Keeping in Touch

PRESBYTERIAN WOMEN OF THE SYNOD SLATE SUMMER GATHERING: The 2010 Gathering of the Presbyterian Women in the Synod of Lakes and Prairies takes place Wednesday through Saturday, June 16-19, at Buena Vista University in Storm Lake, Iowa. There is a full slate of activity under the theme "The Wonders of God's Promises." Gathering highlights include worship, music, workshops, discussion groups, bookstore and a gift shop. Marjorie Thomson, who has developed a ministry in spiritual formation, will be the spiritual leader for the gathering. Louise Lawson Johnson is listed as Bible study leader and Caroline Vickery will lead worship. Kristi Holler, a singer, songwriter and pianist, will lead music. Additional details are available at "Presbyterian Women Gathering."

WINNEBAGO PRESBYTERY HOSTS MODERATOR FOR SOCIAL MEDIA WORKSHOP: First Presbyterian Church, Fond du Lac, Wis., has agreed to be the site for a joint Milwaukee-Winnebago presbytery workshop Monday, April 19, titled "Social Media for Churches" that will include a visit from the Rev. Bruce Reyes-Chow, moderator of the 218th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). The workshop takes place in the afternoon and Winnebago Presbytery will be the host of a reception that evening at the Holiday Inn in Neenah, Wis. Registration for both the workshop and the reception can be completed by calling Winnebago Presbytery at 800.353.3598 or sending an e-mail to info@winnebagopresbytery.org. The cost of lunch and the afternoon workshop is $5. The cost of the wine and the hors d'oeuvres reception is $15.

'PLUGGING IN' WORKSHOP SLATED IN DES MOINES IN APRIL: The Presbytery of Des Moines is sponsoring a workshop dealing with new communication technology and the church, "Plugging in Without Shorting Out," Friday through Sunday, April 16-18, in Des Moines. The three-day conference will cover such topics as using technology to help congregations communicate online, learning how to do more for less using technology on limited budgets, using technology to reach youth and young adults, using media in worship, conversations on the emerging church, spiritual disciplines and thinking outside the box. A brochure describing conference details and registration form are located online.

PC(USA) MODERATOR TO SPEAK AT CLEARWATER 2010: The Rev. Gifts of Women Sunday

Bruce Reyes-Chow, moderator of the 218th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), and the Rev. Carol Howard Merritt, a minister in her 30s and author of "Tribal Church: Ministering to the Missing Generation," are two of the leaders of this spring's Clearwater 2010, titled "Finding Our Way in the Wilderness." J. Andrew Dearman, a longtime professor of Old Testament studies at Austin (Texas) Presbyterian Theological Seminary and now director of Fuller Theological Seminary's regional campus in Houston, Texas, is also a conference leader. The conference is planned Friday through Sunday, April 16-18, at Presbyterian Clearwater Forest, Deerwood, Minn. The conference brochure, including registration information, is available on the Synod of Lakes and Prairies' website.

REFORMED AND REFORMING WORKSHOP SET IN NORTHERN PLAINS: A workshop for pastors and commissioned lay pastors - Presbyterian and others - serving Presbyterian congregations will be held Sunday and Monday, April 18-19, at the Maryvale Spiritual Life Center in Valley City, N.D. The goal is to provide a high quality training and support experience for pastors and commissioned lay pastors serving churches on the Great Plains who seek to strengthen their identity in the reformed and Presbyterian family. A brochure and registration information is available at "Reformed and Reforming: Nurturing a Presbyterian Identity in our Congregations."

CLEARWATER OFFERS ADULT GOLF WEEKEND: Camping isn't always about a canoe and a cabin. In May, Presbyterian Clearwater Forest, Deerwood, Minn., will host its Adult Golf Weekend Friday through Sunday, May 21-23. Participants will stay at Clearwater Forest, but the golfing takes place in the area. Details are available from the camp by calling (218) 678-2325 or at the camp's website.

