tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-116696562024-03-14T00:14:06.339-05:00Not So ReservedWelcome to my park bench from which we can notice and discuss the traces and signs of God's presence and activity in the Alle-Kiski Valley. Have a seat. Relax and take a look around. Something big is happening, and you are invited to participate.Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00775756981894736941noreply@blogger.comBlogger718125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11669656.post-57390820679718104062013-02-19T14:09:00.000-05:002013-02-19T14:09:18.239-05:00Preaching Schedule Lent and Holy Week 2013This Lent and Holy Week I will be preaching on a number of the Sundays and holidays.<br />
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February 13, 2013, Ash Wednesday, 7:00 PM at the NuValley Presbyterian Church in Rural Valley. <br />
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February 17, 2013, First Sunday in Lent, 11:00 AM, at the Presbyterian Church of Goheenville.<br />
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February 24, 2013, Second Sunday in Lent, <a href="http://eventful.com/creekside/events/worship-plumcreek-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-054140518-7" target="_blank">9:00 AM</a> at the Plumcreek Presbyterian Church in Willett. and at <a href="http://eventful.com/home/events/worship-washington-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-054140577-0" target="_blank">10:30 AM</a> at the Washington Presbyterian Church in Home.<br />
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March 3, 2013, Third Sunday in Lent, <a href="http://eventful.com/templeton_pa/events/worship-goheenville-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-054551482-7" target="_blank">11:00 AM</a> at the Presbyterian Church of Goheenville.<br />
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March 10, 2013, Fourth Sunday in Lent, available.<br />
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March 17, 2013, Fifth Sunday in Lent, <a href="http://eventful.com/ruralvalley/events/worship-nuvalley-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-054551529-7" target="_blank">9:30 AM</a>, at the NuValley Presbyterian Church in Rural Valley.<br />
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March 24, 2013, Palm Sunday, <a href="http://eventful.com/ruralvalley/events/palm-sunday-atwood-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-054551590-5" target="_blank">9:00 AM</a> at the Atwood Presbyterian Church in Rural Valley, and at <a href="http://eventful.com/plumville/events/palm-sunday-plumville-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-054551646-3" target="_blank">11:00 AM</a> at the Plumville Presbyterian Church.<br />
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March 28, 2013, Maundy Thursday, <a href="http://eventful.com/ruralvalley/events/maundy-thursday-nuvalley-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-054551709-1" target="_blank">7:00 PM</a> at the NuValley Presbyterian Church in Rural Valley.<br />
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March 31, 2013, Easter Sunday, <a href="http://eventful.com/ruralvalley/events/easter-atwood-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-054551616-2" target="_blank">9:00 AM</a> at the Atwood Presbyterian Church in Rural Valley, and at <a href="http://eventful.com/plumville/events/easter-plumville-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-054551674-6" target="_blank">11:00 AM</a> at the Plumville Presbyterian Church.<br />
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<br />Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00775756981894736941noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11669656.post-74979770751184330332012-06-19T09:57:00.001-05:002012-06-19T09:57:49.718-05:00My Preacing Schedule for JulyI've received my preaching assignments for July. I am scheduled to preach a total of seven times at three congregations, each of which I have visited previously.<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/saltsburg/events/worship-saltsburg-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-048970172-1" target="_blank">July 8, 9:30 AM</a> at the Saltsburg Presbyterian Church, and then <a href="http://eventful.com/saltsburg/events/worship-tunnelton-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-048970208-5" target="_blank">11:00 AM</a> at the Tunnelton Presbyterian Church.<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/saltsburg/events/worship-tunnelton-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-048970253-5" target="_blank">July 15, 11:00 AM</a> at the Tunnelton Presbyterian Church.<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/saltsburg/events/worship-saltsburg-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-048970284-5" target="_blank">July 22, 9:30 AM</a> at the Saltsburg Presbyterian Church, and then <a href="http://eventful.com/saltsburg/events/worship-tunnelton-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-048970317-2" target="_blank">11:00 AM</a> at the Tunnelton Presbyterian Church.<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/apollo/events/worship-apollo-united-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-048970349-1" target="_blank">July 29, 10:00 AM</a> at the <a href="http://www.apollopresby.org/" target="_blank">Apollo United Presbyterian Church</a>.<br />
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By the way, I've been maintaining a map showing the locations of local congregations I have visited, sometimes to preach, sometimes for worship for a special occasion, sometimes for a meeting. (I wait until I actually visit the church before adding it to this map to be sure that I have marked the correct location.) If you don't know where any of these congregations are located, <a href="https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=211110060444586473838.000440f8294625f23ba7b&msa=0" target="_blank">my map</a> might help you.Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00775756981894736941noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11669656.post-88572561506247519202012-05-26T14:47:00.000-05:002012-05-26T14:47:14.493-05:00Preaching schedule for JuneIn June I will be preaching every Sunday. I will preach for the first time at the Saltsburg Presbyterian Church, but will be returning to churches familiar to me on the other three Sundays.<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/springchurch/events/worship-boiling-springs-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-048286044-1" target="_blank">June 3, 2012 at 10 AM</a> at the Boiling Springs Presbyterian Church, Spring Church, PA. This will be a service of Holy Communion.<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/saltsburg/events/worship-tunnelton-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-048286068-1" target="_blank">June 10, 2012 at 11 AM</a> at the Tunnelton Presbyterian Church.<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/saltsburg/events/worship-saltsburg-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-048286128-2" target="_blank">June 17, 2012 at 9:30 AM</a> at the Saltsburg Presbyterian Church.<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/homercity/events/worship-united-presbyterian-church-homer-city-/E0-001-048286180-2" target="_blank">June 24, 2012 at 10 AM</a> at the United Presbyterian Church of Homer City.Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00775756981894736941noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11669656.post-80086945948218747072012-04-30T13:15:00.002-05:002012-04-30T13:15:46.624-05:00Preaching schedule for MayDuring May I will be preaching every Sunday, visiting six different congregations, with three being visited for the first time.<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/clarksburg_pa/events/worship-ebenezer-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-047923260-2" target="_blank">May 6, 2012, 11:00 AM</a> at the Ebenezer Presbyterian Church, in a service that will include Holy Communion.<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/kent_pa/events/worship-jacksonville-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-047923352-2" target="_blank">May 13, 2012, 9:30 AM</a> at the Jacksonville Presbyterian Church in Kent, PA; and then at <a href="http://eventful.com/indiana/events/worship-crete-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-047923507-0" target="_blank">11:00 AM</a> at the Crete Presbyterian Church in Indiana, PA.<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/rochestermills/events/worship-rochester-mills-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-047923691-8" target="_blank">May 20, 2012, 9:30 AM</a> at the Rochester Mills Presbyterian Church; and then at <a href="http://eventful.com/marioncenter/events/worship-gilgal-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-047923807-7" target="_blank">11:00 AM</a> at the Gilgal Presbyterian Church in Marion Center.<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/homercity/events/worship-united-presbyterian-church-homer-city-/E0-001-047923912-8" target="_blank">May 27, 2012 at 11:00 AM</a> at the United Presbyterian Church of Homer City.<br />
<br />Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00775756981894736941noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11669656.post-2190962150181656922012-03-23T16:46:00.000-05:002012-03-23T16:46:33.333-05:00A Christian Art question<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbKvxDUKCe0JSDHoYAyR7rkQmqLRPm09oFVcm5EHijFpBJLFlQjoY092Cm6D907KGXb2-r6rdmSoIva8mCT-TFCp2s0iXZKeqnaO_umZTv0ugtkTTKcQGeBjyq-cFMC8wqRbNK/s1600/womanteachingchild.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbKvxDUKCe0JSDHoYAyR7rkQmqLRPm09oFVcm5EHijFpBJLFlQjoY092Cm6D907KGXb2-r6rdmSoIva8mCT-TFCp2s0iXZKeqnaO_umZTv0ugtkTTKcQGeBjyq-cFMC8wqRbNK/s400/womanteachingchild.JPG" width="233" /></a></div><br />
This Sunday I will be preaching at the <a href="http://www.ebupc.org/" target="_blank">First Presbyterian Church of East Brady</a>. The last time I was there I noticed the many stained glass windows; the picture above is of one window in a prominent location at the front of the sanctuary.<br />
