You won't want to miss the June 4 Presbytery meeting at First Presbyterian Church, Saginaw. Our special guest will be the Rev. Dr. J. Herbert Nelson, Stated Clerk of the General Assembly. Dr. Nelson will be preaching at worship and leading a Q & A during our equipping time on new directions for the PCUSA. Dr. Nelson is the first African-American Stated Clerk in the history of our church. Prior to his election in 2016 he served as the Director of the Office of Public Witness of the General Assembly, in Washington, D.C., where he advocated with our national leaders on behalf of the social witness policies of the PCUSA. He is a third-generation Presbyterian minister and served congregations in Greensboro, North Carolina and Memphis, Tennessee. He is a passionate preacher and advocate for justice.

 

In conjunction with Dr. Nelson's visit, we will also sponsor two hands-on mission opportunities.  On Monday we will be assisting the First Presbyterian Church food pantry in processing the items they receive for their weekly distribution. Then, on Tuesday after adjournment, those who wish may engage in a post-Presbytery community clean-up at nearby Roeser Park. We will provide pizza and refreshments with enough to share with our neighbors. Look for further details in the call to the meeting and the next Bi-Weekly Brief.

 

Also at the June meeting, ministers and commissioners will receive important materials for upcoming Presbytery assemblies and for use in congregations. We will also introduce the churchwide study book Neighborhood Church: Transforming Your Congregation into a Powerhouse for Mission by Krin Van Tatenhove and Rob Mueller. This is a practical guide for becoming an "inside-out" congregation. The book retails for $20, is available in bulk for congregational use for $12 a copy from Westminster/John Knox Press. The Presbytery is providing a free copy to ministers and elder commissioners (donations accepted). A free, downloadable study guide is also available. We ask you to read the book and study it in your churches so that we can have a Presbytery-wide conversation around its themes at our December 2019 meeting.

 

To assist in how churches might apply the book, ministers and  elder commissioners will also receive a copy of the ALICE Report for Michigan with a county-specific insert. "ALICE stands for Asset-Limited, Income-Constrained, Employed." The study, commissioned by the United Ways of Michigan is part of a national study of the "working poor."

 

But wait... there's more! We will also be providing you with resources on "Race and Reconciliation" for the September meeting of Presbytery. Copies of the study guide approved in 2012 and published by Geneva Press will be distributed to each church. The Rev. Dr. Clifton Kirkpatrick, co-author of the guide and the former Stated Clerk of the General Assembly will be our featured speaker. Dr. Kirkpatrick will focus on using the Belhar Confession as a resource in combatting racism.