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Thank you! 

In our prayers together this week:

• Please pray Douglas Russell's daughter Mary who suffers from RSD and is having a very difficult time with it right now.
• Pray for Ed and Brenda Peck. Ed is in the VA Hospital with dementia waiting to be transferred to a long-term care facility and his wife Brenda is suffering from RSD and multiple complications.
• Pray for 14-year-old Jerry Armstrong who has been diagnosed with bone cancer. He attends Whitelaw Presbyterian Church with his family.
• Pray for those who are grieving the loss of a loved one.
• Please pray for unity and peace in America during an already tumultuous election season.
• All those in Ukraine.
• All those in Israel and Gaza.
• All those who are homebound.
• All those who battling addiction.
• Keep all those who battling cancer and other chronic illnesses in your prayers. Please ask God to be by their side and to be with their doctors and families.

In the cycle of prayer our Presbytery, please pray for these congregations, faith communities, and individuals: First, Cazenovia; First, Chittenango; United Church of Collamer; Pebble Hill, DeWitt; First United Church of East Syracuse

If you'd like to share a particular joy or concern with the Presbytery, please contact: CaySyrNews@gmail.com. Please note, prayers will be featured for three weeks, unless a specific time frame is requested. "

A Strategy for Gathering Young Families Back Into Mainline Churches

By Paul Nixon

Practical Resources for Churches

For at least three generations now, the majority of mainline Protestant youth have left their churches by the time they reach adulthood.  In each generation, a notable minority of these young persons choose to reactivate their participation when they become parents, usually in a congregation that has a strong children’s ministry. This tide now comes back in with diminishing force. Across 75 years, the overall decline has greatly cooked down the numbers of active younger people in mainline churches. The decline is further exacerbated by the fact that the minority who do return often don’t return to their home congregations at all.  They congregate in a few places where minimum critical numbers of young families remain.  Thus, most mainline Protestant congregations today have no active children remaining, and little promise for finding any.

Meanwhile, for one solid generation now, evangelicals and Southern Baptists have joined the above trend. American Evangelicalism is bleeding millions of young adults.  A few of them join mainline churches.  Most just quit. However, the vast majority of surviving children’s ministries in the United States appear to be in evangelical churches. 

In the last decade, three additional factors have converged to further speed up church disaffiliation by America’s young families. These factors are (1) increasing intermarriage of persons from different religious traditions, (2) the pandemic disruption of Sunday habits and (3) the growing public perception that to be religious is to be “MAGA right-wing” politically.

Of course, we all know number 3 is to some degree a mis-perception. But the vast majority of young families remaining are in the more conservative churches, churches that are two generations behind in their decline.  In other words, if I am 32 years old and contemplating reentering church life with my child, most of my options are churches whose people are majority Trumpist. In a society this polarized politically, this is a no-go for the majority of younger adults.  So they stay home.  And, yes, a lot of folks are highly aware of such things!  A generation of dummies this is not.

The upshot of all this: if most of the churches with children are right of center politically, a church may be wise to go left at this fork, to really embrace justice issues and inclusion: to offer a clear and viable option for progressive parents. Anecdotally across three decades, I have observed churches often thrive when they lean progressive in social views/practices while retaining a bit of evangelical energy around issues of faith.

An example of this is the old First United Methodist Church of Longmont, Colorado, north of Denver. The church is now named Heart of Longmont Church. It is still United Methodist. In the latest episode of the podcast Church is Changing, I interview Pastor Claire McNulty Drewes, who explains the factors involved in this church’s full-blown rebirth.

Now, more than ever, a thriving church must demonstrate it is different than what most people would expect of churches.

Five free and discounted digital services for churches

Is your church paying for something that it could get for free (or a discount)? Julie Raffety, a pastor and website developer, shares five resources every church should know about in this article published in The Presbyterian Outlook:

As a pastor who also builds and maintains websites, I frequently come across churches paying for services they could be receiving for free. Religious groups, considered non-profits, have access to many free or discounted services in the digital marketing space. Here are my top recommendations for (mostly) free digital services for churches.



Sign up for the Presbyterian Foundation’s online giving system, Vanco. This is the most cost-effective way to facilitate online giving for your worshiping community. There are no setup or monthly fees. You just pay a two percent administrative fee for all gifts received, and you can link directly to the giving portal from your website. The Presbyterian Foundation ensures processing and security.