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It is in a style that I have seen when classical paintings were translated into the medium of stained glass. I have not been able to find out what the original painting was.<br />
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It would be easy to assume that the picture is of Mary and Jesus, but usually the art chosen for use in a church sanctuary would be of a scene from the Bible. If this is a scene from the Bible, which one is it? I'm not saying that this was not intended to be a picture of Mary and Jesus, but I can't really tell.<br />
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My best alternate guess is that this is an interpretive depiction of Proverbs 1:8, "Do not reject your mother's teaching."<br />
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Does anybody have any solid information about this picture? I'm interested in hearing what you think or know.<br />
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File under: <a href="http://del.icio.us/sapollock/art" rel="tag" target="_blank">art</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/sapollock/Bible" rel="tag" target="_blank">Bible</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/sapollock/Christianity" rel="tag" target="_blank">Christianity</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/sapollock/First" rel="tag" target="_blank">First</a> <a href="http://del.icio.us/sapollock/Presbyterian" rel="tag" target="_blank">Presbyterian</a> <a href="http://del.icio.us/sapollock/church" rel="tag" target="_blank">Church</a> of <a href="http://del.icio.us/sapollock/East_Brady" rel="tag" target="_blank">East Brady</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/sapollock/religion" rel="tag" target="_blank">religion</a>Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00775756981894736941noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11669656.post-91319056491383035092012-03-21T12:26:00.003-05:002012-03-22T17:11:57.679-05:00Places I'll BeOver the next six weeks, these are some of the places where I can be found. <br />
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<a href="http://www.habitatav.org/events.htm" target="_blank">Saturday, March 24, 2012 12:30-3:30</a>. <a href="http://www.habitatav.org/events.htm" target="_blank">Building Block Blitz</a> in Macy's Court at the <a href="http://pittsburghmills.com/" target="_blank">Galleria at Pittsburgh Mills</a>. Fundraiser for <a href="http://www.habitatav.org/" target="_blank">Habitat for Humanity of Allegheny Valley</a>.<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/eastbrady/events/worship-east-brady-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-046854389-4" target="_blank">Sunday, March 25, 2012 10:30</a>. <a href="http://www.ebupc.org/" target="_blank">First Presbyterian Church of East Brady</a>, where I'll be the guest preacher.<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/avonmore/events/worship-avonmore-fpc-/E0-001-046854728-9" target="_blank">Palm Sunday, April 1, 2012, 11:00 AM</a>. First Presbyterian Church of Avonmore, where I'll be the guest preacher.<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/avonmore/events/easter-worship-avonmore-fpc-/E0-001-046854902-9" target="_blank">Easter Sunday, April 8, 2012, 11:00 AM</a>. First Presbyterian Church of Avonmore, where I'll preach be the guest preacher.<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/homercity/events/worship-united-presbyterian-church-homer-city-/E0-001-046855068-1" target="_blank">Sunday, April 22, 2012, 11:00 AM</a>. at the United Presbyterian Church of Homer City, where I'll be the guest preacher.<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/eastbrady/events/worship-east-brady-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-046855110-3" target="_blank">Sunday, April 29, 2012, 10:30 AM</a>, <a href="http://www.ebupc.org/" target="_blank">First Presbyterian Church of East Brady</a>, where I'll be the guest preacher.<br />
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File under: <a href="http://del.icio.us/sapollock/Allegheny+Valley" rel="tag" target="_blank">Allegheny Valley</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/sapollock/Avonmore" rel="tag" target="_blank">Avonmore</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/sapollock/fundraiser" rel="tag" target="_blank">fundraiser</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/sapollock/East_Brady" rel="tag" target="_blank">East Brady</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/sapollock/Easter" rel="tag" target="_blank">Easter</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/sapollock/Habitat" target="_blank">Habitat</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/sapollock/Homer_City" rel="tag" target="_blank">Homer City</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/sapollock/Palm_Sunday" rel="tag" target="_blank">Palm Sunday</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/Pittsburgh+Mills" rel="tag" target="_blank">Pittsburgh Mills</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/sapollock/Tarentum" rel="tag" target="_blank">Tarentum</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/sapollock/worship" rel="tag" target="_blank">worship</a>Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00775756981894736941noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11669656.post-84026526196847541572012-01-28T07:22:00.000-05:002012-01-28T07:22:38.929-05:00Updated February scheduleBecause of a change in the needs of two congregations, I will be free for preaching on February 26. My remaining preaching dates for February are as follows:<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/eastbrady/events/worship-first-presbyterian-church-east-brady-/E0-001-044267483-9">January 29, 2012, at 10:30 AM</a>, at the <a href="http://www.ebupc.org/" target="_blank">First Presbyterian Church of East Brady</a>.<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/clarksburg_pa/events/worship-ebenezer-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-045128808-7">February 5, 2012, at 11:00 AM</a>, at the Ebenezer Presbyterian Church in Lewisville.<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/homercity/events/worship-united-presbyterian-church-homer-city-/E0-001-045128961-5">February 12, 2012, at 10:00 AM</a>, at the United Presbyterian Church in Homer City.<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/dayton_pa/events/worship-glade-run-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-045129065-7">February 19, 2012, at 11:00 AM</a>, at the <a href="http://www.daytongladerun.org/" target="_blank">Dayton Glade Run Presbyterian Church</a>.Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00775756981894736941noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11669656.post-67081169011513706552012-01-26T10:48:00.000-05:002012-01-26T10:48:15.262-05:00Five Sundays aheadI am booked to preach the next five Sundays:<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/eastbrady/events/worship-first-presbyterian-church-east-brady-/E0-001-044267483-9">January 29, 2012, at 10:30 AM</a>, at the <a href="http://www.ebupc.org/" target="_blank">First Presbyterian Church of East Brady</a>.<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/clarksburg_pa/events/worship-ebenezer-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-045128808-7">February 5, 2012, at 11:00 AM</a>, at the Ebenezer Presbyterian Church in Lewisville.<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/homercity/events/worship-united-presbyterian-church-homer-city-/E0-001-045128961-5">February 12, 2012, at 10:00 AM</a>, at the United Presbyterian Church in Homer City.<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/dayton_pa/events/worship-glade-run-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-045129065-7">February 19, 2012, at 11:00 AM</a>, at the <a href="http://www.daytongladerun.org/" target="_blank">Dayton Glade Run Presbyterian Church</a>.<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/ruralvalley/events/worship-atwood-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-045129300-7">February 26, 2012, at 9:00 AM</a>, at the Atwood Presbyterian Church in Rural Valley, and <a href="http://eventful.com/plumville/events/worship-plumville-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-045129370-6">at 11:00 AM</a> at the <a href="http://www.pcplumville.org/" target="_blank">Plumville Presbyterian Church</a>.<br />
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I believe these will be my first times preaching in East Brady, Homer City, Dayton Glade Run, and Plumville.Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00775756981894736941noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11669656.post-35513989201373525572011-12-03T14:29:00.000-05:002011-12-03T14:29:42.015-05:00Preaching in DecemberI'll be preaching three times this month.<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/saltsburg/events/worship-tunnelton-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-044051046-7" target="_blank">December 4 at 11:00 AM</a> at the Tunnelton Presbyterian Church.<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/creekside/events/worship-plum-creek-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-044051105-9" target="_blank">December 25 at 9:00 AM</a> at the Plum Creek Presbyterian Church, in Creekside, PA.<br />
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<a href="http://eventful.com/home/events/worship-washington-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-044051064-3" target="_blank">December 25 at 10:30 AM</a> at the Washington Presbyterian Church, in Home, PA.Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00775756981894736941noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11669656.post-92191946711703539182011-06-27T11:00:00.000-05:002011-06-27T11:00:57.055-05:00Two trips across the riverIn the last fortnight I've made a couple of trips that were significant to me back across the Allegheny River from where I live in Lower Burrell.<br />
