Unpacking the Matthew 25 Summit

Baltimore's Presbytery was among the best represented this month at the first ever Matthew 25 Summit in Atlanta, GA. Upon returning, participants were eager to share their enthusiasm and experiences.

Charese Jordan Moore, Elder at Knox Presbyterian Church and Co-chair of the Dismantling Racism Team writes:

"It was a frigid 20 degree evening when I arrived in Atlanta for the first Matthew 25 Summit, but the Summit was on fire from beginning to end. Presbytery of Baltimore (POB) voted to join the Matthew 25 Initiative in November 2023. Seventeen congregations have currently made the commitment, and several are in the process of discernment. Ten members from across the Presbytery of Baltimore attended the Summit from Jan. 16 – 18, making up one of the 3 largest groups there. The others were Presbytery of Atlanta and Presbytery of Denver. The Dismantling Racism Team worked hard to provide scholarships to encourage attendance and that work paid off. We thank the Commission on Reconciliation and the Synod of the Mid-Atlantic for their support.

"The plenary sessions were educational and thought provoking. The worship was diverse and spirit-filled, with both traditional and contemporary expressions of music, dance, spoken word and sermons. The workshops equipped attendees to further their Matthew 25 ministries at home. Whether you were just discerning your Matthew 25 commitment or you wanted to figure out how to go deeper into the work, there was something for everyone.

"While the entire Summit was an energizing experience, lessons learned from the powerful witness of the plenary speakers made the greatest impact on me personally...

• Read more and hear what others had to say.
• A listing of Upcoming Matthew 25 Events is also available.

This Saturday: A Day Discussing Evangelism

There is still space in the Commission on Thriving Congregations first workshop of the year. Their series of Thriving Church tools begins this Saturday February 3rd, as the focus becomes Evangelism.



You are invited to share your thoughts in an online forum we have dedicated to the topic. Evangelism: What has worked for each of us? What are some of our biggest fears about it? How might we scale different approaches for our churches? The commission invites your feedback and would like to keep the conversation going.

A link to register can be found there too, so please let us know if you plan to attend in person or online this weekend.

The Clerk's Corner

With 8 days to go in this statistics of the church season, fewer than half of our churches have completed their reporting. 

(https://oga.pcusa.org/section/churchwide-ministries/stats/statistical-reporting-faq/)

PLEASE, if you have questions or concerns, let me know (mgaut@baltimorepresbytery.org) and I will do all I can to help. While there is a little bit of wiggle room with the deadline, the reporting program is controlled by the Office of General Assembly and will be closed to churches.  

Remember that accurate rolls are important and the members you report determine your per capita. Thanks to the 23 churches who have completed this annual task. Your commitment is appreciated.

Terms of Call Reports Now Due March 1

Thanks to the diligence of Presbytery staff, COM notes that the existing report forms for Terms of Call of Installed Pastors have what we now find to be an unrealistic due date of February 1. 

But we are also aware that many churches don’t hold their annual meetings until February, even during less interesting football seasons.

We are therefore extending the due date for reporting Terms of Call until March 1, to be approved by Presbytery as usual at its next Stated Meeting, March 14 this year. Terms of Call must be in by March 1, for inclusion in the meeting packet for March 14.

Moment for Ministry Groups

“M.E.G.” (Mutual Encouragement Group)

In September of the year 2020 (does that year bring anything to mind?), the pastors of the Susquehanna Parish Ministry Group began to meet every other week on Thursday mornings from 10 AM to 11—11:30-ish for nothing other than support and conversation. This group continues to meet today, four years later. We meet in a Zoom format. I did not intend for the group to continue indefinitely and only thought it would meet once or perhaps twice a month. But after one or two meetings all agreed that we should meet every other week.

Those who regularly join in feel that these conversations are truly rich and life-giving. With no agenda other than to share whatever is on our hearts and minds, it does not take long for someone to share something personal, or ministry related that flows into excellent support, care, listening, and somehow encouragement.

When started MEG six months into the Covid-19 pandemic, some of our churches were experiencing various levels of pushback related to addressing structural racism. George Floyd was murdered by police in June and our perennial national sin was fully front and center. We pastors felt that we were under microscopes so meeting together to talk through what we were experiencing was a safe place to process and understand. Ideas were shared. Prayers were prayed. Books were recommended. You can imagine all that our brilliant pastors can offer to each other!

Some of our pastors have moved to other calls in other states occasionally pop back into a MEG meeting. We will continue MEG with no plans to end our every other week gatherings. Not only has it helped each of us individually, but I am sure it spills over to our churches, and the bonds of love and trust between the pastors of SPMG make our Ministry Group much more vital and important.

– Rev. Ray Meute, Pastor of Highland Presbyterian, Susquehanna Parish Ministry Group

Save the Date: Thursday, March 14th, 10-Noon

The 902nd Stated Meeting of Presbytery

Plans are underway to identify a church to host our next Stated Meeting, and we are striving to organize a hybrid event to accommodate in-person as well as online participation. Stay tuned for further information as it develops, but please save the date!

One Book, One Presbytery

Church Educators, Teaching Elders and Education Committees: Explore The Color of Law by Richard Rothstein, and make this 6-week opportunity part of your plans for Eastertide 2024. Save the dates!

• 6 weekly discussions – on Zoom
• Mondays, April 8 – May 13, 6:30 – 8:00 pm
• Special guests to be announced soon provide insight to the major topics
• Facilitated small group discussion

Registration is Open! Sponsored by the Presbytery of Baltimore Dismantling Racism Team and In the Loop Ministry Group. (Full participation in the program will meet the Dismantling Racism training requirement.)

Associate for Missional and Community Engagement

The Presbytery of Baltimore seeks an individual to equip the Presbytery and congregations to missionally engage their local communities and become agents of reconciliation. Job description

Bridge Pastor

Govans Presbyterian Church is seeking a part-time or full-time bridge pastor upon the departure of our current pastor, Rev. Tom Harris in February 2024. This is a 20-40 hours per week flexible schedule based on the needs of the congregation and staff. The pastor would preach for worship services on Sunday at 10:30 AM as well as serve as moderator to our session. The position would also require the pastor to moderate congregational-wide meetings, provide administrative leadership, support to our church committees, and liaison to the Govans Preschool and Senior Network of North Baltimore (SNNB) which operate on our campus. Full job description



Part-Time Pastor / Bridge Pastor

Second Presbyterian Church is seeking a part-time or a full-time bridge pastor in March 2024. This is a 20-40 hours per week flexible schedule based on the needs of the congregation and staff. The pastor would preach for two worship services on Sunday at 8:30 AM and 10:30 AM during the church year (September through May) and at a single service at 10:00 AM during the summer (June through August). Full job description and information

Visit the Presbytery's website for additional employment listings.