Today in the Mission Yearbook - If it’s rooted in God, our hope is sure and certain

The Rev. Dr. Diane Moffett preaches during the Presbyterian Women’s triennial gathering

January 8, 2022

The Rev. Dr. Diane Moffett is president and executive director of the Presbyterian Mission Agency. (Contributed photo)

In the early church described by Paul in the 12th chapter of his letter to the Romans, authentic love was in short supply and friction between Gentile and Jewish followers of Christ was apparent everywhere.

“Where the church stands on social issues,” the Rev. Dr. Diane Moffett, president and executive director of the Presbyterian Mission Agency told the recent triennial gathering of Presbyterian Women in a sermon on Romans 12:12–13, “creates friction, and no small amount of frustration, even now.”

Moffett thanked PW for being among the groups and agencies, congregations and mid councils to accept the Matthew 25 invitation. There are congregations, she said, who refuse to embrace the Matthew 25 calling because of two of three of its focuses — dismantling structural racism and eradicating systemic poverty. “Some churches do not want to talk about racism,” Moffett said. “But racism is talking with all of us. It is screaming in our ears.”

When it comes to eradicating systemic poverty, some churches are “committed to treating the symptom by curing the disease,” Moffett said, including advocating on behalf of those who are poor. “They act boldly and compassionately.” But others “insist in only feeding those who are hungry and clothing those who are naked. They are not willing to change the conditions that create poverty.”

“If the Matthew 25 focus on dismantling structural racism and eradicating systemic poverty is too controversial, then perhaps following Jesus is also,” Moffett said, noting the term “poor” is mentioned nearly 200 times in the Bible “and, with few exceptions, it refers to those who are economically and materially poor and the injustice perpetuated against them.”

In Matthew 25, Jesus judges all nations by how they treat those who are living in the margins, Moffett said. “People create racist systems that cause people to live in the margins. … These systems also intersect with gender bias, the oppression of women, people who are differently able, older adults and folks in the LGBTQ community.”

“Different is not deficient,” Moffett said. “Color does not make us right any more than being in a donut shop makes us a donut. Racism is a sin. It goes against the Christian principle to love your neighbor as yourself.”

Moffett told her hearers she’s “grateful for women who know about hope. Women who rejoice in hope, who laugh in the face of fear, who smile when confronted by obstacles, who cry when overwhelmed by the issues of our day — not the cry of ultimate defeat or surrender, but a purpose-driven cry. A cry that releases lament, that washes away the debris that keeps our souls from seeing God’s hand in every situation. I am grateful for women who may face seemingly insurmountable challenges, but, in the words of activist the Rev. Jesse Jackson, ‘keep hope alive.’”

Moffett said she praises God for “women who blazed trails and made paths where there was none to follow.” Those women include the Rev. Dr. Katie Geneva Cannon, “who navigated the waters of rejection, gender bias and racism”; Maria Fearing, who sold all her belongings to finance her first mission to the Congo in 1894, becoming the first Black mission co-worker in that region; and Lucy Craft Laney, who refused to give up hope when the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church did not grant her funds to educate African American children. But Mrs. F.E.H. Haines, then president of the denomination’s Women’s Department, came into Laney’s life and advocated for her.

“Thank God for our mothers and grandmothers, daughters and sisters, aunties and nieces of every color, hue and persuasion — women who rejoice in hope,” Moffett said, echoing the gathering’s theme. “They inspire me, they encourage me — and I dare say you as well.”

Mike Ferguson, Editor, Presbyterian News Service

Let us join in prayer for:

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff

Patricia Haines, Executive Vice President, & Chief Benefits Officer, Board of Pensions
Denise Hampton, Director/Controller, Finance & Accounting, Administrative Services Group (A Corp)

Let us pray

Dear God, open our ears, eyes and hearts to sense the possibilities all around us for mission and evangelism. Make us communities that sense needs and do everything in our power to meet them. In the name of Jesus, the Christ. Amen.