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On Sunday, June 19 I went to Brackenridge to officiate at the wedding of Brian Waters and Heather Basista. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiuOqn1GS2TqE9iqyH0CyZ31XJBQQCLw8WNYok-wwoODpZTb0kI-T-lL3O2VJrNrpWfLxLGtFHGN9AmoEU8VHxdFmP9SoYYwBZMOl0ktzdmh2TRBioAJtwdTnPCIrsmsTH7voY/s1600/IMG_0133%255B1%255D" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiuOqn1GS2TqE9iqyH0CyZ31XJBQQCLw8WNYok-wwoODpZTb0kI-T-lL3O2VJrNrpWfLxLGtFHGN9AmoEU8VHxdFmP9SoYYwBZMOl0ktzdmh2TRBioAJtwdTnPCIrsmsTH7voY/s320/IMG_0133%255B1%255D" width="320" /></a></div>It was a beautiful day in the park along First Avenue. On the heels of a long spell of rain, we were able to complete the service without anyone getting drenched.<br />
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The couple had decided to include a ceremony I had never seen before. Similar in concept to the unity candle, the couple poured two colors of sand into a common vessel. <br />
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The following Saturday, June 25, I went into Tarentum because I had heard about a Mission Fair and Strawberry Festival that was going to happen at the Central Presbyterian Church of Tarentum. I crossed the bridge early and walked around Tarentum for a while. A friend recognized me while we crossed a street going in opposite directions. "Five days away from heroin," he announced with a smile. <br />
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I gave him a thumbs up and said, "Keep it up." What a difficult journey people face when fighting addictions. It can be a very long journey that one has to start over many times. <br />
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I decided to use some of my free time to relax in Riverview Park for a little while. I sat at a bench and looked across the river. Water is such a significant symbol of God's activity for me, representing cleansing, healing, renewal, freedom, and also destruction.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl8btENDL0V77BUqShVhaucRm2lwpHMLp3arDwTyfC3_3M0NrbSicxBglju9mj_zMWBtcT7C8Lw4Fa8MzO_on0SH0A8bTntl-q7NIOzj0LP8R40Afk9O__NYAktOEpze4-0YqH/s1600/IMG_0148%255B1%255D" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl8btENDL0V77BUqShVhaucRm2lwpHMLp3arDwTyfC3_3M0NrbSicxBglju9mj_zMWBtcT7C8Lw4Fa8MzO_on0SH0A8bTntl-q7NIOzj0LP8R40Afk9O__NYAktOEpze4-0YqH/s320/IMG_0148%255B1%255D" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Over at Central Presbyterian Church I found a flurry of activity, and I appreciated the opportunity to chat with many old friends. The Clothing Closet had changed its hours for this event, and many people were checking out the clothing that was available. A number of organizations had representatives at tables: The Allegheny Valley Association of Churches, the Alle-Kiski Hope Center, the Highlands Family Center, Tarentum History and Landmarks, Central Quilters, to name just a few. There was an a la carte lunch, and the dessert was cake and strawberries and ice cream. The whole event was to support mission, generating funds that would not stay in the small congregation.Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00775756981894736941noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11669656.post-84757948219210718402011-02-25T10:23:00.001-05:002011-02-25T10:25:41.448-05:00My next four preaching engagementsThree of my next four preaching engagements will take me to congregations that I will visit for the first time.<br /><br /><a href="http://eventful.com/murrysville/events/worship-newlonsburg-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-036396619-0" target="_blank">Sunday, February 27, 2011 at 8:30 and 11:00 AM</a> at the <a href="http://newlonsburgchurch.org/" target="_blank">Newlonsburg Presbyterian Church</a> in Murrysville.<br /><br /><a href="http://eventful.com/clarksburg_pa/events/worship-ebenezer-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-037195037-0" target="_blank">Sunday, March 6, 2011 at 11:00 AM</a> at the Ebenezer Presbyterian Church in Lewisville.<br /><br /><a href="http://eventful.com/ruralvalley/events/ash-wednesday-atwood-/E0-001-037194257-5" target="_blank">Ash Wednesday, March 9, 2011 at 7:30 PM</a> at the Atwood Presbyterian Church.<br /><br /><a href="http://eventful.com/clarksburg_pa/events/worship-trinity-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-037217618-8" target="_blank">Sunday, March 13, 2011 at 11:00 AM</a> at the Trinity Presbyterian Church in Clarksburg.<br /><br />I am looking forward to visiting the Ebenezer Presbyterian Church again, and to visiting the Newlonsburg Presbyterian Church, the Atwood Presbyterian Church, and the Trinity Presbyterian Church for the first time.<p xmlns="" class="zoundry_raven_tags"> <!-- Tag links generated by Zoundry Raven. Do not manually edit. http://www.zoundryraven.com --> <span class="ztags"><span class="ztagspace">File under</span> : <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/Clarksburg" class="ztag" rel="tag">Clarksburg</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/Ebenezer" class="ztag" rel="tag">Ebenezer</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/PCUSA" class="ztag" rel="tag">PCUSA</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/Presbyterian+Church" class="ztag" rel="tag">Presbyterian Church</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/Trinity" class="ztag" rel="tag">Trinity</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/worship" class="ztag" rel="tag">worship</a></span> <br /></p>Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00775756981894736941noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11669656.post-12582035840454581082011-01-05T12:19:00.003-05:002011-01-05T12:31:30.441-05:00Map of some churches in the areaFor a few years I have been assembling a map on <a href="http://maps.google.com/" target="_blank">Google Maps</a> to record and share the locations of area churches I have visited. I created <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=211110060444586473838.000440f8294625f23ba7b&t=h&z=9" target="_blank">this map</a> because, as a transplant to Western Pennsylvania, my early experience was that any journey far from home was almost certain to cause me to get lost at least once.<br /><br />When I started using a <a href="http://www.garmin.com/" target="_blank">Garmin</a> nüvi to get around, I continued to use Google Maps in satellite view to identify the precise location of churches I planned to visit, and sometimes I would remember to update this map after I actually visited the place.<br /><br />A few months ago, disaster struck when the GPX file in which I had been recording the locations of churches got corrupted while I was updating it to my nüvi. (Yes, I know - when adding data to a file it is always a good idea to keep a backup copy.) Fortunately, I had remembered to put some of what I had learned on this map as I originally researched the information for my nüvi. As I rebuild my GPX file, I will continue to update this map.<br /><br />I've also learned over recent years that the internet lacks information about the locations of many rural churches. Sometimes the only address on the internet is a P.O. Box or the location of the manse, or the home address of a church officer who receives the church's mail. If it will help someone else, I'd like to share my map of these places of worship with others.<br /><br />I don't vouch for the completeness of this map. I do vouch for the fact that I have been to each of these churches, and that they are at the locations represented on the map. (If you see any errors, please let me know.)<br /><br /><iframe width="300" height="300" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" src="http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?client=firefox-a&hl=en&ie=UTF8&t=h&msa=0&msid=211110060444586473838.000440f8294625f23ba7b&ll=40.622292,-79.741516&spn=0.312706,0.411987&z=10&output=embed"></iframe><br /><small>View <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?client=firefox-a&hl=en&ie=UTF8&t=h&msa=0&msid=211110060444586473838.000440f8294625f23ba7b&ll=40.622292,-79.741516&spn=0.312706,0.411987&z=10&source=embed" style="color:#0000FF;text-align:left">Churches around Tarentum</a> in a larger map</small><br /><p xmlns="" class="zoundry_raven_tags"> <!-- Tag links generated by Zoundry Raven. Do not manually edit. http://www.zoundryraven.com --> <span class="ztags"><span class="ztagspace">File under</span> : <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/Alle-Kiski+Valley" class="ztag" rel="tag">Alle-Kiski Valley</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/Allegheny+Valley" class="ztag" rel="tag">Allegheny Valley</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/Kiskiminetas+Presbytery" class="ztag" rel="tag">Kiskiminetas Presbytery</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/Pittsburgh+Presbytery" class="ztag" rel="tag">Pittsburgh Presbytery</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/Redstone+Presbytery" class="ztag" rel="tag">Redstone Presbytery</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/Tarentum" class="ztag" rel="tag">Tarentum</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/church" class="ztag" rel="tag">church</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/map" class="ztag" rel="tag">map</a></span> <br /></p>Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00775756981894736941noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11669656.post-19265443222804994992010-12-29T13:01:00.002-05:002010-12-29T13:06:31.475-05:00Preaching in January 2011In January I will have a full month of guest preaching, with commitments made for each of the five Sundays.<br /><br /><a href="http://eventful.com/events/worship-goheenville-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-035786722-3" target="_blank">January 2, 2011, 11 AM</a> at the Presbyterian Church of Goheenville, Templeton, PA.<br /><br /><a href="http://eventful.com/events/worship-nuvalley-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-035786731-1" target="_blank">January 9, 2011, 9:30 AM</a> at the NuValley Presbyterian Church, Rural Valley, PA.<br /><br /><a href="http://eventful.com/events/worship-westminster-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-035508272-1" target="_blank">January 16, 2011, 8:15 and 10:45 AM</a> at the <a href="http://www.wpcgbg.com/" target="_blank">Westminster Presbyterian Church</a>, Greensburg, PA.