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Detroit congregations cross racial barriers
10-26-00
Churches in the Detroit area -- 7 African-American and
7 white -- have joined in Bible study and frank discussions to cross the
barriers between black and white, between city and suburbs. The Detroit
Free Press reports that the month-long experiment in meetings
between congregations was closed with a worship service, but many of the
participants plan to keep meeting.
Among many sources, the report quotes Presbyterian
pastors Rev. Louise Westfall, associate pastor of First Presbyterian
Church in Birmingham, the Rev. Bruce Rigdon, president of Detroit's
Ecumenical Theological Seminary, and pastor at Grosse Pointe Memorial
Church in Grosse Pointe Farms.
The experiment was sponsored by the seminary and the
American Bible Society, partly to celebrate the release of the new
African American Jubilee Bible, which pairs scripture with articles
about black churchgoers' struggles against racism.
At the closing worship service, Rigdon said
"Something very, very significant has happened. If nothing else, a
terrible silence has been broken. The people of these congregations have
crossed boundaries and found one another."
Click
here for the full story.
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Visit
our lively
new website! |
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GA actions
ratified (or not) by the presbyteries
A number of the most important actions of the 219th
General Assembly have now been acted upon by the presbyteries,
confirming most of them as amendments to the PC(USA) Book of Order.
We provided resources to help inform the
reflection and debate, along with updates on the voting.
Our three areas of primary interest have been:
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Amendment 10-A,
which removes the current ban on
lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender persons being considered as
possible candidates for ordination as elder or ministers.
Approved! |
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Amendment 10-2,
which would add the Belhar Confession to our Book of
Confessions. Disapproved, because as an amendment
to the Book of Confessions it needed a 2/3 vote, and did not
receive that. |
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Amendment
10-1, which adopts the new Form of Government
that was approved by the Assembly. Approved. |
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If you like what
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we hope you'll help us keep Voices for Justice going ... and
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Some blogs worth visiting |
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PVJ's
Facebook page
Mitch Trigger, PVJ's
Secretary/Communicator, has created a Facebook page where
Witherspoon members and others can gather to exchange news and
views. Mitch and a few others have posted bits of news, both
personal and organizational. But there’s room for more!
You can post your own news and views,
or initiate a conversation about a topic of interest to you. |
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Voices of Sophia blog
Heather Reichgott, who has created
this new blog for Voices of Sophia, introduces it:
After fifteen years of scholarship
and activism, Voices of Sophia presents a blog. Here, we present the
voices of feminist theologians of all stripes: scholars, clergy,
students, exiles, missionaries, workers, thinkers, artists, lovers
and devotees, from many parts of the world, all children of the God
in whose image women are made. .... This blog seeks to glorify God
through prayer, work, art, and intellectual reflection. Through
articles and ensuing discussion we hope to become an active and
thoughtful community. |
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John Harris’ Summit to
Shore blogspot
Theological and philosophical
reflections on everything between summit to shore, including
kayaking, climbing, religion, spirituality, philosophy, theology,
politics, culture, travel, The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), New
York City and the Queens neighborhood of Ridgewood by a progressive
New York City Presbyterian Pastor. John is a former member of the
Witherspoon board, and is designated pastor of North Presbyterian
Church in Flushing, NY. |
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John Shuck’s Shuck and Jive
A Presbyterian minister, currently
serving as pastor of First Presbyterian Church of Elizabethton,
Tenn., blogs about spirituality, culture, religion (both organized
and disorganized), life, evolution, literature, Jesus, and
lightening up. |
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Got more blogs to recommend?
Please
send a note, and we'll see what we can do! |
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