Presbyterians For Renewal - Missional Leadership for Presbyterian Congregations
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Envisioning a New Church: The Potential Is Right in Front of Us |
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Written by Paul Detterman
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Monday, 11 April 2011 15:46 |
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 People who have been shaped by Scripture are steeped in the language of individual repentance, forgiveness, grace, and a new beginning. (2 Corinthians 5:17) But when it comes to the nature of the institutions of our faith, the bureaucratic structure and the substance of the Church, as well as denominational expression of practical theology, it is a rare and important moment when we get the opportunity for a corporate do-over. There is an emerging consensus among thoughtful people from various points across the spectrum of the PC(USA) that we are in just such a rare and important moment.
The “trial balloon” proposal for a new non-geographic (17th) synod, created by PFR and delivered to the 2010 General Assembly by Santa Barbara Presbytery, didn’t get out of committee—no real surprise there. But that same Assembly did create the Middle Governing Bodies Administrative Commission, where Tod Bolsinger and his team are now doing an amazing amount of listening and creative thinking. Beyond the mandate of any General Assembly, conversations like the NEXT Conference and the proposal that created the Fellowship PC(USA) are drawing attention from different groups of Presbyterians. And, of course, overshadowing all these developments for many, is the current voting on Amendment 10-A and the New Form of Government, the outcome of each soon to be cause for rejoicing by some and a source of significant trauma for others.
Right now, many people are understandably concerned about practical issues: what will a different denominational structure look like? How can we get from “here” to “there”? How long will it take to write the new presbytery manuals if NFoG passes? What will happen in many congregations if 10-A passes? Can a pastor and his/her congregation in New Hampshire really be part of a presbytery in California just because they share similar theology? These are important questions, but the deeper reality and the far greater potential in this rare and important time of PC(USA) re-thinking goes beyond any regional or national exoskeletons. What could a refreshed, revitalized, reformed witness offer to a post-modern, post-Christian world?Â
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Meet Our 2011 Lydia Scholar |
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Written by PFR
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Thursday, 14 July 2011 13:49 |
 Each year since 1989 PFR, through our Network of Presbyterian Women in Leadership, has awarded the Lydia Scholarship to a female seminarian who exhibits vibrant faith in Jesus Christ, has a vision of spiritual renewal, and desires to serve Christ through ordained ministry in the PC(USA). We are pleased to announce the winner of the 2011 Lydia Scholarship: Christine Myers-Tegeder. |
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At the Name of Jesus: Hymns and Worship Songs that Celebrate the Person, Mission, and Love of Jesus Christ |
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Written by PFR
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Thursday, 25 November 2010 22:48 |
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At the Name of Jesus: Hymns and Worship Songs that Celebrate the Person, Mission and Love Jesus Christ is a new CD by Paul Detterman that celebrates Jesus Christ as he is proclaimed by the Apostle Paul in Philippians 2:5-11. Each of the fifteen tracks presents a fresh interpretation of a hymn, tune or worship song. Full texts of the hymns are included in the liner notes making this a useful aid for prayer and meditation.
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Good Grief |
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Written by Paul Detterman
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Friday, 18 November 2011 15:58 |
Editor’s Note: PFR has been uncommonly quiet since the passage of Amendment 10-A in May. This is partly due to the amount of time and energy PFR has been investing in helping to promote and advance The Fellowship of Presbyterians, and partly due to the fact that when everyone else is talking it is often polite to wait your turn. Here is what I hope will be a helpful commentary as we come into the season of preparation we call Advent and, as evangelicals in the PC(USA), begin another type of preparation altogether on the threshold of 2012.
I’m blessed. I’ve never had to endure, in my immediate family, the kind of agony I have seen close friends and parishioners experience; misunderstandings that lead to anger, unresolved anger that leads to acrimony, and acrimony that ends in deep and prolonged bitterness and loss.Â
Like most adults, I know another kind of grief, however—the grief that comes with the experience of death and the re-ordering of life that includes closing a family home, sorting and disposing of family “things” (many of them with memories attached), and moving on. That grief not only includes lament over what has happened, but the homesickness that comes at the end of an era or the close of a relationship we cherished and thought we could count on.
In the days leading up to this season of Advent, innumerable evangelicals who have been part of the family of faith called the PC(USA) are grieving—a deep grief that has yet to be adequately named by those of us who are experiencing it, and will seemingly never be understood by those who are causing it. This is not the momentary sadness of watching your political party take a beating in an election or the frustration of seeing your favorite team lose in the playoffs.  Nor does our grief find appropriate expression in anger, acrimony, or bitterness. We have witnessed something beautiful, meaningful, and central to our identity destroyed—an expression of the body of Christ that was our theological, sacramental, and communal home. Everyone who has been around for the destruction has been permanently marred as well. At one level we are furious. But we are also hurting, heartbroken, and homesick.
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Wee Kirkers: Heroes and Heroines of the Faith |
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Written by James Kim, Pastor of Little Church on the Prairie in Lakewood, WA, and current President of Presbyterians for Renewal
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Friday, 04 February 2011 13:41 |
This article was originally a post on James Kim's blog PRAXIS—God Revolution, and is re-circulated here with permission. Download in PDF format.
 I just recently came back from a Wee Kirk Conference in Wagoner, OK.
As I reflect on my time there and the nine or so other Wee Kirk conferences I've had the privilege of being a part of, I cannot help but think that there is something terribly wrong with the markers the church world uses for "successful" ministries. All the markers that are typically mentioned - big buildings, big programs, big budgets, and big memberships - for healthy congregations cannot be the only markers God has in mind for successful churches. There's got to be more.
When we get to heaven, I am sure that the Bill Hybels, Chuck Swindolls, and Rick Warrens will get their crowns. But I can't help but think that God will have the biggest crowns for the Wee Kirk pastors. You see, I don't think God holds pastors and leaders of churches accountable for the numerical growth of the congregations we serve because growth is ultimately a Holy Spirit led thing. But I do believe God will hold every single church leader and pastor accountable for our faithfulness to the ministry to which God has called us.
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