<br /><br /><a href="http://eventful.com/events/worship-worthington-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-035786734-8" target="_blank">January 23. 2011, 10:45 AM</a> at the Worthington Presbyterian Church, Worthington, PA.<br /><br /><a href="http://eventful.com/events/worship-apollo-united-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-035786739-3" target="_blank">January 30, 2011, 10:45</a> at the <a href="http://www.apollopresby.org/" target="_blank">Apollo United Presbyterian Church</a>, Apollo, PA.<br /><br />Some of these are churches where I have preached before, but there is always something new. This will be my first time at the Presbyterian Church of Goheenville, but I have been past it a number of times. This church is along the route I normally follow when I make the long drive from Lower Burrell to visit my parents and siblings in Cooperstown, New York. I pass it during the first hour of my journey up, and it is one of the landmarks that tells me I am getting close to home on the return trip. I am probably not the only preacher whose attention is drawn to houses of worship when on long trips. I usually find myself wondering about how the congregations that use those buildings reach out to their communities. I am looking forward to the first time that I actually will stop in Goheenville.<br /><br />When I saw that I was going to preach at NuValley Presbyterian Church, I did a double-take. My printed 2009 directory for <a href="http://www.kiskipby.org/" target="_blank">Kiskiminetas Presbytery</a> does not list that church. Then I learned that this is a new congregation formed from <a href="http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/s_694582.html" target="_blank">the merger of two congregations</a> that had done many things together over the years. In fact, just last January I preached for both of the congregations that went into the merger. At each church I had conversations with leaders of the two congregations in which they told me about their upcoming decision on merger. They felt trepidation about whether they could get the merger to happen, but it was clear to the leaders on both sides that the merger was something that had arisen out of the shared lives and ministries of the two congregations. I am looking forward to January 9 when I will guest preach for the first time at the NuValley Church, barely five months into its existence and service as one congregation.<br /><br />I have not preached at the Westminster Presbyterian Church before, but that was where I met with a team from the Committee on Ministry of <a href="http://www.redstone.org/" target="_blank">Redstone Presbytery</a> about being put on their pulpit supply list. This will be an interesting and full morning of two services, with an informal service with Communion early, and then a traditional service later.<br /><br />I believe this will be my second time at the Worthington Presbyterian Church. I preached there at the beginning of this month for a service of Communion. They have many friendly people and a lovely, intimate worship space with the Table in the center.<br /><br />I have preached a few times at the Apollo church, and look forward to being back with their friendly people and fascinating architecture.<p xmlns="" class="zoundry_raven_tags"> <!-- Tag links generated by Zoundry Raven. Do not manually edit. http://www.zoundryraven.com --> <span class="ztags"><span class="ztagspace">File under</span> : <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/Apollo" class="ztag" rel="tag">Apollo</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/Greensburg" class="ztag" rel="tag">Greensburg</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/PCUSA" class="ztag" rel="tag">PCUSA</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/Presbyterian+Church" class="ztag" rel="tag">Presbyterian Church</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/worship" class="ztag" rel="tag">worship</a></span> </p>Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00775756981894736941noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11669656.post-42976484221916054762010-11-30T11:51:00.003-05:002010-11-30T12:00:41.882-05:00Sights, sounds, tastes, feelings at the end of NovemberThis is just a description of random observations from yesterday.<br /><br />When I woke in the morning I was hearing gunshots in the distance from various directions. It was the <a href="http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/lifestyles/columnists/scottpaulsen/s_711127.html" target="_blank" title="A visit from the game warden - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review">first day of rifle season for hunting deer</a> and my apartment was on the top of a hill overlooking the Allegheny valley, so I often hear sounds that come from a distance. I remembered that the previous day in worship at <a href="http://www.pucketychurch.org/" target="_blank">Puckety Presbyterian Church</a> one of the prayer requests was for the hunters. Ever since I moved to Western Pennsylvania, it has been my consistent experience that someone makes this prayer request in church on the Sunday of Thanksgiving weekend. So the day started with sounds that reminded me to pray.<br /><br />Part of my day involved making a hospital visit at the <a href="http://www.wpahs.org/akmc/" target="_blank">Alle-Kiski Medical Center</a>. Before I made it in the door I was amazed at the beautiful clouds in the sky. Truly the heavens declare God's handiwork!<br /><br /><img src="http://home.comcast.net/~park_bench/zmr2/clouds_a_11_29_10.JPG" style="WIDTH: 380px; DISPLAY: inline; HEIGHT: 414px" title="clouds" height="414" width="380" alt="Photo of clouds 11-29-2010"/><br /><br /><img src="http://home.comcast.net/~park_bench/zmr2/clouds_11_29_10.JPG" style="WIDTH: 380px; DISPLAY: inline; HEIGHT: 285px" title="clouds" height="285" width="380" alt="Photo of clouds 11-29-2010"/><br /><br />When I stopped for lunch in the hospital cafeteria, I was surprised to hear the sounds of accordion playing in the dining room. A musician was there playing for the entertainment of the volunteers, staff, and visitors. He only played a few polkas, but people sitting at the table closest to him were making requests, and he clearly knew a lot of music. The cafeteria was offering kielbasa, pierogies, potato pancakes, and halushki. It must have been in honor of some Polish holiday. I found on the internet that November 29 is a celebration called Andrzejki (St. Andrew's Eve); I was not sure if the day was special for that or if it was a remembrance of the November uprising in 1830. Whatever was the occasion for this Polish theme, it made for a memorable and tasty lunch.<br /><br />I went back to Puckety Church in the afternoon to do some cleaning out of my office. On Sunday I had not noticed the creche set out in front of the church.<br /><br /><img src="http://home.comcast.net/~park_bench/zmr2/pucketycreche.JPG" style="WIDTH: 380px; DISPLAY: inline; HEIGHT: 428px" title="creche in front of Puckety Presbyterian Church 11-29-2010" height="428" width="380" alt="Photo of creche in front of Puckety Presbyterian Church 11-29-2010 Lower Burrell"/><br /><br />I took home from the office the few items I had brought at the start of the month: my preaching robe and the selection of stoles I had planned to use for the month. As I folded them up I recognized that I was going through another transition in my life. Even though I was only going to be at Puckety for a short time, it had been significant to me to have a place to hang my robe, where it would be ready for me on Sunday morning. Of course, I still have a place to hang my robe in my closet at home, but there is a different feeling when one has a regular workplace where a few personal tools and items can remain for when they are needed. I was reminded of how many offices, cubicles, or lockers have been vacated by so many people affected by the downturn in the economy. So many people have been going through these transitions. God is leading us somewhere.<br /><br />Sunday was the last of the series of four Sundays where I had preached at Puckety, and a number of people had kind words to say about how I had been helpful during the month. The congregation is definitely is looking forward to the arrival of Rev. Kirk Orr this week. This will be a good Advent season for them, and I am glad if I was able to do anything to help them prepare for it.<br /><br />For those who are interested in where they will be able to hear me preach in December, I have been booked for two Sundays next month. This Sunday, <a href="http://eventful.com/worthington_pa/events/worship-worthington-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-035412196-2" target="_blank">December 5</a>, I will be at the <a href="http://www.portsys.net/~wpc" target="_blank">Worthington Presbyterian Church</a>. And then <a href="http://eventful.com/scottdale/events/christmas-eve-worship-calvin-united-presbyterian-/E0-001-035412433-0" target="_blank">Christmas Eve</a>, I will lead the service at the <a href="http://www.calvinupchurchscottdale.org/" target="_blank">Calvin United Presbyterian Church in Scottdale</a>.<p xmlns="" class="zoundry_raven_tags"> <!-- Tag links generated by Zoundry Raven. Do not manually edit. http://www.zoundryraven.com --> <span class="ztags"><span class="ztagspace">File under</span> : <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/AKMC" class="ztag" rel="tag">AKMC</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/Advent" class="ztag" rel="tag">Advent</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/PCUSA" class="ztag" rel="tag">PCUSA</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/Puckety+Presbyterian+Church" class="ztag" rel="tag">Puckety Presbyterian Church</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/food" class="ztag" rel="tag">food</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/music" class="ztag" rel="tag">music</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/pictures" class="ztag" rel="tag">pictures</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/prayer" class="ztag" rel="tag">prayer</a></span> </p>Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00775756981894736941noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11669656.post-37562805977679133312010-11-12T09:11:00.001-05:002010-11-12T09:14:03.052-05:00An Anti-Bullying Message From the NOH8 Campaign<object width="400" height="250"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/MhFZ7qjrw5U?fs=1&hl=en_US&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/MhFZ7qjrw5U?fs=1&hl=en_US&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="400" height="250"></embed></object>Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00775756981894736941noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11669656.post-21431535436957380932010-11-06T17:21:00.002-05:002010-11-06T17:27:04.475-05:00My work in NovemberDuring the month of November I am working at the <a href="http://www.pucketychurch.org/" target="_blank">Puckety Presbyterian Church</a> here in Lower Burrell. The congregation recently elected the Rev. Kirk Orr as pastor, and I will be providing pastoral care services before he moves up here and starts.