Today in the Mission Yearbook - One church, four generations

Westwood Presbyterian Church celebrates the baptism of the great-grandchildren of charter members

August 25, 2022

Alessandra Mallory Elaine Long, whose mother is Mariah Long, was baptized on Easter Sunday at Westwood Presbyterian Church in Louisville, Kentucky. Alessandra is the great-granddaughter of a charter member of the church. (Contributed photo)

Each Saturday during March, people gathered at each of Mid-Kentucky Presbytery’s four African American congregations to hear the stories of each congregation, including its heritage and ministry.

One of those congregations that shared in the experience was Westwood Presbyterian Church in Louisville.

“I was talking about the history of our church and how family is so important to our church,” said Lisa Downs, a member of Westwood whose family has been a part of the congregation since its inception. “I shared that a lot of the charter members that were there in the beginning still have family members in the church.”

Not only were members of the families who chartered the church still attending Westwood, but an entire new generation was about to enter the fold. “Two babies were baptized on Easter Sunday that were both great grandchildren of charter members,” Downs said.

On that special Sunday, Jensen Jameson Jeffreys, whose parents are Jacqueline and Lloyd Jeffreys, and Alessandra Mallory Elaine Long, whose mother is Mariah Long, were baptized.

Jensen and Alessandra are cousins and fourth-generation children of Westwood. Jensen is the great-grandchild of charter members Robert and Ann Downs, and Alessandra is the great-grandchild of Ida Dooley, another charter member. It so happens that Robert and Ida were siblings.

Downs says sharing the history of Westwood gave her the opportunity to look back and think about a lot of things she hadn’t thought about in many years. She noted that there were plenty of good memories of growing up in Westwood, including the many families and all the activities they did. “Bible school and church picnics and all that good stuff in the church,” she said.

The church was birthed 59 years ago and is an offshoot of Grace Presbyterian Church, another historically Black Presbyterian church. Westwood is located in an economically depressed area of Louisville. But the church brought a great sense of pride and beauty to the community.

Downs fondly remembered the facility and what it took to build the contemporary sanctuary. “The education building existed for many years,” said Downs. “We had the building fund. We all brought our pennies in and saved our money up and then the church was able to build the sanctuary.”

“The baptisms show that time has passed, and we’ve moved forward in time. But still that same sense of family is here in the church,” said Downs, “and the fact that they are great-grandchildren of charter members — it’s like the church has its history, but it’s continuing to grow and have new things added to its history.”

Downs says that while Westwood has evolved over the years, there are still elements of the church that are consistent with her childhood memories of the church.

“We have an appreciation of our Presbyterian heritage, which is very, very important and was instilled in us as children,” she said. “Going to the communicants’ class was a big deal ― joining the church was a big deal. As you got older, it was a big deal to serve as an usher or an elder or in some other role in the church.”

“Presbyterianism and the history of the church tied you back to so many years and so many generations with people all over the world,” said Downs. “That [history], along with our African American heritage, was very important.”

“It was amazing that a group of charter members decided to move to that neighborhood. They were forward-thinking and forward-looking, thinking that there would be a need for a church there,” she said. “There were many African American families from the neighborhood who over the years have been a part of the church.”

“Kids have come to Bible school [and] kids have gone through Sunday school. There have been people who have sung in the choir,” she said. “So that long view of the charter members who thought this would be a great place for us to come and settle and start something new was very important. They started something that we’re trying to continue now and keep it moving into the future.”

“They chose to step out on faith,” Downs said, “and come to a new neighborhood and start a new church.”

Gail Strange, Director of Church and Mid Council Communications, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Let us join in prayer for:

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff

Jayne Culp, Program Assistant/Moderator Assistant, Office of the General Assembly
Norma Cunningham,  Accountant/Investments & Audits, Presbyterian Foundation

Let us pray

Lord, we love our neighbors as we love you. Let us feel your embrace when we embrace others. Amen.

Today in the Mission Yearbook - The new language of love

Our words can be used to heal

August 8, 2022

The pain from hurtful words can result in issues of self-esteem, or it may cause one to make wrong life choices. Words spoken to intentionally cause pain to another — or unintentionally — can chip away at the life God envisions for all.

