Not So Reserved

Updated February schedule

2012-01-28T07:22:00.000-05:00

Because 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:

January 29, 2012, at 10:30 AM, at the First Presbyterian Church of East Brady.

February 5, 2012, at 11:00 AM, at the Ebenezer Presbyterian Church in Lewisville.

February 12, 2012, at 10:00 AM, at the United Presbyterian Church in Homer City.

February 19, 2012, at 11:00 AM, at the Dayton Glade Run Presbyterian Church.

Five Sundays ahead

2012-01-26T10:48:00.000-05:00

I am booked to preach the next five Sundays:

January 29, 2012, at 10:30 AM, at the First Presbyterian Church of East Brady.

February 5, 2012, at 11:00 AM, at the Ebenezer Presbyterian Church in Lewisville.

February 12, 2012, at 10:00 AM, at the United Presbyterian Church in Homer City.

February 19, 2012, at 11:00 AM, at the Dayton Glade Run Presbyterian Church.

February 26, 2012, at 9:00 AM, at the Atwood Presbyterian Church in Rural Valley, and at 11:00 AM at the Plumville Presbyterian Church.

I believe these will be my first times preaching in East Brady, Homer City, Dayton Glade Run, and Plumville.

Preaching in December

2011-12-03T14:29:00.000-05:00

I'll be preaching three times this month.

December 4 at 11:00 AM at the Tunnelton Presbyterian Church.

December 25 at 9:00 AM at the Plum Creek Presbyterian Church, in Creekside, PA.

December 25 at 10:30 AM at the Washington Presbyterian Church, in Home, PA.

Two trips across the river

2011-06-27T11:00:00.000-05:00

In 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.

On Sunday, June 19 I went to Brackenridge to officiate at the wedding of Brian Waters and Heather Basista.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

My next four preaching engagements

2011-02-25T10:23:00.001-05:00

Three of my next four preaching engagements will take me to congregations that I will visit for the first time.

Sunday, February 27, 2011 at 8:30 and 11:00 AM at the Newlonsburg Presbyterian Church in Murrysville.

Sunday, March 6, 2011 at 11:00 AM at the Ebenezer Presbyterian Church in Lewisville.

Ash Wednesday, March 9, 2011 at 7:30 PM at the Atwood Presbyterian Church.

Sunday, March 13, 2011 at 11:00 AM at the Trinity Presbyterian Church in Clarksburg.

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.

File under : Clarksburg, Ebenezer, PCUSA, Presbyterian Church, Trinity, worship

Map of some churches in the area

2011-01-05T12:19:00.003-05:00

For a few years I have been assembling a map on Google Maps to record and share the locations of area churches I have visited. I created this map 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.

When I started using a Garmin 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.

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.

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.

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.)

View Churches around Tarentum in a larger map

File under : Alle-Kiski Valley, Allegheny Valley, Kiskiminetas Presbytery, Pittsburgh Presbytery, Redstone Presbytery, Tarentum, church, map

Preaching in January 2011

2010-12-29T13:01:00.002-05:00

In January I will have a full month of guest preaching, with commitments made for each of the five Sundays.

January 2, 2011, 11 AM at the Presbyterian Church of Goheenville, Templeton, PA.

January 9, 2011, 9:30 AM at the NuValley Presbyterian Church, Rural Valley, PA.

January 16, 2011, 8:15 and 10:45 AM at the Westminster Presbyterian Church, Greensburg, PA.

January 23. 2011, 10:45 AM at the Worthington Presbyterian Church, Worthington, PA.

January 30, 2011, 10:45 at the Apollo United Presbyterian Church, Apollo, PA.

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.

When I saw that I was going to preach at NuValley Presbyterian Church, I did a double-take. My printed 2009 directory for Kiskiminetas Presbytery does not list that church. Then I learned that this is a new congregation formed from the merger of two congregations 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.

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 Redstone Presbytery 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.

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.

I have preached a few times at the Apollo church, and look forward to being back with their friendly people and fascinating architecture.

File under : Apollo, Greensburg, PCUSA, Presbyterian Church, worship

Sights, sounds, tastes, feelings at the end of November

2010-11-30T11:51:00.003-05:00

This is just a description of random observations from yesterday.

When I woke in the morning I was hearing gunshots in the distance from various directions. It was the first day of rifle season for hunting deer 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 Puckety Presbyterian Church 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.

Part of my day involved making a hospital visit at the Alle-Kiski Medical Center. Before I made it in the door I was amazed at the beautiful clouds in the sky. Truly the heavens declare God's handiwork!

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.

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.

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.

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.

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, December 5, I will be at the Worthington Presbyterian Church. And then Christmas Eve, I will lead the service at the Calvin United Presbyterian Church in Scottdale.

File under : AKMC, Advent, PCUSA, Puckety Presbyterian Church, food, music, pictures, prayer

An Anti-Bullying Message From the NOH8 Campaign

2010-11-12T09:11:00.001-05:00

My work in November

2010-11-06T17:21:00.002-05:00

During the month of November I am working at the Puckety Presbyterian Church 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.

In addition to preaching every Sunday in November and doing some pastoral visitation, I will moderate one meeting of the church's session.

From the pastor's study I look across the church parking lot to the Burrell High School.

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.

File under : Lower Burrell, Presbyterian Church, worship

Storm approaching

2010-10-26T16:49:00.000-05:00

This picture was taken minutes before heavy rains and winds arrived.

File under : Lower Burrell, picture

Adult Sunday School class - developments in the PCUSA

2010-09-12T15:04:00.002-05:00

A gap developed in my supply preaching schedule, so the United Presbyterian Church of New Kensington (the congregation where I worship when not out preaching somewhere) invited me to do a two-session adult class on polity changes in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). The class will be held in fellowship hall at 9:30 AM on Sunday September 19 and 26.

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.

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.)

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).

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.

If you'll be in the area on either of those Sundays, please join us.

File under : GA219, New Kensington, PCUSA, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), nFOG, polity, rFOG

A day in the life of a Self-Sufficiency Services Coordinator

2010-08-26T05:55:00.001-05:00

Yesterday 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 Allegheny Valley Association of Churches 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.

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.

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.

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 Pennsylvania Way to Work Program.

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.

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.

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.

File under : ARRA, AVAC

The promise seen from afar

2010-08-05T06:55:00.003-05:00

I am not accustomed to seeing stained glass depictions of Moses. This past Sunday I preached at the Mt. Nebo Presbyterian Church, 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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

I suspect Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. may have made some reasonable guesses in his final address/sermon in which he alluded to the story of Moses on Mt. Nebo:

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!

File under : art, faith, hope

Is your congregation ready for the Revised Form of Government?

2010-07-29T07:36:00.004-05:00

Earlier this month the 219th General Assembly 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.

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:

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.

What is the best way to head off this problem?

(a) The session should never let the congregation vote on anything with which anyone might disagree.

(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.

(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.

(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.

(e) Maybe you have ideas of your own.

(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.

(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.

(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."

(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.

Let's take a look at what our current Form of Government at G-7.0305 actually says:

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.

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?

(e) If you chose option (e) you may have other ideas, and I am eager to hear them.

File under : GA219, PCUSA, nFOG, polity, rFOG

What do demonstrations accomplish? or Did Soulforce save the Presbyterian Church?

2010-07-22T20:02:00.001-05:00

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 about the effectiveness of civil disobedience strategies.)

On Wednesday July 7 there was a demonstration at the Assembly by a group from a Korean-language congregation in the Chicago area.

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.

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.

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.

But the demonstration that received the most attention at the 219th General Assembly was the Soulforce 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.

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.

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.

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.

During the morning session there was a motion to reconsider the previous night's action. It was debated at length and defeated.

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.

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 puts the protest in the larger context of the General Assembly's actions on LGBTQ issues. Antony offers a critique 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 Item 05-21, 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.

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 detailed explanation of the issues, 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.)

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Enter the Soulforce protesters.

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.

During that short break the ACC huddled near our table to vote on verbal advice (that we would never give, as it turned out).

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.

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.

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?

File under : GA219, Minneapolis, PCUSA, Presbyterian Church, polity

Upcoming worship opportunities

2010-07-20T21:17:00.002-05:00

I'll be preaching in a number of different churches over the next few weeks.

July 25, 2010. 9:00 AM at the Crooked Creek Presbyterian Church.
and 10:15 AM at the Appleby Manor Presbyterian Church

August 1, 2010. 9:30 AM at the Mt. Nebo Presbyterian Church

August 8, 2010. 9:30 AM at the Jacksonville Presbyterian Church
and 11:15 AM at the Ebenezer Presbyterian Church

August 15, 2010, 10:00 AM at the Boiling Springs Presbyterian Church

August 22, 2010, 10:00 AM at the Cross Roads Community Presbyterian Church

File under : Presbyterian, worship

About those manuals

2010-07-15T07:02:00.001-05:00

Just a week ago the 219th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) approved the Foundations of Presbyterian Polity and Revised Form of Government, with a number of amendments, and submitted the documents to the presbyteries for their approval.

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.).

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.

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.

If the task of developing a manual at the session level seems daunting, sessions will be able to start with the handbooks 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.

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.

File under : GA219, PCUSA, rFOG

In Minneapolis for GA219

2010-07-05T04:11:00.011-05:00

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."

Happy Cog has redesigned the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) website. Its a nice, new look.

When the redesign first was rolled out this week, there were a number of broken links. Those seem to be getting fixed pretty quickly.

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.

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 PC-Biz.

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 news story about it.

File under: GA219, Minneapolis

They must love the smell of sticker shock in the morning

2010-07-02T08:57:00.004-05:00

Overheard at breakfast in a hotel restaurant:

Customer: Excuse me, where are the prices on the menu?

Waiter: Those are the numbers...

File under: food, ga219, Minneapolis

A snazzy, new sign

2010-06-30T18:17:00.003-05:00

The Allegheny Valley Association of Churches has a snazzy, new sign to help visitors find the place they are seeking.

No longer will directions end with the words "two doors from McDonalds."

File under : AVAC, Allegheny Valley, Natrona Heights, picture, religion

Fire, Beatles, and worship

2010-05-31T09:43:00.003-05:00

Here are a few pictures from the weekend.

When I came home from work on Friday I could see that something strange was happening in the playground near the parking lot. When I checked it out I could see that smoke was rising from a number of wood chips around the swings. Strong winds with shifting directions were making the individual chips glow.

I had not seen something like this before. The coals were scattered over an area, but possibly had been ignited at the same time. I had seen lightning activity in another part of the sky as I drove home, but these separate glowing coals had totally unburned areas between them.

Fortunately, within about twnety minutes of my taking these pictures the whole area was drenched by a heavy rain.

I went to see the performance of the Cast of Beatlemania at the Greensburg Community Days. These guys do a good show that brings back a lot of memories.

Sunday it was my privilege to be the guest preacher at the Apollo United Presbyterian Church. They are a very friendly congregation, and give a warm welcome to visitors.

I was fascinated by seeing this stained glass window depicting Christ knocking on the closed door, with the window rotated open to let cool air (and light) into the room. There's a sermon illustration in there somewhere.

File under : Apollo, Greensburg, Lower Burrell, art, music, wierd, worship

Happy Pentecost

2010-05-23T20:56:00.003-05:00

This morning it was my pleasure to be able to be the guest preacher for Pentecost at two churches in Ford City. I started the morning at the Crooked Creek Presbyterian Church.

Then I went on to the Appleby Manor Memorial Presbyterian Church.

Following the service at Appleby Manor they had a special reception to celebrate Pentecost. There was a nice turnout, and a lot of refreshments, including a special cake.

File under : Pentecost, Presbyterian, food, worship

Some pictures from my life

2010-05-09T19:43:00.001-05:00

On May 1 I went to the "Building Block Blitz" in Macy's Court of the Galleria at Pittsburgh Mills. Ten teams of young people competed to build houses out of building blocks, the trademark name for which is not being used. The young people were way ahead of us. A number of them were thinking about green architecture and sustainability, but we did not even have a category for judging them on those criteria. The young people did this to raise funds for Habitat for Humanity of Allegheny Valley.

On Wednesday evening I went geocaching in Riverview Park in Tarentum with a few others. We found two well-hidden nano caches. There are no spoilers in the photo above. I just included it because it is a pretty park.

On May 8 I went to the CD release party for Nadina's Cube's CD "Shipwrecked: from birmingham to jericho with no prozac." What an adventure getting into downtown Pittsburgh - couldn't find a place to park. Lots of visibly empty, well-lit parking garages with signs out front saying the garage was full, and not an open parking meter for blocks around. Eventually found a place to leave my car.