<br /><br />In addition to preaching every Sunday in November and doing some pastoral visitation, I will moderate one meeting of the church's session.<br /><br />From the pastor's study I look across the church parking lot to the Burrell High School.<br /><br /><a href="http://home.comcast.net/~park_bench/zmr2/viewfromstudy.JPG"><img src="http://home.comcast.net/~park_bench/zmr2/zrtn_001p35b1e6b4_tn.jpg" style="WIDTH: 400px; HEIGHT: 300px" height="300" width="400"/></a><br /><br />It feels good to be back into a weekly work schedule connected to a congregation. In supply preaching my responsibilities have been limited to preparing a sermon and leading worship.<p xmlns="" class="zoundry_raven_tags"> <!-- Tag links generated by Zoundry Raven. Do not manually edit. http://www.zoundryraven.com --> <span class="ztags"><span class="ztagspace">File under</span> : <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/Lower+Burrell" class="ztag" rel="tag">Lower Burrell</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/Presbyterian+Church" class="ztag" rel="tag">Presbyterian Church</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/worship" class="ztag" rel="tag">worship</a></span> </p>Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00775756981894736941noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11669656.post-86876442991991600832010-10-26T16:49:00.000-05:002010-10-26T16:50:04.559-05:00Storm approaching<p><a href="http://home.comcast.net/~park_bench/zmr2/stormapproaching.JPG"><img src="http://home.comcast.net/~park_bench/zmr2/zrtn_001p9cc057d_tn.jpg" style="WIDTH: 400px; HEIGHT: 368px" height="368" width="400"/></a></p><br /><p>This picture was taken minutes before heavy rains and winds arrived.</p><br /><p xmlns="" class="zoundry_raven_tags"><br /> <!-- Tag links generated by Zoundry Raven. Do not manually edit. http://www.zoundryraven.com --><br /> <span class="ztags"><span class="ztagspace">File under</span> : <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/Lower+Burrell" class="ztag" rel="tag">Lower Burrell</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/picture" class="ztag" rel="tag">picture</a></span> <br /></p>Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00775756981894736941noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11669656.post-26001727766616646432010-09-12T15:04:00.002-05:002010-09-12T15:09:43.213-05:00Adult Sunday School class - developments in the PCUSAA gap developed in my supply preaching schedule, so the <a href="http://www.tupcnk.org/" target="_blank">United Presbyterian Church of New Kensington</a> (the congregation where I worship when not out preaching somewhere) invited me to do a two-session adult class on polity changes in the <a href="http://www.pcusa.org/" target="_blank">Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)</a>. The class will be held in fellowship hall at 9:30 AM on Sunday September 19 and 26.<br /><br />There are so many things that came out of the 219th General Assembly, including seventeen different proposed amendments to the church constitution. The congregation has done some creative things with the arts in worship, so I will probably want to speak at least briefly about the opening worship service at the Assembly. The congregation has an active youth program, so I probably will also want to say something about the contributions of the Young Adult Advisory Delegates to the Assembly.<br /><br />Each of the seventeen proposed amendments is about something important to the life of the church. Three of the proposed amendments are going to be getting a lot of attention, so I will probably use my limited class time to open conversations about them in the class. (Of course, I wouldn't be myself if I didn't believe that at least one of the apparently innocuous proposals was a bad idea. I may have to sit on those thoughts and save them for a rainy day - or for debate in presbytery.)</p><br /><p>On September 19 we'll discuss the implications of adding the Belhar Confession to our Book of Confessions, and then turn to a discussion of amendment 10-A (the one about ordination standards).<br /><br />On September 26 we'll look at the Revised Form of Government, and discuss the implications of the paradigm shift envisioned in this major amendment to our Form of Government. If there is time, we may be able to have a discussion of some of the other proposed amendments.<br /><br />If you'll be in the area on either of those Sundays, please join us.<p xmlns="" class="zoundry_raven_tags"> <!-- Tag links generated by Zoundry Raven. Do not manually edit. http://www.zoundryraven.com --> <span class="ztags"><span class="ztagspace">File under</span> : <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/GA219" class="ztag" rel="tag">GA219</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/New+Kensington" class="ztag" rel="tag">New Kensington</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/PCUSA" class="ztag" rel="tag">PCUSA</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/Presbyterian+Church+%28U.S.A.%29" class="ztag" rel="tag">Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/nFOG" class="ztag" rel="tag">nFOG</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/polity" class="ztag" rel="tag">polity</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/rFOG" class="ztag" rel="tag">rFOG</a></span> <br /></p>Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00775756981894736941noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11669656.post-59713031940151574732010-08-26T05:55:00.001-05:002010-08-26T05:58:58.768-05:00A day in the life of a Self-Sufficiency Services CoordinatorYesterday was a good day, so I thought I would use it to give some examples of the kinds of things I've been doing since February in my job at the <a href="http://www.avaoc.org/">Allegheny Valley Association of Churches</a> as a Self-Sufficiency Services Coordinator. My job is one of those rather directly created by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, and its goal has been to help people affected by the downturn in the economy get back to self-sufficiency.<br /><br />The first half of the day revolved around the audit of my program's files by the monitor from Allegheny County. This was the third of the quarterly reviews in which I have participated, having come into this position four months into its program year. These audits are an important part of being accountable for the services we provided. I was pleased that this review went well.<br /><br />In the remainder of the day, I saw two clients when they came in for the food bank, I played phone tag with two other clients and succeeded in connecting with one of them, and met another client off-site.<br /><br />The off-site meeting was with an unemployed man who I transported to the Alle-Kiski Career Link in New Kensington for help with his resume and to refer him to the <a href="http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/community/way_to_work/19161" target="_blank">Pennsylvania Way to Work Program</a>.<br /><br />One of the clients I met at my office is starting classes at a local university next week, after having taken some required classes through the summer at the New Kensington campus of Westmoreland County Community College. Two of my clients are finishing a course at the University of Pittsburgh Manufacturing Assistance Center this week; they each just received certifications in machining that should make them more employable. I am really happy for them about their accomplishments.<br /><br />One of the clients I saw talked with me about getting some help for a family member, and we identified some steps that can be taken now.<br /><br />This was a good day. I did not have quite as many frustrations with tracking people down as I do sometimes, and I was able to celebrate some significant steps forward.<p xmlns="" class="zoundry_raven_tags"> <!-- Tag links generated by Zoundry Raven. Do not manually edit. http://www.zoundryraven.com --> <span class="ztags"><span class="ztagspace">File under</span> : <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/ARRA" class="ztag" rel="tag">ARRA</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/AVAC" class="ztag" rel="tag">AVAC</a></span> </p>Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00775756981894736941noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11669656.post-50098210267126082772010-08-05T06:55:00.003-05:002010-08-05T07:03:04.220-05:00The promise seen from afar<img src="http://home.comcast.net/~park_bench/zmr2/moses_mtn.JPG" style="WIDTH: 398px; DISPLAY: inline; HEIGHT: 606px" title="Moses on Mt. Nebo, stained glass at the Mt. Nebo Presbyterian Church, Sewickley, PA" height="606" width="398" alt="Moses on Mt. Nebo, stained glass at the Mt. Nebo Presbyterian Church, Sewickley, PA"/></p><br /><p>I am not accustomed to seeing stained glass depictions of Moses. This past Sunday I preached at the <a href="http://www.mtnebopc.org/" target="_blank">Mt. Nebo Presbyterian Church</a>, and the window shown above was in the center of the chancel. (I think this is the first time in my life that I have seen a stained glass of Moses in a Presbyterian Church.) I find that I am still reflecting on it days later.