This digest is a compilation of the social witness-related items that came before the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) 220th General Assembly in 2012.
Keep ReadingIntroduction The Presbyterian Church (USA) has been engaged in a decade-long struggle to divest from companies that are profiting from the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza Strip. After an extensive corporate engagement process, the Committee
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As Hiroshima Day approaches, how does the Church reckon with the Nuclear Age? August 6 and 9, 1945, are the days that the United States Air Force dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, causing immediate and slower deaths in those Japanese cities in excess of 100,000. Ever since, most
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Attending GA With Clouds of Witness and Hopes of Transfiguration Rev. Johnson delivered the original version of this speech live at the Compassion, Peace and Justice dinner of the 223rd General Assembly in St. Louis on Tuesday, June 19th, 2018. I sat in my kitchen with a breakfast sandwich and
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The 223rd GA supported free speech on the Middle East. When the final item of business from Committee 12 was put to a vote, and the business of the committee was concluded late Friday night, Stated Clerk J. Herbert Nelson remarked that the church had just witnessed something unprecedented: “Thirty-five
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Below are descriptions of each piece of business, divided into categories by topic. Each item number links to the full text of the resolution on pc-biz.org, along with all official comments that have been submitted. Abbreviations Used: ACREC—Advocacy Committee for Racial Ethnic Concerns ACSWP—Advisory Committee on Social Witness Policy ACWC—Advocacy Committee
MoreThe Social Justice Issues Committee considers matters related to: concerns of the church in national affairs, righteousness and justice of persons/organizations, global evangelism and education, the Advocacy Committee for Women’s Concerns, and the self-review report of ACSWP. (Source: pc-biz.org.) Below are descriptions of each piece of business, divided into categories
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Five St Louis congregations continue the dialogue of “The Gospel from Detroit” This article was originally published by Presbyterian News Service on June 12, 2018. The city of St. Louis is the historic centerpiece of a highly accomplished cultural and economic region. At the same time, like most of the
MoreThe Mission Coordination Committee of the General Assembly considers: “Mission programs authorized by General Assembly; PC(USA) vision and mission goals; Organization for Mission and General Assembly Mission Council Manual of Operations; mission budget; audits; churchwide compensation; initiatives on church growth and the 1001 Worshiping Communities program.” (Source: www.pc-biz.org). Topics Addressed:
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Unbound Staff address the missing text from ACSWP’s Advice & Counsel Ironically, on possibly the hottest issue of the PCUSA General Assembly, where the Advisory Committee on Social Witness Policy (ACSWP) has ventured a prophetic compromise, www.pc-biz.org originally left out four key paragraphs. Because the Assembly is fast approaching, and the
MoreThe Church Polity and Ordered Ministry Committee of the General Assembly considers amendments to Foundations of Presbyterian Polity chapters 1 and 3, Form of Government chapters I–IV, VI, and the Rules of Discipline, with the Advisory Committee on the Constitution (ACC) providing interpretive advice. (The Foundations of Presbyterian Policy, Form
MoreThe National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) reports that mental illness affects one on five people.[1] That is true for people sitting in church pews every Sunday morning. However, mental illness has been something most churches do not understand and fail to address. Churches should be places of hope and
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