The release party was happening in SPACE on Liberty Ave. I've been waiting a number of years to get a copy of this CD. Good stuff.

There was a neat exhibit at SPACE called "Rock, Paper, Scissors" featuring art in a wide range of media from a large number of artists. I gravitated to the piece above. Maybe it reminded me of people to whom I must relate from time to time. Or maybe I recognized something of myself in it. Or maybe it just dominated that corner of the room.

Yeah, that's it. It was big and filled that corner of the room.

This morning I was the guest preacher at two churches where I had never preached before. I've driven past the Mt. Zion Presbyterian Church, pictured above, a number of times when driving from my apartment in Lower Burrell to Cooperstown New York. Now it is a place I've been, with people I've met, rather than just a place I pass.

The Concord Presbyterian Church is the second place I preached this morning. Usually I am pretty successful in determining the location of the churches where I will go for the first time. I blew it when I was programming the location for this one into my nüvi. My nüvi would have taken me a few miles further down the road, but I noticed the sign as I drove past this church. If I hadn't turned back to check the sign I would have been late for church.

File under : Allegheny Valley, Frazer, Habitat, Pittsburgh Mills, Presbyterian Church, Tarentum, art, music, worship

The month of May

2010-04-30T18:08:00.002-05:00

I have an interesting month ahead. I understand that May is Mental Health Month and National Stroke Awareness Month, among other special observances.

My own activities will include the following:

May 1, 12:30 PM: Building Block Blitz, in Macy's Court of the Galleria at Pittsburgh Mills. I'll be there taking pictures of children building houses with Legos™ to raise funds for Habitat for Humanity of Allegheny Valley.

May 2, 11:00 AM: I'll preach at the Pine Run Presbyterian Church in Apollo.

May 9, 9:30 AM: I'll preach at the Mt. Zion Presbyterian Church in Templeton. At 11:00 AM I'll preach at the Concord Presbyterian Church in Dayton.

May 16, 11:00 AM: I'll preach at the First Presbyterian Church of Avonmore.

May 23, 9:15 AM: I'll preach at the Crooked Creek Presbyterian Church in Ford City. At 11:00 AM I'll preach at the Appleby Manor Presbyterian Church also in Ford City.

May 30, 10:45 AM: I'll preach at the Apollo United Presbyterian Church.

File under : Allegheny Valley, Apollo, Habitat, PCUSA, Presbyterian, worship

Moon and clowns

2010-03-27T13:14:00.002-05:00

These are a couple of the pictures I took recently.

The moon seen through a tree outside my apartment last night.

Quite a group of donated clown figurines being sold at the Habitat for Humanity ReStore in New Kensington.

File under : Habitat, Lower Burrell, New Kensington, moon, picture

It's time for the US Senate to support the Nonprofit Mortgage Clarification Act

2010-03-24T18:06:00.003-05:00

Habitat for Humanity is perhaps the best known of a number of non-profit organizations who use zero or low interest mortgages in order to accomplish their mission of ensuring decent housing for different groups of people.

After the passage of the S.A.F.E. Mortgage Licensing Act of 2008, some states were told that they must apply the provisions of the S.A.F.E. Act to affiliates of Habitat for Humanity. But the motivation for the SAFE act was to curb bad practices by some for-profit lenders who issued mortgages.

Habitat for Humanity works to end poverty housing by partnering with families who are living in substandard or overcrowded conditions. The families put in a certain number of hours of 'sweat equity' by working on the home that is being built for them, or on another project for Habitat. They pay a modest downpayment, and establish an affordable, no-interest mortgage with the local Habitat affiliate for the remainder of the value of their home. As new homeowners they build up equity in their homes, and their pride of ownership in a decent home contributes the the improvement of the neighborhood. Their mortgage payments to the Habitat affiliate enable homes to be build for other families, who become homeowners.

The Nonprofit Mortgage Clarification Act will make it clear that the S.A.F.E. act was not intended to be applied to certain non-profit organizations that issue mortgages. In the House of Representatives H.R. 4400 is intended to accomplish this purpose. Senators to support or co-sponsor the similar version, S. 3106, are needed.

Rep. Shuler, supporting the House version said, "Organizations like Habitat for Humanity partner with struggling Americans to provide them with an opportunity to become responsible homeowners. Because of this unique partnership, foreclosure and default rates on Habitat for Humanity loans are currently and consistently well below national rates."

Senator Kay Hagan, the sponsor of the Senate bill said, "This is a bipartisan bill which will ensure that nonprofits, such as Habitat for Humanity, can continue to help struggling American families purchase affordable homes. These nonprofits should not be burdened by these costly requirements which were intended for for-profit lenders."

Call or write to your senators to urge their support of S.3106.

File under : Habitat, government, housing

In which I prove that I have nerves of steel and a center of mass by having science fun

2010-03-08T19:22:00.002-05:00

The full slogan on the I-beam says "Nerves of Steel + Center of Mass = Science Fun!"

File under : Pittsburgh, picture, science

I am not sure what to make of this

2010-02-17T22:15:00.002-05:00

At work today we had our choice of Dove chocolate candies for dessert at the end of lunch. The inside of the wrappers had little inspirational messages. People went around the table sharing what message was hidden on their wrappers.

I saved mine for last.

I was the sole male at the table, and everyone else had a gender-neutral message.

Maybe this is anecdotal evidence that fortune cookies are not accurate. But anecdotal evidence is not to be trusted.

File under : wierd

Now I understand why some people who are not computer-literate hate computers

2010-02-09T20:46:00.002-05:00

I think of myself as a somewhat technologically-savvy person but now I have a better understanding of why some people have no use for recent technologies.

I was helping an unemployed veteran fill out an online application for a job with the Veterans Administration. So I helped him figure out how to access the Hotmail account that someone else set up for him, assigning him a password he didn't choose for himself. I helped him find the job listing for the job he already knew and to which he needed to apply. I helped him find the online application manager where he needed to key in his prepared answers to questions he had printed out. I leave him typing slowly while I continue with some paperwork.

Suddenly I hear a gasp. His laborious hunt and peck typing stops. He tells me that everything is gone. I tell myself it can't really be gone, as I walk back to the computer to discover that he has been logged out of the website. I help him log back in so he can continue with his application. Yes, even what he had typed while I at first was watching over his shoulder is indeed no longer in the application he was completing. That's what we all need - programs that log out ungracefully.

I ask myself, "Did this man accidentally click on something that logged him out?" I learn that in fact he did not click on anything by mistake. While entering text into the form, I see a window pop up with fine print telling him that he is about to be logged out unless he clicks a button in order to to stay online. Great, there is some kind of script in the web page that starts the logout process without any regard to ongoing keyboard or mouse activity.

His answers eventually get entered into the application. I help him upload his resume to go along with the application. He still needs to submit one of his military forms to prove his army service. He has a hard copy of the necessary form but no way to scan it and attach it to the application. He has been told that veteran information is now online. It turns out that what is online is not access to an uploadable pdf file of his veterans information, but an online process to ask for a hard copy of his information to be mailed to him in a couple weeks. That's a great way to help him meet an application deadline - a deadline set by an organization that won't accept a mailed application.

We dig around on the application website and find that there is a way to fax documents that need to be part of his application. There is a link one can click to generate a fax cover page. Could anything be more foolproof? I look at the cover page as it is printing and notice that it has large boxes with large letters identifying his application. There is even a matrix barcode in two places to make sure the faxed document will be attached to the right application. "Now, that is a great use of technology," I say to myself. But before I carry the pages to the fax machine in the other room I take another look at the cover sheet.

The fax cover sheet does not include the number to which it is to be sent.

Honest. No recipient fax number.

It turns out that the destination fax number is buried in fine print in a web page of instructions for completing the application.

As if everybody who uses a fax machine keeps it right beside the computer monitor for ease of keying in the number of the destination fax.

<end of rant>

This would not be a good time to get me started on the new, simplified Facebook where everything users use has been moved to new locations on the web page ... or removed completely.

File under : internet, technology

Snowed in

2010-02-06T10:54:00.003-05:00

I used to live in upstate NY, so I will admit that for several years I have scoffed at what the Pittsburgh "severe weather centers" have called snowstorms. I have seen worse than this weekend's storm, but this one does merit being called a snowstorm.

When I woke up this morning and looked out the window of my third floor apartment, I was surprised to see a foot of snow piled up against the window. This thin pile of snow is more a testimony to how much the snow was blowing last night.

We have about 22 inches in this area, and a few more inches coming.

They were just beginning to plow the parking lot an hour ago.

My car is covered with deep snow, and I think it's not worth trying to clear it off until it would be reasonable to think of going anywhere.

Later this afternoon I should be able to get my car ready to drive up to Kittanning in the morning to preach at the West Glade Run Presbyterian Church.

File under : Lower Burrell, pictures

Good coffee

2010-01-31T13:26:00.002-05:00

One of the local TV stations had a story last week that began with a misleading teaser that "your coffee" was going to be more expensive. The story wasn't even about the coffee I drink, but was about a change in the pricing structure for a large chain of coffee stores selling already overpriced coffee. I don't think the story was even newsworthy. Of course the chain that got its name mentioned on television was able to get a few more plugs through the day as if they were where anybody who is anybody gets coffee. I guess branding is important if you want people pay premium prices for mediocre products just for the status.

My coffee matters too much to me to waste money on being able to show off a corporate logo on a cup. So if you come to my neck of the woods, I'll tell you where you can get good coffee at decent prices.

The Donut Connection at the corner of Riverview Plaza and Tarentum Bridge Road in New Kensington is a place I can go that isn't even out of my way. Their coffee brand "The World's Best Coffee" may amusingly overstate the case, but it is reliably good coffee at a decent price.

My new job is going to be next door to the McDonald's in Natrona Heights. Don't get on me about their fast food, that I probably will only eat occasionally, but McDonald's does know how to make good coffee at an affordable price.

This morning on my way out to Apollo, I stopped at the T.J. Bean Coffee Company in Allegheny Township. (When I first learned about this place, I had a hard time finding them with online maps. They are at the corner of Hyde Park Road and 56, on the south side of the intersection, and across from the McDonalds.) It's out of my way most of the time, but worth a stop when I am near it.

I pay the regular prices for my coffee at each of these places. My mentioning of these establishments on my blog is not compensated by any gifts, rebates, or kickbacks from the stores. (I wonder why the local TV station did not include this kind of disclaimer at the end of their 'story' about big corporate coffee.)

File under : Leechburg, Natrona Heights, New Kensington, coffee

Upcoming work

2010-01-29T17:24:00.003-05:00

After a long period of being unemployed, I can finally say that I will start a new full-time job on Monday. I will work for the Allegheny Valley Association of Churches as the coordinator for the Self-Sufficiency Program. Today's Valley News Dispatch had an article about the program. I just spent three and a half hours today following the current coordinator, and I know that I will be on a steep learning curve.

When I was the pastor of a church and frequently had to deal with people who came to the church door looking for various kinds of help I was glad I could rely on the expertise of the staff at AVAC. Now I will be in a different role, but still trying to help people in need.

In addition to this new full-time job, I will continue supply preaching in various churches. My preaching schedule during February will be as follows.

February 7, 10:30 AM, at the West Glade Run Presbyterian Church in Kittanning.

February 14, 11:15 AM, at the Tunnelton Presbyterian Church.

February 21, 9:30 AM, at the Jacksonville Presbyterian Church in Kent, and 11:15 AM at the Ebenezer Presbyterian Church in Lewisville.

February 28, 11:15 AM, at the Tunnelton Presbyterian Church.

File under : AVAC, Allegheny Valley, Kittanning, Presbyterian Church, worship

A change I didn't want to have to make

2009-12-28T19:00:00.003-05:00

When I first started my blog four and a half years ago I made a decision to allow anyone to post comments, knowing that I had the ability to delete comments that did not contribute to any conversation that I and readers were having.

I soon realized that I needed to impose comment moderation, under which I would be able to review comments, and then reject them or approve them for posting. Comment moderation has worked for most of the life of my blog.

There have been a number of readers who have posted anonymously or pseudonymously while making valuable contributions to discussions, and I have appreciated their comments without regard for whether they agreed with me.

Over the last couple months I have seen a steep increase in the number of spam comments — comments that are utterly irrelevant to the posts in question, and offering medications and get-rich-quick schemes. Comment moderation has given me the ability to reject these submissions a dozen at a time. But I'm tired of dealing with them.

I have decided not to allow anonymous commenting any longer. I regret having to make this change, but it seems to be the simplest step toward stopping the flood of spam.