Today in the Mission Yearbook - ‘Keep singing the Matthew 25 vision’

Asking for what is fair and just for all: It’s time to take a stand

March 17, 2021

The Rev. Dr. David Gambrell, associate for worship with the Office of Theology and Worship, preached during Triennium Thursday on “Prone to Wander.” (Photo by Rich Copley)

The bold vision and invitation of Matthew 25:31-46 to be the hands and feet of Jesus, serving people who are hungry, oppressed, imprisoned or poor, is awakening compassionate faith to new possibilities in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).

Now that faith has been set to music in a hymn, “Jesus Be With Us,” with text and tune by the Rev. Dr. David Gambrell, associate for worship in the Office of Theology and Worship, with singing and musical arrangement by Phillip Morgan, director of music at Central Presbyterian Church in Louisville.

“The idea to write the hymn came from Phillip,” Gambrell said, explaining that Morgan had asked Gambrell if he had considered writing a Matthew 25 hymn. This question prompted Gambrell to write the hymn and send it to Morgan for his feedback. The following day, Gambrell said, “to my surprise and delight, Phillip sent back this beautiful recording.”

The refrain is based on Matthew 1:23, “and they shall name him Emmanuel, which means, ‘God is with us,’” and Jesus’ closing words in Matthew 28:20, “I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

“I wrote the hymn in a ‘gospel’ style because I want Presbyterians to remember that eradicating systemic poverty, dismantling structural racism and building congregational vitality is ‘gospel work’ — how we proclaim and respond to the good news of Jesus Christ,” Gambrell said. “My prayer is that the hymn will help congregations and mid councils keep singing the Matthew 25 vision as they worship and work in the world.”

Morgan recognized the need for a Matthew 25 hymn while he was working on long-range music planning for Central Presbyterian Church. He noticed the November lectionary devotes three weeks to Matthew 25: Nov. 8 (Matthew 25:1-13), Nov. 15 (Matthew 25:14-30) and Nov. 22 (Matthew 25: 31-46). This led to searching for music to incorporate into worship, and then realizing options were few and far between.

“I fired off an email to David and said, ‘Wouldn’t it be cool if …’ and hours later there was this hymn in my inbox covering each of the points of Matthew 25,” Morgan said.

As he sat down to play and record it, Morgan accidentally changed a few of the chords, which Gambrell liked better. “So, we’ll call it the work of the Holy Spirit,” Morgan said, “But actually, some of it was an accident of my sight reading.”

Central Presbyterian, a More Light congregation welcoming all of God’s people, has accepted the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)’s Matthew 25 invitation. It seemed only natural, Morgan said, since the church has been working to dismantle structural racism and eradicate systemic poverty for more than 30 years, particularly as these areas relate to equity in education. The church is located in one of the poorest ZIP codes in the nation and is across the street from Simmons College of Kentucky, which is among the nation’s registered Historically Black Colleges and Universities.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Central Presbyterian Church has been feeding an average of 100 people each Wednesday during its socially distanced walk-through lunch line. The church has discovered that working on issues of racism and poverty has given it new vitality, the first focus area of being a Matthew 25 church.

Morgan is a member of Presbyterian Association of Musicians’ executive board. He has served on faculty and planning teams for the Montreat Music and Worship Conference and has led the choir at Presbyterian Youth Triennium. He is also a member of the Louisville Chamber Choir and has performed as a soloist with the Louisville Orchestra, the Louisville Choral Arts Society and the Kentucky Opera.

Gambrell was co-editor (with Kimberly Bracken Long) of the latest edition of “The Book of Common Worship” (WJKP, 2018) and is author of “Breathing Spirit into Dust: Fifty Hymn Texts” (GIA, 2015) and “Presbyterian Worship: Questions and Answers” (WJKP, 2019).

The author/composer and arranger/performer grant permission for use of the hymn and recording in worship, online or otherwise. For other uses, please consult the copyright holders.

To learn more about becoming a Matthew 25 church, click here. The hymn “Jesus Be With Us” is included among the Matthew 25 resources.

Tammy Warren, Communications Associate, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Let us join in prayer for: 

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff
Kathy Francis, Presbyterian Mission Agency
Penny Franklin, Presbyterian Foundation

Let us pray:

Almighty God, give us grace that your knowledge may become ours. May we grow in faith and bear fruit worthy of your people, living and growing in the Holy Spirit, both now and forevermore. Amen!

