Keeping us Connected

January 2026

Detention and scrutiny of refugees prompts statement from the Presbyterian Office of Public Witness during time of 'fear-based enforcement'

Statement calls for US to guarantee due process and halt detention of lawfully settled refugees

The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) Office of Public Witness is deeply concerned by reports that refugees who have been lawfully admitted to the United States are being detained. Families who have already been welcomed into safety and passed extensive screening should not be uprooted again, separated from the communities supporting them, or made to live under renewed fear and uncertainty. Scripture calls us to welcome the stranger and protect the vulnerable, and to honor the dignity of those who seek refuge among us. We believe our nation must not undo the safety it has already promised, but instead uphold justice, compassion, and the rule of law for our newest neighbors. Read More

Presbyterian hymn-writer pens ‘O God of Love, This Is a Time of Turning’

LOUISVILLE — The Rev. Carolyn Winfrey Gillette, a prolific Presbyterian hymn-writer, this week published “O God of Love, This Is a Time of Turning,” set to FINLANDIA (“Be Still, My Soul.”)

“This new hymn is a prayer that we will choose God's way of love, justice, compassion, and kindness, in times of conflict and violence — with a special concern for our immigrant neighbors,” she said. "May we stand firm for truth and peace and justice; may we leave fear and hatred far behind."

The music with lyrics is here.

"Please share it with others to support peace, justice and love in our troubled nation and world,” she said. Permission is given for the text and music’s free use, including streaming online.

Two pastors will stand for election as Co-Moderators of the 227th General Assembly

The Rev. Dr. Kristopher D. Schondelmeyer and the Rev. Marta Pumroy-Cordero were endorsed by their presbyteries in their call to stand

LOUISVILLE — The Rev. Marta Pumroy-Cordero and the Rev. Dr. Kristopher D. Schondelmeyer are the first to officially announce they’ll stand as a team for Co-Moderators of the 227 th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), which will be held online and in person in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, June 22-July 2.

The election is scheduled for the Assembly’s final day.

Pumroy-Cordero is border ministry coordinator for the Tres Rios Border Foundation in Tres Rios Presbytery. Schondelmeyer is pastor and head of staff at First Presbyterian Church of Davenport, Iowa, and moderator of the Presbytery of East Iowa. Both have been endorsed in their call to stand by their respective presbyteries.

Volunteer to help with General Assembly

227th General Assembly, hosted by the Presbytery of Milwaukee at the Baird Center, needs your time and talents. If you are available between Sunday, June 21, 2026 and Thursday, July 2, 2026 please sign up using the google form link https://forms.gle/uZZArcfpSocXum3K8. You will be contacted with more information about where you can help. We will have spots for all capabilities.

On the Road to GA, Issue 7

News of the 227th General Assembly (2026).

Click here to read the latest issue.

Grieving together

Rev. Theresa Cho’s sermon signals a thoughtful community of presence for APCE’s Annual Event

LOUISVILLE — The Rev. Theresa Cho, who preached Wednesday during opening worship at the Annual Event of the Association of Partners in Christian Education, noted in her sermon that the fog is so prevalent in her city, San Francisco, that it has its own Instagram account: Karl the Fog.

“He uses it to troll us,” said Cho, the pastor and head of staff at St. John’s Presbyterian Church, which is “a hop-skip away” from the iconic — and often shrouded — Golden Gate Bridge.

“Bridging the Gap” is the theme of APCE’s annual gathering, being held online and at the Wyndham Grand Hotel in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The event concludes Saturday. One of Pittsburgh’s monikers is the “City of Bridges.” The Steel City is home to at least 446 bridges.

“The good news is there’s never a bridge we cross alone.” Rev. Theresa Cho

Church serves as emergency shelter

First Presbyterian Church, Mason City, IA, jumped into action on December 28 to assist travelers needing shelter during a blizzard.

By Betsy Gross, Clerk of Session

In the late evening of Sunday, December 28, 2025, during a blizzard, a call came from Cerro Gordo County Emergency Management to Mason City First, of travelers needing emergency shelter. We sheltered 35 travelers.

Donna Lee Olson wrote, in a FaceBook post, “With the interstate closed, hotels full and Clear Lake Churches helping, the DOT still had more people to place after rescuing them from ditched and snow bound cars and trucks… Families took rooms for privacy and slept on the carpeting. Our enclosed courtyard gave the two dogs a safe place to run outside… and quickly come back in.” Read More

Lent is early this year

Ash Wednesday is February 18. Here is a listing of devotionals for your use.