File under : blogs, comment

My upcoming worship commitments

2009-12-26T14:49:00.004-05:00

Advances in chronometric technology

2009-11-01T20:40:00.002-05:00

Clocks I manually turned back last night: wristwatch, electric range, microwave, bedside alarm clock.

Clocks that self-adjusted: computer, atomic clock, cell phone, GPS.

A clock that is finally almost correct: the time and temperature clock at the corner of Tarentum Bridge Road and Leechburg Road.

File under : New Kensington, technology

A busier month ahead

2009-10-30T10:37:00.003-05:00

It looks like I am booked to preach for six different congregations in the month of November. This will be the first month that I will have preached every Sunday since August 2008.

My schedule, for those of you who are interested, is as follows:

Nov. 1, 11 AM, Presbyterian Church of Mt. Washington, Pittsburgh

Nov. 8, 11:15 AM, Tunnelton Presbyterian Church

Nov. 15, 11 AM, United Presbyterian Church of Freeport

Nov. 22, 11 AM, United Presbyterian Church of New Kensington

Nov. 29, 9:30 AM, Jacksonville Presbyterian Church, Kent; and 11:15 AM, Ebenezer Presbyterian Church, Lewisville

I think this will also be a lifetime record for me, as I don't believe that I have ever preached for six different congregations within a single month.

In honor of this record, I updated the firmware on my nüvi (well, that's something I have to do about monthly anyhow because of changes to the GPS satellites) and I went to the Garmin Garage to download a new vehicle avatar: Giddyup. Now I can feel just like a circuit rider during November.

File under : New Kensington, Pittsburgh, worship, Presbyterian, nuvi

Some of the cool things I saw in Minneapolis

2009-10-09T08:06:00.002-05:00

This past weekend I visited Minneapolis for the first time. I spent most of my time there working on business for the Advisory Committee on the Constitution. But I did have a bit of time to look around at the part of the city near our hotel. I flew in a few hours before my meeting began on Saturday at noon, used the light rail to get close to my hotel, and walked down part of Nicollet Mall; Sunday morning I took a walk before breakfast, and walked around the area for a couple hours after my meeting ended on Monday at noon before I headed back to the airport.

I thought the city was very attractive, and I am looking forward to when the PCUSA General Assembly meets there in 2010.

I had researched how to get to from the light rail stop at Nicollet Mall to my hotel. Google Street View helped me orient myself in advance, so that I would recognize what landmarks I would see — as long as I was going in the proper direction. But I chose to use Nicollet Mall as the route to get close to my hotel; Nicollet Mall is a pedestrian mall, so unfortunately the Google Street View vehicles have not captured images of what a beautiful street it is.

Of course, I had to stop at the Mary Tyler Moore statue in front of the Macy's at the corner with 7th Street. It's not that I was a big fan of the show, but while the show was in its first run, it was one that I watched, largely because I didn't have cable.

There are lots of larger statues in downtown Minneapolis, and I really appreciated the art being made available to the public everywhere I went.

On Sunday morning I took a walk early to get breakfast and a cup of coffee. While I was walking down 6th St., I saw flashing lights like an emergency vehicle slowly approaching me in the distance. As they got closer I saw that they were three police motorcycles followed by a crowd of something that seemed to be moving low and close to the ground. Then I saw that what was following the police were a group of people in racing wheelchairs. A bystander explained to me that this was the Wheeler division in the Twin Cities Marathon. I saw about 20 participants in this division, and was very impressed.

On Monday I was warned traffic for a football game that day might complicate my trip back to the airport. Everywhere I went that afternoon I was seeing Vikings jerseys and cheesehead hats. This Minneapolis camoflage would not work in Pittsburgh.

Monday afternoon I also hung out a bit at the PCUSA Polity Conference and caught up with a number of old friends. No General Assembly event would be complete without seeing the Stated Clerk Gradye Parsons and Moderator Bruce Reyes-Chow, two cool people.

File under : Minneapolis, PCUSA, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), art, sports

The difference between "vacant" and "vacancy"

2009-10-07T14:25:00.003-05:00

There are things one notices while spending a weekend with a group of people who care intently about choosing the correct word for the purpose. Keith Geckeler pointed this sign out to me on the way to lunch on Saturday.

A parking garage would be "vacant" when it is empty. It would have a "vacancy" when it still has a free space for a car. It would be "full" when there is no more room for any cars to park.

Someone may have saved a letter by not spelling out "VACANCY", but this sign saying that no one is parking in the garage might not encourage a customer considering using it. It might be nice to know there is room, but does one want to be the only or very first customer of the day? (Do the locals know something about why no one else is using the garage?)

On the other hand, the "occupied/vacant" distinction on an airplane restroom door makes a lot of sense. I would not be sure what to do if a sign in that setting said "VACANCY", suggesting that there might be room for more people inside.

File under : Minneapolis, literacy, picture, wierd

There's no hypocrisy in cashing a paycheck

2009-08-22T10:51:00.004-05:00

Dimitri Vassilaros poses the question on Facebook:

Has anyone else noticed that PittGirl was a shameless hypocrite?

Virginia "PittGirl" Montanez apparently had no problem cashing her paychecks from an organization that is dependent on the support of the VERY people she trashed - anonymously ...- on her blog.

This is all about a news event this week in the Pittsburgh area. For a number of years Virginia Montanez had blogged under the anonymous pseudonym "Pittgirl" on "The Burgh Blog" and entertained many with her sharp wit. Last fall she abruptly stopped posting "The Burgh Blog" and I am one who missed being able to read what she had to say. During the last week she revealed her true identity and was fired the next day.

I disagree with Dimitri and think that the reasoning in his charge of hypocrisy is flawed.

No one knows the true motivations of the individuals and organizations that support the Negro Educational Emergency Drive. A charitable view would be that they approved of the good purposes and mission of NEED, and were glad to be able to support its work. A less charitable view would be that they wanted the positive public regard that derived from others knowing that they supported NEED. A totally uncharitable view would be that these supporters couldn't care less about the mission of NEED but wanted their thumbs in every pie in order to gain power. I personally take the charitable view, but whatever the truth is, the supporters got what they paid for.

I don't see any hypocrisy in cashing paychecks that one earned by doing the work assigned by one's employer. Where one's employer gets its funds is irrelevant.

Moreover, a charge of hypocrisy would require some evidence that Virginia Montanez was using her anonymous persona to say things she did not really believe. Where is the evidence? As far as I can tell, she believed what she was saying.

Dimitri's radio show is on 1020 KDKA tonight from 6 to 9, and he plans to talk about his question. Unfortunately, I probably won't be able to listen in.

File under : Pittsburgh, blogs, transparency

Do Not Disturb or Annoy the cold cuts

2009-08-08T15:02:00.001-05:00

File under : food, picture, sign

When I was ordained

2009-07-30T06:14:00.002-05:00

Just some random recollections of myself and the church at the time I was ordained in 1980:

I needed to wear running shoes because during the previous month my youth group had talked me into trying to water ski and I had injured my ankle. (My ankle returned to normal size in a matter of weeks, but it has never been the same.)

The church in which I was ordained was the United Presbyterian Church in the United States of America.

The denominational headquarters was at 475 Riverside Drive in New York City.

The terminology of 'teaching elder' and 'ruling elder' was very much in use and well-understood in the Presbyterian Church.

There was a position called Assistant Pastor. (That was my first position in the first church I served as a teaching elder.)

Assistant Pastors and Associate Pastors were not members of the Session. (Soon after I was ordained the church would vote on changing this rule. At the time, I thought the change was a bad idea. I was wrong.)

The session of the first church I served had recently studied the blue book report on Homosexuality and the Church. But they were uncomfortable even talking about the experience of studying the issue.

The General Assembly (the church's most inclusive governing body) met annually.

The Book of Order was published annually and was an inexpensive paperback with a non-glossy cover.

The Presbyterian alphabet soup of organizations and committees was populated with acronyms I have not seen in a long time, such as COWAC.

The UPCUSA was in conversations with the Presbyterian Church in the United States about reunion. Someone showed me a copy of the PCUS Book of Order and I could tell by the much smaller size of their book that the two churches had markedly different cultures and ways of relating to their constitutions.

There was no Committee on Representation. (I would later chair one of those for a couple years.)

The General Assembly had no Advisory Committee on the Constitution. (As the church considered reunion, I thought the addition of the ACC as part of a second way for the General Assembly to render constitutional interpretations was a bad idea. I was wrong.)

File under : PCUSA, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)

Steel City Pizza has moved to Tarentum

2009-05-22T20:24:00.000-05:00

Tonight I was in Tarentum for a wedding rehearsal, and in addition to the pleasure of working with a wonderful couple and their delightful friends, I discovered that a great pizza spot from Lower Burrell has reopened across the river.

Back in April I had noticed that the lights were out in the building on Leechburg Road where Steel City used to be located. Then the sign in front of the building was changed to say "Building for lease." I wasn't the only one to be discouraged by the apparent closure.

But tonight I learned that Steel City Pizza has moved -- into a restaurant location very familiar to me in Tarentum -- the former location of Lee's Chinese Restaurant, 415 E. 4th Ave.

When I started telling friends that I had discovered where Steel City had moved, I realized what a popular spot it had been for a lot of people. I called the restaurant to get answers to the questions people were asking.

Do they still have those wonderful bread sticks for those who eat in the dining room? Yes.

Do they still deliver to Lower Burrell? Yes, they will deliver to Lower Burrell, New Kensington, and Tarentum. The new phone number for the location in Tarentum is (724) 224-7499.

File under : Lower Burrell, New Kensington, Tarentum, food

Summer preaching schedule starting to fill in

2009-05-13T11:25:00.002-05:00

My preaching schedule for the summer is starting to fill in. The dates booked so far are:

May 17, First Presbyterian Church of Gibsonia
June 14, Harmony United Presbyterian Church, Belle Vernon
July 26, Northmont United Presbyterian Church, Pittsburgh

I can hear you saying it now; those churches have taken all the good dates. But if you act now, you might still be able to book me for a Sunday this summer at a church near you.

File under : worship

Some events for Presbyterians (and others) in the Valley (and elsewhere)

2009-05-08T10:46:00.000-05:00

There are a number of opportunities to participate in some worthwhile events over the next couple of weeks.

Carol Harris Staffing Walk/Run/Ride for Habitat

This year the fundraiser for Habitat for Humanity will take place at the Pittsburgh Mills Mall, with the staging area in the parking lot between J.C.Penney and Sears. Events for people of all ages will begin at various times on Saturday, May 9, 2009 starting at 8:00 AM with the 5k run. The bike ride starts at 9:00 AM.

Tags: Allegheny, fundraiser, Habitat, housing, outdoors_recreation, ride, run, Valley, walk

Pin Me Up

This art show at Artform Tattoo in Lower Burrell on May 9, 2009 benefits the Susan G. Komen Foundation. The show starts at 2:00 PM. There is a $10 cover charge.

Support local artists and finding a cure for breast cancer.

Tags: art, breast, cancer, fundraiser, health, Lower Burrell

God Complex Radio: Is your pastor smart?

This will be the second show of God Complex Radio, an internet radio show featuring Rev. Carol Howard Merritt and Rev. Bruce Reyes-Chow. The topic for this program appears to deal with issues of clergy education. You can listen to the show live at godcomplexradio.com on May 11, 2009 at 12:00 noon EDT.The show will also be archived for later listening.

Tags: internet, radio, clergy, education, Presbyterian, religion

Revised Form of Government Presentation & Discussion

There will be a presentation and discussion of the Revised Form of Government for Pittsburgh Presbytery. Elder Carol Hunley, a member of Southminster Presbyterian Church, and Rev. Dan Williams, Co-Moderator of the General Assembly's Task Force on the Revised Form of Government will give the presentation and assist the discussion. There will be two sessions at the Presbytery Center on May 20, 2009. The first session will be from 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM and the second from 7:00 PM to 9:00.

Tags: PCUSA, Pittsburgh, polity, Presbyterian, rFOG

Poverty housing and Habitat for Humanity in the Allegheny Valley

2009-05-01T15:11:00.002-05:00

In many older communities in the Allegheny Valley there is an ongoing problem of substandard housing, which is often the only option available for families living in poverty.

Habitat for Humanity of Allegheny Valley offers one faithful response to the problem of poverty housing. Organized in 1996, it has been building decent homes with partner homeowners since 1997.

Support for Habitat is so broad that it is easy for people to forget that Habitat is a Christian ministry. Countless local church groups volunteer their time in our building projects. Church groups come from out of state as well. Although we don't require volunteers or homeowner families to make to make a formal profession of faith, we do invite them to join us in something that Jesus is doing in the world.