Today in the Mission Yearbook - We don’t have to wait until they come into our church building

Presbyterian Women of the Presbytery of Geneva is the 400th to accept the Matthew 25 invitation

May 7, 2020

Presbyterian Women of the Presbytery of Geneva participated in the USA Mission Experience in the Finger Lakes region of New York last year. One evening the women prepared dinner for Family Promise of Ontario County, New York. Presbyterian Women Moderator Linda Werts is in the center.(Photo courtesy of Presbyterian Women)

The Presbyterian Women of the Presbytery of Geneva in New York’s Finger Lakes region has become the 400th congregation or group to accept the Matthew 25 invitation.

Linda Werts is moderator of Presbyterian Women in the presbytery and was a commissioner to the 223rd General Assembly (2018) in St. Louis. That’s when she heard the Matthew 25 call and took it home with her.

“Sometimes something sparks your interest and fits with your thinking and it just takes off. That’s what has happened,” she said.

The focus for the women will be on eradicating systemic poverty. Her home church and other congregations are involved with Family Promise, an organization that works with families experiencing temporary homelessness by offering skills and resources as well as sustainable employment and affordable housing.

“I know when someone comes to the food closet at my church, I can feed them for a day or up to two weeks, but that is just going to give them food,” she said. “How do we focus on eradicating systemic poverty? How do you really break into the system, really connect with the people who just need a hand up, not just a handout? How do you help them become self-supporting?”

When Werts first began her teaching career, there was a homeless family living in a station wagon who dropped their children off daily for school. Years later their memory is still with her. She was a young teacher then and always felt bad that she didn’t do more. Now she is.

“We already have a feeling for things we can do to help and support our communities, but I feel there is calling to get deeper into eradicating systemic poverty,” she said. “Or there are new calls for new opportunities to make relationships with people that need to be served.”

“A lot of those people are unchurched. I think we can provide a good role model for what it is to be a Christian, just because we meet them where they are,” she said. “We don’t have to wait until they come into our church building. We can go out and serve where we see the need. A lot of our women feel that calling and want to show their compassion.”

The 222nd and 223rd General Assemblies (2016 and 2018) directed the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) to act boldly and compassionately to serve people who are hungry, oppressed, imprisoned or poor. This gave birth to the Matthew 25 invitation, “to actively engage in the world around us, so our faith comes alive and we wake up to new possibilities.”

The three focus areas of Matthew 25 — dismantling structural racism, eradicating systemic poverty and building congregational vitality — have been adopted by the Church, and its vision for the future will reflect that commitment.

Geneva Presbytery is in the picturesque Finger Lakes region of New York. Werts said when most people think of homelessness, they think it’s just an urban problem. She said churches can easily get the statistics on poverty from their local school district.

The Presbytery of Geneva is comprised of 60 churches and one emerging immigrant fellowship, as well as Camp Whitman on Seneca Lake. Their churches are in the areas surrounding Canandaigua, Keuka and Seneca Lakes, as far north as Lake Ontario and within a short distance from the Pennsylvania border on the south. The presbytery is located in the Synod of the Northeast.

Werts and many of her fellow Presbyterian Women have also participated in international mission, which has also had a profound impact on her.

“You see the world in a different way. You see the possibilities that are there to build relationships and to learn from others,” Werts said. “Every time I go someplace, I think I learn more from their culture and their understandings of life than I can possibly add to theirs.”

Kathy Melvin, Director of Mission Communications, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Let us join in prayer for:   

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff
Sean Chow, Presbyterian Mission Agency
Jocelyn Chung, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Let us pray:

Creating God, help us recognize your image in one another. Inspire us to join your transforming ministry that protects the weak, challenges the strong, frees the prisoner, proclaims peace and heals the broken. We pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Today in the Mission Yearbook - For one Maryland church, Matthew 25 is a ‘full-bodied commitment’

New Castle Presbytery is the 30th mid council to say yes to the Matthew 25 invitation

March 16, 2020

Session members and youth at the Presbyterian Church of Chestertown, Maryland, serve at the Community Table, a weekly community meal sponsored by Methodist churches in the community. New Castle Presbytery is the 30th mid council to accept the Matthew 25 invitation, work that that the church in Chestertown has been doing for decades. (Contributed photo)

New Castle Presbytery’s mission statement condenses the Matthew 25 invitation into 13 words: “Sparked by grace to transform the church for the good of the world.”