Many of these words and phrases that have the ability to cause so much pain have origins that are deeply rooted in racism and gender inequality. Such words and phrases, many of which have been around for centuries, have been so incorporated into the language we use on a daily basis that many times those who speak them are oblivious to the words’ true meanings or hurtful origins.

For example, the use of “peanut gallery,” which came into use during the vaudeville era, referred to those poorer folks, often people of color, who couldn’t afford the good theater seats. And what about the term “master bedroom”? According to a 2020 report on the national morning TV news show “Today,” the Houston Association of Realtors ended its use, opting for “primary bedroom” instead in its listings. The term “master” harks back to the days of slavery. The term “master bedroom” first appeared in a Sears catalog in 1926 to describe a home of someone with wealth.

Racism is not the only driving factor for many of our hurtful words and phrases. Words that are indifferent to matters of gender can be just as damaging.

From birth, boys and girls are treated differently. Prime examples of this are the “Pink Team” and “Blue Team.” Girls are dressed in all things pink, and boys are dressed in all things blue.

The Rev. Shanea D. Leonard, coordinator of the Gender & Racial Justice office for the Presbyterian Mission Agency, said, “In Western culture everything is gendered. Gender is used subconsciously from childhood through adulthood. It’s present in everything from who should play with what toys to who should wear what type of clothing. If someone expresses themselves outside of male or female, it is deemed abnormal and wrong in some way.”

Leonard says it is important to use gender-inclusive pronouns because they help to reaffirm identity.

“By using a person’s correct pronouns, you are showing them respect and forming an inclusive environment,” said Leonard. “It is important to never assume a person’s pronouns but rather give space for them to self-identify. Gender is not just about boys and girls. It’s a rainbow of all kinds of identities. Many nonbinary people feel they don’t fit perfectly into the boy or girl box. They can feel like both a boy and a girl at the same time, neither or even something else altogether different.”

To help increase understanding and to encourage a better choice of words throughout the PC(USA), several groups have worked together to update a guide for the use of inclusive language. Originally published in 2001, the updated “Well-Chosen Words” guide was created by the Racial Equity & Women’s Intercultural Ministries; Presbyterian Women; Compassion, Peace & Justice; and the Advocacy Committee for Women’s Concerns.

What speaking the language of love comes down to is the awareness that God’s Creation is beautiful, colorful, diverse and, at times, seemingly complicated. But, as the Apostle Paul, who was adept at speaking words that build up rather than tear down, said to the church in Ephesus, “Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only what is useful for building up, as there is need, so that your words may give grace to those who hear” (Ephesians 4:29).

Sticks and stones can break our bones, but the adage is wrong when it tells us that words can never hurt. The words we speak can hurt others and hurt them for a lifetime. The good news, though, is they can also heal. And that healing begins with understanding the hurtful, divisive backgrounds of the words we use and choosing words that speak love instead.

Gail Strange, Director of Church and Mid Council Communications, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Let us join in prayer for:

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff
César Carhuachîn, Mission co-worker serving in Colombia, Presbyterian Mission Agency
Olanda Carr, Senior Ministry Relations Officer, Presbyterian Foundation

Let us pray

Merciful God, you have made us so we may cherish one another. Take the fear from our hearts so that all people may live in peace and justice. Amen.

Today in the Mission Yearbook - Addressing domestic violence from the pulpit

Hispanic/Latino-a Ministry equips pastors with needed tools and resources

August 1, 2022

Photo by Jason Leung via Unsplash

Many readers know of someone in their family, congregation or community who has been impacted by domestic violence in one way or another. To address the topic that is not often discussed or preached from many pulpits on Sunday mornings, the Hispanic/Latino-a Intercultural Congregational Support Ministry created the Gospel, Pastoral Care, and Domestic Violence series, an educational encounter series that addresses domestic violence and the faith community.