Beyond faith groups, our local affiliate has had help from American Eagle Outfitters, State Farm, and Comcast, to name just a few of the corporations who have lent a hand and provided resources. We've had an amazing partnership with the new mall in the area - the Pittsburgh Mills.

Habitat's work involves a careful balance of enlisting and deploying volunteers, soliciting donations of funds and materials, identifying and supporting partner homeowners and their families, and developing projects in which all of the above can come together. A couple years ago I visited one of our local affiliate's work-sites on a day when an unexpectedly large group of volunteers showed up. I was amazed by the flexibility of our Executive Director Diane Belitskus in adapting to the greatly increased number of volunteers that day, and her ability to identify tasks that were suitable for the unexpected group.

Our local affiliate is working on increasing its building capacity. We have benefited from a special partnership between Habitat for Humanity International and Thrivent Financial for Lutherans called Thrivent Builds with Habitat for Humanity. Under this larger partnership Thrivent Financial is providing $125 million over five years to help Habitat for Humanity significantly increase the number of homes it builds. Habitat for Humanity of Allegheny Valley is one of the many local affiliates that has received grants and extra commitments of volunteer hours from Lutherans to build more homes.

As I have seen the wonderful things that Thrivent Builds has been able to accomplish in partnership with affiliates around the world, I have been asking myself one question: Is there an entity of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) that is in a position to make a similar partnership with Habitat for Humanity?

File under : Allegheny Valley, Church, Habitat, PCUSA, Presbyterian, housing, poverty

Magical mystery moderatorial powers

2009-04-29T09:43:00.001-05:00

It's hard to tell exactly what Bruce Reyes-Chow is doing in this photo taken while he was visiting Heartland Presbytery yesterday.

Is he summoning a manifestation of the Holy Grail?

Is he causing a chalice to levitate?

Is he doing a little bit of stage magic?

Or is he simply "doing his thing" as the photographer modestly describes?

File under : PCUSA, humor, picture

When is a blogger a newsperson?

2009-04-25T10:00:00.003-05:00

Will the New Jersey shield law protect a blogger doing research for an article?

Wait a month to find out.

My cousin gets involved in the most fascinating cases. And this one about a blogger being sued for slander over online conversations to research an article really piques my interest.

I've observed that my own blogging takes me in different directions, sometimes engaging in conversation about an article someone else has written, and sometimes producing original content to which someone else might respond.

When I started attending borough council meetings I wanted to learn about the issues that were important to the people in the community. My blog was a convenient tool for me to record my perceptions and to share them with others.

I noticed that sometimes our local newspaper had a reporter there to cover the story, and sometimes not. It is easy for a local government to stay off the radar screen. It can hold meetings at the same time as the well-attended school board meetings. It can cancel agenda meetings and make the public wait for the actual meeting to find out what business is to be transacted. It can make clever use of executive session, misstating the purpose for excluding the public, or reconvening in open session after most of the public have gone home.

Some friends and acquaintances appreciated what I wrote. And some politicans made ingratiating comments to me about how my blog posts were so much better than what the newspaper had published. Come on - I had read the newspaper stories and I knew that they were just fine.

Was I a journalist in what I wrote on my blog? I don't know. Was I journalist when I started writing original local stories on Topix.com? Perhaps. But in both cases I am sure that I made a contribution to keeping the public informed.

I never faced a lawsuit over sources - or for anything else related to my blogging. But I am really looking forward to learning the outcome of Shellee Hale's case.

And I hope she wins.

File under : First Amendment, blogs, journalism, law

I like Facebook's new Terms of Service

2009-04-24T10:48:00.002-05:00

After following a careful process in developing new Terms of Service, Facebook gave its users an opportunity to vote on the new document. A strong majority (around 74%) of the small sample who looked at the documents approved of them. Facebook is still going to take some time to verify the accuracy of the data from the voting process.

Stan Schroeder raised some questions about whether Facebook needs to be a democracy, and if so what process it should have followed.

My opinion:

I don't think this is democracy at work, nor does it have to be. It is a business gathering marketing data before restating or changing its contract with users. I appreciate that Facebook took the time to do this.

I was one of those who initially joined the Facebook protest back in February, until I realized that it was based on an odd and inaccurate interpretation of what Facebook was trying to do. If people want to complain about the new documents that were in fact well-publicized and for which the users did have an opportunity to respond, I am one user who does not want to hear about it.

File under : Facebook, business, internet

Panel on Youth and Violence

2009-04-17T14:28:00.003-05:00

Yesterday before the meeting of Pittsburgh Presbytery, the Peacemaking Ministry Team sponsored a panel discussion on Youth and Violence. Panelists were ministers and elders from five diverse congregations of the presbytery: Bethesda United Presbyterian Church (in Pittsburgh), East Liberty Presbyterian Church, Grace Memorial Presbyterian Church, Southminster Presbyterian Church, and Verona United Presbyterian Church.

The Rev. Dr. Ron Peters of Pittsburgh Theological Seminary moderated the panel discussion, inviting the panelists to respond to various questions. How have youth in your church and community been affected by violence? How has your church responded to violence among youth? How is your church uniquely gifted to help? Where is God leading your congregation in regard to the problem of violence among our youth?

One of the common themes that emerged is that there will be "push-back" from within the congregation, i.e. that when we are dealing with genuine spiritual problems we should not be surprised that resistance conducting such a ministry will appear even from within the congregation.

The Peacemaking Ministry Team has prepared resources for churches who want to deal with the problem of youth and violence. Download links for three published resources are going to be made available to all who were in attendance at the panel discussion.

The walls in the lecture hall where the panel discussion was held were decorated with various mandalas made by young people at the Shuman Juvenile Detention Center.

File under : Pittsburgh Presbytery, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, peacemaking, violence, youth

Good Friday at TUPCNK

2009-04-11T09:58:00.001-05:00

Last night I attended the memorable and meaningful Good Friday service at the United Presbyterian Church of New Kensington. The service was organized by the youth group, included leaders of all ages, and was well-attended by a broad spectrum of people from the church.

When I arrived at the church I immediately saw yellow police tape blocking off the entrance to the church. It was an eye-catching reminder that something special was supposed to happen, and that it wasn't going to start in the sanctuary. Posters directed anyone who hadn't heard about the starting place for the service to go around back of the church.

In back of the church a crowd was milling around on the patio, some warming their hands over a fire. Others were sitting inside the fellowship hall with a view of the activity that was going to take place outside.

We sang a praise song from newsprint being held out of upper windows overlooking the courtyard. Then the drama began.

Young people in the crowd were asking questions. Checking whether anyone had heard about Jesus, and what had happened to him.

An unmarked police car drove up, lights flashing. Judas (played by Colin Yuckman, the pastor) identified Jesus (played by one of the young people)to the officer. The officer arrested Jesus, who went along peacefully. Meanwhile the crowd made comments about how it was about time somebody did something about Jesus.

Some people in the crowd recognized Peter as one people standing around the fire. Peter denied he knew Jesus when challenged by the crowd and the police officer; after the third denial he ran off.

Then we all moved inside to the fellowship hall where scripture was read and we sang more hymns. We were invited to complete a statement on a piece of paper: "I denied Jesus when I ..." The unsigned sheets were collected and pinned to a wall. Kathy Davis spoke to us about our denials and our forgiveness.

We turned our chairs to the side and Colin Yuckman offered a dramatic first-person monologue portraying Judas as he defended his choices and contemplated what he had done and was about to do.

We then moved ourselves upstairs to the vestibule where we joined in a litany posted on newsprint on the walls, committing ourselves to follow Jesus.

After singing another praise song we proceeded into the back of the sanctuary, where we watched Pilate conduct the trial of Jesus. At the conclusion of the trial we moved to the front of the sanctuary where we watched the crucifixion.

The young people did a great job in organizing this service. I am sure that everyone walked away from the experience with insights to ponder.

File under : Good Friday, New Kensington, United Presbyterian Church, drama, worship

The pariahs of the Presbytery Mission Fair

2009-02-06T13:33:00.004-05:00

Pittsburgh Presbytery had a mission fair at its meeting yesterday at the Pleasant Hills Community Presbyterian Church. The theme was "Showcasing the Presbytery" and all of the committees and entities that related dirctly to Pittsburgh Presbytery were invited to have a display. Unlike other committees that were present, the Permanent Judicial Commission was in the enviable position of not needing to lobby for budget money and not looking for work. Although I had never heard of a PJC having a display at such an event, it seemed to me that it would be appropriate for the PJC to make itself available — in a limited way — to the rest of the presbytery community.

I put together the display shown above, and a brochure that had the same information but in some greater detail. Two other members of the PJC (Dave Carver and Jeff Tindall) made themselves available to staff the table along with me.

I am not surprised that there was a low level of interest in our display, but the fascinating part of this experience was that so many people at the mission fair would glance at the display from a distance and then hurry past as if they were afraid of catching something if they lingered too long.

A couple of our brief visitors indicated that they had served on the PJC in the past. One person asked about how someone gets on a PJC and I directed her to the presbytery's nominating committee.

Even though the display met with a low level of interest, I was glad to have had the experience of putting it together. I hope that the display's existence will make it easier for the presbytery to explain this part of its work to people who have questions in the future.

File under : Pittsburgh Presbytery, Pleasant Hills Community Presbyterian Church, judicial

Nice weather for birds

2009-01-28T09:36:00.002-05:00

I am suspending judgment on whether this storm will turn out to be all that the forecasters have predicted. I can tell that there is poor visibility, but I didn't expect to see this cardinal in the apple tree outside my window on such a gray day.

File under : Lower Burrell, picture

Can there be common ground in the midst of our differences?

2009-01-19T12:36:00.001-05:00

On Saturday I attended a listening session sponsored by Pittsburgh Presbytery at the Cross Roads Presbyterian Church in Monroeville. The 218th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) sent a number of proposed amendments of the church constitution, along with four ecumenical statements, to all of the presbyteries for their votes. The Assembly recommended that presbyteries use a listening process in voting on these amendments.

Pittsburgh Presbytery has formed a task force to prepare recommendations to the Presbytery on each of these matters. That task force scheduled six listening sessions in order to hear from ministers and elders about each of the issues. I decided that I would try to get to the three that were closest to me in order to hear from people in the presbytery.

Saturday's session was held on a cold day, but the temperatures did not stop 21 people from coming out to listen and be heard. The Rev. Tom Moore led the session that morning.

Those in attendance identified proposed Amendments 08-B, 08-E, and 08-F, and ecumenical statement 08-K as the ones about which they wanted to speak.

The majority of our time was spent discussing proposed amendment 08-B, "Ordained Officers: On Amending G-6.0106b, G-14.0240, G-14.0450." The energy expressed around 08-B primarily had to do with the amendment of G-6.0106b. The thrust of the amendment is to replace a reference to a specific standard with a more general, but specifically Christ-centered, standard for officers "to live lives obedient to Jesus Christ the Head of the Church ...."

As I listened to the statements people wanted to make both in opposition to this amendment and in support of it, it seemed to me that the major division we were experiencing had to do with our differing interpretations of Scripture. For some the proposed constitutional change seemed like a relaxing of clear teachings of Scripture; for others the same change seemed like a move towards greater faithfulness to Jesus Christ as revealed in Scripture. With such great differences of perspective, is it possible for us to find common ground? I continue to hope so.

When we discussed Ecumenical Statement 08-K "Ecumenical Statement with the Roman Catholic Church on Ratifying a Common Agreement on Baptism" many were pleased at the prospect of formalizing agreements that that some of us had assumed were already in existence. Yet even as we looked with favor on this statement, there were some who were still concerned about the fact that the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and the Roman Catholic Church have different understandings of justification. Should a disagreement on justification (not addressed in this ecumenical statement) be a sufficient reason for disapproving an agreement on eight points where there is no dispute? I don't think so.

I plan to attend other listening sessions that are reasonably close to me, to continue to hear the thoughts of others in Pittsburgh Presbytery. I need to know how these potential changes affect them. The people with whom I may have disagreements are all recipients of the same grace that God has shown to me in Jesus Christ.

File under : Bible, Christian unity, PCUSA, Pittsburgh Presbytery, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), discernment

Happy New Year everybody!

2009-01-01T11:02:00.002-05:00

Last night I rang in the new year at 'Celebrate Westmoreland 2009' - a free set of events held in and around the campus of the Westmoreland Museum of American Art. The falling snow and the frigid temperatures did not deter a large crowd from participating in the festivities.

There were many activities for all ages - and more than anybody could possibly attend in one evening. A synthetic ice skating rink was set up on Academy Hill Place, and it seemed that there was a constant crowd of people skating on it.

