Summer Series: The Presbytery, the Strategic Plan and You From the General Presbyter Empowering leaders, Engaging churches, Embodying justice and inclusivity in the name of Christ. The “E” words in this vision statement represent a state of being as well as action steps. The “ing” at the end of the words promotes an ongoing commitment […]
General Presbyter Jacqueline Taylor offers her perspective on faith, worship and living as a Christian in the 21st century.
Strategic Priorities
Summer Series: The Presbytery, the Strategic Plan and You From the General Presbyter I recently heard an expression, “shop your closet.” The article reminded people that perfectly good clothing and accessories are tucked away and ready to wear. I know this because there are times when I do a clean out and exclaim, “Oh, I […]
3rd Core Value: Prioritizing Churches and Leaders to Thrive
The Presbytery, the Strategic Plan and You Summer Series From the General Presbyter In our previous episodes, we recognized the importance of justice for all, and aiming toward loving inclusive community. Now we get to talk about where the “rubber meets the road.” Today I want to focus on the first word in this value: […]
2nd Core Value: Practicing Inclusivity
The Presbytery, the Strategic Plan and You Summer Series From the General Presbyter The 226th PC(USA) General Assembly was steeped in inclusivity, and it was wonderful to see and experience. Though most members of the PC(USA) are of European descent and over 50 years of age, other races and cultures were represented, as commissioners and […]
1st Core Value: Promoting Justice
The Presbytery, the Strategic Plan and You Summer Series From the General Presbyter The Cabinet started devising this plan in 2022 which starts with identifying our core values. The first value is “Promoting Justice.” Merriam Webster defines “just” as acting or being in conformity with what is morally upright or good. Justice rarely exists outside […]
April 23, 2024
From the General Presbyter “Come on people now, smile on your brother, everybody get together, try to love one another right now.” – Get Together by the Youngbloods, 1967 Really? If you are like me, you are wondering if this might actually be the apocalypse. War in the Middle East, thousands of Palestinians starving and […]
February 6, 2024
From the General Presbyter Author Don Miguel Ruiz, Jr defines the Toltec word “mitote” as “the chaos of 1,000 voices all trying to talk at once in the mind.” Many of these voices are famous for their negative back chat. “You’ll never grow the church,” or “You’re a poor excuse for a (fill in the […]
December 19, 2023
From the General Presbyter One day during Advent in New Castle Presbytery, the Administrative Assistant and I were talking with our volunteer Treasurer about our holiday plans. This gentleman who, upon discovering that his whole family would descend at his house on Christmas Eve, said “I need to go to the store so I can […]
December 6, 2023
From the General Presbyter How do we keep Advent from feeling like Groundhog Day? You know, doing the same thing over and over. Answer, we don’t. Yes, we can freshen up traditions, update language, use contemporary illustrations. But we are waiting, and waiting and waiting for God’s love to be revealed in the flesh. We […]
What’s Happening with Enduring Witness?
From the General Presbyter The Enduring Witness fund was initiated in 2019 to resource pastors and congregations by funding the following grants: The grants, funded from proceeds from sold church buildings, have provided desired and needed support to half of our congregations. However it is time to re-evaluate. While the grants are suspended (with the […]