“This is a conversation that started with a group of women, pastors, ministers, elders, commissioned elders in Puerto Rico, along with some Presbyterian Mission Agency staff last year,” said the Rev. Rosa Blanca Miranda, Associate for Hispanic/Latino-a Intercultural Congregational Support. “With Covid, people were forced to be in the house together without being able to go out. Domestic violence increased in communities and within families. There was silence. This is something that has been part of a stereotype within the Latin community. But domestic violence goes across cultures, countries and families.”

A 2021 report by the National Commission on COVID-19 and Criminal Justice shows that domestic violence incidents in the U.S. increased by 8.1% following the imposition of lockdown orders during the 2020 portion of the pandemic.

The Council on Criminal Justice findings are based on a systematic review of multiple U.S. and international studies that compared changes in the number of domestic violence incidents before and after jurisdictions began imposing stay-at-home restrictions in 2020. The studies draw on a wide range of data, from logs of police calls for service to domestic violence crime reports, emergency hotline registries, health records and other administrative documents.

The four-session event began in March in support of Women’s History Month. Forty-two leaders in the Hispanic church community committed to participate every Tuesday. “I was so glad to see that we didn’t lose anyone,” said Miranda. “They were there every single time. And even though this a time to talk about domestic violence and violence against women, at the end we could open up to talk about other violence in a broader way.”

“The church cannot continue to be silent on the issue of domestic violence,” said Miranda. “Like the women in Puerto Rico, they couldn’t be silent any longer. Something needed to be done.”

In 2021 the Presbiterio de San Juan issued an open letter calling on the Church to “unite our voices against gender-based violence in Puerto Rico both in public demonstrations and from our pulpits.”

“That’s why this event was sponsored by the Hispanic/Latino-a Intercultural Congregational Support office,” Miranda said.

the Rev. Rosa Blanca Miranda

According to Miranda, one of the goals of the weekly educational encounters was to offer a safe space to talk about issues such as how churches can become safe spaces for healing.

“This is a safe space to feel uncomfortable, but we are going to talk about those topics that need to be addressed from the pulpit ― from Bible study, from counseling, from any way possible in our faith communities,” she said.

“We’re going to open up our faith communities and include everyone and every person that suffers from violence and see that person as a child of God ― not in a judgmental way, because that’s not what we are called to do,” said Miranda. “These were rich presentations, but also it was a place where leaders opened up to talk in a deeper way. My prayer is that we may be able to speak freely and sponsor an event in which we could not only talk about the violence against women, but violence against the LGBTQIA community as well, or at least how our faith communities can be or become safe spaces ― welcoming, radical welcoming places for communities or churches for all our siblings.”

For additional information on domestic violence in the Hispanic community, Miranda says her ministry partnered with CEDEPCA, the Protestant Center for Pastoral Studies in Central America. CEDEPCA is an educational institution that contributes to the transformation of lives and contexts by providing training and accompaniment and by offering spaces for reflection to women and men from diverse Christian traditions, communities and contexts.

Click here for resources as well as the videos of the Encuentros Educativos (Educational Meetings) presentations.

Gail Strange, Director of Church and Mid Council Communications, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Let us join in prayer for:

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff
Lorraine Brown, Associate for Finance & Building Operations, Presbyterian Historical Society
Andrew Browne, Senior Vice President, Church Relations, Board of Pensions

Let us pray

God of grace, we thank you for your love. Help us create life-giving patterns of community and make us instruments of your peace. In the name of Jesus Christ, who came so we might have life in all of its fullness. Amen.

Today in the Mission Yearbook - Mental, physical and spiritual health are interrelated

African American ministry holds forum

June 12, 2022

The Rev. Dr. Terrlyn L. Curry Avery

In the first of three forums the Rev. Dr. Terrlyn L. Curry Avery, the pastor of the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Presbyterian Church in Springfield, Massachusetts, addressed the subject of service, sacrifice or self-care.

The conversation with the Rev. Michael Moore, associate for African American Intercultural Congregational Support in the Presbyterian Mission Agency, began with Moore asking Curry Avery, “When you think about holistic health, what in your view does it mean to be spiritually, emotionally and physically awake?”

