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Saturday,
July 18, 2009
Come
to this page first...
it is
the quick and easy way to miss nothing
of
All the National PC(USA) news
Something we may have overlooked? Please, tell
us |
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Blazing
trails – by
Jerry L. Van Marter / PNS
‘Set world on fire,’ keynoter tells
Montreat Youth Conference finale |
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MONTREAT,
NC — After a week of exhortations to change
the troubled world fueled by strength in numbers,
1,300 Montreat Youth Conference participants prepared
to return home today.
Now the trick is
to carry the enthusiasm of this gathering back
to the everyday life of the average teenager. |
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Champion
of creation
Calvin prized God’s creative power, Zachman
tells jubilee celebration
By Bethany Furkin / PNS |
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MONTREAT,
NC – In times of blessing and adversity,
God is always revealing God’s self to us,
said Randall Zachman in “Calvin’s Doctrine
of Providence: The Special Care of God for All
Creation,” his July 10 lecture at the Calvin
Jubilee.
Zachman, professor
of Reformed studies at Notre Dame University,
was one of the speakers here to celebrate John
Calvin’s 500th birthday July 8-11.
His lecture touched
on Calvin’s view of God as a parent and a
nursemaid, giving life to and caring for every
creature. |
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| ‘Out
of Chaos, Hope’ – by
Yvonne Hileman / PNS |
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“God
did not intend us to face life’s hardships
alone,” Jean Marie Peacock said at the PW
Churchwide Gathering plenary session on the evening
of July 13. “That is why God gives us the
gift of community.”
The theme for the
plenary was “Wonder of Hope.”
Peacock is associate
presbyter for congregation development and disaster
recovery for the Presbytery of South Louisiana.
Her work is focused on hurricane recovery efforts
in the greater New Orleans region. |
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Being
connected – by
Byron Wade
A column for the church from the GA vice moderator |
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"...As
Presbyterians and people of faith, not only are
we connected virtually, but also as believers
in God through Jesus Christ and the Reformed tradition.
We pride ourselves on being a “connectional”
church. No matter where we are or what may divide
us, we all are called to seek out our common unity
in Jesus Christ in times of joy and concern. By
doing so, we exhibit “the Kingdom of Heaven
to the world”..." |
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| Presbyterians
in their local news |
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Retired
minister leads effort to build a better life for
others
By Robert Brill with Sean Bikowitz / Times Union
[NY]
The Rev. Eric Fagans: Retired minister and a leader
of a group of volunteer homebuilders called the
NYT-FITS+.Lives in Albany NY.
"...While I was still clergy, I began things
and organized them. Now I'm free to use my hands.
We're having a lot of fun and it seems like the
best times of our lives. In New Orleans we'll
be up at 6:30 and work all day. After dinner we
sit around the tables and talk. One of the ministers
here at First Presbyterian said, "I can't
wait to retire to join a group like this."
It's life-affirming..." |
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Holly
Presbyterian marks 150th anniversary
HOLLY, Mich. – Holly Presbyterian Church
celebrated its anniversary Sunday with the theme
"150 Years Together." |
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| Scripture
readings for today – from
the Lectionary |
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"You
cause the grass to grow for the cattle,
and plants for
people to use,
to bring forth food from the earth,
and wine to gladden
the human heart..."
"David left there and escaped to the cave
of Adullam... Everyone who was in distress, and
everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was
discontented gathered to him; and he became captain
over them. Those who were with him numbered about
four hundred..."
"...When the meeting of the synagogue broke
up, many Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed
Paul and Barnabas, who spoke to them and urged
them to continue in the grace of God."
"Then he went home; and the crowd came together
again, so that they could not even eat. When his
family heard it, they went out to restrain him,
for people were saying, "He has gone out
of his mind."..." |
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Today
in the Mission Yearbook for Prayer and Study
The
Presbytery of Shenandoah – Virginia,
West Virginia |
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"... the Harrisonburg and Rockingham Thermal
Shelter (HARTS) in Virginia... is supported by
a partnership between the religious community,
the city, and social agencies to assist the city’s
chronically homeless. Every evening during the
winter, those needing shelter gather in churches,
mosques, or synagogues offered by the ecumenical
community for a warm meal, a clean bed, and a
good night’s rest..." |
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News of all other churches.
in the USA and worldwide.
and their interaction with
the world around them.