The presbytery, which includes 51 churches in Delaware and Maryland, is the 30th mid council in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) to accept the Matthew 25 invitation, with the goal being for 20 percent of churches within each mid council to embrace the invitation. More than 300 churches have said yes since the invitation was issued in April.

The Rev. Dr. Tracy Keenan, the presbytery’s missional presbyter, credits the presbytery’s recent restructuring as the impetus for churches within the presbytery to embrace the three focuses of the Matthew 25 invitation: building congregational vitality, dismantling structural racism and eradicating systemic poverty.

“We are no longer consumed with preservation of the institution,” she said. “We are urging all of us to be open to what God is calling us into beyond ourselves.”

“Instead of worrying about the usual things,” she added, “we are asking, ‘How can we be really good neighbors to our neighbors? How can we be a presence so the community says, “We are so much better because they are here.’”

The presbytery dedicated its annual Beach Retreat, held March 6–7, to growing as a Matthew 25 mid council. Speakers for the “Jesus, when did we see you?” retreat included the Rev. Jimmie Hawkins, coordinator of the Office of Public Witness; Amanda Craft, manager for advocacy in the Office of Immigration Issues; and Katherine Pringle, an attorney and board member with Bread for the World.

“When I first heard the Matthew 25 presentation, I was really delighted it was not just about charitable giving,” Keenan said. “When we feed the hungry and clothe the naked, people might say we are the do-gooders and they are the recipients. What I love about Matthew 25 is it has us partnering with our world in order to address the root causes of some of these things.”

When the entire denomination interprets the invitation, “it is powerfully effective,” she said. “It addresses the root causes” of both structural racism and systemic poverty, she said. “And we realize that revitalizing congregations is what happens when you open yourself to bringing God’s love to the world in a tangible way and being a partner in that.”

The presbytery’s Matthew Action Committee (MAC) predates the Matthew 25 invitation, she said. “They also have been invested in addressing the root causes of poverty and systemic racism,” she said. Following the presbytery’s restructuring, grants were made available to churches “who would partner with the community with those same basic criteria. It is very much the same as Matthew 25 values.”

“The Matthew 25 invitation was perfect for us,” Keenan said. “It allows us to be able to respond well to the nudge from the MAC and find ways we can be sure we would be speaking to a wide range of people in churches.”

One congregation within New Castle Presbytery that’s been doing Matthew 25 work for many years is the Presbyterian Church of Chestertown, Maryland, where the Rev. Caitlan Quinn Gartland is associate pastor and acting head of staff.

The church turns 35 this year, “and mission has always been at the forefront,” she said. “We embody the Matthew 25 invitation through heavy involvement in our community. It’s a rural town with a lot of need.”

Most of the organizations that help meet those needs “were started by Presbyterians or are run by them,” she said. “If we (as a church) are supporting things, it’s because we have a hands-on connection.”

That includes a 15-year involvement with the Matiki Presbyterian Church in Malawi.

“The pastor there and I text back and forth regularly, and we pray for each other,” she said. Members of the Chestertown church have visited Malawi, and Malawians have made the journey to the United States. “It’s an amazing relationship we really cherish here,” she said.

“In our town, we don’t just give money. We are heavily involved in their work,” she said. “We talk about time, talent and energy, and our people do all of it. It’s a full-bodied commitment.”

Mike Ferguson, Editor, Presbyterian News Service

Let us join in prayer for:  

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff
Ashley Winn, Presbyterian Investment & Loan Program
Jung Ju Winner, Presbyterian Women

Let us pray:

God of our lives, thank you for the commitment of the people created in your image who aim to do justice, love kindness and walk humbly with you. Amen.