Curry Avery replied, “I want to say is that we, especially in the Black church, we’re always good talking about the emotional piece” of the spiritual component.

“I think that sometimes we get that spiritual piece confused with what we need to do emotionally and physically. Because you use the term ‘awake’ and I think that we have a lot more waking up to do in the first place in order to understand that there is a deep connection between the emotional and the physical.”

“One of the things that has happened for Blacks historically is that if you look at the disparities that are there with health, if you go even further back to when we were enslaved, we were not taught to care for our bodies. We were not taught to care for our emotions. As a matter of fact, we were taught to ‘suck it up.’”

Curry Avery says Blacks could not afford to be sick, no matter how sick they were. “We had to still go on out there and we had to work,” she said.  “We were taught to lean on God to help us get through. And of course, God is awesome for helping us to get through, but there is something that we need to do as well.”

“I go back to how, when Moses was at the Red Sea, God said, ‘Well, why are you crying out to me? Use the rod and staff in your hand.’ For us [Blacks], that rod and staff may be going to get some treatment psychologically for the issues that we deal with and understanding that we don’t have to wear this badge of sacrifice.”

According to Curry Avery, this badge of sacrifice is particularly worn by Black women. “As a Black woman, we wear this badge of strength and courage and it’s OK to say that,” she said. “But then when we do that, we don’t get the help that we need, because we think that there’s something wrong with us. We don’t get the help we need if we are experiencing depression or anxiety, or we’re feeling a little overwhelmed and emotional. I think when you use that term ‘awake,’ it’s important for us to understand the ways in which we send ourselves messages that it’s not OK to get help.”

In the conversation that’s been viewed more than 600 times (see it here), Curry Avery addressed the unrealistic expectation of pastors having an answer for everything. “We have to first admit that we don’t have all the answers and not carry that on our shoulders,” she said. “When a parishioner comes to us, we’re supposed to have the answers sometimes — it’s OK to say, I don’t know the answer to that. One of the best things we can do for people is to simply hold space for them — not try to figure it out for them.”

“There are two things that I want to say,” said Curry Avery. “One is around this issue of self-care. Audre Lorde said that caring for myself ‘is not self-indulgence. It is self-preservation and that is an act of political warfare.’ I hope that if we leave with nothing else from this conversation today, I want you to know that self-preservation is for our own good.

“The second is this: We don’t have to solve everybody’s problems because when we try to solve them, it doesn’t open the window for them to understand how to solve their own problems. There’s an African proverb that I often use with people when they’re coming and they’re talking about their issues. I will say, ‘I honor your ability to find the resolution to that problem.’ In that way, it creates an empowerment within them.”

Gail Strange, Director of Church and Mid Council Communications, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Let us join in prayer for:

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff
Kathryn Threadgill, Associate Director, Theology, Formation & Evangelism, Presbyterian Mission Agency
Doug Tilton, Mission co-worker serving in South Africa, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Let us pray

God of us all, we give thanks that you bridge the gaps of age, language and culture. Guide us as we partner with our brothers and sisters around the world, and give us open hearts and minds to hear your voice. Amen.

Today in the Mission Yearbook - ‘This is our story’

The National Caucus of Korean Presbyterian Churches holds its Jubilee Symposium

May 16, 2022

“This is Our Story” was the them of the Jubilee Symposium of the National Caucus of Korean Presbyterian Churches. (Contributed photo)

To celebrate the first 50 years of the National Caucus of Korean Presbyterian Churches (NCKPC), the organization held its Jubilee Symposium, “This Is Our Story,” last fall.

The hybrid event not only allowed for testifying to God’s faithfulness in the Korean American churches of the PC(USA) for the past 50 years, but also for envisioning the next 50 years of Korean American churches that serve and bless the third through fifth generations of Koreans.

Keynote speakers for the symposium included a fifth-generation Chinese American sociologist, third-generation Japanese American theologians, and first- and second-generation Korean American scholars. Through the keynote presentations and a panel discussion, presenters shared their stories and experiences for the future of Korean American churches.