IRMS HAS RESOURCES TO GET INTEREST OF TEENS: A recent rewsletter from Iowa Religious Media Services, Des Moines, opened: "I hear our junior high and high school kids talking among themselves about texting, huffing, energy drinks and other activities. I don't know how to address these topics without sounding like an old nag." IRMS has a group of new resources from Human Relations Media that could be of interest to even the most skeptical teens. Those listed below are the newest at IRMS and are appropriate for youth in upper elementary grades through senior high. The catalog listings provide the age range of each resource. "Buzz in a Bottle: The Dangers of Caffeine-Spiked Energy Drinks" presents individual students' stories about too much caffeine and combining caffeine-spiked drinks with alcohol. "Huffing: The Latest Facts about Inhalant Abuse" shows real stories of teens fighting their abuse of inhalants, speaking directly about the damage these toxic chemicals cause to the brain, heart and lungs. "Think Before You Click: Playing It Safe Online" explores the issues of online bullying and rumor spreading, identity theft, blogging and the real threat of sexual predators. "B Careful When U Txt: The Dangers of Texting and Sexting" is a primer on do's and don'ts of text messaging, including privacy, pornography, personal boundaries, unforeseen consequences and more. "Surviving School," from Bluefish TV, is a set of four engaging video clips related to the issues youth face in the hallways of their schools.

MIDDLE EAST STUDY COMMITTEE APPROVES FINAL REPORT:After almost two years of study, travel and discussion, the Middle East Study Committee of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) has approved its final report to the 219th General Assembly. The report, "Breaking Down Walls," will be released in three parts.The first and second parts of the report are now available at the PC(USA) Middle East Peace Site. A Presbyterian News Service story concerning the first part of the report can be found at "Part One." A News Service story pertaining to the second part can be found at "Part Two."

POLL SHOWS SUPPORT FOR 2-STATE SOLUTION IN MID-EAST: At least two-thirds of Presbyterians believe the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) should try to dissuade corporations from doing things that "directly or indirectly" support violence against Israeli or Palestinian civilians, and at least three in five Presbyterians believe that the denomination should shift its investment funds away from corporations that continue to support such violence despite pleas to stop. These are findings of the August 2009 Presbyterian Panel survey of representative samples of members, elders, pastors, and other ministers. The complete Presbyterian News Service story can be found at "Presbyterian Panel."

GAMC FORWARDS PAPERS ON CHRISTIAN-JEWISH, CHRISTIAN-MUSLIM RELATIONS: The General Assembly Mission Council (GAMC) of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) has recommended to the upcoming 219th General Assembly approval "for study and reflection" a paper intended to "reexamine and strengthen the relationship between Christians and Jews." "Christians and Jews: People of God" has grown out of eight meetings between PC(USA) theologians and representatives of the National Council of Synagogues and four larger consultations involving Presbyterian pastors, theologians and governing body staff members and rabbis from the Conservative, Reformed, Orthodox and Reconstructionist branches of Judaism. The completed Presbyterian News Service story can be found at "Christian Relations."

FOG TASK FORCE PROVIDES UPDATE, POINTS OUT WEBSITE: In a letter last week to presbytery and synod executives, and stated clerks, the co-moderators of the Form of Government Task Force of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) reminded church leaders to review the task force's final report on the denomination's website. Cynthia Bolbach and Daniel S. Williams wrote, "Our charge was to draft a new form of government that, while maintaining the essential aspects of our Presbyterian polity, is briefer and more flexible, so as to enable our church at all levels to more readily accomplish its mission and ministry." They went on to note, "The task force cannot stress enough the importance of encouraging your commissioners and advisory delegates to read and study our proposal."