Daily Readings for Lent - PC(USA)
Ever Approaching Dawn - Christianity Today
Finding Holy Ground - Justice Unbound
Lent Resources - PC(USA) Store
2026 Lenten devotional: Discipleship in a divided age - Presbyterian Outlook

WEEK 2 Art of Transitional Ministry Training

March 2-6, 2026, this online training focuses specifically on the leadership of a person in a pastoral role serving in a ministerial context characterized by transition.

The online format offers savings in terms of time and expenses. Break times are built into the daily schedule to allow time to process information and to rest from compuuter screens. Pre requisite: completion of Week 1 (preferably more than six months ago and preferably within the past five years) and current service in a transitional setting.

More information and registration at: https://lakesandprairies.regfox.com/week-2-of-the-art-of-transitional-ministry

Self-Development of People Sunday - February 8

Celebrate SDOP on Sunday, February 8. You are invited to use the Sunday Yearbook & Tool Kit throughout the year. This resource is filled with inspiring stories about our community partners and much more. Each story/page can be printed and used as an individual resource. Check out SDOP on the move in the Midwest.

SDOP is one of the three ministries of the One Great Hour of Sharing Program. One of the wonderful things about this ministry is that through your gifts thousands of communities all over the world have an opportunity to take control of their own destinies and develop solutions to their own challenges.

Click here for the Sunday Yearbook & Tool Kit.

Newly released how-to guide can help Presbyterians embrace congregation-based community organizing

Presbyterian Hunger Program promotes building “collective power” to solve community problems

LOUISVILLE — Churches interested in grassroots organizing as a way to help their communities and boost congregational vitality have a new downloadable resource from the Presbyterian Hunger Program.

The ministry has released a free, eight-page guide, “Congregation-Based Community Organizing (CBCO): A Call to Do Justice, Love Mercy and Walk Humbly.”

The guide is a primer on CBCO, which is defined as “a grassroots, faith-rooted approach to building collective power and addressing systemic injustices within local contexts.”

The guide includes tips on getting started; examples of victories won by groups, such as the Missoula Interfaith Collaborative and Justice United Seeking Transformation in Pensacola (JUST Pensacola); and a list of CBCO networks.

The Rev. Phil Tom of the West Kensington Ministry in Philadelphia said congregation-based community organizing allows congregations to be more impactful than working alone and can be utilized by churches of any size. Read More

“It’s about building people power and building community power, and the church can be a part of that, even though it's a small congregation,” Tom said. This kind of organizing can make “a powerful difference in their neighborhood and the city.”

Rev. Phil Tom

From Ash to Action: Even the Stones Cry Out

A Congregational Lenten Toolkit

In preparation for ISAIAH's Palm Sunday Path and/or 2026 EcoFaith Summit of the Upper Midwest: From Fear to Fire: Igniting Community for a Planet in Peril, this Toolkit will equip congregations to organize, advocate, and reshape communities to more fully reflect God's preferred future in which the hungry are fed, the sick are healed, strangers are welcomed, and all creation sings with joy.

Elements include:

Sermon prep text reflections from Working Preacher
Embodied organizing practices from David 'Agape' Scherer
Intergenerational fiery text reflections & discussion prompts from Dn Dr. Diane Jacobson
Spiritual practices, liturgical elements, and children's book ideas from Rev. Emily Meyer
Music suggestions from Bret Hesla

Prepare to organize, march, and advocate on behalf of our neighbors along the Palm Sunday Path (March 29, 2026). Advocate for all creation at the EcoFaith Summit of the Upper Midwest (April 18, 2026). Both call on congregations to become organizing hubs for the sake of the Gospel: for thriving communities and a flourishing planet.

Do you zoom?

If memory serves, this was a question asked by the hosts of the children's TV program ZOOM that originally aired in the 1970s. I cannot recall what zoom in that context meant, but in today's context, Zoom means (among other definitions) online video conferencing.

If your congregation or presbytery has been using Zoom for online meetings you will want to know that the non-profit discount code through Techsoup is no longer available. However, Zoom has partnered with Goodstack to provide subcription discounts to verified non-profits.

Here is a link to information on subscribing to Zoom as a non-profit and obtaining the discount, https://support.zoom.com/hc/en/article?id=zm_kb&sysparm_article=KB0080298.

If you have a paid Zoom subscription with a discount from TechSoup the discount is valid until it is time to renew.

2026 Faith and Justice Summer Academy

June 14-18, 2026, Georgetown University

A program designed specifically for pastors, seminarians, graduate students, and those serving in ministry at the intersection of faith and public life. The program equips participants with a faith-based vision and practical skills for effective civic engagement, advocacy, and nonviolent civil resistance. It serves as a bridge between academic theology and public prophetic witness and brings together participants across the diverse traditions and theologies of Christianity.

For more information about the Summer Academy, including how to apply, please visit the Academy website: https://www.faithandjusticeacademy.com/.