Dr. Russell Jeung, co-founder of STOP AAPI (Asian American Pacific Islanders) HATE and an expert on Asian American hate crime, addressed the issue of the rise of anti-Asian racism in the United States.

The Rev. Gun Ho Lee, pastor of the Greenville Korean Presbyterian Church in Winterville, North Carolina, and a member of the Jubilee Preparation Committee, said, “The 2021 Jubilee Symposium of the NCKPC provided an opportunity to enlarge the NCKPC’s tent through intercultural learning led by various Asian leaders. The organization was strengthened by intergenerational cooperation between the first-generation and the second-generation leaders.”

Lee says the symposium challenged the NCKPC to think outside of the box and do such things use English, not Korean, as the event’s main language. “The invitation of non-Korean, particularly other Asian speakers and most of all, the co-planning of the symposium between the first-generation and second-generation leaders, meant a great deal to the NCKPC,” Lee said.

The Rev. SuYoung Kim, education pastor of The Korean Church of Boston and also a member of the preparation committee for NCKPC’s First Jubilee Symposium, said, “As a first-generation pastor of a Korean immigrant church, this was an eye-opening experience for me. I now realize the power of our stories — the stories of great Korean Americans who left their birthplace and relatives, like many in the Bible, and made America their home in the face of many challenges. These are the stories of Asian Americans who had been discriminated against and condemned then later joined to build the country together and tried to become a part of the blessing for the country, and the stories of Asian American kids who look just like my kids (they are girls!) having grown into bold and bright leaders finding their own voices, places, and meaning in America.”

When asked what he thought was accomplished at the Jubilee, the Rev. Samuel An, senior pastor of The New Hope Church of Michigan, in Redford, Michigan, and a member of the group, replied, “Over the course of more than a year, many leaders of the Korean-American caucus [NCKPC] were praying and looking at where we had come from to discern our path for the next 50 years. We looked at our history and saw too much pragmatism and not enough prophetic self-critique within our churches. We repented of neglecting to work on generational divides, the marginalization of many women, the needs of those outside the church, and a lack of partnership with other churches. I believe the work of the committee did much to prepare the hearts of many leaders for the messages we heard during the symposium.”

“This Jubilee is a sign of hope for the future,” said Lee. “This means that the NCKPC is no longer a gathering of the first-generation pastors and elders, but it means that intercultural and intergenerational fertilization is possible.”

Many women played a key role in the planning and execution of Jubilee Symposium. Ruling Elder Hu Nam served as chairperson of the Jubilee Preparation Committee. However, there are not many Korean women pastoring Korean churches.

Lee said, “I do not think there is any theological problem with Korean women leading Korean churches. There are many good women leaders in Korean churches. It is a matter of very slow cultural transition from the first generation to the next. I am looking forward to seeing what happened in the PC(USA) in terms of women leadership happening in Korean churches, hopefully in the near future.”

To watch videos of the symposium, click here.

Gail Strange, Director of Church and Mid Council Communications, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Let us join in prayer for:

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff
Eileen Schuhmann, Mission Specialist, Presbyterian Hunger Program, Presbyterian Mission Agency
Michelle Schulz, Administrative Manager, Information Technology, Administrative Services Group (A Corp)

Let us pray

Dear God, let us not become complacent in our daily lives but see instead the many ways we can reach out to others in our own community every day. Amen.

Today in the Mission Yearbook - The long road home

Nez Perce Tribe celebrates the return of historical artifacts

May 9, 2022

This women’s saddle, constructed from cottonwood/willow (portion of the stirrups) and covered in rawhide, is one of the artifacts from the Wetxuuwíitin’ collection. The saddle also includes “saddle fenders” made of bison rawhide, painted and original rawhide rigging. (Photo courtesy of the National Park Service and Nez Perce National Historic Park)

It has been said that “justice delayed is justice denied.” However, after a great injustice against the Nez Perce Tribe, the Nimiipuu people recently celebrated the correction of a grave injustice.