Sign up for TechSoup — it’s free! TechSoup is a gateway to accessing cutting-edge technology software and products at affordable prices. To set up your account, you will need to produce your 501(c)(3) paperwork from the denomination and individual church. Once you do that, you can get great discounts on everything from popular software such as the Microsoft Office suite and Quickbooks licenses to hardware such as laptop and desktop computers. They also offer free “how to” courses with many products. Before I say something is too expensive for our church to afford, I always check TechSoup first; it has allowed churches to utilize technology at a reasonable cost while continuing to direct money towards ministry and mission.

Use Mailchimp for your church emailer. You can use the free version of Mailchimp for up to 2,000 contacts. So it is more than sufficient for a smaller church. Plus, Mailchimp subscribe forms can be easily integrated into most web platforms, allowing users to subscribe directly to your email list from your church website. Once you create an email template for your church newsletter, you can easily update it each week or month to send users your announcements and events. Mailchimp even creates a unique URL for each email content, making it easy to share.

Sign up for Google Workspace for Nonprofits for email, file storage, and unlimited online meetings. This is free for nonprofits. Simply apply for eligibility through Google by showing 501(c)(3) status and Google will offer you a free domain name supported through Gmail (pastor@churchname.com). A word to the wise: match your email domain name to your website, and keep it as simple as you can — the less required spelling the better! Google Workspace for Nonprofits also comes with 30 GB of storage per account user, free access to Google Meet (video meetings for up to 100 users), and security and management controls. A nonprofit Google account allows you to share documents easily (Google Drive), access data from anywhere (storage on the cloud), and share meetings (Google Calendar).

Sign up for a free Canva Pro account for online graphic editing. Again, by providing your non-profit paperwork, Canva offers a free pro account for churches, giving you access to all of their templates, stock icons and images. Even if you don’t have a creative bone in your body, Canva makes it easy to create images that look great on social media, bulletin covers, slide shows and websites. New sermon series? Simply search their images and create something eye-catching and informative in minutes.

Do you have a free or discount service to share with other churches? Email Us!

Be on guard for scammers who request access to membership directories so they can harvest the Personal Identifiable Information (PII) to spam or scam church members. These individuals claim to be church members and request access to the directory via email or an online website form. Once given directory access, they can then send spam messages to members via email or text. At Instant Church Directory, we want to provide insights and best practices on how to keep your church directory safe from scammers. Read More...

Scam Alert!

Be aware that scammers are targeting churches! 

One recent scam involves the offer of a FREE grand piano provided the church pays a freight company $2500 for shipping. Educate your session, church secretary and volunteers of the following warning signs:

• An introductory tale of upheaval (My spouse died; I'm going through a divorce; I'm moving and can't take it with me)
• Refusal by the scammer to speak on the phone, insisting that all information be shared and transactions conducted by email
• Fee to the freight company must be paid with a bank draft
• Fee is paid prior to shipping

If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it's a duck SCAM.

Background checks for incoming Ministers of the Word & Sacrament are now conducted through Praesidium.

https://www.praesidiuminc.com

To request a background check, please contact your COM liaison.

Garage Sale in Baldwinsville

The First Presbyterian Church of Baldwinsville is holding its Annual Rummage Sale this weekend!

Thursday, August 1st: Presale from 5 - 7 p.m. - $3 Admission

Friday, August 2: 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Saturday, August 3: 9 a.m. - 12 p.m. - $4 Bag Sale

Suite available at Skaneateles Manor

The Manor, a non-profit organization located in Skaneateles, is a small residence for well seniors. It was originally established by Marian and Don Dixon in 1964, until it was turned over to the First Presbyterian Church of Skaneateles in 1975, though the residence continues to be non-denominational. 



The Manor is maintained by volunteers who frequently visit and host social events at the residence. The Manor has six private suites, each with a sitting room, bedroom, and bathroom, but residents may bring their own furniture. The shared living spaces are the parlor, living room, dining room and laundry facilities. Cleaning service is provided as well as health and delicious meals are prepared on site.

The objective of this non-profit is to provide a welcoming space for well seniors looking for a supportive, active community. Families say the comfortable home-like atmosphere is remarkable, some find it’s just what they’ve been searching for.

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If you, a family member, or anyone you know may be interested in The Manor’s objective, whether that be volunteering or becoming a resident, email us at skaneatelesmanor@gmail.com, or go to our website at www.skaneatelesmanor.com. 

SPREAD THE WORD: FREE CLOTHING!

The First Presbyterian Church of Weedsport is operating a free clothing giveaway at the church. It is open Tuesday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and Thursday from 4 to 6:30 p.m. All clothing is free and people are encouraged to take anything they can use. No questions asked.

PRC's Summer & Fall 2024 Online events

All webinars are recorded. Click the title to register or read the description.