Included: opinions, resources
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Voices
from the entire spectrum
Therefore:
Always something to like,
always something to dislike,
always something to ponder...
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The
New Calvinism – by
David Van Biema
No. 3 of TIME's 10 Ideas Changing the World |
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If
you really want to follow the development of conservative
Christianity, track its musical hits. In the early
1900s you might have heard "The Old Rugged
Cross," a celebration of the atonement. By
the 1980s you could have shared the Jesus-is-my-buddy
intimacy of "Shine, Jesus, Shine." And
today, more and more top songs feature a God who
is very big, while we are...well, hark the David
Crowder Band: "I am full of earth/ You are
heaven's worth/ I am stained with dirt/ Prone
to depravity."
Calvinism is back,
and not just musically. John Calvin's 16th century
reply to medieval Catholicism's buy-your-way-out-of-purgatory
excesses is Evangelicalism's latest success story,
complete with an utterly sovereign and micromanaging
deity, sinful and puny humanity, and the combination's
logical consequence, predestination: the belief
that before time's dawn, God decided whom he would
save (or not), unaffected by any subsequent human
action or decision.
Related: Calvinism
brings some Christians back to the church
By Bob Smietana / Gannett News Service
As Calvin turned 500 recently, his theology has
seen a revival. Calvinist groups are thriving
on college campuses nationwide. |
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Episcopalians
end convention with decided move to the left
By Daniel Burke / RNS |
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ANAHEIM,
Calif. – The Episcopal Church voted overwhelmingly
on Friday (July 17) to allow bishops to bless
gay couples and to begin developing rites for
same-sex unions, despite warnings that such moves
would spark schism in the global Anglican Communion.
The resolution,
which allows bishops to provide a “generous
pastoral response” to gay and lesbian couples,
but stops short of authorizing churchwide rites,
was approved by lay and clergy delegates by a
more than 2-to-1 margin. Bishops approved the
measure on Wednesday.
The resolution,
on the final day of the church’s triennial
General Convention, was the second definitive
move to the left for the U.S. church. Earlier
this week, delegates and bishops voted to lift
a de facto ban on consecrating gays and lesbians
as bishops that had been enacted three years ago.
The measures approved
this week may lead to calls for the Episcopal
Church to be disciplined by the worldwide Anglican
community, and strengthen the position of the
rival Anglican Church in North America, which
was launched by conservatives last year.
Related: The
Americans know this will end in schism
By N. T. Wright / The Times of London |
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Sri
Lanka: One in the Spirit
Evangelicals
look for reconciliation in aftermath of Asia's
longest civil war.
By Alicia Cohn / Christianity Today |
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A
spring military surge against Tamil-minority secessionists
killed and displaced thousands yet brought an
improbable end to 26 years of violent religious
and racial conflict. Now Sri Lankan evangelicals
are appealing to the global church for help in
healing their island nation.
The scale of relief
efforts needed for the thousands now displaced
in military camps is daunting, but local evangelical
leaders feel hopeful about attempts at reconciliation. |
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Jerusalem
court and ultra-Orthodox reach deal
By Steve Weizman / AP |
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A
judge in Jerusalem and leaders of the city's ultra-Orthodox
Jewish community agreed Friday to a compromise
aimed at ending days of rioting by religious protesters,
Israeli police said.
The protesters
have been enraged at the arrest of a mentally
ill Hasidic woman who authorities say was starving
her child. The insular ultra-Orthodox community
resents outside interference in its affairs. |
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Fetuses
found to have memories
By Jennifer Harper / The Washington Times |
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They
weigh less than 3 pounds, usually, and are perhaps
15 inches long. But they can remember.
The unborn have
memories, according to medical researchers who
used sound and vibration stimulation, combined
with sonography, to reveal that the human fetus
displays short-term memory from at least 30 weeks
gestation – or about two months before they
are born.
"In addition,
results indicated that 34-week-old fetuses are
able to store information and retrieve it four
weeks later," said the research.
Scientists from
the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at
Maastricht University Medical Centre and the University
Medical Centre St. Radboud, both in the Netherlands,
based their findings on a study of 100 healthy
pregnant women and their fetuses with the help
of some gentle but precise sensory stimulation. |
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Pastor:
It's time to start ministering to homosexuals
By Amy B. McCraw / Times-News |
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Homosexuality
and the church. Put those words together most
any place most any time and sparks are guaranteed
to fly.