On June 26, 2021, tribal members celebrated the 25th anniversary of the return and the renaming of a collection of 21 Nez Perce artifacts crafted by Nez Perce men and women in the 1800s. This collection was renamed WetxuuwÍitin’, which means “returned home after a period of captivity,” and was another important step to help shed the colonial legacy surrounding the history of these items and reclaim this important part of Nez Perce culture.

According to the anniversary planning committee, the Rev. Henry Spalding, a Presbyterian missionary assigned to the Nez Perce reservation in 1836, worked to convince the Nez Perce people to convert to Christianity. As part of that conversion process, he urged — or perhaps forced — his followers to divest themselves of their traditional regalia.

Some of that regalia, which included clothing, horse accessories, bags and other items, were collected by Spalding and shipped to his friend and benefactor Dr. Dudley Peter Allen, in Kingsman, Ohio. After Allen’s death, his son, Dudley, donated the Spalding-Allen Collection to Oberlin College in 1893. Oberlin College, in turn, loaned most, but not all, of the collection to the Ohio Historical Society (OHS) for safekeeping, where it languished for decades. It was initially loaned to the Nez Perce National Historical Park (NPNHP) in 1980.

In 1992, the OHS asked for the loaned items to be returned. This request resulted in a series of loan extensions to the NPNHP and opened internal tribal discussions about how to keep the items where they rightfully belonged. Following a great deal of research and discussion, it was determined that the Tribe could not claim any of the items under existing federal law. Thus, a decision was made to launch a fundraising campaign to buy back the collection.

The items were collectively valued at nearly $600,000. The Tribe’s General Council established a committee to lead the fundraising effort. A Nez Perce delegation traveled to Ohio in 1995 and entered into an agreement with OHS to purchase the items, with a purchase deadline of June 1996.

By May 1996, the Tribe, with the help of more than 4,000 organizations and individuals from around the world, accomplished its goal. One item, a cradleboard that had been collected by Spalding, was not originally loaned to the NPNHP. In late May, the curator from the NPNHP traveled to Ohio to bring back the cradleboard.  Finally, the collection was together and now fully owned by the Nez Perce Tribe.

To further right this injustice against the Tribe, on Nov. 23, 2021, the OHS returned the $608,100 the Tribe raised in 1996 to purchase the collection.

“We received an invitation to the renaming ceremony from the Tribe,” said the Rev. Sheryl Kinder-Pyle, executive presbyter of the Presbytery of the Inland Northwest. “I thought this was incredibly gracious and generous given our role in the history of these articles being taken away.”

The ceremony “was this beautiful event that joined various parts of the identity of the Nimiipuu people together,” Kinder-Pyle said. “It began with a ceremonial horse parade with appaloosa horses and warriors circling three times around the gallery with the warriors chanting and drumming.”

“Then they exhibited their patriotic identity with the color guard bearing the U.S. flag as a part of the color guard ceremony. It continued with the Lord’s Prayer being signed and said in the Nimiipuu language,” Kinder-Pyle said. “So, you have these three different strains of their identity coming together, all part of this ceremony. You could feel the drums reverberating inside of you and the warriors’ cries just enveloping the whole gathering. It was a sacred moment.”

Kinder-Pyle says the presbytery’s efforts with the Native American community is part of a bigger ministry initiative. “After the apology issued by the Rev. Gradye Parsons, former Stated Clerk of the General Assembly, in 2017 to Native Americans, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians, as a presbytery we were inspired to look into our history and our relationship with our Native American community.”

Gail Strange, Director of Church and Mid Council Communications, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Let us join in prayer for:

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff
Keenan Rodgers, Associate Church Consultant, Church Engagement, Board of Pensions
Elle Rogers, Marketing Manager, Electronic Resources & Strategic Business Development, Presbyterian Publishing Corporation

Let us pray

Holy God, you honor us by calling us to be your people and sending us into the world to be your servants. May all those who suffer hardship due to natural disaster know the comfort of your Spirit. Prosper the work of the hands that reach out to help rebuild homes and lives. Amen.