Inside the museum there were art activities for children (sponsored by such groups as Greenlight Engage) as well as interactive science activities sponsored by the Discovery & Interactive Science Center. (I liked the percussion demonstration.)

A smorgasbord of musical performances were happening inside the museum, in the auditorium of the Greensburg-Salem Middle School, and at Blessed Sacrament Cathedral. I enjoyed two performances by young people from Stage Right. The first was a somewhat impromptu set of audition songs that various students had been working on; they put this together when they learned that another group was not going to show up. The second was a medley of songs performed by the Stage Right Sensations.

The galleries in the Museum were open for anyone who wanted to browse the exhibits. I made a promise to myself to come back and explore the exhibits further when there was not a karaoke contest happening in the next room. 2009 will be a good year for further visits because this is the fiftieth anniversary for the museum.

File under : art, children, holiday, music, science

This can't be legal

2008-12-11T14:25:00.002-05:00

There is a residential apartment building in Western Pennsylvania that has the following sign mounted on each door from the stairways into the hallways that lead to the apartments.

I just have to believe that the person who paid for these signs might not have been alert to the difference between "locked" and "closed." (In fact, none of the fire doors is locked, notwithstanding the stern written order. Some of the doors are often found open, perhaps left that way by people who are totally baffled about what the sign might actually mean.)

The desire to securely close doors has its place. Certainly, a fire door keeps residents safe when it is closed and slows the spread of a fire to other zones in the building. But locked? Should residents caught in a zone that is on fire have to remember to bring along a key to the fire door in order to escape? As long as they also remember lock the fire door behind them?

This sign has prompted my thinking about the church's responsibility for evangelism, which seems to be in radical contrast to the regulatory desire to bar the doors against whoever seems to be an unfamiliar threat. I pray that the church will rise to its high calling of being a "fire exit" for those who need its message of hope.

File under : evangelism, literacy

Some cool upcoming events

2008-12-06T14:09:00.001-05:00

During the past week I learned about a couple of cool upcoming events. So I thought I would fiddle with Zoundry Raven (my blogging software) to see how it could handle the XHTML code for describing the events in the hCalendar microformat.

This Tuesday, December 9, 2008 at 3:00 PM EST, Bruce Reyes-Chow (Moderator of the 218th General Assembly of the PCUSA) will have an online conversation with Beau Weston about his paper "Rebuilding the Presbyterian Establishment." The event is Moderator Musings, Episode 2: Conversation with Beau Weston, and anyone can watch it live online at http://www.ustream.tv/channel/moderator-musings.

Early next year on February 19, 2009, from 2:00 PM to 5:30 PM, Pittsburgh Presbytery will sponsor a convocation on "Our Freedom of Religion at Risk: A Presbyterian Crisis" to be held at the Beulah United Presbyterian Church, 2500 McCrady Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15235. The speakers will include Joseph Small, Beau Weston, Euan Cameron, Mark Tammen, and Jeff Tindall. More information is available at www.presbyterianconvocation.org.

These two events are now on my calendar.

And, as a side note, I've discovered that it is a real benefit that Zoundry Raven allows me to edit the XHTML code.

Powered by Zoundry Raven

File under : First Amendment, PCUSA, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), blogs, religious freedom

Pittsburgh Presbytery meeting at Parkwood

2008-12-05T14:48:00.002-05:00

Yesterday Pittsburgh Presbytery met at the Parkwood United Presbyterian Church. There were 116 ministers and 98 elders representing 60 churches present.

We began the meeting with a worship service in which we sang from five different Advent hymns (with a single verse from three of the hymns). I had in the back of my mind that R. Bryan Lassinger would be playing the organ, and it was a special joy to me to hear him playing throughout the service. It was also a pleasant surprise to notice that there is a church in Pittsburgh Presbytery that uses the Revised Standard Version as its pew Bible. Hallelujah!

During the service, Robert Anderson, our interim pastor to the presbytery, invited a number of people to come forward and tell about where they had seen God working. This was an important kind of sharing at any meeting, but especially appropriate during Advent when we are encouraged to be watchful.

Jay Lewis, the Stated Clerk, introduced a committee that is reviewing the booklet of proposed amendments to the Book of Order and of proposed ecumenical statements. The committee is developing a process for the Presbytery to discuss and vote on these matters.

During the meeting the presbytery adopted a 2009 budget that is shy of $3 million, and we approved the proper changes in the terms of call for the ministers on the presbytery staff.

We also took a variety of actions to elect or appoint individuals to positions within the presbytery, and to approve calls to pastors. We commissioned David Van Diercksen to serve as the U.S. Coordinator of Puentes de Cristo, a border ministry in Reynosa, Mexico. We granted honorable retirement to Johnnie Monroe, and celebrated his ministry. We approved the oral parts of trial for Thomas Hall.

During the meeting the Presbytery declined (by a vote of 54-120) to approve a resolution on examination process proposed by the session of the Bellefield church.

All in all, I thought it was a good meeting.

File under : Advent, Parkwood United Presbyterian Church, Pittsburgh Presbytery, music, vocation, worship

Give thanks

2008-11-25T10:15:00.003-05:00

The children's story that was read in church on Sunday has given me some extra reasons to give thanks on the coming national holiday. The story was a reading of a children's book entitled The Story of Thanksgiving, and it included a description of Squanto showing the pilgrims how to plant corn.

It is easy to hear that story without noticing its significance. Corn seems so familiar to me. From my childhood, the family garden always included a section for a few short rows of corn. When I was in high school, picking fresh sweet corn from our field and selling it in front of our house was a regular summer activity. It is hard for me to imagine my life without corn.

And yet that short story on Sunday reminded me of a very important fact: that there was a time when my maternal ancestors who came over on the Mayflower did not know how to grow corn. There certainly is much more that could and should be told about the first colonial Thanksgivings, but the story I heard on Sunday reminded me about the whole history of corn, without which a White Anglo-Saxon Protestant such as myself would not have experienced corn.

I am thankful to God for many things this Thanksgiving: for my daily bread, and for people of other cultures who over thousands of years developed the foods that enrich my life.

File under : Thanksgiving, food, history

Remove or block

2008-11-24T15:18:00.002-05:00

One of the hazards of having a Facebook page is the accumulation of excessive applications. If a friend invites you to play a particular game or participate in an online activity with them, you need to install the application for that game or activity, most of the time giving the application access to your information. In many cases, the only way one can find out what the application is about is to install it and try it.

Lately I have been inundated by notifications from applications I tried once without finding them interesting. And so the adventure of uninstalling Facebook applications begins ...

I find my way to Facebook's Applications page where there is a list of the applications I have installed. Next to each of the applications there is a row of icons indicating whether I have bookmarked the application, whether I have added it to my profile, whether I have authorized it to access my data, whether I have given it permission to post stories on my wall, and whether I have given it other kinds of permission.

Then there are the buttons to edit the application's status, to read an "about" page for the application, or to remove the application. "Remove" looks really good.

But when I click it I get a window with a message like the following:

The user must make a choice, and none of the choices is "Remove AND Block."

I don't know how many times I have scratched my head over this conundrum. I have ended up going with "Remove" because it feels more protective of my privacy, and my general practice has been not to have applications I am trying out show up on my profile page anyhow. I think that all the applications I have "removed" have also disappeared from my bookmarks and application page, but nowhere on this explanatory window is there a promise that "removing" access will actually include "blocking" as well.

If anybody on Facebook has any better solutions, please let me know.

File under : internet

It's just a jump to the left and then a step to the right

2008-11-12T12:57:00.002-05:00

At the beginning of this month I really enjoyed being able to see the Stage Right production of The Rocky Horror Show. (Just to be clear, this was not a screening of the 1975 film, but a live stage production of the musical.)

I had never been to any live show of this musical, but had seen a video of the movie once. I knew it had a number of great songs but I was not prepared for how much fun the live show would be. There are simply some things that won't happen when watching a video, like being invited to get on my feet with a crowd to dance "The Time Warp", or having to cover my head with newspaper as shelter from the rain, or almost being hit in the face by a roll of toilet paper, being pelted by rice, or hearing live singers make their songs work in spite of technical problems with the sound system.

It was a great production and I am glad I went. (And for those who are curious, I did not try to go as Brad. I simply went as myself.)

File under : drama, music

Tarentum streetscape

2008-11-12T11:37:00.002-05:00

I hope I always remember the things I see when I look up as I walk on streets in Tarentum. There are such contrasts: interesting architectural features, bare brick and painted brick, and autumn leaves as brilliant as the yellow traffic hazard signs.

File under : Tarentum, picture

The window quiz

2008-11-11T15:26:00.002-05:00

There is a worship and the arts group at The United Presbyterian Church of New Kensington. Last week they introduced their new art installation of displays in each of the eight windows in the sanctuary. The overall title of the project is "Give Thanks for Our Legacy of Faith."

The last Sunday bulletin invited the church members to match the themes with the windows. The themes are:

A. Three Churches Become One
B. Missionary Women
C. Youth Learning and Doing
D. African Connections
E. Children in our Midst
F. Emerging Ministries
G. Celebrate the Saints
H. A Future Legacy

Here are the eight window displays going clockwise from the front of the sanctuary.

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

Can you match them all up?

Drag your mouse on the next line to see my educated guesses.

Possibly the right matches: A-5; B-4; C-3; D-2; E-6; F-7; G-8; H-1

File under : New Kensington, United Presbyterian Church, art, worship

The election at last

2008-11-04T10:12:00.002-05:00

I just got back from voting today, and was impressed by the turnout.

I am still getting used to the practice in Pennsylvania of allowing people campaigning for their candidates to work so close to the polling places. When I lived in New York and Connecticut there was always a much larger zone that was off-limits to this activity. But when I go to vote here I feel like I am running the gauntlet of campaigners all the way up the sidewalk, even to the door of City Hall.

As I look back on the last month, I don't know how many times I heard people lament that the election was not over yet. This sense of weariness with the election leaves me concerned that our two-party system (a legalized duopoly here in Pennsylvania) is failing to present the electorate with a choice of candidates who actually energize the public to participate in our democratic systems. I hope that the turnout I saw today is evidence that the choices offered really did motivate people to get out and vote.

File under : Lower Burrell, politics

A colorful way to deal with hunger

2008-10-26T15:51:00.003-05:00

Today I was impressed by creativity and sensitivity at the United Presbyterian Church of New Kensington.

Aware of the needs experienced by people in the community, they are doing a special four-week appeal for their Food Pantry. Entitled "The Colors of Autumn Food Collection", they are asking people to donate donate non-perishable food items by color each week.

The first week is YELLOW and is ideal for canned corn or wax beans, canned pears (or other yellow fruit) lemn pudding or jello, egg noodles, or apple sauce.

The second week is GREEN-ORANGE, and is ideal for green beans, peas, or other canned green vegetables, pumpkin pie filling, carrots, mandarin oranges, orange jello, pistachio pudding, or macaroni and cheese.

The third week is RED, and is ideal for tomato products, strawberry or cherry jello, strawberry jam, or kidney beans.

The fourth week is BROWN, and ideal for canned tuna or canned meats, whole grain cereals, peanut butter, chocolate pudding, or baked beans.

The church bulletin had a trifold flier giving these and other suggestions for the four weeks, along with scriptural encouragement to generosity.

I thought this was a great idea for a good cause, and was very impressed.

Current mood: so-so, with a rating of three flowers.

File under : hunger, New Kensington, United Presbyterian Church, food, generosity

Learning to find a new perspective

2008-10-07T06:35:00.001-05:00

Yesterday was my first day of classes at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary in Interim Ministry training, and what a day it was!

There are 27 of us taking the class. We are an ecumenical group of men and women from across the theological spectrum, and from across the country. The team of four leaders brings a wonderful mix of skills, styles, and perspectives to the class.

We are divided up into smaller groups for discussion, Bible Study, and prayer.

We will be holding information that we share with one another in confidence, so I won't be posting photographs of any of the sessions or participants.

Today we start tackling our first case study.

Mood: upbeat. Rating: four flowers

File under : Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, education, transformation

The view from the pew

2008-10-06T06:15:00.001-05:00

Over the last month I have begun my transition from installed pastor to whatever God has in mind for me next. Not having a pulpit where I am expected on Sunday mornings has given me the opportunity to go worship in other churches.

