I thought today's daily quote is important to the discussion of law and grace. Click on the date in the box to the left for more of the same.
it is worse than useless for Christians to talk about the importance of Christian morality unless they are prepared to take their stand upon the fundamentals of Christian theology. It is a lie to say that dogma does not matter; it matters enormously. It is fatal to let people suppose that Christianity is only a mode of feeling; it is vitally necessary to insist that it is first and foremost a rational explanation of the universe. It is hopeless to offer Christianity as a vaguely idealistic aspiration of a simple and consoling kind; it is, on the contrary, a hard, tough, exacting, and complex doctrine, steeped in a drastic and uncompromising realism. And it is fatal to imagine that everybody knows quite well what Christianity is and needs only a little encouragement to practice it. The brutal fact is that in this Christian country not one person in a hundred has the faintest notion what the Church teaches about God or man or society or the person of Jesus Christ.
-Dorothy Sayers, “Creed or Chaos?”
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Quality Time
Gail arrived safely in Florida to be with her dad, Harry, age 90. Son Aaron and I have been spending quality time together too fishing Hawaiian waters for fish with strange sounding names to this Mainlander. Ono, opakapaka, and papio abound. OK, so this is not the largest fish we have ever landed, but it is a start!
Thursday, July 24, 2008
A Full House
Wife Gail is on her way to Tampa Florida to visit family returning on 7 Aug with her dad. Harry is 90 years old and lost his wife of 60 years this May and will live with us for a while here in Hawaii. I think I will enjoy having a full household with son Aaron and father Harry. Future plans are uncertain, at least to us. God holds the future and discovery of the plan is a great and wonderful adventure.
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Law and Grace
The pastor of a large church in Texas said to a group of us chaplains, "In the 21st Century, there will be only two churches. They will be called the Church of Grace and the Church of the Law, and every Christian will have to choose. I choose the Church of Grace.
The PCUSA has struggled with theological, ecclesiastical and social issues for a generation because Presbyterian Christians see themselves as the Church of Grace and Law. This is not being lukewarm or moderate, it might not even be called balanced. It is living in the tension of the Incarnation. Jesus Christ, human and divine, the Creator God and Suffering Servant. You can find the tension everywhere in scripture.
A church focused entirely on its rules and regulations runs the risk of becoming a club, at best, or a complex institution at worst. The church with no standards has no shape. Boundaries may not exist, nor does purpose, direction nor goals. A church should be a place of love, which demands commitment on the part of its members.
These are my thoughts early this morning as the Hawaiian sun rises over Pearl Harbor.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Sermon: Hope When Facing Evil
Hope When Facing Evil
Matthew 13:24-30; 36-43
Jeffrey G. Guild, M.Div, D.Min
Netflix and Night Fears
I have a confession to make. When my wife is not looking, I re-arrange the delivery order on Netflix by putting the movies I like at the top of the list, and slide the ones she enjoys to the bottom of the list. It’s her fault for giving me the password to her Netflix account. So, all those “cutesy” Diane Keaton, Ted Danson, Julia Roberts and Reece Witherspoon movies go to the bottom, and westerns, war, and horror movies move to the top. The last time I did this, she was in Florida visiting her family and I was getting a good run with John Wayne movies and eating nothing but grilled steak and baked potatoes. No Hugh Grant and no green leafy foods could be found in my house for two weeks. Then “The Shining” arrived. That’s an old movie of a Steven King novel adapted by Stanley Kubrick for the screen back in the ‘80’s. I had never seen it, and the only thing I knew about it was that it was a horror film starring Jack Nicholson who plays a very evil character, the personification of evil. You might have seen a clip of him saying, “Heeeeeerrrssss Johnny!” Now that is a face you do not want to have in your mind when you go to bed in an empty, dark house with a belly full of red meat and sour cream. For Hollywood, that face is the image of evil. In medieval times, it was the devil, with horns a pointy tail holding a pitch fork and images of Hell portrayed in Dante’s “Divine Comedy”.
Although it is hard to pinpoint evil, we are all too aware of evil’s effects on our lives, communities and world. Both Dante’s depiction of the characters that inhabit Hell and a good Steven King story help us to define and thereby reduce the concept of evil in an attempt to understand evil. We fool ourselves into thinking that we can control the effects, that evil is not so bad after all. I suppose that is so we don’t live our lives in constant fear, or see the devil behind every tree. Now, in addressing the theme of evil in a sermon, I run the risk of putting too much focus on the devil. But this is first and foremost a message of hope when faced with evil. And I am not talking about facing the Red Devil or Jack Nicholson. I define evil as anything which diminishes the Lordship of Jesus Christ and the sanctity of human life and all of creation. Evil is wickedness. It is malicious, and profoundly immoral. Evil is a “force believed to bring about harmful, painful, or unpleasant events (http://encarta.msn.com). Evil is real. I do not believe that the world is evil and the spiritual is good. That has already been shown to be heresy. Evil is indeed in our world, our nation, our community, our churches, our families and in our hearts.
Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. (I Peter 5:8). It can be found in hatred, greed or prejudice. It can take the form of attitudes and embody itself in institutional structures. Today I will speak of hope in the face of evil. This is a sermon about Jesus Christ and the hope he brings to us in the face of evil when confronted with evil. The Study Catechism of the PCUSA has this to say concerning evil.
Question 132. What is meant by the final petition (of the Lord’s Prayer) , "Save us from the time of trial and deliver us from evil"?
We ask God to protect us from our own worst impulses and from all external powers of destruction in the world. We ask that we might not yield to despair in the face of seemingly hopeless circumstances. We pray for the grace to remember and believe, despite our unbelief, that no matter how bleak the world may sometimes seem, there is nonetheless a depth of love which is deeper than our despair, and that this love — which delivered Israel from slavery in Egypt and raised our Lord Jesus from the dead — will finally swallow up forever all that would now seem to defeat it. (The Study Catechism, PCUSA).
The Psalmist asks:
Why do you boast, O might one, of mischief done against the godly? All day long you are planning destruction. Your tongue is like a sharp razor, your worker of treachery. You love evil more that good, and lying more that speaking the truth. You love all words that devour, O deceitful tongue?” (Psalms 52: 1-4 NRSV).
The Parable
The Parable of the Wheat and the Weeds is set by Matthew in the context of Jesus’ teaching using stories. A commentary I looked at this week describes this passage as an allegorical parable and straight forward in its interpretation. Although Matthew refers to the field as the world, it is possible that he implicated his church community. Do you think that perhaps the disciples wanted to purge evil from the world and in the church? Was perfection their motive? Did they want to be rid of “undesirables”? The epistle to the Romans included in the lectionary for today stresses standards by which Christians are to live. The imperative is used, “this is what you ought to do.” The Spirit leads us as children of God… and there is a clear distinction between good and evil. Good and evil exist side-by-side, like wheat and weeds growing up together. Bad things happen to all who live in the field. It rains upon the wheat and the weeds alike. The scorching sun beats down on both and the wind has no regard for the quality of the seeds planted. When there is drought, everyone is thirsty. Accidents, terrorist attacks and war are a part of what is means to live in this world. So is illness and death. The passage from Romans concludes with the message of hope.
“For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen in not hope. For who hopes for what is seen? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.” (Romans 8:23-25).
Hope
What is the nature of this hope? It would seem that Jesus’ words were telling his disciples not to worry over evildoers…they are not your responsibility. Our job is to be faithful disciples growing into the likeness of Jesus and telling the world of his love. In Jesus Christ we are assured of God’s love for us and the promise that good will win out over evil. Our salvation is secure and history will close with justice. Good wins out over evil in the final judgment and that is God’s responsibility. If we try to weed out the evil doers in our midst we are going to lose some of the faithful too. Have hope, and remember:
a. It is God who sows the seed. God is intimately involved with the field. God tills the soils, sows the seeds, and harvests the crop.
b. God sows only good seed. What he has begun in you God will see to fruition
c. Jesus Christ is Lord of the harvest. There is indeed hope in the final judgment.
In Jesus Christ we are assured of God’s love for us and the promise that good will win out over evil. We are not meant to live with the fear of evil in whatever form it is encountered. We know that in Jesus, God is involved with creation, involved with us, and the power of love is the strongest in the universe. When facing evil, be assured that God is with you, present in a powerful way and the outcome is guaranteed. We do not know what bad will come to us or what evil befall us. We do know that through Jesus Christ we are more that conquerors. The Heidelberg Catechism begins this way;
Question: What is your only comfort, in life and in death? Answer: That I belong –body and soul, in life and in death-not to myself but to my faithful Savior, Jesus Christ, who at the cost of his own blood has fully paid for all my sins and has completely freed me from the dominion of the devil; that he protects me so well that without the will of my Father in heaven not a hair can fall from my head; indeed, that everything must fit his purpose for my salvation. Therefore, by his Holy Spirit, he also assures me of eternal life, and makes me wholeheartedly willing and ready from now on to live for him.