<br /><br />The story it depicts, of Moses on Mt. Nebo (Deuteronomy 34:1-5), is a story about denial and promise. Moses is allowed to see the promised land, but is reminded that he will not enter it with the people. It's not really news to him. In Deuteronomy 32:48-52, God commanded Moses to go up Mt. Nebo, described what he would see, and reminded Moses that he was not going to enter the land because he had broken faith with God earlier in his life.<br /><br />How had Moses broken faith? Moses was denied entrance to the promised land because in Numbers 20:1-13, in the story of the miracle of bringing forth water from the rock, Moses and Aaron had not trusted God. It hardly seems fair to me. Moses and Aaron were in a bad spot, they turned to God, they sort of followed God's directions (although not in the bold way they were commanded), and the miracle happened anyhow. No harm, no foul? Not according to this story. And because of it God decided that neither Moses nor Aaron would lead the people into the promised land.<br /><br />Even after Moses was obedient to God the rest of his life in leading the people of Israel in the wilderness, God held to the decision that Moses would not lead the people into the promised land.<br /><br />So on Mt Nebo, God allows Moses to see the vast expanse of the promised land, and reminds him that he is not going there. But the focus in this part of the story is on the promise, and Moses is not just someone being denied entry, but he is the witness of the promise given.<br /><br />One of the striking features of this story is that Moses has no lines. Moses has spoken through most of the previous 33 chapters. But here his role is merely to witness God's promise and then die. His personal feelings about the whole thing are not revealed, which seems unusual to me given the many times when a reader of Moses' story is shown how Moses felt about his experiences. His angers, his fears, his love for the people have been described in so many other events in the story; but here there is no clue what Moses is feeling. Is he disappointed that he won't actually enter the land? Is he content with knowing that the people will enter? It is not reasonable to conclude that a man whose vigor is not abated would have no feelings about the situation. He must have feelings, but they are not revealed.<br /><br />The concealment of Moses' feelings is an invitation for readers like me to project onto Moses the feelings that we imagine we would have in his place.<br /><br />I suspect Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. may have made some reasonable guesses in his <a href="http://americanradioworks.publicradio.org/features/sayitplain/mlking.html" target="_blank" title=""I've been to the mountaintop"">final address/sermon</a> in which he alluded to the story of Moses on Mt. Nebo:<blockquote><br /><em>Well, I don't know what will happen now. We've got some difficult days ahead. But it really doesn't matter with me now. Because I've been to the mountaintop. And I don't mind. Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I'm not concerned about that now. I just want to do God's will. And He's allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I've looked over. And I've seen the promised land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the promised land! So I'm happy, tonight. I'm not worried about anything. I'm not fearing any man. Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord!</em></blockquote><p xmlns="" class="zoundry_raven_tags"><!-- Tag links generated by Zoundry Raven. Do not manually edit. http://www.zoundryraven.com --> <span class="ztags"><span class="ztagspace">File under</span> : <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/art" class="ztag" rel="tag">art</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/faith" class="ztag" rel="tag">faith</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/hope" class="ztag" rel="tag">hope</a></span> </p>Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00775756981894736941noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11669656.post-51400757893262025822010-07-29T07:36:00.004-05:002010-07-29T07:41:48.224-05:00Is your congregation ready for the Revised Form of Government?Earlier this month the <a href="http://ga219.pcusa.org/" target="_blank">219th General Assembly</a> of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) voted to submit an amended version of the Revised Form of Government (called nFOG by some) to the Presbyteries for their affirmative or negative votes.<br /><br />During a break in the work of the Assembly Committee on the Form of Government Revision an observer voiced a concern to me that I summarize in the following hypothetical:<br /><br /><em>After adoption of the Revised form of Government, the session of a PCUSA congregation discerns that in order to participate in God's mission, a specific step must be taken that requires an affirmative vote of a congregational meeting. A member of the congregation is unhappy with the decision made by the rest of the congregation, and goes to court challenging, among other things, whether the members of the congregation had adequate notice of the meeting and whether a quorum was present. He argues that because Revised Form of Government gives the congregation the authority to determine its quorum and this congregation has not adopted a rule stating its quorum, the congregation needed to have at least half of the membership present in order to have a quorum. He also argues that the session had a responsibility under the Revised Form of Government to give adequate notice of the meeting, and that the way the session publicized the meeting did not meet that vague standard of adequacy.</em><br /><br />What is the best way to head off this problem?<br /><br />(a) The session should never let the congregation vote on anything with which anyone might disagree.<br /><br />(b) The session's presbytery should overture the General Assembly to propose an amendment to the Form of Government that would specify what the quorum is for every congregational meeting, and determine what adequate notice would be for every congregation in the PCUSA.<br /><br />(c) The session should call a congregational meeting at which the congregation could agree on its quorum and what notice of a meeting would be adequate.<br /><br />(d) Stop the nFOG! The session should exert all of its efforts to ensure that the Revised Form of Government never gets adopted and they never get put in a situation where this hypothetical situation might occur.<br /><br />(e) Maybe you have ideas of your own.<br /><br /><img src="http://home.comcast.net/~park_bench/zmr2/setphasers.JPG" style="WIDTH: 398px; DISPLAY: inline; HEIGHT: 166px" title='And now, as our vice-moderator would say, "Set phasers to stun ... we await results."' height="166" width="398" alt='And now, as our vice-moderator would say, "Set phasers to stun ... we await results."'/><br /><br />(a) If you selected (a), you are partly right that the session needs to do some groundwork (and sometimes a lot) with the congregation before taking important actions. But if the fear of displeasing a single member of the congregation will prevent the session from leading the congregation to join in God's work, this session may be too risk-averse to attempt anything.<br /><br />(b) If you selected (b) you might do well to revisit the history of the PCUSA's trial with this very approach to specifying the quorum of a congregation. Only two years after the 1984 Reunion the church adopted the rule expressed in the current Form of Government as a replacement for a formula that specified the quorum of every congregation - a rule that was not working for many congregations.<br /><br />(c) Option (c) makes the most sense to me, and is in accord with the advice of the Advisory Committee on the Constitution to the 218th General Assembly (2008), in which it said "the right to establish a quorum for meetings of the congregation is assigned to the congregation itself by G-7.0305. It is not a power assigned to the session, or to any other governing body."<br /><br />(d) If you chose option (d), you may have many valid reasons for opposing the Revised Form of Government, but you failed to recognize that it is a red herring in this hypothetical. If your congregation has not acted to determine its own quorum, you are just as vulnerable to a challenge in court under the current Form of Government as under the Revised Form of Government.<br /><br />Let's take a look at what our current Form of Government at G-7.0305 actually says:<blockquote><br />The quorum of a meeting of the congregation shall be not less than one tenth of the members unless the particular church upon application to the presbytery shall obtain the consent of the presbytery to a provision for a smaller quorum. A congregation by its own vote may fix a higher quorum. No meeting of fewer than three members shall be considered a congregational meeting.</blockquote><br />Your disgruntled church member could go into court and argue that the first sentence does not say what the quorum is, but what it is not. If the congregation has never voted to state what its quorum is, how would you plan to show the judge that your quorum is not what this one church member claims it is?<br /><br />(e) If you chose option (e) you may have other ideas, and I am eager to hear them.<p xmlns="" class="zoundry_raven_tags"> <!-- Tag links generated by Zoundry Raven. Do not manually edit. http://www.zoundryraven.com --> <span class="ztags"><span class="ztagspace">File under</span> : <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/GA219" class="ztag" rel="tag">GA219</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/PCUSA" class="ztag" rel="tag">PCUSA</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/nFOG" class="ztag" rel="tag">nFOG</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/polity" class="ztag" rel="tag">polity</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/rFOG" class="ztag" rel="tag">rFOG</a></span> <br /></p>Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00775756981894736941noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11669656.post-18975350189389132992010-07-22T20:02:00.001-05:002010-07-22T20:08:45.514-05:00What do demonstrations accomplish? or Did Soulforce save the Presbyterian Church?I am accustomed to seeing demonstrations at or around meetings of the General Assembly. I don't mind people exercising their freedom of speech as long as they don't interfere with the orderly conduct of the Assembly's business. I observed two demonstrations at the 219th GA, and they each have me wondering what the demonstrators hoped to accomplish, and what did they actually accomplish. (Obie Holmen asks <a href="http://www.theliberalspirit.com/?p=2724?utm_source=subscriber&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss" target="_blank" title="Civil disobedience: effective LGBT strategy?">about the effectiveness of civil disobedience strategies</a>.)