I had a short list of churches that I thought I would want to experience, and was pleasantly surprised that my visit on to the United Presbyterian Church of New Kensington persuaded me to stop church-shopping. The pastor, Colin Yuckman, preaches thoughtful sermons and has been dealing with the theme of exile. Their education minister, Kathy Davis, does the Time with Children during the service, and talks with the children on issues related to the rest of the worship service that would be especially relevant to them. The music in worship is a broad mix of traditional hymns from the Presbyterian Hymnal and more contemporary praise music; I have enjoyed using familiar praise songs as specific liturgical elements throughout the service. The congregation is engaged in many forms of ministry and mission within the community; the very first Sunday I was there the pastor was recognizing members of the church who had been involved in a work project to fix someone's home.

I have felt appropriately greeted each time I go there. I have been able to sit with a neighbor of mine in the apartment building, and that has provided ways for me to be introduced to other members of the church. The second Sunday I visited I was pleased to see old friends Bert and Bob Erickson who were there to ring handbells.

A week ago I needed to find a different church in order to go to an earlier service because of plans I had for the afternoon. I found a church near my home that had an early contemporary service. Again, I felt appropriately greeted by a couple of the worshipers. I did not know any of the praise songs used in the service, but they were all easy to learn so their newness was not a barrier to worship for me. This contemporary service did not use a bulletin, and the one sheet of paper that was handed to me as I came in was a list of announcements. Interestingly absent from the list was the name of the guest preacher, who was also not introduced during the praise service. That service will go down in my memory as The Sunday I Heard The Sermon From The Anonymous Preacher. Pastoral anonymity is not necessarily a bad idea, because I think most of us preachers would like to be transparent, not to put attention on ourselves, but simply to participate in sharing the eternal Word with others. In this case, the mystery (to me) about the identity of the preacher was an unhelpful distraction.

Today I start my first week of Interim Ministry training.

Current mood: pretty good, with great anticipation. Rating: 4 flowers.

File under: New Kensington, Lower Burrell, Presbyterian Church, worship

New blog name

2008-09-20T14:27:00.002-05:00

With the wrapping-up of my relationship with Central Presbyterian Church, I need to change the focus of my blog, which will remain at the same internet address as before.

Welcome to "Not So Reserved", a blog with a (perhaps temporary) name that reminds me that sometimes our perceptions may be exaggerated. During hurricane season there are lots of stories told about people in coastal areas who do not take seriously the warnings that it is time to evacuate from their homes. Of course, around here the warnings of severe weather (promoted by weather programs sponsored by Giant Eagle) are also taken with a grain of salt, but people still flock to the supermarkets to stock up on the necessities in case just in case the predictions come true.

Around here they also used to warn people that I was a reserved pastor. Maybe those warnings were exaggerations as well.

Current mood: so-so, but hopeful; with a rating of 3 flowers.

File under : blogs

The workspace of a 21st Century quilter

2008-09-02T10:41:00.002-05:00

This is a picture I took during one of last-month's gatherings of the Central Quilters. When they are working on a quilt that is on a quilting frame, the horizontal surface doubles as a table holding the various small tools that might be needed.

File under : Central Presbyterian Church, Tarentum, art, quilt

Don't say you never found a coupon on my blog

2008-09-02T10:18:00.002-05:00

File under : Central Presbyterian Church, Tarentum, blatant_promotion_of_fundraiser

My Olympic boycott

2008-08-19T12:27:00.003-05:00

I am boycotting the Beijing Olympics. I didn't go to the opening ceremonies, and I won't attend the closing ceremonies. Additionally, I refuse to compete—even if asked. I also have not kept my TV on to make sure that whatever is happening in Beijing is brought into my living room. Nor have I bothered to turn the TV on when friends or family have told me not to miss seeing an Olympic event.

This is probably not a very principled way of participating in the boycott of the Beijing Olympics. After all, most (if not all) of the local people I know are still in town rather than in Beijing. I don't think I have ever made anybody's list of outstanding athletes. And I don't watch that much TV anyhow.

I am skeptical about the use or overuse of boycotts or the threats of boycotts. If a boycott is intended to change the disapproved behavior of another, it seems that the focus of action needs to be made very clear. That implies to me that a genuine boycotter should not only inform friends and acquaintances about his or her intention to boycott, but should also communicate those concerns to the party whose behavior one wishes to change, and in a way that would allow for a timely change in that behavior.

In the middle of all the Olympic hoopla, I've read two excellent articles in recent weeks, explaining individual decisions to boycott the Beijing Olympics. I may not agree that a process for a meaningful boycott has been followed, but I do agree with their statements of concern and feel that they are worthy of further attention.

John Stewart has posted a devotional on his blog drawing attention to the persecution of Christians by the Chinese government.

Charles C. Haynes wrote a recent column drawing attention to broader religious persecution in China.

The breadth of human rights violations cries out for a change of policy by the Chinese government, and should have been considered more strongly when the Olympic committee was selecting a location for the 2008 games.

File under : business, justice, religion, religious freedom, sports

I've never had so many people vote for me, or against me for that matter

2008-08-13T17:03:00.003-05:00

One of the events at the 218th General Assembly that affected me directly was my election to the Advisory Committee on the Constitution. I had been appointed to fill a mid-term vacancy on this committee, subject to election by the next meeting of the General Assembly. This is an unpaid, volunteer position working in an area where I have some applicable expertise.

Early in the meeting I learned that there was going to be a challenge nomination from the floor. Having worked at getting up to speed with the committee's work, and having contributed some of what I had to offer during that time, I discovered that I now had feelings of investment in that committee. Being elected mattered to me in a new way.

The General Assembly has procedures for handling challenge nominations, and I learned a few weeks after the Assembly that some photographs had been taken of the proceedings that I had merely watched with great interest.

The following photographs were taken by Harry Young, the stated Clerk of Utica Presbytery (the same presbytery that ordained me 28 years ago). I am posting these photos on my blog with his permission.

On Thursday morning, June 26, the General Assembly Nominating Committee began presenting the nominations that were to be challenged by other nominations from the floor. My nomination was the first to be presented. The above slide was shown to the commissioners, giving them some demographic information about me and the challenger.

"WMC" = White Male Clergy. "46-55" is my age bracket. "Pittsburgh" identifies me as a member of Pittsburgh Presbytery. "TRI"=Synod of the Trinity (where Pittsburgh Presbytery is located). I was being nominated for an At-Large position; all of the positions on the Advisory Committee on the Constitution are "at-large" because they are not tied to representing particular governing bodies or categories.

My challenger was White Female Clergy, in the "56-65" age bracket, from the Presbytery of Nevada, in the Synod of the Pacific.

Under the rules of the General Assembly, the commissioner making the challenge nomination was to make a nominating speech of up to three minutes.

Then a representative of the General Assembly Nominating Committee was allowed to make a three minute speech in support of their nominee (me).

Those two speeches and the demographic information above were the only pieces of information formally presented to the assembly before it went through its voting procedure. But before the commissioners voted, the Assembly polled various categories of Advisory Delegates for their advice (the Assembly followed this procedure on most items of business when the voting pads were going to be used).

Each of the slides showing the advisory polls had two categories of advisory delegates. The Youth Advisory Delegates were 68% in favor of me (with 95 of them indicating a choice). The second category on that slide showed the poll of the Theological Student Advisory Delegates. That one was much closer, but with a lot of the TSAD's not supporting either nominee.

The next slide showed the poll of the Missionary Advisory Delegates. There were a total of eight delegates in this category, and the seven that indicated a preference all supported me.

Also on this slide were the Ecumenical Advisory Delegates. Only a little over a third of these delegates indicated any preference at all. In that category I got three votes and the challenger got two.

After the Assembly had received the advice of its advisory delegates, the commissioners voted. There were a total of 752 commissioners at the Assembly and I received 67% of the votes, so I was elected.

In retrospect, I realized that because most of my ministry has been in small presbyteries and in small to medium-sized congregations, this was the largest group of people to vote on me in my life. Even the raw number of people voting against me in this election was larger than the number of votes I had received in any previous election.

File under: PCUSA, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), picture, vocation

Visual impressions of General Assembly in San Jose

2008-08-12T20:54:00.002-05:00

It has been almost two months since I was in San Jose for the 218th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). There has been a lot going on, and I am not back up to speed with my blogging, but I wanted to share some of the things I saw while in San Jose.

When I arrived in San Jose one of the first things that caught my eye was the crape-myrtle that was blooming everywhere. These trees with beautiful purple flowers lined the streets throughout the city and especially in the area around the convention center.

One of the first things I did after checking into my hotel and registering at the Assembly was to visit the meeting hall and find my assigned seat. As a corresponding member of the General Assembly my seat was about twenty rows ahead of the place where I used to sit, but still behind the black curtain that separated the voting commissioners and advisory delegates from the rest of us. There was a lot still being set up in the meeting hall. A few commissioners had found their seats and were doing some meeting preparation. The photo of the empty hall above was taken from the spot where I would sit during the meetings of the Assembly.

Of course, when the hall was full of people the view would be very different, such as when the Assembly was at worship.

On Sunday evening, Monday, and Tuesday I sat with Committee 06, the Form of Government Revision Committee. A Task Force had prepared a proposed revision to the Form of Government (part of our Church's Constitution). I was with this Committee to give them the advice of the Advisory Committee on the Constitution. Many presbyteries had sent overtures to the Assembly asking for different things to be done with the so-called FOG Report.

On Monday morning I gave this committee a twenty-minute presentation with PowerPoint, helping them to understand the options they had. The Committee (and I) made the news.

In the end, this committee recommended that the report be referred to an augmented Task Force to report back to the next General Assembly.

The photo above was taken from my assigned seat when the committee was meeting. Far away at the front of the room (and to the left of the projection screen) the woman in the white sweater was Carol Hunley, an elder commissioner from Pittsburgh Presbytery. A recent news story this week announced that Carol is one of the members who were added to the Task Force to prepare the FOG report for the next Assembly.

During the meetings of the Assembly there was a camera crew ready to focus a camera on members of the Assembly when they were speaking at microphones. The images of the speakers would appear on one of the large projection screens at the front of the meeting hall. I got used to paying attention to the pictures of speakers, and the amplified sound of what they were saying. At one point in a debate, I noticed that I was hearing an odd echo. Past Moderator Jack Rogers was speaking to the Assembly. I realized then that Microphone 10 was about fifteen feet to my right and that what I was hearing were his spoken words followed after a very short delay by the amplified version of what he was saying.

File under : PCUSA, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), picture

Topix has partnered with eventful

2008-08-07T16:41:00.002-05:00

It has been a busy summer for me and I got so far away from blogging that I was taken by surprise when I noticed the redesign of pages on Topix. I had barely begun to assimilate that piece of information when I noticed something even newer than the overall redesign -- Topix has partnered with eventful to provide information about upcoming events.

The other day I noticed the events tab on the of of the Topix page for Tarentum, and when I clicked to see what events they had to offer I saw a number of events that I knew I had earlier uploaded to eventful. Then, when I checked the links, I saw that all of the events linked directly back to eventful's pages about those events.

I am somewhat gratified by this development. A couple years ago I had started using eventful to publicize various events, and I have been getting increasingly comfortable with how their website works. Eventful is good at providing its information on to other event services. For Topix to partner with eventful seems a particularly good match.

File under : news, web design

Grand Opening for Aresto Comics

2008-08-06T11:30:00.003-05:00

On Monday, August 4, a new business opened its doors in Lower Burrell.

Aresto Comics, having existed for a number of years as an eBay store, now also has a physical location at 2785 Leechburg Road Suite C, Lower Burrell, where customers can come and browse and receive personal service.

The small store is neat and well-lit. The owner, Tom Aresto, offers a subscription service, and will have special evening hours on Wednesdays, the days when the new issues come out.

When I visited for the grand opening, I admitted that I had not really followed comic books since my childhood, but that in recent years I had seen that the quality of the printing and artwork had improved enormously. Tom pointed out that the quality of the writing has also improved. That explains to me why so many of the recent movies that I have enjoyed have been based on comics or graphic novels I had not seen.

It is an interesting store. Its location on the well-travelled Leechburg Road is an easy walk from my home. I'll probably be checking out new developments around the store as they happen.

File under: : Lower Burrell, art, book, business

Proud to be an American

2008-08-05T21:37:00.002-05:00

"Did you have your TV on last night?"

"No," was my reply.

"Do you know who won on American Gladiator?"

My reply was still "No."

Someone who came to church tonight explained that his television completely lost its signal in the middle of American Gladiator and he did not know how the show turned out.

I must be doing something wrong that I am so easily mistaken for someone who would care about the outcome of a prime time game show.

So I made what I thought was a reasonable guess about the script for an unreality show I don't follow, and offered, "I think it was the American."

Was I wrong?

