Insights and Encouragement for Church Leaders

Anna Sytsema Anna Sytsema

Unity in the Spirit

By Dave Peterson, Pastor, Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church, Houston, TX Some have expressed worry that our Fellowship of Presbyterians is fueling division and disunity in the PC(USA).  Yet division and disunity have been our way of life for the past 40 years. Those who now cry, “Please stay, it is

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Anna Sytsema Anna Sytsema

One-Size-Fits-All or A Common Pursuit?

These are personal observations shared by Keith Hill, Pastor of St. Giles Presbyterian in Richmond, VA, based on his experience at a recent Fellowship planning meeting. I was one of the people present for the June planning meeting for the August Gathering.  As an agenda for the Gathering was formed,

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Anna Sytsema Anna Sytsema

A First-Hand Account . . .

These are observations shared by Gayle Parker, Pastor of The Spring in Tempe, AZ, based on her experience at a recent Fellowship planning meeting. As a member of the Advisory Group for the Fellowship, I was one of the people who attended the planning meeting in June. Here is what I observed:

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Anna Sytsema Anna Sytsema

Update on Fellowship Goals and Next Steps

It has been almost two months since our last letter (May 4), and in that time significant change in our denominational reality has come with the passage of Amendment 10-A and ratification of the new Form of Government. Neither of these changes affects the vision or the intent of the Fellowship, but the passage of…

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Anna Sytsema Anna Sytsema

New Resource Available

We’ve just posted a new resource on our Documents page. It’s a transcript from a forum Dr. Scott Dudley, Senior Pastor at First Presbyterian Church of Bellevue, held on the topic of homosexuality and the Bible. Check it out here.

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Anna Sytsema Anna Sytsema

New Ideas #4: Envisioning A New Church

"Envisioning a New Church: The Potential Is Right in Front of Us” by Paul Detterman, Executive Director of Presbyterian For Renewal People who have been shaped by Scripture are steeped in the language of individual repentance, forgiveness, grace, and a new beginning. (2 Corinthians 5:17)  But when it comes to the nature of the institutions…

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Anna Sytsema Anna Sytsema

New Ideas #3: Agreeing to Agree

“Agreeing to Agree: Theology in Presbyteries” By Dr. Jerry Andrews, First Presbyterian Church, San Diego, CA In his 1954 book, The Broadening Church, Lefferts Loetscher described how a church with a once tightly-held theological core significantly relaxed its theological commitments, especially in the first half of the last century. The approval of the broadening project…

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Anna Sytsema Anna Sytsema

New Frequently Asked Questions & Responses Posted

To address some of the most common questions we’re hearing, we’ve created a new FAQ page to share a rolling list of questions and responses.  There is nothing inspired about our answers; they’re our best thoughts to date.  Join the conversation in the Comments section. View the latest FAQs here.

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Anna Sytsema Anna Sytsema

New Ideas #1: Presbyteries

This is the first in an ongoing series of “New Ideas” thought pieces. We want to explore these ideas together and  solicit your feedback.

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Anna Sytsema Anna Sytsema

Video Posted

What might a new Presbyterian fellowship look like and how would it relate to the PC(USA)?  Jim Singleton, Senior Pastor of First Presbyterian in Colorado Springs, CO, shares some ideas in this video.

Check it out here.

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