So, it's no wonder
the Rev. Dr. Bill Campbell, 52, hesitates a moment
before discussing his new book, "Homosexuality
and the Church: Overcoming Controversy With Compassionate
Ministry."
"It's a delicate
subject," says Campbell, the pastor of First
Presbyterian Church in Hendersonville, NC. |
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Church
abortion coalition still “keeping it real”
By Rebekah Sharpe / IRD |
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Hosting
controversial former Clinton era U.S. Surgeon
General “condom queen” Jocelyn Elders,
the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice
(RCRC) convened its 13th annual National Black
Religious Summit on Sexuality in Washington, D.C.,
urging support for abortion rights and homosexual
causes.
Agencies of the
United Methodist Church, Presbyterian Church (USA),
Episcopal Church and United Church of Christ belong
to RCRC. |
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Ginsburg
was right about Roe v. Wade and population control
By Warren Throckmorton |
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"What
a week; health care reform and the confirmation
hearings of Sonia Sotomayor have captured the
news cycles. While the nation was focusing on
these matters, a Supreme Court Justice provided
a brief lesson in history that should be considered
as debates regarding health care and nominee Sotomayor
continue. In a July 12 article in the New York
Times Magazine, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg said
the following regarding Roe v. Wade, a feminist
legal agenda and population control..." |
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The
Anna syndrome
When hanging out at church only hinders single
women
By Julia Duin / Christianity Today blog for women |
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Summertime
is when weddings abound. No one longs for them
more than the abundance of single women in our
nation's churches. The dearth of marriage opportunities
for most of these women calls forth certain coping
strategies, one of which I'll call the “Anna
syndrome” after the prophetess in Luke 2:36-38
who hung around the Jerusalem temple and happened
to catch the baby Jesus on a good day.
I bring this Bible
passage up because of memories that arose while
helping a single female friend move.
My friend was dying
to meet a man, but there were way too few of them
at her church. Single women tend to hang around
church. Single men do not.
As for helping
her find a mate – which would solve a multitude
of her problems – why is it that pastors
in places like Japan and India see it as their
duty to help their singles match up, but most
American pastors could not be bothered? |
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To
kll or to love – that was the question
Rethinking the image of God helped me to decide.
By Brandon O'Brien / Christianity Today |
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"...For
most of the first semester, I tried to summon
the patience to deal with Stewart by appealing
to an important Christian doctrine. He deserves
my respect, I told myself, because he's made in
the image of God.
"It didn't
work. It's true, of course, but it didn't offer
me any specific direction for how to treat him.
And that set me on a course to rethink what this
doctrine might mean, at least in a situation like
this...
"The Reformers
were convinced that humans all but lost the divine
image after Adam's fall in Eden. There remained
echoes of God's likeness in every person, but
the divine image was, in John Calvin's words,
"frightfully deformed." The only way
to restore it was to be hidden in and transformed
into the likeness of Christ, the perfect image...
"The upshot
was this: I realized that my behavior toward Stewart
should not be determined by his status as an image
bearer, but by mine... I was called to
bear the image of God to Stewart, however he behaved..." |
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| Letters
from readers – email
us |
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Neil
D. Cowling "I want to compliment
Michael Neubert on his Viewpoint on Friday's
Church and World. I think he is clear and he is
right on. Marriage is between a man and a woman...
"...'gay marriage'
is like 'military intelligence' or 'independent
presbyterian.' They are all oxymorons..." |
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Ed
Bernard "Reading the article "What
went wrong with economics" led me to
remember a recent posting of someone in a joke
section of Presbynet..." |
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Winfield
Casey Jones " Though
the tile, "Where Jerusalem and Mecca meet",
like many titles, is more attention-grabbing that
descriptive of the article over which it sits,
Gregg Chenoweth and Caleb Benoit's piece on the
interaction between Houston Baptist University
and Muslim students who attend there was exciting
to read...
"I did disagree
with one fine point in the article where it states
that courses in New Testament and Christian Doctrine
would be considered "heretical" to Muslims.
In terms of our Christian apologetic to Muslims,
I do not think that it is helpful to lump Christian
doctrine and the New Testament together because
the Qu'ran can sometimes create an openness among
Muslims to the contents of the New Testament that
they would not share about Christian doctrine
in general..." |
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