Our job is to be faithful disciples growing into the likeness Jesus and telling the world of his love. During a church leadership conference last March, I was guiding a discussion on ministering to deploying service personnel. Participating in this seminar were other military chaplains and a group of local pastors. One of the pastors said that he and his church members had recently prayed over a deploying Marine right before his unit left for Iraq. The pastor shared with the group that he told the Marine God would protect him from all harm, guaranteeing he would return him safely. One of the chaplains gently objected. “I don’t think I would tell a warrior that. There are no guarantees that nothing will harm him. We want to reassure our Marines who are willing to risk their life that if and when something bad happens that they are to be confident of God’s presence. God is very much present, especially at the time of death. That is our guarantee.”
Conquering Evil
So what can the faithful do in the face of evil? First, weed out the evil in your own life. Repent of sin, and turn to God through the atoning work of Jesus Christ. Secondly, do not fear. God will be with you regardless of what evil befalls you, and at the harvest all will be made right. Who will separate us from the love of Christ?
Will hardship, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?...No in all these things we are more that conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, not life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, not height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us form the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8: 35-39).
Thirdly, and this is a trite saying but so true, “Bloom where you are planted.” Minister to others where you live, work, study and play. Fourthly, grow in discipleship. Study scripture, seek God through prayer, and grow into the likeness of Jesus Christ. Fifthly, don’t fret over the evildoers around you. It is not our job to pronounce judgments on evildoers. Justice is God’s job.
Do not fear. God will be with you regardless of what evil befalls you…nothing can separate us from the love of God. Evil is all around us. It is in our hearts, our churches and in the world. Evil takes the form of fear, doubt and anger. It can be seen in addiction and abuse, and is destructive in its power. The ultimate effect of evil is death. God’s love is ever-present, and Jesus Christ overcomes the devil and ultimately destroys the power of death through his resurrection and the final judgment. Hold on to that promise, “For in hope we were saved.” “Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father."
The Psalmist answers the question he asked:
But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God. I trust in the steadfast love of God forever and ever. (Psalms 52:8).
Matthew 13:24-30; 36-43
Jeffrey G. Guild, M.Div, D.Min
Netflix and Night Fears
I have a confession to make. When my wife is not looking, I re-arrange the delivery order on Netflix by putting the movies I like at the top of the list, and slide the ones she enjoys to the bottom of the list. It’s her fault for giving me the password to her Netflix account. So, all those “cutesy” Diane Keaton, Ted Danson, Julia Roberts and Reece Witherspoon movies go to the bottom, and westerns, war, and horror movies move to the top. The last time I did this, she was in Florida visiting her family and I was getting a good run with John Wayne movies and eating nothing but grilled steak and baked potatoes. No Hugh Grant and no green leafy foods could be found in my house for two weeks. Then “The Shining” arrived. That’s an old movie of a Steven King novel adapted by Stanley Kubrick for the screen back in the ‘80’s. I had never seen it, and the only thing I knew about it was that it was a horror film starring Jack Nicholson who plays a very evil character, the personification of evil. You might have seen a clip of him saying, “Heeeeeerrrssss Johnny!” Now that is a face you do not want to have in your mind when you go to bed in an empty, dark house with a belly full of red meat and sour cream. For Hollywood, that face is the image of evil. In medieval times, it was the devil, with horns a pointy tail holding a pitch fork and images of Hell portrayed in Dante’s “Divine Comedy”.
Although it is hard to pinpoint evil, we are all too aware of evil’s effects on our lives, communities and world. Both Dante’s depiction of the characters that inhabit Hell and a good Steven King story help us to define and thereby reduce the concept of evil in an attempt to understand evil. We fool ourselves into thinking that we can control the effects, that evil is not so bad after all. I suppose that is so we don’t live our lives in constant fear, or see the devil behind every tree. Now, in addressing the theme of evil in a sermon, I run the risk of putting too much focus on the devil. But this is first and foremost a message of hope when faced with evil. And I am not talking about facing the Red Devil or Jack Nicholson. I define evil as anything which diminishes the Lordship of Jesus Christ and the sanctity of human life and all of creation. Evil is wickedness. It is malicious, and profoundly immoral. Evil is a “force believed to bring about harmful, painful, or unpleasant events (http://encarta.msn.com). Evil is real. I do not believe that the world is evil and the spiritual is good. That has already been shown to be heresy. Evil is indeed in our world, our nation, our community, our churches, our families and in our hearts.
Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. (I Peter 5:8). It can be found in hatred, greed or prejudice. It can take the form of attitudes and embody itself in institutional structures. Today I will speak of hope in the face of evil. This is a sermon about Jesus Christ and the hope he brings to us in the face of evil when confronted with evil. The Study Catechism of the PCUSA has this to say concerning evil.