File under: television

Modeling the benefit shirt

2008-07-21T19:55:00.002-05:00

Today I received my "Run, Tom, Run" shirt — the one I described in the previous post.

So I'm not the greatest shirt model ... but CafePress makes good shirts with a high quality printing process.

The link for the shirts again: http://www.cafepress.com/runtomrun.

File under: Tarentum, art, blatant_promotion_of_fundraiser

Run, Tom, Run!

2008-07-13T21:28:00.002-05:00

A Tarentum resident and artist had a serious stroke on May 15 while working out of state. He is now back in the Alle-Kiski Valley and making a recovery. His family is using a piece of his artwork to raise funds to pay for his uncovered medical expenses.

If you'd like to encourage Thomas to get back on his feet and moving so that he can put down the next robot uprising, consider buying a t-shirt or other item at http://www.cafepress.com/runtomrun.

File under: Tarentum, art, blatant_promotion_of_fundraiser, health

Changes in the wind

2008-07-10T08:08:00.002-05:00

This has been a busy week so far. The major events for my week have involved informing the congregation of my decision to resign as the pastor at Central.

Sunday morning during worship I told the congregation about my decision. Following the service people responded with expressions of wishing me well and about how much I will be missed.

Tuesday evening at our Meal and Ministry, I informed a mixed group of church members and neighbors of the church what was happening. I am always amused when people ask me whether this or that event will interfere with our meeting for supper and Bible Study. I don't know how many times I've explained that I do plan to eat supper on Tuesday, so we will continue with it through the summer.

Last night I formally informed the Session, and presented my letter of resignation. They started the process of finishing up the formalities by accepting my letter and calling a congregational meeting for July 27, at which the congregation will concur with my request. Presbytery representatives were present at the Session meeting to help the Session know what their options would be in moving ahead once I finish.

My plans are to finish work at Central on August 31, and then to use my left over study leave and vacation starting September 1. I am thinking about getting the official interim pastor training and then doing some interim pastor work. I plan to stay in the Alle-Kiski Valley.

I am confident that God is calling me to resign from this position, and I am equally confident that God has something else for me to do. I am looking forward to having that next step become clear to me.

File under : Central Presbyterian Church, Tarentum

Blown right into the middle of things

2008-05-22T16:43:00.001-05:00

It has been really windy the last few days. The winds banging on my window and pushing my car when I drive around the area seem as forceful as the winds blowing in other areas of my life.

Ever since I first started to get involved with the ACC back in October, I have felt like something much bigger than me has picked me up and put me into this new situation.

Yesterday I got the final confirmation that my ACC assignment at the General Assembly will be to give the ACC's advice to Committee 06, dealing with the Form of Government Revision.

If you are interested in seeing the business that will be before that committee you can look it up on PC-Biz. Or you can use that site to look at everything else the Presbyterian General Assembly will be doing in San Jose.

And with all the attention being given to the so-called "FOG Report", I'll be somewhere in the thick of it.

File under : PCUSA, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)

Reimagining the Bible in Pittsburgh

2008-05-15T08:00:00.002-05:00

What are you dealing with when you are invited to participate in a "Bible distribution project" that has no plans to distribute Bibles? Before jumping to the uncharitable conclusion that someone is trying to deceive you, it might be worthwhile to consider the possibilities that words have meanings that shift or that some people are simply imprecise in their use of language.

CityReachers (R) Pittsburgh at times bills itself as a Bible distribution project (see this page for example) and at other times states very clearly that its plan is to distribute New Testaments. And therein is the space left for confusion. At last night's session meeting, for example, I learned that our elder commissioner came home from last month's meeting of Pittsburgh Presbytery with the mistaken impression that CityReachers (R) was going to distribute "a whole new Bible."

I am all for distributing Scripture whether in whole or in part. But I have to wonder how it happens that an organization that knows how to describe accurately its distribution of scripture portions would now produce so many publicity pieces that describe their version of the New Testament as a "Bible."

The most surprising to me was the letter signed by seven leaders of Christian bodies in the Pittsburgh area (even including Pittsburgh Presbytery). I know that at least some of those bodies have clear standards that recognize the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments as authoritative. But now their names appear on an endorsing letter that uses the word "Bible" interchangeably with "New Testament" or "book".

And the odd result is that the "Bible" to be distributed will not include the very scriptures the Risen Christ used when he interpreted to his disciples what was said about him in all the scriptures beginning with Moses and the prophets. (Luke 24:27)

In Pittsburgh it appears that "the Bible" has a whole new meaning.

File under: Bible, Pittsburgh, religion

That's why the fans go to the games early

2008-05-13T07:42:00.002-05:00

I mentioned last month this photograph of the Steelers that is going to be distributed with part of a Bible. Now it is making the news.

The photo explains why the fans go early to the Steeler games.

They must want to be sure they see the Steelers out-pray the other team during the pre-game prayer meeting.

That's why, isn't it?

File under : Pittsburgh, recreation, religion, sports

Purple sphere on green field

2008-05-05T18:04:00.002-05:00

File under : Lower Burrell, picture

Fast work

2008-04-25T11:15:00.001-05:00

Yesterday afternoon I noticed that equipment had been moved into position near the old Second Ward School to get ready to demolish the empty green house beside it on Second Avenue.

This morning I saw that the house had already been brought down.

This is part of a very positive development for Tarentum. The former school building was sold last month to Rabkin Dermatopathology Laboratory.

The vacant house was purchased for demolition so that the laboratory would have adequate parking, always at a premium in Tarentum.

So Tarentum has a new business coming to town, and one that may generate some medical synergy with the presence of Blackburn's Physicians Pharmacy. Tarentum is not just a town with a number of doctor's offices, but it is a town to which doctors look for a number of needed services.

And there is now one less vacant house in town.

File under : Tarentum, business, renewal

2008 Tarentum Skatepark closure

2008-04-24T08:59:00.001-05:00

I am feeling very disappointed right now. On Saturday, Tarentum's Earth Day Cleanup went so well, with about 80 volunteers helping to clean up the litter in town.

Then on Tuesday someone told me that he had seen a lot of litter around the skatepark and had told the young people inside that they needed to get the mess cleaned up.

Yesterday afternoon I had some time to check out what was happening at the park, and was very dismayed by what I found. There was litter inside and outside the park. Even before I got out of my car I could see that there had been damage to the fence. When I walked over to the gate I saw the sign that the park was closed.

I started picking up some of the litter outside the park. A few minutes later some young people arrived, hoping to use the park, and they were disappointed to see that the park was closed. Against my advice a couple of the young children climbed over the fence to clean up the litter that was inside the park. In their minds they were doing a good thing by picking up the litter (which they were), but eventually I convinced them that they were also trespassing and needed to get out of the park.

I learned from a groundskeeper at Dreshar Stadium that "men in suits" had gone to the park that morning and were upset about what they found, and that the lockout had begun that morning.

No one seems to know who did the damage or spread the litter. Perhaps the cameras on the park will show something.

It saddens me that the local young people will be without a decent recreational facility because of the actions of unknown persons.

File under : Tarentum, recreation, skateboard park

Life without Florida tomatoes

2008-04-22T20:58:00.002-05:00

I'm giving some consideration to this statement from Senator Dick Durbin (D-Il)

"If Florida tomato growers can't live with workers being paid a decent wage, then I can live without tomatoes from Florida on my hamburgers."

Except I have been thinking about all the ways in which I consume tomatoes beyond using them as a condiment on hamburgers.

And I do think that I can live without Florida tomatoes.

File under : PCUSA, business, food, justice, religion

What the USDA won't tell you

2008-04-22T13:01:00.003-05:00

USDA does not endorse any products, services, or organizations.

So the USDA won't tell you that the ham loaf dinner at Central Presbyterian Church is delicious, or that eating ham loaf is the patriotic thing to do, or that with an appropriate level of activity and the right dietary choices a ham loaf dinner can be among the steps for a healthier you.

The USDA has developed twelve different personalized food pyramids depending on your age and level of activity. Visit MyPyramid.gov and find the pyramid that is right for you.

Then make your plans to attend the Ham Loaf Dinner at Central Presbyterian Church on Saturday, May 3, from 4:00 PM until 6:00 PM.

Based on your food pyramid, plan your exercise and diet for May 3 so that you can enjoy the delicious ham loaf.

The second ham loaf dinner of the year at Central Presbyterian Church of Tarentum will feature the traditional menu of ham loaf, parsley potatoes, green beans, cole slaw, apple sauce, and an array of cakes and pies. $7.50 for adults and $3.75 for children 12 and under. Take-out and delivery are available.

Advance tickets sold by April 26 will be $6 for adults and $3 for children under 12. Call (724) 224-9220 if you want to purchace advance tickets.

Central Presbyterian Church is located at 305 Allegheny Street, Tarentum, PA.

File under: Central Presbyterian Church, Tarentum, blatant_promotion_of_fundraiser, food, ham loaf, health

The week that was

2008-04-20T18:12:00.003-05:00

The past week turned out to be a very busy one, with major events that included Tarentum's first Earth Day Clean-up, and a presbytery meeting.

A major accomplishment of the week for me was mastering the route between Tarentum and the part of Verona where the Seneca Place Nursing Home is located. The trip is supposed to be only 12 miles, but there are some tricky opportunities to make wrong turns that can add 5 to 10 miles to the trip. What a sense of accomplishment I had when I finally figured it out and could make the trip without getting lost! And then Janet K- was transferred back to a hospital that I already knew how to find perfectly well.

With the Pennsylvania Primary coming Tuesday the 22nd I've had to deal with an increasing number of political telemarketers calling me at home to promote their candidates. (Who hasn't?) But a neat discovery I made on Thursday morning explained the appearance of numerous Obama signs in the neighborhood around the church. It seems that the local Obama headquarters is right across Third Avenue from Central Presbyterian Church.

I think they made a good choice of location in the town that is the crossroads of the Alle-Kiski Valley. Their HQ is only a block and a half from a Port Authority bus stop at the corner of Corbet and Fourth. As I have gone to and from the church over the last few days I've seen volunteers carrying campaign materials as they prepare to take the bus to other nearby areas. I don't know if Hillary even has a local headquarters. Maybe she thinks she doesn't need one now that she has the endorsement of Tarentum Mayor James E. Wolfe and Lower Burrell Mayor Donald L. Kinosz.

The meeting of Pittsburgh Presbytery on Thursday felt long even though it actually got out almost on time. A major item of business was the settlement with the Memorial Park Presbyterian Church. Although some in the presbytery felt we should continue to defend ourselves in civil court against MP's lawsuit, in the end the presbytery voted to allow Memorial Park to withdraw their "clear title" suit and be dismissed.

We also learned that a local group is going to distribute a photograph of the Steelers praying, with a scripture portion attached. It'll be a true collectible for all the local fans.

The Earth Day Cleanup in Tarentum on Saturday was a great success. Tarentum had never before held a day when the borough encouraged everybody to get out and clean up the litter in town. The weather cooperated and volunteers (some of whom were from outside Tarentum) turned out all over town. The presence of so many volunteers helping with the litter was an extra motivation to residents to take a little extra care of the places where they lived.

File under : Central Presbyterian Church, PCUSA, Pittsburgh Presbytery, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), Tarentum, politics

My quandary about Burger King and tomatoes

2008-04-08T09:07:00.004-05:00

I didn't participate in the Taco Bell boycott.

I didn't threaten to boycott McDonald's.

Now that the Campaign for Fair Food is focusing its attention on Burger King, I would be likely to act as I have in the past, except for one fact: Burger King doesn't want my business.

Burker King has closed its stores in the area so threats to boycott would be especially empty.

The dispute between the Campaign for Fair Food and the fast food chains has always struck me as highly triangulated. The actual parties (at least in my understanding) are the tomato pickers and their employers, but the Campaign's strategy has been to threaten boycotts against the restaurant chains that purchase the tomatoes.

It would be hypocrisy for me to go to economic war against the corporate purchasers of tomatoes when I make my own small-scale purchasing decisions in the same way they make their large-scale decisions.

When the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) was putting pressure on Taco Bell, I continued to eat there, and I communicated with the chain as a customer to tell them that if they reached an agreement with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers, that would enhance the value to me of patronizing their restaurants.

When McDonald's was in the cross-hairs of the Campaign, I made the same kind of communication, while continuing to patronize their restaurants.

But now that I am living where Burger King has closed their restaurants, I have no standing as a loyal customer. What am I to do?

The recent dealings with Burger King have brought to light new information about the actual parties to the dispute. It seems that there is an organization of tomato growers called the Florida Tomato Growers Exchange. This cartel (they call themselves a "cooperative") has an amazing amount of power over the wages the growers in Florida are allowed to pay. It has even interfered with the fair agreements that Yum Corporation and McDonald's reached with the CIW.

