The Dismantling Racism Team (DRT) organized a group from the Presbytery of Baltimore to attend the Presbytery Mission Agency’s first Matthew 25 Summit in Atlanta, Georgia, January 16 – 18, 2024.
Representatives from the Presbytery’s 17 Matthew 25 congregations and from around the country found out how to lean into our Matthew 25 commitment. Not a Matthew 25 congregation yet? Find out why it’s important to make the Matthew 25 pledge.
The Matthew 25 Summit brought mid-councils, churches, and individuals together to explore the eradication of poverty, dismantling of systemic racism, and building of a vital congregation. The chance to dialogue, learn, and grow with others in exploration was fully embraced as innovative speakers, thriving ministries, and transformative workshops inspired the following observations from our well-represented Presbytery.
Notes from the Dismantling Racism Team
It was a frigid 20 degree evening when I arrived in Atlanta for the first Matthew 25 Summit, but the Summit was on fire from beginning to end. Presbytery of Baltimore (POB) voted to join the Matthew 25 Initiative in November 2023. Seventeen congregations have currently made the commitment, and several are in the process of discernment. Ten members from across the Presbytery of Baltimore attended the Summit from Jan. 16 – 18, making up one of the 3 largest groups there. The others were Presbytery of Atlanta and Presbytery of Denver. The Dismantling Racism Team worked hard to provide scholarships to encourage attendance and that work paid off. We thank the Commission on Reconciliation and the Synod of the Mid-Atlantic for their support.
The plenary sessions were educational and thought provoking. The worship was diverse and spirit-filled, with both traditional and contemporary expressions of music, dance, spoken word and sermons. The workshops equipped attendees to further their Matthew 25 ministries at home. Whether you were just discerning your Matthew 25 commitment or you wanted to figure out how to go deeper into the work, there was something for everyone.
While the entire Summit was an energizing experience, lessons learned from the powerful witness of the plenary speakers made the greatest impact on me personally. We heard from speakers:
- Rev. Dr. Liz Theoharis, Co- chair, Poor People’s Campaign: A Call for a Moral Revival
- Rev. Dr. WIlliam Yoo, Professor, Columbia Theological Seminary
- Rev. Prof. Mitri Rehab, Lutheran pastor and founder and director of Dar al Kalima University in Palestine
- Rev. Dr. Diane Givens Moffett, President and Executive Director, Presbyterian Agency
The live streams of the plenary sessions can be viewed here.
The Summit ended with Rev. Dr. Diane Givens Moffett’s sermon, “Dream Driven”.
Like the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. before us, “we as a people will get to our promised land — the place where God would have us to be. “Every great dream begins with a dreamer,” Moffett said, quoting Harriet Tubman. “Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars, to change the world.” “Not merely by our might and power,” Moffett added, “but by the spirit of one we call Lord and Savior, Jesus the Christ. Amen and amen!”
– Charese Jordan Moore, Elder at Knox Presbyterian Church and Co-chair, Dismantling Racism Team
Quotes from Baltimore’s Team
“The Presbytery of Baltimore needs to plan our own Matthew 25 Summit, in order to get more people inspired to do the work.”
– Elder Susan Moody, St. John United Church
“The Matthew 25 Summit was very much enlightening and now I understand how important it is for churches to join with this crusade. It just brings back the meaning that Jesus, in every aspect of his life, chose the least of us to do his work. And as a church we need to go back to the basics and do what God wants us to do.”
– Elder Kenneth Walker, Knox Presbyterian Church
“Ordinary people like you and me can make a difference. As Dr. William Yoo reminded us, “We don’t need MT 25 churches to be exceptional; we just need them to be faithful.” Finally, I think the amazing Dr. Mitzi Raheb, a Palestinian Christian leader, summed up all of our feelings perfectly. Dr. Raheb came from his home, where even as he spoke, his people were being massacred, to inspire us. Yet in his words, “This movement is so important, I had to be here.”
– Elder Guy Moody, St. John United Church and Dismantling Racism Co-chair
“Humanity is fearful about life itself but only love can conquer fear. Practice love to be less fearful.”
– Pastor Hal Bennett, Grove Presbyterian Church.
“It was refreshing to be with many others from across the PCUSA who are committed to the Matthew 25 priorities. The Summit was an encouragement for attenders to carry on in the marathon of realizing the kin-dom of God on earth. One stray comment from Dr. Yoo that resonates with me as a church Pastor is that we be sure to reserve enough energy to do the “real hard work” of the church which is rooted in the love and justice of the gospel of Jesus Christ.”
– Pastor Ray Meute, Jr., Highland Presbyterian Church.
“Seeing Presbyterians from all parts of our country at the Matthew 25 Summit was truly a rewarding experience. Hearing of a church that had seating for 2,000 worshippers, but only had 150 attending; a church that had just 6 members; and a church with 800 on roll, but only 300 attending demonstrated that probably most of our churches struggle with many challenges. It was certainly worthwhile to see how many churches were attempting to fulfill the Matthew 25 areas of focus.”
– Elder Sarah Walker, Knox Presbyterian Church.
The summit took place at the historic New Life Presbyterian Church, which carries on the legacy of its founding pastor and former pastor of Knox Presbyterian Church in Baltimore, The Rev. Dr. Lonnie Kofi Oliver. Join our commitment to transformative change.