Question 132. What is meant by the final petition (of the Lord’s Prayer) , "Save us from the time of trial and deliver us from evil"?
We ask God to protect us from our own worst impulses and from all external powers of destruction in the world. We ask that we might not yield to despair in the face of seemingly hopeless circumstances. We pray for the grace to remember and believe, despite our unbelief, that no matter how bleak the world may sometimes seem, there is nonetheless a depth of love which is deeper than our despair, and that this love — which delivered Israel from slavery in Egypt and raised our Lord Jesus from the dead — will finally swallow up forever all that would now seem to defeat it. (The Study Catechism, PCUSA).
The Psalmist asks:
Why do you boast, O might one, of mischief done against the godly? All day long you are planning destruction. Your tongue is like a sharp razor, your worker of treachery. You love evil more that good, and lying more that speaking the truth. You love all words that devour, O deceitful tongue?” (Psalms 52: 1-4 NRSV).
The Parable
The Parable of the Wheat and the Weeds is set by Matthew in the context of Jesus’ teaching using stories. A commentary I looked at this week describes this passage as an allegorical parable and straight forward in its interpretation. Although Matthew refers to the field as the world, it is possible that he implicated his church community. Do you think that perhaps the disciples wanted to purge evil from the world and in the church? Was perfection their motive? Did they want to be rid of “undesirables”? The epistle to the Romans included in the lectionary for today stresses standards by which Christians are to live. The imperative is used, “this is what you ought to do.” The Spirit leads us as children of God… and there is a clear distinction between good and evil. Good and evil exist side-by-side, like wheat and weeds growing up together. Bad things happen to all who live in the field. It rains upon the wheat and the weeds alike. The scorching sun beats down on both and the wind has no regard for the quality of the seeds planted. When there is drought, everyone is thirsty. Accidents, terrorist attacks and war are a part of what is means to live in this world. So is illness and death. The passage from Romans concludes with the message of hope.
“For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen in not hope. For who hopes for what is seen? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.” (Romans 8:23-25).
Hope
What is the nature of this hope? It would seem that Jesus’ words were telling his disciples not to worry over evildoers…they are not your responsibility. Our job is to be faithful disciples growing into the likeness of Jesus and telling the world of his love. In Jesus Christ we are assured of God’s love for us and the promise that good will win out over evil. Our salvation is secure and history will close with justice. Good wins out over evil in the final judgment and that is God’s responsibility. If we try to weed out the evil doers in our midst we are going to lose some of the faithful too. Have hope, and remember:
a. It is God who sows the seed. God is intimately involved with the field. God tills the soils, sows the seeds, and harvests the crop.
b. God sows only good seed. What he has begun in you God will see to fruition
c. Jesus Christ is Lord of the harvest. There is indeed hope in the final judgment.
In Jesus Christ we are assured of God’s love for us and the promise that good will win out over evil. We are not meant to live with the fear of evil in whatever form it is encountered. We know that in Jesus, God is involved with creation, involved with us, and the power of love is the strongest in the universe. When facing evil, be assured that God is with you, present in a powerful way and the outcome is guaranteed. We do not know what bad will come to us or what evil befall us. We do know that through Jesus Christ we are more that conquerors. The Heidelberg Catechism begins this way;
Question: What is your only comfort, in life and in death? Answer: That I belong –body and soul, in life and in death-not to myself but to my faithful Savior, Jesus Christ, who at the cost of his own blood has fully paid for all my sins and has completely freed me from the dominion of the devil; that he protects me so well that without the will of my Father in heaven not a hair can fall from my head; indeed, that everything must fit his purpose for my salvation. Therefore, by his Holy Spirit, he also assures me of eternal life, and makes me wholeheartedly willing and ready from now on to live for him.
Our job is to be faithful disciples growing into the likeness Jesus and telling the world of his love. During a church leadership conference last March, I was guiding a discussion on ministering to deploying service personnel. Participating in this seminar were other military chaplains and a group of local pastors. One of the pastors said that he and his church members had recently prayed over a deploying Marine right before his unit left for Iraq. The pastor shared with the group that he told the Marine God would protect him from all harm, guaranteeing he would return him safely. One of the chaplains gently objected. “I don’t think I would tell a warrior that. There are no guarantees that nothing will harm him. We want to reassure our Marines who are willing to risk their life that if and when something bad happens that they are to be confident of God’s presence. God is very much present, especially at the time of death. That is our guarantee.”
Conquering Evil
So what can the faithful do in the face of evil? First, weed out the evil in your own life. Repent of sin, and turn to God through the atoning work of Jesus Christ. Secondly, do not fear. God will be with you regardless of what evil befalls you, and at the harvest all will be made right. Who will separate us from the love of Christ?