Is there any reason why I should not simply boycott Florida tomatoes?

File under : PCUSA, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), business, food, justice

A new invention with a local origin

2008-04-01T19:47:00.002-05:00

Today's Valley News Dispatch has an interesting article about a creative new product from a company in New Kensington. A press release last week announced Monday's prototype launch. Prototypes are going to be tested by the Westmoreland County Sheriff's Department and the Arnold Police Department.

The Balla Base is intended to keep police officers and suspects safe while the police officer performs a search. The Balla Base is mounted to the trunk of a police car. It includes a bar to which a suspect can be handcuffed, a light source, and locked trays for holding weapons or evidence found during the search.

I like the idea of keeping the police safe during situations can change rapidly. It seems to me that this invention is a good start, but it creates new dangers for the person being detained and searched.

Once a person is handcuffed to the device, what (beyond proper training and procedures) is to stop the officer—or anyone else—from operating the patrol car? The Balla Base does not seem to have any safety features that would prevent the patrol car from running while the device is being used.

Most lawnmowers today have 'dead man' switches. Even the guns that police officers carry have safety switches. Shouldn't the Balla Base be connected to some form of ignition interlock for the safety of the person being searched?

File under : Arnold, New Kensington, imagination, invention, safety

Secret meeting of Highlands school board calls for an extra hour of daylight savings time in the district

2008-04-01T00:04:00.003-05:00

Families in the Highlands School District will need to remember to turn their clocks ahead Sunday for an extra hour of Daylight Savings Time. The District had to call so many two hour delays this winter that the only way to make up the time was by calling for an extra hour of daylight savings time.

The school board made the decision in a secret meeting, convened without notifying the Valley News Dispatch.

Superintendent of the Highlands School District Dr. Karol Galcik explained, "The Board probably should have called the Valley before we held the meeting, but it was an emergency. This was simply something we had to do to preserve state funding. The extra hours of school between now and the end of the year will make up for the shortfall we experienced during the winter months, while providing an enhanced educational experience for our students."

File under : Brackenridge, Natrona Heights, Tarentum, April_Fools, Highlands, education, humor, picture

Think Spring!

2008-03-28T12:38:00.002-05:00

File under : Central Park, Tarentum, picture

Eat more ham loaf

2008-03-26T10:01:00.002-05:00

Central Presbyterian Church will have a Ham Loaf Dinner on Saturday, March 29, from 4:00 PM until 6:00 PM.

The long-awaited first ham loaf dinner of the year at Central Presbyterian Church of Tarentum will feature the traditional menu of ham loaf, parsley potatoes, green beans, cole slaw, apple sauce, and an array of cakes and pies. $7.50 for adults and $3.75 for children 12 and under. Take-out and delivery are available.

Central Presbyterian Church is located at 305 Allegheny Street, Tarentum, PA.

File under : Central Presbyterian Church, Tarentum, blatant_promotion_of_fundraiser, ham loaf

Happy Easter!

2008-03-23T21:17:00.003-05:00

Christ is risen! Alleluia!

File under : Christianity, Easter, art

What do you think is the answer for the Tiger Ranch?

2008-03-19T09:38:00.004-05:00

The local news here in Tarentum has been filled with coverage of the nearby Tiger Ranch. The Valley News Dispatch carried the story on Friday of the raid on the local no-kill shelter, and it has been in the paper daily since then.

The owner, Linda Bruno, is facing charges, but she before she gets to trial she is also being tried in the media. The information in the initial coverage of the story has been inaccurate and slanted. When the raid first happened we were told that almost 700 pets were being abused. It turns out that the total number of pets seized is about half that, and it is yet to be established how many of the seized animals were actually neglected.

A Chicago Tribune story tried to make the Tiger Ranch seem like something sinister, describing it as "fortress-like." As if no other animal shelter tries to maintain the security of the animals it is holding.

Many of the animals seized were sick. As if other well-run shelters never have to deal with viral outbreaks.

There are facts that still need to come out, but in the meantime the news does focus attention on the plight of unwanted pets.

So I invite you to participate in my poll. I am interested in learning what you think is the answer for unwanted pets.

more at twiigs.com...

File under : Frazer, abuse, charity, government, journalism, neglect, safety

Working through the storm

2008-03-13T21:05:00.002-05:00

Over the last weekend I attended a six-day meeting (March 6-11) of the Advisory Committee on the Constitution of the PCUSA, in Louisville, Kentucky. I was in the unusual position of having been appointed to a vacancy on the committee by Moderator Joan S. Gray. The vacancy was created by the death of the Rev. George T. Adams. Subject to confirmation by the 218th General Assembly, I am filling Rev. Adams' space on the the committee (although certainly not his shoes).

The meeting was a positive experience, working with a small group of people who care deeply about our Presbyterian polity, and who are energized by discussions of what some might consider constitutional minutia.

While we were in Louisville, we started our meeting in a conference room at the Presbyterian Center. When the storm that ended up paralyzing the city started dump increasing amounts of snow, we moved our meeting earlier than planned to conference rooms in the hotel where we were staying.

It was rather ironic that many of the people at Central Presbyterian Church before my trip kept telling me they hoped I'd have good weather. My response was that the weather was going to be irrelevant because we would all be focused on our task. Even with the significant storm that blew through, that turned out to be true. Once we relocated there were a few conversations about where we would be able to find meals to be brought in to the hotel where we were working, but otherwise the storm outside had no real impact on us.

On Monday we were able to move our meeting back to the Presbyterian Center, as planned. And there we finished up our work.

In the lobby of the Presbyterian Center I noticed a series of paintings by Maritza Morgan. They reminded me of paintings I have seen in the lobby outside the auditorium at the Pittsburgh Theological Seminary's Hicks Chapel. The series in Louisville was called "The Challenge of Noah's Ark." The painting shown above is one that I think is entitled "The Flood", showing Noah with his family and all the animals packed into the ark, while the waters rise outside. I was struck by the depicted serenity of those inside the ark, who are shown as trusting that God is saving them from the flood. The claws of the bear are clearly visible, yet each of the creatures seems to be weathering the flood with a happy, peaceful attitude. This became a picture that I thought about a lot during the remainder of my time in Louisville.

I wonder what would it take for people in the Presbyterian Church to be so certain and so aware that we are being saved, that it would feel totally natural to be at peace with one another across the theological spectrum.

We ended our work on Tuesday before noon, having drafted all the advice we would have to give. We have already made sure that we didn't use the word "hermeneutic" too many times, and we think we caught all the misplaced commas. An explanation of the legal term "cy pres" will be made available in the appropriate report. After final proofreading the advice is going to be posted on PC-biz, where the commissioners and observors will be able to follow the complex collection of documents that will make up the business of the 218th General Assembly.

File under : PCUSA, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)

A few notes on how the content of this blog has changed

2008-03-01T08:34:00.003-05:00

Over the past few months there have been a number of changes in where I post certain things that used to appear on this blog.

I have still been attending Tarentum Borough Council meetings, but posts on this blog about what happened in those meetings have been infrequent. I have been posting news stories about Tarentum at http://www.topix.com/city/tarentum-pa. If I want to add my opinion about that news I may post it as a comment to the news story or on this blog. Topix gathers news from lots of different sources, and occasionally my reports there have filled a void.

I also have been posting announcements of upcoming events less frequently on this blog, but I have still been using the web to get the word out. I've learned something about the hCalendar microformat that I had been using on this blog for those announcements. This microformat provides a way to add some extra code to a description of an event so that the information can be more readily processed by other programs that gather information about events. It is used in a lot of different places. For example, the event pages on Facebook are in the hCalendar microformat. Listings of events on eventful.com are also in the hCalendar microformat.

There are also a lot of search engines and services that use this microformat to identify events. Last year when I was looking for information on an upcoming community event, I was gratified to discover that the PittsburghLIVE.com "news swicki" had already found and processed the information I had posted on the internet using the microformat.

Among the nice features of eventful.com is the ability to send the event listing to other sites such as Upcoming that publicize and track events. At the same time, eventful gathers information from other sources than its own users' submissions.

Another nice feature of eventful is the ability to maintain a calendar, and to create a widget for the calendar that can be posted on other websites. On the sidebar of this blog under the title "Events in and around Tarentum" I have a widget with the next few events on the eventful calendar for Tarentum. I have used a similar widget to post events for the Central Presbyterian Church on the church website.

The hCalendar microformat is so useful that I am quite surprised that many of the web services that offer to maintain website calendars don't use it. It takes so little extra code to make one's calendar readable by a robot or spider. Often the reason people post calendar information on their websites is that they would like to invite other people to attend. But without using code such as the hCalendar microformat they limit their audience to the people who find their website.

File under : Central Presbyterian Church, Tarentum, internet, news, web design

Thanks for Black History Month 2008

2008-02-29T15:41:00.005-05:00

I've been so busy lately that I have not had time for much blogging. I want to break my silence to say thanks to many of the people who have made this Black History Month so informative.

1. I am grateful to the Valley News Dispatch for the announcements and coverage it has given for the many Valley events that have occurred during Black History Month. I am especially grateful for the series of articles about how local educators in each of the school districts handle Black History Month and diversity education year-round. I am glad the teachers were given a way to share their perspectives with a broader audience than their students.

2. I am grateful to Pittsburgh Presbytery and its Racial Justice Taskforce for the hour we spent with Tony Campolo at the last meeting at Grace Memorial Presbyterian Church. I am also grateful to Pittsburgh Presbytery for the series of presentations at each presbytery meeting in 2007 to celebrate 200 years of African American Presbyterianism.

3. I am grateful to whoever put up the small Black History Month posters outside the hospital cafeteria at the Alle-Kiski Medical Center. I learned something every time I stopped to read a poster in that high traffic location.

4. I am grateful to the Alle-Kiski Cultural Enrichment Center for organizing the "Great Debate" on Saturday, February 23, with a re-enactment of Booker T. Washington's "Atlanta Compromise" Speech.

5. I am grateful to the the Alle-Kiski Historical Society and the Bethel AME Church in Tarentum for organizing the Black History Program on Sunday, February 24, and for inviting Doris Carson Williams of the African American Chamber of Commerce - Pittsburgh to speak.

6. I am grateful to the Allegheny Valley Association of Churches and the Alle-Kiski NAACP for organizing the Alle-Kiski Valley Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Service on Sunday January 27, and for inviting Dr. Richard Arnold to speak.

7. I am grateful to all of the people with whom I have spoken during the last month for the fact that not once did anyone ask me when it would be time to have White History Month.

File under : Allegheny Valley, Arnold, Pittsburgh, Tarentum, history, justice

Snow and activity

2008-02-13T17:45:00.003-05:00

Snow and ice everywhere.

This week has been a crazy one around Tarentum, starting with very cold temperatures and proceeding into snow and rain that have been heavy enough to slow everything up. Highlands School District had a 2 hour delay Monday, closed school Tuesday, started today with a 2 hour delay and then closed school for the day at the last minute.

The Townwide Meeting that Tarentum was going to have tonight as part of its revitalization program was cancelled, and will be rescheduled, according to an email from Bill Rossey, Borough Manager.

The series of Lenten services and luncheons at the First Baptist Church continued today with a smaller crowd than the first week. Pastor Bob Walker pointed out that usually the attendance grows during this series, but today the weather probably had some effect. Rev. Jim Gascoine, pastor of the Center United Methodist Church in Fawn preached this noon and encouraged us to try something creative in all of our churches to spread the gospel to others. At the close of the service, before we sang the Doxology as our grace, Pastor Bob Walker suggested that one of the creative things we could do would be to bring a friend to next week's service.

Meanwhile, on the Presbyterian front, the PCUSA website today has the final decision of the GA PJC in the case of Bush et al v. Presbytery of Pittsburgh, Remedial Case 218-10. The effect of the decision, which is sure to get lots of commentary on the web, was to void the second and third paragraphs of a controversial resolution Pittsburgh Presbytery adopted in October 2006. (The whole packet for that 2006 presbytery meeting is here. The resolution in question is on page 15 of the packet.)

File under : PCUSA, Pittsburgh Presbytery, Presbyterian Church, Tarentum, ecumenism

They tell me there's a football game this weekend

2008-02-01T09:36:00.001-05:00

They tell me there's a football game this weekend. No, I don't plan to watch it. I do plan to let people out of church in time to see it if that is something they want to do.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not boycotting the Superbowl to support any megachurches being persecuted by the NFL.

It is just that the Steelers won't be playing — for some technical reason. It can't be that important a game.

File under : sports