Around the Presbytery
 Two Important Messages from the PTCA Nominating Committee: The Nominating Committee is looking for people to serve at the Presbytery and Synod levels. If you have a passion or calling for ministry, please take a moment to click on the links below to find about serving God and the world as a Synod Commissioner or Presbytery Committee Member.
 Storytelling Seminar at First-Rochester on April 14: It's easy for us to see the Bible as written resource, which it is. However, most of what we read in the Bible started out as oral storytelling. They were stories that were told to others and after a while the tales were written down. While the written word keeps a story alive for posterity, it can limit the imagination that lurks behind the words. The Storytelling Seminar, "Provoking the Gospel," aims to help people recover the art of storytelling and waken the imagination of our congregations. Find out more.
 Order the 2012-13 Planning Calendar: It's that time of the year: time to order your 2012-2013 Presbyterian Planning Calendars. Each year, the Presbytery offers to consolidate orders in order to give you a better price. We receive a price break with an order of at least 50 calendars then pass the savings on to you. Find out how to order through the Presbytery office.
 United Seminary Elects New President: United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities announced the election of the Reverend Dr. Barbara A. Holmes of Memphis,Tennessee as its eighth president on March 28. The Board of Trustees of the United Church of Christ-affiliated seminary confirmed Holmes' appointment Wednesday afternoon, after which the new president addressed the board and spoke to members of the faculty, staff, and students. Holmes will relocate to the Twin Cities and assume her duties in July. Holmes succeeds Mary McNamara, an Honorably Retired Teaching Elder in the PTCA who stepped down as President late last year. Read more...
 "Paper Daddy" Set to Premiere April 13: Honorably Retired Teaching Elder and Playwright Kristine Holmgren's play, "Paper Daddy will debut at the at the Northfield Arts Guild Theatre in Northfield, MN on Friday, April 13. Paper Daddy is a contemporary play with the Great Recession as its backdrop. Holmgren describes Paper Daddy as "the story of Charlie, a woman who makes her way through the Great Recession by renting rooms to a variety of colorful characters." Read on to find out more about the play, as well as performance times and prices.
Presbyterian Women Spring Gathering:  The Presbyterian Women of the Presbytery of the Twin Cities Area will have their Spring Gathering on April 21 at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Austin. The focus for this year's meeting is "Mission Possible: Projects Serving Those Near and Far."
For more information or to register, read on...
Presbytery Christian Educators Meet April 12: The next Educators Lunch Gathering will be Thursday April 12, 2012 from 11:30am-1:00pm. We will be meeting at The House of Hope Presbyterian Church in St. Paul, MN. The topic will be Children and Worship. Read on for more information.
Clearwater 2012: Clearwater 2012, a biennial conference supported by the Synod of Lakes and Prairies and the presbyteries of Minnesota Valleys, Northern Waters and Twin Cities Area, runs Friday through Sunday May 4-6 at Presbyterian Clearwater Forest, a camp in Minnesota lakes country near Deerwood, MN . Read on for more information and to register.
Presbyterian Women on Facebook: The PTCA Presbyterian Women now have a page on Facebook! Don't forget to "like" them to join the conversation!  Boundaries Training, April 12: Our presbytery requires all teaching elders and commissioned lay pastors to participate in Level 1 Healthy Boundaries training approved by the PTCA's Advocates for Integrity in Ministry (AIM) within one year of beginning one's ministry in this presbytery.
This year the PTCA will offer Level 1 Boundaries training on Thursday, April 12 and Saturday, October 27 at North Presbyterian Church in North St. Paul. You may register on-line through the PTCA web site. Check-in will begin at 8:30 am. Instruction will begin promptly at 9 am and conclude at 2 pm. Read more... Become a Commissioned Ruling Elder: A Commissioned Ruling Elder is "is an elder of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) who is granted a local commission by the presbytery to lead worship and preach the gospel, watch over the people, and provide for their nurture and service." CREs can serve in various ways such as part-time pastors of small churches; in specialized pastoral ministries; as pastor to new immigrant populations or redeveloping churches. The Commissioned Ruling Elders Committee is looking for people who might be interested in this vital form of ministry. Read on to find out more about Commissioned Ruling Elders and how you might become one.  Planning for the Church Present and the Church Future: Two upcoming conference in May will give churches the tool to become more mission-oriented and start more missional churches. First off is theFunding the Missional Church, May 1-3, Bethlehem Lutheran Church, 4100 Lyndale Avenue South, Minneapolis. Funding the Missional Church is a conference for those who wish to learn about creating sustainable congregations of faith in the 21st century. Join us for three days of conversation and thought-provoking presentations on the future of the church, stewardship, and ministry. Immediately following this conference is The Church Planters Academy
May 3-5, Solomon's Porch, 100 W 46th St, Minneapolis.
If you're planting a church, or if you're dreaming of starting a new faith community, come to the CPA and learn from the very top practitioners of church planting over the past decade.
Read on for more information and to register. Interested in a Conference or Workshop, but don't have the money? The Mission and Witness Committee of the PTCA is ready to help! A new streamlined 2012 Application for Scholarships to Conferences in the areas of Peace and Justice, Missions, Education, Disability Ministry and Leadership Development, is available online throughout the year. You can fill out the application online by going to www.presbyterytwincities.org/presbyteryforms.  Common Prayer: As many of you know, the staff of the Presbytery of the Twin Cities Area gathers daily for prayer and devotions. Join us every Tuesday at 10AM to pray! Called "Common Prayer" we will come together as we discern God's message for us and lift each other and the whole world in prayer. Join us at the Presbytery office for Common Prayer. We are located at 122 W. Franklin Avenue in Minneapolis.
Find out what's happening in the Presbytery and the wider church by going to the PTCA newspage: www.presbyterytwincities.org/news. | 