<br /><br />On Wednesday July 7 there was a demonstration at the Assembly by a group from a Korean-language congregation in the Chicago area.</p><br /><p><img src="http://home.comcast.net/~park_bench/zmr2/kprotest.JPG" style="WIDTH: 398px; DISPLAY: inline; HEIGHT: 298px" title="faction of Canaan Presbyterian Church demonstrating at the Minneapolis Convention Center, July 17, 2010" height="298" width="398" alt="faction of Canaan Presbyterian Church demonstrating at the Minneapolis Convention Center, July 17, 2010"/><br /><br />As I made my way from the Convention Center back to my hotel, members of this group handed out stapled packets of documents that adequately explained to me why an administrative commission of the Synod of Lincoln Trails was justified in taking the actions against which these protestors were demonstrating. Their distribution of literature may have been against some policy of the General Assembly. At no time did these protesters obstruct my passage to or from the Convention Center. Nor did they (to my knowledge) intrude into the meeting of the General Assembly.<br /><br />This demonstration seemed particularly pointless to me. The protesters' concerns were not related to any piece of business that was properly before the Assembly, and the deadline for commissioners to introduce new business had passed days earlier.<br /><br />On the other hand, the enthusiasm of the group in lining up to take photos to commemorate the trip does suggest that the demonstration may have served some group-building purpose for members of this faction of the congregation. They had gone on an adventure to Minneapolis, had taken a stand for something important to them, and could go home thinking they had done the right thing.<br /><br />But the demonstration that received the most attention at the 219th General Assembly was the <a href="http://www.soulforce.org/" target="_blank">Soulforce</a> civil disobedience action on Friday, June 9, when protesters entered the assembly hall and prayed in front of the podium until the Minneapolis police removed them. This protest was an expression of frustration over decisions not made by the Assembly.<br /><br />On Thursday evening the Assembly had considered the report of the Assembly Committee on Civil Union and Marriage Issues (Committee 12). This issue had its own committee because the 218th Assembly had authorized a Special Committee to Study Issues of Civil Union and Christian Marriage, but also because a number of presbyteries had sent overtures to the General Assembly asking for various actions concerning marriage. The special committee's report recommended that the issue continue to be studied across the church with a number of resources, but did not make any specific recommendations for policy change. A minority of the Special Committee had also filed a minority report with a different slant on the issues. The Assembly decided to send both the majority and minority reports from the Special Committee to the whole Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) for further study.<br /><br />The Assembly then disapproved two overtures that would have reaffirmed the traditional understanding of marriage, and voted to answer a number of overtures calling for change by the previous action to send the majority and minority reports from the Special Committee for study. This action left those hoping for a change in policy frustrated by no sign of movement.<br /><br /><a href="http://home.comcast.net/~park_bench/zmr2/recon12_p.JPG"><img src="http://home.comcast.net/~park_bench/zmr2/zrtn_001n14b987eb_tn.jpg" style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 250px; DISPLAY: inline; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 164px" title="demonstrators calling for reconsideration of action on Committee 12, July 9, 2010" height="164" width="250" alt="demonstrators calling for reconsideration of action on Committee 12, July 9, 2010"/></a>The next morning when I walked to the Convention Center through the skywalk I passed demonstrators calling for the Assembly to reconsider the action. I don't know whether this sign-posting and sign-holding violated any rules, but they never slowed up my walk to the Convention Center.<br /><br />During the morning session there was a motion to reconsider the previous night's action. It was debated at length and defeated.<br /><br />In the afternoon the Assembly approved changes to the Pension Plan that would extend spousal and dependent benefits to same-gender domestic partners of plan members.<br /><br />Then came the report of the Assembly Committee on Church Polity, in the middle of which the Soulforce protesters entered the Assembly hall. The timing of this protest is significant to me. The issue is not that it came after a series of successes for those working for full inclusion of LGBTQ Presbyterians. (John Shuck <a href="http://www.shuckandjive.org/2010/07/two-for-three-aint-bad-but-still.html" target="_blank" title="Two for Three Ain't Bad But Still Oppressive">puts the protest in the larger context</a> of the General Assembly's actions on LGBTQ issues. Antony offers a <a href="http://itoosing.blogspot.com/2010/07/holy-troublemakers-soulforce-arrests.html" target="_blank" title="Holy Troublemakers: The Soulforce Arrests">critique</a> of the view that people should be happy with "a few legislative crumbs.") What is significant to me is the specific item the Assembly was considering when the protest began. The Assembly was discussing <a href="http://www.pc-biz.org/Explorer.aspx?id=3405&promoID=193" target="_blank">Item 05-21</a>, a proposed authoritative interpretation about authoritative interpretations - a topic that may appear to some as a highly obscure point of Presbyterian Polity, but one which could have had significant implications.<br /><br />In order to explain what I want to say about the protest, I need to make a brief digression to explain Item 05-21. (Dan Saperstein offers a <a href="http://ga219insider.blogspot.com/2010/07/okay-its-not-wargames-but-major-crisis.html" target="_blank" title="Okay, it's not "WarGames" but a major crisis was still averted">detailed explanation of the issues</a>, with which I largely agree. But it is interesting that Dan's article makes no mention of the protest that interrupted debate on 05-21.)<br /><br />The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) has two ways of getting authoritative interpretations of the constitution. One way is that the General Assembly in plenary, after being advised by the Advisory Committee on the Constitution, may adopt an authoritative interpretation by a majority vote. The other way is that when the General Assembly's Permanent Judicial Commission is deciding a case or appeal, it may authoritatively interpret the constitution. The most recent authoritative interpretation is binding upon the whole church.<br /><br />The question that was being debated was whether the authoritative interpretations by the General Assembly in plenary have an authority that trumps the ability of the General Assembly's Permanent Judicial Commission when it is deciding a case. They don't, but an argument can be made to suggest otherwise, and a minority on the Assembly Committee on Church Polity offered such an argument.<br /><br />The argument for this view depended on painting the GA PJC as just another commission of the General Assembly. The counter-argument, if there were commissioners ready to make it, would have been that unlike other commissions that the Assembly might appoint, the GA had no choice about whether to form its PJC, and could not give its PJC instructions, except perhaps to meet at a specific time and place.<br /><br />It had been suggested to me that the energy for the minority report came from certain recent decisions of the GA PJC that included dicta apparently contrary to the clear intention of more progressive authoritative interpretations rendered by recent assemblies.<br /><br />I had heard the argument for the minority view a couple times before Item 05-21 came up. Each time I had heard it, I found it difficult to grasp. Short of some appeal to emotion that would motivate the commissioners to support it, the success of the argument would require the Assembly commissioners to give it their undivided attention.<br /><br />In the floor debate the proponents of this minority view carefully placed the elements of their argument before the assembly. They had a good rhythm, and were skillfully creating the impression that their view was rising out of the full body.<br /><br />Enter the Soulforce protesters.<br /><br />Moderator Bolbach stopped the proceedings, rebuked others who started to boo the protesters, had the Assembly sing and then pray, then let the Assembly be in a brief recess while the police came and removed the protesters.<br /><br />During that short break the ACC huddled near our table to vote on verbal advice (that we would never give, as it turned out).<br /><br />When the Assembly came back to order to continue debate, those on the podium needed to remind each other (and the commissioners) what they had been doing before the protest started. The debate continued, but with much less commissioner participation and more comments from Microphone 9 (the one used by elected members of the Assembly). The minority report was not approved, and the assembly approved the committee's recommendation.<br /><br />Why? Part of me would like to think that it was because the ACC's written and spoken advice was so clear and persuasive. It is also possible that the minority never had enough votes to succeed from the beginning. But it is also possible that the interruption by the group of protesters tilted the playing field of the debate against the committee minority.