Today in the Mission Yearbook - ‘COVID-19 has not brought many blessings, but this is one’

Ministry grant helps intercultural church better connect its ‘hybrid’ congregation

April 12, 2022

The Rev. Naomi Brown Ingrim looks forward to members of the congregation being able to engage with a speaker in person or via videoconference as a result of an upgraded AV system for the First Presbyterian Church of Copperas Cove, Texas, which Ingrim has served for almost eight years. (Contributed photo)

COVID-19 has exposed many discrepancies as well as learning opportunities for society and for the church. One of the greatest lessons for the church is the need for and use of technology.

Technology has permitted churches to reach individuals beyond their membership rolls, including people who would not have attended the church pre-COVID-19. Although the price of today’s technology can be cost prohibitive for some congregations, the First Presbyterian Church of Copperas Cove, Texas, did not let that deter their efforts to upgrade their sound system. They applied for and received a grant from Racial Equity & Women’s Intercultural Ministries to help meet their need.

FPC, a 79-member church chartered in 1965, is about an hour southwest of Waco. The congregation is the epitome of an intercultural congregation. While most of the members are white, the church’s membership includes African American, Haitian, German, Cameroonian, Ghanian, Filipino, Korean, Chinese Hispanic, and biracial/multiracial people. Currently there are 37 children/youth (infant through college age) who are a part of the membership. For the past seven years, there has been an LGBTQIA+ presence on the church’s session.

The diverse congregation is a result of the church’s proximity to the Fort Hood Army installation about 15 minutes east of the church. Membership at the church has grown significantly in recent years, not only in the number of members but also in programming, mission giving, operational budget and financial reserves.

“At any given time, we find ourselves to have a very diverse family of faith with all ages and many races, ethnicities and cultures represented,” said the Rev. Naomi Brown Ingrim, pastor of FPC.

“What describes us best, rather than our ‘makeup’ demographics, however, is how we function together,” she said. “The prayer, the one we’ve prayed together for years, in different languages, in responsive litanies and in song is ‘Holy Spirit, change us as you move in our midst.’”  

Ingrim says the congregation has a particular passion and energy to ensure that people who are isolated can participate with and feel a part of their family of faith while engaging online platforms.

The congregation feels passionately that the online members of their family of faith need to be able to hear well the services or other gatherings, to feel that they are singing with a congregation, and to be able to engage easily with those who are present in person. Church leaders have expressed concern that without this ability, members could feasibly join another online church option or worse, forego worship. Ingrim says that for a small, multicultural church like FPC, relationships and the sense of having a family to belong to are extremely important for many congregants who may be displaced from their native countries or on assignment with the military in their community.

Ingrim pointed out that members of the virtual group needed to know that they can participate in educational classes, seminars, and Bible studies, and that their prayer requests will be prayed for ­— just as members of the now smaller in-person group need know that they can count on their friends from the virtual group to be present during fellowship events, congregational meetings and mission projects.

She says it will require the congregation thoughtfully making available, for their YouTube and Facebook viewers, the video conferencing links and then also the projection of the video conferencing attendees onto a big-screen TV in the room in which the educational, fellowship or ministry event is occurring.

“Their voices need be adequately amplified into the room,” said Ingrim. “In addition, the mics and cameras in the room need be adequate for the video-conferencing group to hear and see the persons attending in person. Then interaction can occur between the two groups, relationships begun in the worship space can continue and grow, and the hybrid congregations can be indeed one church. The risks in not being able to do this are significant.”

“We are very excited to begin to work with our AV system improvements, we are grateful for the support in procuring them, and among other changes, we look forward to investigating their full potential,” Ingrim said. “Indeed, God has begun a good thing in us and will carry it on to completion.”

Gail Strange, Director of Church and Mid Council Communications, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Let us join in prayer for:

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff
J. Herbert Nelson, II, Stated Clerk, Office of the General Assembly
Lisa Nelson, 1001 Apprentice, 1001 New Worshiping Communities, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Let us pray

Creator God, we thank you for the gift of your Son and the creation you have entrusted to us. We thank you for the witness of generosity and enthusiasm in the presence of Jesus. As we are asked to make decisions about sharing possessions, continue to give us good examples and help us to be generous so we are examples to others. Our prayer is in the name of your Son, our Savior, Jesus the Christ. Amen.