The Gifts They Bring: How Children and the Gospels Can Shape Inclusive Ministry

Tuesday, August 13, 2024

2:00 – 3:00 pm EDT

Leader – Amy Linderman Allen

Join us to explore familiar Gospel stories together envisioning afresh the experience of childhood in Jesus’ world and what those experiences might mean for children and families in ministry today. We will reconsider the age and relationship of well-known and lesser-known Bible characters, and read each of these stories in conversation with experiences of real children in the church today, bringing into focus the varied gifts that children bring in a practice of inclusive ministry. These gifts include participation, proclamation, advocacy, listening, sharing, and partnership. Participants will grow more attuned to recognize the gifts that we each bring—children and adults—as essential members working together as one community in the body of Christ and so to share in the gift of Christ together.

Managing Stress Before it Manages You

Thursday, September 12, 2024

2:00 – 3:00 pm EDT

Leader – Charles Stone

In this webinar you’ll learn an evidence-based tool to better combat stress and develop your resilience.

Healing Fractured Communities

Tuesday, October 29, 2024

2:00 – 3:00 pm EDT

Leaders - Jessica L. Anschutz, Douglas Powe

Are you experiencing fractures in your community? Fractures like racism, education inequality and poverty, to name a few, plague those inside and outside of the church. Given our fractured landscape and the diversity of contexts where congregations exist, "How can congregational leaders be both healers and agitators at the same time?" The danger of simply being a healer ignores the underlying causes of the fracture(s) in a community. The danger of simply being an agitator is others ignore you because your voice is monotone. Being a leader who lives in this tension inside a faith community and the public square requires nimbleness. A nimbleness that allows for being an ointment and an irritant when needed. This webinar will equip you to do ministry in a manner that not only impacts the church, but can transform the community.

New York State Sexual Harassment Prevention Training Webinars

You can take this training any time during the year

charlaine@prcli.org

Wednesday, August 14, 2024

2-3:30 pm

Wednesday, August 14, 2024

2 -- 3:30 pm

Our Address: PO Box 438, Syracuse, NY 13214

Click Here for Staff Contact Information

Click Here for a list of Live Streams from our churches

Click Here for a list of Past Editions of Presbytery Matters

Are you hiring?

If your church is hiring, please send an announcement and job description to Communication Coordinator Sarah Buckshot at caysyrnews@gmail.com

Please Note: Hiring announcements will run in Presbytery Matters for 3 weeks and then moved to our website. If you have a hiring announcement from 2023 and are still looking to fill it in 2024, please send a new announcement.

Thank you, Sarah Buckshot, Communications Coordinator.

It’s committees, and not superheroes, that change the world

Released Tuesday, David LaMotte’s TEDx Talk has empowered thousands — especially those counting on the Spirit to work through committees

By Mike Ferguson

Presbyterian News Service

Author, activist, speaker and songwriter/musician David LaMotte, who’s spoken and performed at many PC(USA) gatherings over the years, has a unique take on how true change occurs in the world.

It’s generally not because some superhero swoops in at the last minute to save the day. Rather, it’s through the often tedious but productive and faithful work of committees.

LaMotte, of Black Mountain, North Carolina, saw his recent TEDx Talk, “Why Heroes Don’t Change the World,” released on Tuesday, and so did many others. In the 20 hours following its release, about 23,000 people viewed his 18-minute talk, and the numbers continued to grow Wednesday morning. LaMotte used some of the material he related during an APCE workshop in 2020 and in other venues. Among LaMotte’s books is “You Are Changing the World Whether You Like it or Not,” published last year.

Continue reading...

Election season divisiveness prompts prayer vigil in Washington, D.C., with PC(USA) and other faith groups

Help us to ‘organize and to vote in ways that show love for our neighbor as ourselves’

By Darla Carter

Presbyterian News Service

Religious leaders from multiple faiths, including the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), came together on Monday in Washington, D.C. to kick off a season of prayer and action as the country hurtles toward the election of a new U.S. president.

The Rev. Jimmie Hawkins, advocacy director for PC(USA), and the Rev. Denise Anderson, director of the Compassion, Peace and Justice ministries of the Presbyterian Mission Agency, were among those who participated in the prayer vigil, which was promoted by Repairers of the Breach as a way to “work to heal our nation’s divisions and call on all people to pray and organize with their actions and their hearts.”

Much of the emphasis by clergy gathered for the event was on voting in November, not losing sight of the plight of poor people, and the importance of working together to bring about better policies and election outcomes.

“As we look toward this election, help us, O God, to organize and to vote in ways that show love for our neighbor as ourselves,” Anderson prayed. “Create in us clean hearts and renew right spirits within us, a spirit that reminds us of our collective power. … O God, we will claim our power. We will not give it away freely.”

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