PRESBYTERIAN FOUNDATION AGAIN SPONSORS ymiLIVE: Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) youth groups across the country are invited to participate in an on-line youth video challenge as part of "ymiLIVE," which stands for Youth Mission Initiative LIVE, pronounced why-em-eye LIVE. Youth groups will compete to win one of two $25,000 endowment funds established by the Presbyterian Foundation to benefit their church youth ministry programs. The inaugural ymiLIVE in 2008 provided youth groups across the country the opportunity to be amazed, entertained, and inspired after viewing the video submissions from over 100 youth groups. Additional information can be found at ymiLIVE.

HUNGER PROGRAM RAISES MONEY FOR HAITIAN FARMERS TO BUY SEEDS:
With the spring planting season nearing in earthquake-stricken Haiti, an emergency effort to raise money for Haitian farmers to buy seeds is under way now through the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)'s Presbyterian Hunger Program. Corn and beans are typically planted in March when the spring rains begin on the island nation. PHP will release monies to FONDAMA, a national coalition of peasant farmers and rural organizations. The group partners with several U.S. congregations and individuals through PHP's Joining Hands' program, which advocates on issues determined by the farmers themselves. The complete Presbyterian News Service story can be found at "Seeds."

VALENTINE RE-ELECTED TO SECOND FOUR-YEAR TERM: Four years ago, the General Assembly Mission Council had just undergone a major downsizing and budget reduction - 75 layoffs and $9 million worth. The staff structure at the Presbyterian Center had been dismantled and the entire senior GAMC staff saw their positions eliminated. And then the council elected Linda Valentine, an elder from Chicago, as its new executive director. Undaunted, "We began putting a new organization in place, with mission at its core," she told the council Feb. 25 after being unanimously re-elected to a second four-year term, subject to confirmation by the upcoming 219th General Assembly.

GAMC APPROVES GUIDELINES FOR DECISION MAKING: After much discussion as a council and within its committees, the General Assembly Mission Council of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) approved a set of 11 "guiding principles for planning decisions" Feb. 26. The guidelines aim to focus and prioritize the council's service on "the mission of the whole church," acknowledging that "there are good ministries that we can no longer support within the General Assembly Mission Council." The most immediate use of the guidelines will be seen in the 2011-12 General Assembly Mission Budget. The GAMC will have to adopt that budget at its May meeting. The complete Presbyterian News Service story can be found at "Guidelines."

GAMC EXAMINES LEADERSHIP NEEDS IN THE CHURCH: In the face of a radically changing ministry context and a great hunger for leadership throughout the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), the General Assembly Mission Council and the Committee on the Office of the General Assembly met in Louisville last month to embark upon a frank and far-reaching examination of leadership needs for the church. This dialogue began in the spring of 2009, when the Committee on Theological Education called the GAMC and COGA to join with it in looking at the church's leadership needs, thereby forming the Joint Committee on Leadership Needs. The complete Presbyterian News Service story can be found at "Leadership."

GAMC APPROVES STRATEGIC DIRECTION FOR WORLD MISSION: The General Assembly Mission Council of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) has adopted a "strategic direction" for its Presbyterian World Mission over the next three to five years that seeks to knit together the myriad ways Presbyterians are engaged in mission around the world into "communities of mission practice." The new strategic direction acknowledges the "massive" shift since roughly 1960 "from one highly centralized agency into thousands of highly decentralized agencies" that "invites Presbyterian World Mission to reform its self-understanding and the focus of its work to include many U.S. Presbyterian mission constituents ... " states a background paper accompanying the two-page strategy paper. The complete Presbyterian News Service story can be found at "World Mission."

GAMC RENEWS SUPPORT FOR 'DEEP AND WIDE' INITIATIVE: The General Assembly Mission Council has approved the recommendation that the 219th General Assembly renew its commitment to Grow Christ's Church Deep and Wide. The recommendation, which came at GAMC meetings Feb. 24-25 in Louisville, calls for the Assembly to extend a churchwide commitment to participate in God's activity through Jesus Christ in transforming the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) through the 2011-2012 biennium. The complete story can be found at "Deep and Wide."