The morning message was preached by the Rev. Irvin Porter, associate for Native American Intercultural Congregational Support. Porter’s sermon, titled “The Place of Beginnings,” was centered around Genesis 1:1–2 and John 1:1–15. Elona Street-Stewart and the Rev. Irvin Porter celebrate communion on Native American Dayat the Presbyterian Center in Louisville on September 12. Gregg Brekke “Creation is the place of beginnings — so much so that John uses it to begin his narrative,” said Porter. “The threefold word in John 1:1 carries us into the depths of eternity, before … [Read more...]
Regarding ruling elders: When we get to ‘not enough’
(OGA) The story of the feeding of the 5,000 in Mark 6 starts with the disciples coming to Jesus and asking him to send the people away to buy food for themselves. Jesus responds to this well-meaning advice by saying, “You give them something to eat” (Mk. 6:37). The disciples look at the crowd and then look at what they have to offer, and their response to Jesus is basically, “It’s not enough!” This same scene also plays itself out in the church repeatedly. Our congregation’s energy, facilities, and money can all seem pitifully lacking. Budget season especially can seem like a yearly opportunity to have our noses rubbed in the reality of “It’s not enough.” Sometimes it may seem that we, ourselves, are not enough. The work of officers in the church carries big responsibilities and serving as leaders can quickly push us to a place of inadequacy. What I have discovered over the years is that these places of insufficiency are invitations to experience God’s sufficiency. They challenge … [Read more...]
A family systems approach to parking lot meetings
I recently Googled the term “parking lot meeting” and discovered something surprising. A number of business and communication instructors currently employ this term positively rather than pejoratively. They use the term to describe a listening technique by which the meeting’s leader addresses important sidebar issues that surface in the meeting – but are not on the official agenda – by placing such issues in a “parking space.” The leader assures those who raised these concerns that they will either be addressed later in that meeting or at a later date. For years, family systems theorists have employed the term “parking lot meetings” in a more pernicious way. I now offer my definition of parking lot meetings from a family systems perspective: “Parking lot meetings” refer to private conversations that take place either before or after an organization’s official meeting or event where select persons of similar opinions discuss concerns about that organization and/or its leaders … [Read more...]
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