Will hardship, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?...No in all these things we are more that conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, not life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, not height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us form the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8: 35-39).
Thirdly, and this is a trite saying but so true, “Bloom where you are planted.” Minister to others where you live, work, study and play. Fourthly, grow in discipleship. Study scripture, seek God through prayer, and grow into the likeness of Jesus Christ. Fifthly, don’t fret over the evildoers around you. It is not our job to pronounce judgments on evildoers. Justice is God’s job.
Do not fear. God will be with you regardless of what evil befalls you…nothing can separate us from the love of God. Evil is all around us. It is in our hearts, our churches and in the world. Evil takes the form of fear, doubt and anger. It can be seen in addiction and abuse, and is destructive in its power. The ultimate effect of evil is death. God’s love is ever-present, and Jesus Christ overcomes the devil and ultimately destroys the power of death through his resurrection and the final judgment. Hold on to that promise, “For in hope we were saved.” “Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father."
The Psalmist answers the question he asked:
But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God. I trust in the steadfast love of God forever and ever. (Psalms 52:8).
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Spiritual Growth
This cartoon is by Mark Baker give me by Rabbi Brett Oxman. Check out Marks' site at pvtmurphy.com where you will be able to purchase signed prints of his work. Spiritual growth is so important for Christians. I have found that building devotional time into my daily schedule is as essential for spiritual growth as food and exercise is to physical health. I have to exercise every day if I am to pass the annual Air Force PT test. I cannot wait until a month out, then run extra miles every day up to the test...that is a formula for a heart attack! I once knew a man back in New Jersey who would eat only one meal a day...and that evening meal was huge! I can't eat like that. I must have at least three small meals a day, and various healthy snacks in between. (By the way, I am accepting recipes of healthy GOOD TASTING food). Its the same with spiritual growth. As a chaplain, I must prepare for the delivery of a Sunday sermon every day, several times a day, routinely through prayer, reading, meditating on scriptures, and wrestling with Biblical texts. As a disciple of Jesus Christ, to grow into the likeness of my Lord I must spend time with him every day. Admittedly, my laziness often keeps me from exercising and feeding my spirit.
I am greatly helped by devotional aids. I have published some of the ones I use on the sidebar to this blog in the form of a quote of the day, the daily lectionary reading and various web sites to help with spiritual discipline. I also send out via e mail a daily thought for the day. It is a one-liner. I once had a group commander tell me that every morning she would open her inbox to find over 100 messages. She said she always looked for mine to read first. "Your messages always starts my day right. Besides, it is quick to read and there are no suspenses [tasks] attached. If you would like to get this thought for the day from me just send me a message and I will add you to the list. Grace and Peace, Jeff
I am greatly helped by devotional aids. I have published some of the ones I use on the sidebar to this blog in the form of a quote of the day, the daily lectionary reading and various web sites to help with spiritual discipline. I also send out via e mail a daily thought for the day. It is a one-liner. I once had a group commander tell me that every morning she would open her inbox to find over 100 messages. She said she always looked for mine to read first. "Your messages always starts my day right. Besides, it is quick to read and there are no suspenses [tasks] attached. If you would like to get this thought for the day from me just send me a message and I will add you to the list. Grace and Peace, Jeff
Friday, July 18, 2008
Virtual Church
It is another beautiful day in Hawaii. I normally get up at 0500 for morning prayer, and today I have prayed for my denomination, the Presbyterian Church, USA, and especially our new moderator Bruce Reyes-Chow. I have re-started my "This Day" e-mails with a positive response. It is a good way to reach out to my virtual church. Many have asked for prayers and have shared their lives with me, for which I am grateful. The ministry I am in now is largly administrative, (At Osan Air Base Korea I was very active in leading services, counseling, teaching, and preparing to meet the operational objectives of the mission). So, this blog and my daily e-mails provides a great opportunity for pastoral interaction as we minister one to another, and support each other with prayer and encouragement. Gail has requested I post a picture of Maggie Mae, our Corgi who keeps us in a daily routine, gives comfort, and makes us laugh every day.
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Family
Family Album:Bottom left to right: Gail, Jeff Guild
Top left to right: Marianne Semko, Charlene Magee, Carl Magee...the Florida connection...Good Company around an abundant table.
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
A Bold Hope: 218 GA Churchwide Letter, Part II
Friends, I have posted in its entirety the letter from the Moderator, Vice Moderator and Executive Director of the General Assembly Council. I will comment at later, and welcome your comments as well. Chaplain Jeff Guild
218th GA Churchwide Letter, Part II
Sometime this morning this letter was sent out to Middle Governing Bodies, Presbyterian New Services, etc. Please consider posting the letter - with or without analysis and comment - on your blogs, church websites, etc.
To Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) congregations
Grace and peace to you in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
In a letter to you on June 28, we began to tell the story of our 218th General Assembly. Our goal was to provide you a timely summary and perspective on issues that we sensed would draw the greatest immediate attention. In that first letter, we outlined the assembly’s actions and our church’s next steps in a continuing story, the outcome of which is known only to God. Most importantly, we infused our letter with our strong and abiding hope for the future ministry and witness of our Presbyterian Church (USA), because we are a Good News people.
We hope that you will share with us a bold and unabashed hope, firmly grounded in the solid foundation of our faith, that is daily confirmed for us in seeing how God is at work in and through our PC(USA). Every day, we hear story after story of new churches and fellowships, of immigrant and multicultural ministries, of large churches joining with smaller ones to support and encourage each other. Everywhere there is a new and growing hunger to hear and to tell the Good News. The commitment to “Grow Christ’s Church Deep and Wide” – overwhelmingly approved by the assembly – grew out of that very hunger to say “no” to a climate of decline and say “yes” to declaring a church wide commitment to participate in God’s activity in transforming the PC(USA).
With this letter, we invite you to continue to celebrate with us good news of our General Assembly and of our Presbyterian Church. We ask you to join us in giving collective voice to the hope, the passion, and the future that has the power to unite us as Presbyterian Christians:
As noted, the assembly overwhelmingly adopted a churchwide commitment to “Grow Christ’s Church Deep and Wide,” encouraging synods, presbyteries, sessions, and all agencies, entities, and networks of the PC(USA) to foster the growth of Christ’s Church in the areas of evangelism, discipleship, servanthood, and diversity. This commitment builds on the many initiatives that are already under way in so many places – and calls on all parts of the church to start new congregations and transform existing ones; to nurture immigrant, racial ethnic and multicultural fellowships and congregations; to reach out through mission; and to deepen discipleship.
In a related action, the assembly also enthusiastically approved a strategy for church growth for African American congregations. We see this as a call to action, and, more importantly, to collaboration. With the previous initiative, this comprehensive strategy invites us all to partner together in growing Christ’s Church Deep and Wide in the many ways we are called to achieve great things for God.
The “Invitation to Expanding Partnership in God’s Mission,” an historic document which emerged from the Worldwide Mission Consultation held earlier this year in Dallas, was boldly affirmed by the assembly. Covenanting to live and serve together, committing to working cooperatively, celebrating diverse Presbyterian approaches to mission, sharing responsibility for educating and preparation of all Presbyterians for mission and seeking and supporting more mission personnel, are among the statements in the invitation. Nearly 200 individuals and groups had endorsed this covenant before it was brought to the assembly and adopted. The committee that recommended it to the assembly read the text of the invitation aloud, making it a statement of faith, a powerful affirmation of our Presbyterian commitment to mission. We encourage you to do likewise.
For the first time in 50 years, the assembly voted to increase the number of mission personnel serving as the hands and feet of Christ around the world. The good news is that those who are called to serve will be "saving lives" not just by providing urgent medical care or implementing holistic ministries, but by preaching the gospel, often in places where it has never been heard. With the support of Presbyterians, this commitment will extend our collective outreach in mission around the world.
Realizing that worship is our response to God’s love for us and that we pray for God to “put a new and right spirit within [us]” (Ps. 51:10), Presbyterians also covenanted at this assembly to gather in Solemn Assemblies over the coming years, worshiping God and seeking God’s healing for the church.
Called by Jesus Christ to be peacemakers, the assembly continued to boldly affirm that stance around the world. The assembly called for “responsibly” bringing the troops home from Iraq, continuing peacemaking with Israelis and Palestinians, and supporting human rights in Zimbabwe, the Philippines, North Korea and Colombia.
752 commissioners and nearly 3000 other participants in San Jose were joined by more than 13,000 people who logged in and watched on line - a 21st century General Assembly!
As God’s story, entwined with ours, continues to unfold following this General Assembly, we find ourselves newly energized for the work to be done in the weeks and months ahead. The Good News, which we received, in which we stand, and by which we are saved, calls us to immediate action. Empowered by the Spirit, we invite you to answer the carry out the work called for by Christ’s commands and the Church’s actions:
Recommend gifted people to serve as mission co-workers. We need your wisdom and your help in identifying qualified. [www.pcusa.org/msr]
Hold Solemn Assemblies in your congregation or presbytery. A website with resources will be available soon through the General Assembly Council’s Office of Theology and Worship.