<br /><br />I'm glad this vote turned out the way it did, but I wonder: Did the hand of God intervene through that group of Soulforce protesters to protect the Assembly from making a mistake?<p xmlns="" class="zoundry_raven_tags"> <!-- Tag links generated by Zoundry Raven. Do not manually edit. http://www.zoundryraven.com --> <span class="ztags"><span class="ztagspace">File under</span> : <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/GA219" class="ztag" rel="tag">GA219</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/Minneapolis" class="ztag" rel="tag">Minneapolis</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/PCUSA" class="ztag" rel="tag">PCUSA</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/Presbyterian+Church" class="ztag" rel="tag">Presbyterian Church</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/polity" class="ztag" rel="tag">polity</a></span> </p>Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00775756981894736941noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11669656.post-64646637936910230252010-07-20T21:17:00.002-05:002010-07-20T21:22:52.233-05:00Upcoming worship opportunitiesI'll be preaching in a number of different churches over the next few weeks.<br /><br /><a href="http://eventful.com/events/worship-crooked-creek-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-031713350-0" target="_blank">July 25, 2010. 9:00 AM</a> at the Crooked Creek Presbyterian Church.<br />and <a href="http://eventful.com/fordcity/events/worship-appleby-manor-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-031713368-9" target="_blank">10:15 AM</a> at the Appleby Manor Presbyterian Church<br /><br /><a href="http://eventful.com/events/worship-mt-nebo-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-032327334-0" target="_blank">August 1, 2010. 9:30 AM</a> at the <a href="http://www.mtnebopc.org/" target="_blank">Mt. Nebo Presbyterian Church</a><br /><br /><a href="http://eventful.com/kent_pa/events/worship-jacksonville-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-032327359-9" target="_blank">August 8, 2010. 9:30 AM</a> at the Jacksonville Presbyterian Church<br />and <a href="http://eventful.com/clarksburg_pa/events/worship-ebenezer-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-032327369-6" target="_blank">11:15 AM</a> at the Ebenezer Presbyterian Church<br /><br /><a href="http://eventful.com/springchurch/events/worship-boiling-springs-presbyterian-church-/E0-001-032327406-6" target="_blank">August 15, 2010, 10:00 AM</a> at the Boiling Springs Presbyterian Church<br /><br /><a href="http://eventful.com/leechburg/events/worship-cross-roads-community-presbyterian-/E0-001-032327434-9" target="_blank">August 22, 2010, 10:00 AM</a> at the <a href="http://www.crcpc.org/" target="_blank">Cross Roads Community Presbyterian Church</a><p xmlns="" class="zoundry_raven_tags"> <!-- Tag links generated by Zoundry Raven. Do not manually edit. http://www.zoundryraven.com --><span class="ztags"><span class="ztagspace">File under</span> : <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/Presbyterian" class="ztag" rel="tag">Presbyterian</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/worship" class="ztag" rel="tag">worship</a></span> </p>Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00775756981894736941noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11669656.post-71608020098796176682010-07-15T07:02:00.001-05:002010-07-15T07:10:02.858-05:00About those manuals<img src="http://home.comcast.net/~park_bench/zmr2/FOG_cover_th.PNG" style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 103px; DISPLAY: inline; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 160px" height="160" alt="FOG-cover-th.PNG" width="103"/>Just a week ago the <a href="http://ga219.pcusa.org/" target="_blank">219th General Assembly</a> of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) <a href="http://www.pc-biz.org/Explorer.aspx?id=2263&promoID=99" target="_blank">approved the Foundations of Presbyterian Polity and Revised Form of Government, with a number of amendments</a>, and submitted the documents to the presbyteries for their approval.<br /><br />One of the significant changes in this form of government has to do with increased flexibility in each of the governing bodies (called "councils" in the proposal). If approved, this flexibility will come with new responsibilities at every level of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).<br /><br />In the months before the General Assembly, I heard numerous people voicing concern about the manuals required by the Revised Form of Government. The current manual provision in the Book of Order at G-9.0405 has mandated manuals of administrative operations for every governing body above the session since 1984. It would be reasonable to assume that these manuals exist by now, and do not require radical revision.<br /><br />The new manual provision in the Revised Form of Government at G-3.0106 would mandate manuals for each council. This would give sessions the responsibility to develop manuals, if they have not already done so. Contrary to the fears voiced by opponents of the Revised Form of Government that it was a charter for presbyteries to control sessions, the manual provision would give sessions a charter for taking ownership of how they will participate in God's mission in the world.<br /><br />If the task of developing a manual at the session level seems daunting, sessions will be able to start with the <a href="http://www.pc-biz.org/Resources/29486902-c958-4756-aa9c-8c37e3f44ab5/FOG - advisory handbook.pdf" target="_blank">handbooks</a> approved along with the Revised Form of Government. In many cases, the session may already have addressed questions asked in the handbooks, and will already have established policies that can be gathered into the session's manual.<br /><br />Without regard for whether the presbyteries will approve the Revised Form of Government, it would be a healthy exercise for sessions to review the questions asked in the handbooks and determine whether they need to develop additional policies.<p xmlns="" class="zoundry_raven_tags"> <!-- Tag links generated by Zoundry Raven. Do not manually edit. http://www.zoundryraven.com --> <span class="ztags"><span class="ztagspace">File under</span> : <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/GA219" class="ztag" rel="tag">GA219</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/PCUSA" class="ztag" rel="tag">PCUSA</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/rFOG" class="ztag" rel="tag">rFOG</a></span> </p>Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00775756981894736941noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11669656.post-49534990107380901012010-07-05T04:11:00.011-05:002010-07-13T05:23:46.122-05:00In Minneapolis for GA219<a href="http://home.comcast.net/%7Epark_bench/mpls/IMG_9352.JPG" target="_blank"><img src="http://home.comcast.net/%7Epark_bench/mpls/fountain.JPG" alt="waterfall fountain in park near Orchestra Hall, Minneapolis" width="400" height="300" style="WIDTH: 398px; DISPLAY: inline; HEIGHT: 300px"/></a><br /><br />My feet are already getting tired and sore from all the walking but there are some very attractive sites near the Convention Center. The waterfall in this park reminds me of the theme of this General Assembly, "Rivers of Living Water."<br /><br /><a href="http://home.comcast.net/%7Epark_bench/mpls/IMG_9353.JPG" target="_blank"><img src="http://home.comcast.net/%7Epark_bench/mpls/portico.JPG" alt="portico at Minneapolis Convention Center" width="400" height="300" style="WIDTH: 398px; DISPLAY: inline; HEIGHT: 300px" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://home.comcast.net/%7Epark_bench/mpls/IMG_9354.JPG" target="_blank"><img src="http://home.comcast.net/%7Epark_bench/mpls/kiosk.JPG" alt="kiosk announcing new www.pcusa.org website" width="300" height="400" style="WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: inline; HEIGHT: 400px"/></a><br /><br /><a href="http://happycog.com/" target="_blank">Happy Cog</a> has redesigned the <a href="http://www.pcusa.org/" target="_blank">Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) website</a>. Its a nice, new look.<br /><br />When the redesign first was rolled out this week, there were a number of broken links. Those seem to be getting fixed pretty quickly.<br /><br />There are other technical difficulties during this assembly. The usual voting system had been destroyed in a warehouse fire. The assembly is using a wireless voting system, but during the election of the moderator, there were problems with making sure that everyone's vote registered.<br /><br />I appreciated the Sunday worship service. The Order of Worship was a much thinner handout than we usually get. I am sure it saved a lot of paper as well as expense for the assembly. These are good things. Unfortunately, during worship the lighting was dim in a lot of areas, and I found the handouts virtually unreadable. This was compounded by the projection screens not carrying much of the liturgical information for the various responsive parts of the serviced. We usually have a necrology report listing the ministers who have died since the last assembly. This long list was projected on the screen at a pace that made it hard to read. Maybe I will find the list available somewhere else, such as on <a href="http://www.pc-biz.org/" target="_blank">PC-Biz</a>. <br /><br /><a href="http://home.comcast.net/%7Epark_bench/mpls/IMG_9359.JPG" target="_blank"><img src="http://home.comcast.net/%7Epark_bench/mpls/skyline.JPG" alt="Minneapolis skyline from below" width="300" height="400" style="WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: inline; HEIGHT: 400px"/></a><br /><br />Sunday afternoon I gave a short talk to Assembly Committee 07. I discovered a few hours ago that a reporter in the room had written a <a href="http://ga219.pcusa.org/news/2010/7/5/acc-offers-approval-revised-form-government/" target="_blank">news story</a> about it.<br /><br />File under: <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/ga219" rel="tag">GA219</a>, <a href="http://del.icio.us/parkbench/Minneapolis" rel="tag">Minneapolis</a>Stewarthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00775756981894736941noreply@blogger.com0