Sunday, June 19, 2016

222nd GA, Day 2

I started the day at the Presbyterian Foundation Breakfast.  Phillip Jenkins, a professor of church historian and sociology of religion, spoke putting the transformation the church is experiencing into the larger context of the world wide demographic shifts. In the early 20th Century there were three Europeans for every one African.  Today there are three Africans to every one European.  Fifty percent of Africans moved from Native Religions to one of the Abrahamic Faith Traditions choosing Christianity four to one.  

Eileen and I then worshiped with the the Westminster Presbyterian Church in Portland.  The Rev. Laura Cheitetz, assoc. editor at the Presbyterian Publishing Co., active with the Next Church, and board member of the New Covenant Network, preached a sermon, "A Legion of Demons" on Luke 8: 26-39.  She named the demons present today...and charged us, "Stare the demons in the face and name them.  Then go and give witness to what the Lord has done for you."  This music, the liturgy, the proclamation, the prayers, were rich in content and powerful.  In Westminster's beautiful sanctuary filled with worshipers, we sang in full voice the Johann Jacob Shultz hymn text from 1675, 
                v.1  Sing praise to God who reigns above
                       the God of power, the God of love, 
                       the God of our salvation,
                       with healing balm my soul is filled,
                       and every faithless murmured still
                       to God all praise and glory!

                v.3  The Lord is never far way,
                       But through all grief distressing,
                       An ever present help and stay, 
                       Our peace, and Joy, and blessing;
                       As with a mother's tender hand,
                       God gently leads the chosen band:
                       To God all praise and glory!

The fifth line of of the first stanza jumped off the page as I sang, reminding me of Jack Stewart's comment to us at Presbytery, last week, "I'm wearying from all the whining."  There is so much grief in the American old mainline churches.  You can feel it in the smaller crowd at this Assembly.  This hymn stopped the whining in my soul in it's tracks as this full sanctuary of worshipers sang in full voice in praise of "the God of power and the God of love...with healing balm my soul is filled every faithless murmured still."  This morning's worship at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Portland awakened and touched the soul of every worshiper present, and represented some of the best of our tradition. Check out their website:  http://westprespdx.org/  for Rev. Laura Cheitetz's sermon.  Powerful, powerful!

But what I really want to give witness to was a God moment in the sharing of the peace.  I turned around to the pew behind me and while sharing the peace of Christ, the women I was greeting looked at my name tagged and said, "John Mark,  I'm Eleanor Pickle."  Her name tag was a blue commissioner's name tag with the name Ellie Grove, from the Presbytery of Donegal.  She is a member of the New Harmony Presbyterian Church, in Brogue, southern York County, Pennsylvania.  My dad was pastor of that church for the years in her youth, and he had a great ministry with young people.  She remembered when I was born, and baby sitting me.  My family moved from there when I was just starting first grade.  The last time we had been together was in 1961, 55 years ago!  We did not recognize each other's faces, but our names resonated deeply in our personal histories.  After worship we ate lunch together remembering our shared experiences, filing in family and church histories.  Only the people who have lived in Brogue, PA call it "The Brogue!"  She knew, knows all the people who I loved and who loved me in my childhood.  Out side my family, they are the only people who know me as "John Mark."  I felt like I just sat down by a cool stream of living water, the love and grace filled people in that rural hamlet of my early childhood, restoring my soul.  They were the people who shaped and formed me in the love of God.  The name Eleanor Pickle resonated so deeply in me.  She has five siblings.  My mother recognized the musical talent of Eleanor's older brother Nate.  She encouraged him to attend a summer choir camp at Westminster Choir College.  He went on to be a music teacher.  Eileen and I later named our first born son, Nate!  I always had a good feeling about that name.  

Ellie and my brother Dave are elders in the New Harmony Presbyterian Church.  Their pastor, like some other Presbyterian ministers, disagrees with the church's opening of the leadership and marriage for LGBTQ persons.  Yet they remain active in that rural congregation and resist leaving the PC(U.S.A.).  This week she is a Commissioner at this Assembly, and is serving on the Mission Coordination Committee with Eileen.  

This afternoon reports will be shared.  This evening committees gather for the first time.  Pray with and for Eileen as she gathers and shapes commissioners from across the country into a functional committee, listening to the voice of God in their midst leading this denomination into our future.

As the committees have this private time of getting organized, I'll be watching game seven of the NBA finals!

Yours in Christ,
John  





   

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