Grow Christ’s Church Deep and Wide. Visit [www.deepandwide.net] and [www.presbygrow.net] to find ideas for growing the church and contribute your own.
Support the work of mission around the world. There are countless opportunities for Presbyterians to invest in and pray for the good work the church is doing. [www.pcusa.org/mission]
With believers in every time and place, we rejoice that nothing in life or in death can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. And isn’t that Good News?
The Rev. Bruce Reyes-Chow Moderator of the 218th General Assembly
Elder Linda Bryant Valentine [BLOG]Executive Director, General Assembly Council
The Rev. Gradye Parsons Stated Clerk of the General Assembly
A
218th GA Churchwide Letter, Part II
Sometime this morning this letter was sent out to Middle Governing Bodies, Presbyterian New Services, etc. Please consider posting the letter - with or without analysis and comment - on your blogs, church websites, etc.
To Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) congregations
Grace and peace to you in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
In a letter to you on June 28, we began to tell the story of our 218th General Assembly. Our goal was to provide you a timely summary and perspective on issues that we sensed would draw the greatest immediate attention. In that first letter, we outlined the assembly’s actions and our church’s next steps in a continuing story, the outcome of which is known only to God. Most importantly, we infused our letter with our strong and abiding hope for the future ministry and witness of our Presbyterian Church (USA), because we are a Good News people.
We hope that you will share with us a bold and unabashed hope, firmly grounded in the solid foundation of our faith, that is daily confirmed for us in seeing how God is at work in and through our PC(USA). Every day, we hear story after story of new churches and fellowships, of immigrant and multicultural ministries, of large churches joining with smaller ones to support and encourage each other. Everywhere there is a new and growing hunger to hear and to tell the Good News. The commitment to “Grow Christ’s Church Deep and Wide” – overwhelmingly approved by the assembly – grew out of that very hunger to say “no” to a climate of decline and say “yes” to declaring a church wide commitment to participate in God’s activity in transforming the PC(USA).
With this letter, we invite you to continue to celebrate with us good news of our General Assembly and of our Presbyterian Church. We ask you to join us in giving collective voice to the hope, the passion, and the future that has the power to unite us as Presbyterian Christians:
As noted, the assembly overwhelmingly adopted a churchwide commitment to “Grow Christ’s Church Deep and Wide,” encouraging synods, presbyteries, sessions, and all agencies, entities, and networks of the PC(USA) to foster the growth of Christ’s Church in the areas of evangelism, discipleship, servanthood, and diversity. This commitment builds on the many initiatives that are already under way in so many places – and calls on all parts of the church to start new congregations and transform existing ones; to nurture immigrant, racial ethnic and multicultural fellowships and congregations; to reach out through mission; and to deepen discipleship.
In a related action, the assembly also enthusiastically approved a strategy for church growth for African American congregations. We see this as a call to action, and, more importantly, to collaboration. With the previous initiative, this comprehensive strategy invites us all to partner together in growing Christ’s Church Deep and Wide in the many ways we are called to achieve great things for God.
The “Invitation to Expanding Partnership in God’s Mission,” an historic document which emerged from the Worldwide Mission Consultation held earlier this year in Dallas, was boldly affirmed by the assembly. Covenanting to live and serve together, committing to working cooperatively, celebrating diverse Presbyterian approaches to mission, sharing responsibility for educating and preparation of all Presbyterians for mission and seeking and supporting more mission personnel, are among the statements in the invitation. Nearly 200 individuals and groups had endorsed this covenant before it was brought to the assembly and adopted. The committee that recommended it to the assembly read the text of the invitation aloud, making it a statement of faith, a powerful affirmation of our Presbyterian commitment to mission. We encourage you to do likewise.
For the first time in 50 years, the assembly voted to increase the number of mission personnel serving as the hands and feet of Christ around the world. The good news is that those who are called to serve will be "saving lives" not just by providing urgent medical care or implementing holistic ministries, but by preaching the gospel, often in places where it has never been heard. With the support of Presbyterians, this commitment will extend our collective outreach in mission around the world.
Realizing that worship is our response to God’s love for us and that we pray for God to “put a new and right spirit within [us]” (Ps. 51:10), Presbyterians also covenanted at this assembly to gather in Solemn Assemblies over the coming years, worshiping God and seeking God’s healing for the church.
Called by Jesus Christ to be peacemakers, the assembly continued to boldly affirm that stance around the world. The assembly called for “responsibly” bringing the troops home from Iraq, continuing peacemaking with Israelis and Palestinians, and supporting human rights in Zimbabwe, the Philippines, North Korea and Colombia.
