Welcome
Each week one of our pastors or staff members writes a column observing what is going on in our congregation, the Church and the world, and offering reflections on the Christian life and faith. Through this series of columns, we hope to connect your and our story to the enduring story of Christ; to offer pastoral reflections on our ongoing congregational life and mission; to report on news of the Presbyterian Church and Church universal; and to invite further reflection and deeper discipleship. We welcome your comments and suggestions. In other words, our words here are an invitation to continue the conversation.
Inside each of us is a story. It’s the story of our lives, the tale of how we became who we are today, in all its splendor and gravity. By nature it’s a personal story, which is why passing it on to others can be one of the most intimate, meaningful gifts.
Within just a few weeks of starting here as your Associate Pastor for Mission in 2015, I was told that we would be visiting a mission partner in Mexico City that fall. In 2014, Urban Mosaic was awarded the Richard Shaull Grant for Mission in the amount of $30,000 to help them build up their innovative model of engaging in and empowering residents of the slum communities that have continued to grow outside of Mexico City.
This Sunday is our annual day of World Communion. Begun in 1933 by Hugh Thomson Kerr, pastor of Shadyside Presbyterian Church in Pittsburgh, his idea was to bring churches together in a service of Christian unity—in which everyone might receive both inspiration and information, and above all, to know how important the Church of Jesus Christ is, and how each congregation is interconnected, one with another. By 1940, the idea spread to churches throughout the world.
Over the summer, you may have heard the news that the Presbyterian Church USA (our denomination) is the first in the nation to ordain a Minister of Word and Sacrament whose entire focus is gun violence prevention.
Whenever we celebrate the Ordination and Installation of elders, deacons or pastors, we are called to give answers to the constitutional questions of the Presbyterian Church (USA). These questions begin by asking affirmations of faith about trusting Jesus Christ and believing in God as revealed in the three persons of the Trinity. They cover accepting the Scriptures as authoritative, the essential tenets of the Reformed faith as our guide, and if we will abide by the governance of our denomination.
Do we as members of the Church of Jesus Christ promise to guide and nurture them by word and deed, with love and prayer, encouraging them to know and to follow Christ and to be a faithful member of Christ’s church?
All the families of the earth shall be blessed…
During this summer, our extended family celebrated the birth of my three great-nephews. Adding up to 12 little cousins in that generation, our son James quipped, “The Norfleet clan is growing exponentially!” What brings me great joy is this new generation also adds beautiful diversity to the Norfleet family tree.