Today in the Mission Yearbook - One pastor and two churches are building congregational vitality

Cameron and Calvary Presbyterian churches in North Carolina exemplify a Matthew 25 focus

March 5, 2022

For Cameron Presbyterian Church and Calvary Presbyterian Church, both in Statesville, North Carolina, accepting the Matthew 25 invitation was not a difficult decision. When presented with information about the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)’s invitation by Salem Presbytery, the Rev. Timothy L. Bates, pastor of the two churches, says both congregations saw it as a great opportunity to join other Presbyterian churches in the endeavor.

“But the main reason we an accepted the invitation is that we wanted to answer the call and become more intentional in lining up with the Matthew 25 mission,” he said. “As a church we are focused on all three areas, but mainly the area of building congregation vitality. When COVID-19 hit, we looked for creative ways to become a more vital church, so we decided to become strategic with our outreach ministries.”

Bates says church members were challenged to be prayerful in asking God how they could become more involved. He says they challenged each other to discern how God was speaking to them during the pandemic.

“We asked, ‘What is God calling us to do in a crisis?’” he said. “We decided that this was an opportunity to joyfully serve God and community in a different way.”

Both Cameron and Calvary have about 70 members and both congregations exemplify the importance of congregational vitality.

The two churches work in collaboration with each other and both churches work in collaboration with a prayer and street ministry that Bates started called the “Nightcrawlers.” Additional local community partnerships include their work with Fifth Street Ministries, the Statesville Police Department, Iredell-Statesville Schools and the Summit retirement village.

According to Bates, since the pandemic the congregations have continued worship in an outdoor worship service. They call the service “park and praise.”

Bates says the churches have been renewed and uplifted through service and have started new ministries during this time.

The congregations formed an elder and deacon call list where elders and deacons make weekly calls and pray with members. They have started a preschool for four children of church members, and they have established a food pantry and clothes giveaway ministry that distributes items to the community. They offer food boxes on a weekly basis and during the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays and they have started a ministry that shares water with all in need.

Excitement around the congregations’ newfound ministries is permeating beyond the membership. “Amens and the blowing of horns has caused the neighborhoods to join in with the praise from their homes,” said Bates. “New members have joined the church and membership has increased through social media platform. New relationships are being formed on the weekly prayer calls.”

“The spirit of both churches is at an all-time high,” Bates says. “Our choir participation has increased, the giving of tithes and offering has increased by members who didn’t give before, and more members are involved in serving communion as well as participating during the Sunday services. The members are excited to serve.”

The congregations are now providing school supplies and toiletries for children experiencing homelessness as well as teachers and other children within their communities. They provide financial assistance to families in need during the COVID crisis.

In addition to addressing the spiritual needs of their communities, Cameron’s and Calvary’s congregations are addressing justice and health needs through their advocacy efforts.

“We marched, prayed and sang in a neighborhood in which a 7-year-old was killed in a drive-by shooting,” said Bates. “We actively supply information on voting and assisting the community to get out and vote. Additionally, we share information on the importance of taking the COVID vaccine and have partnered with the North Carolina Minority Health Advisory Council to distribute information about the importance of the vaccine to underserve communities.”

In addressing the dismantling structural racism Matthew 25 focus, the congregations are participating in race relations forums and workshops to promote positive relationships.

“These are some of the ministries in which we are involved in to carry out our Matthew 25 responsibilities,” Bates said. “It is a great pleasure to be a part of the Matthew 25 community as we observe the great work that is taking place throughout our denomination.”

 Gail Strange, Director of Church and Mid Council Communications, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Let us join in prayer for:

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff
Elizabeth Little, Church Consultant, Charlotte, Board of Pensions
Ann Logan, Payroll Specialist, Administrative Services Group (A Corp)

Let us pray

Dear Lord, we thank you for your church and its witness and ministry. Be with the ministers and servants who love you, carry their crosses and bear witness to your love for the world. Do not let them get discouraged in their ministry. In the name of Jesus Christ, the Lord of the church. Amen.