752 commissioners and nearly 3000 other participants in San Jose were joined by more than 13,000 people who logged in and watched on line - a 21st century General Assembly!
As God’s story, entwined with ours, continues to unfold following this General Assembly, we find ourselves newly energized for the work to be done in the weeks and months ahead. The Good News, which we received, in which we stand, and by which we are saved, calls us to immediate action. Empowered by the Spirit, we invite you to answer the carry out the work called for by Christ’s commands and the Church’s actions:
Recommend gifted people to serve as mission co-workers. We need your wisdom and your help in identifying qualified. [www.pcusa.org/msr]
Hold Solemn Assemblies in your congregation or presbytery. A website with resources will be available soon through the General Assembly Council’s Office of Theology and Worship.
Grow Christ’s Church Deep and Wide. Visit [www.deepandwide.net] and [www.presbygrow.net] to find ideas for growing the church and contribute your own.
Support the work of mission around the world. There are countless opportunities for Presbyterians to invest in and pray for the good work the church is doing. [www.pcusa.org/mission]
With believers in every time and place, we rejoice that nothing in life or in death can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. And isn’t that Good News?
The Rev. Bruce Reyes-Chow Moderator of the 218th General Assembly
Elder Linda Bryant Valentine [BLOG]Executive Director, General Assembly Council
The Rev. Gradye Parsons Stated Clerk of the General Assembly
A
The Journey
The life of a "military" family is pretty much defined by transitions. Packing and unpacking for trips and packing up the household every two or three years to go to another assignment is a way of life. I have thought a great deal about models of ministry in the midst of this dynamic community, or at least an image of ministry to keep in mind to help shape my work as an Air Force Chaplain. There is the building image, with Christ as the Cornerstone and the chaplain/pastor as bricklayer. Just keep laying program upon program, brick upon brick. Then there is the business image where the pastor becomes the CEO and the Church is seen as a corporation. I suppose this is the model that many of the mega-churches use to operate. The image that works for me in my setting is the journey. I have come to see ministry to the military as ministry with people on a journey. Some walk alone in a wilderness, some in pairs, family units, and some become part of larger communities like ones found in military chapels. As the people of God on a journey we support, encourage, nourish and love one another. In the community can be found grace, healing and growth, and there can be conflict, doubt, fear as we look ahead into the unknown and back to Egypt where we were slaves, but at least had some food. From time to time, one of the people will decide to go off on his or her own, but the community sends out a rescue party because Jesus went after the lost sheep and the military never leaves a man behind. But the majority of the people I have been called to serve are not in the community of faith. They are young, families, Airmen, Soldiers, Sailors and Marines who know what it means to serve and to sacrifice, but do not participate in the church. Those we visit on the flightline, in their workcenters, in foxholes, in tents, terminals, before and after battle, in hospitals and barracks. I have always considered them part of the congregation, people to whom I have been sent to serve, people on a journey, spiritual people if not affiliated with a church or religious organization. They don't appear on any church roll, but they come seeking direction, support, a listening ear, and love. We are a people on a journey, transitioning from one assignment to the next, and in the midst of the swirl, the church can be found not as a building or an institution, but as the dynamic people of God, the body of Christ sent to love and tell others the good news.
Monday, July 14, 2008
Aaron Guild, Citizen Soldier
The stained glass window is in the town hall of Norwood, MA and I am told depicts Aaron Guild, Minuteman, leaving his plow to fight for liberty. We pronounce our last name to rhyme with wild, as Aaron did generations ago.
Sunday, July 13, 2008
Welcome to Good Company
Recently I joined the "Company of Pastors" of the Presbyterian Church, USA, of which I am a minister. A benefit of membership is receiving publications on worship and theology. Yesterday in the mail was a book "Theology in Service of the Church, Essays in Honor of Joseph D. Small 3rd." Barbara Wheeler's essay "In Good Company..." seemed to capture my thinking about faith, life and ministry. It is an especially good title for me, a United States Air Force Chaplain, serving with Roman Catholic priests, Protestants of all flavors, Rabbis and Imams. Dr. Wheeler speaks of Joe Small's contribution to pastoral ministry, especially in his description of the minister as "pastor-theologian," and describes his signature programs to gather ministers together to discuss faith, theology, and the devotional life, A Company of Pastors being only one example of his work patterned after John Calvin's Venerable Company of Pastors.
I invite you to be good company as we discuss the PCUSA, the Christian faith journey, the devotional life. I especially love good recipes and wine recommendations as a good company always participates in good hospitality. My dear wife Gail and I love to have people over to our house on Hickam Air Force Base in Hawaii for good food, good wine and good conversation.
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