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"7" Middle School Retreat
Called to Lead: Fall Trip to Guatemala for Women
Havenwood PC Seeks an Organist and Music Director
Chestnut Grove Seeks a Director of Christian Education
"We Pray," book by the Rev. Stephen Melton, Churchville PC
Concert Across America to End Gun Violence
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Committee and Commission meetings will be held at the Presbytery's office (unless noted otherwise.)
The Steering Cabinet
will meet at 1pm on Wednesday, Aug 24.
The Commission on Thriving
will meet at 6:30pm on Tuesday, Aug. 16.
The Cuba Partnership
meets 2pm to 3:30pm the third Wednesday of each month.
In The Loop Ministry Group
will host its annual
Mission Summit
from 10am to 3pm on Saturday, Oct. 1 at
Cherry Hill Community Presbyterian Church
.
Susquehanna Parish Ministry Group will host a Leadership Training Workshop from 9am to 2pm on Saturday, Oct. 22 at the First Presbyterian Church of Bel Air.
All Ministry Groups are encouraged to meet at a specific time set aside at the next Gathering at 9:30am on Thursday, Sept. 15 at First Presbyterian Church of Bel Air.
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Thank you to the following congregations who have pledged toward Our Shared Ministry 2016. At this date, the Presbytery has received $184,599 in pledges. Just $40,401 short of our budget goal of $225,000.
Ark & Dove
Barrelville
Brown Mem'l Park Avenue
Brown Mem'l Woodbrook
Catonsville
Central
Cherry Hill Community
Christ Our King
Churchville
Covenant
Dickey Memorial
Faith
Fallston
First & Franklin
1st of Annapolis
1st of Bel Air
1st of Cumberland
1st of Howard Co.
Franklinville
Frederick
Good Shepherd
Govans
Granite
Grove
Hagerstown
Havre de Grace
Hunting Ridge
Kenwood
Light Street
Maryland
Mount Paran
Northminster
Prince of Peace
Roland Park
Second
Springfield
St. John United
Towson
Woods Mem'l
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The Presbytery of Baltimore will --
for a limited time -- offer its member congregations an unique opportunity to
purchase licenses for
premier software at
significantly reduced prices through its affiliation with
TechSoup, a non-profit computer software organization.
Licenses for
five categories of software are available. They include:
Microsoft Office,
Adobe,
Intuit,
Symantec and
Citrix. Purchases for some software is limited. A
ll orders must be submitted online and paid for by check by August 31, 2016.
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Apostles & Disciples of Reconciliation: Crossing Boundaries in Search of Peace and Justice
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Susan Krehbiel |
by Susan Krehbiel,
Dir. of Congregational Advocacy
Over the past six months, I have been privileged to
participate in events organized with The Rev. Michael Moore's (Knox) leadership under the banner of "Apostles & Disciples of Reconciliation." Without a doubt these have been some of the most meaningful conversations, prayers and theological reflections in my life. Every time we gather, we take a moment to remember why we gather and to recommit ourselves. We remind ourselves that we come together out of a shared pain for the brokenness manifested in the death of Freddie Gray and the 2015 uprising in Baltimore.
We confess our own shortfalls that contribute to racial division within our church and in the society, and we ask for forgiveness. We ground ourselves in the Good News of the Gospel - Jesus's own experiences of crossing boundaries and the lessons learned from such encounters, and God's boundless love for all of humanity. We pray for ourselves and for our world. We ask God
to open our eyes, our ears and our hearts.
And then we dare - to speak about the ways t
hat
racism has scarred us, sharing our fears and our questions. We
dare to listen - to hear the painful truths that we would prefer to ignore. We dare to accept that we have different perspectives and experiences with no easy answers. We dare to follow Jesus across our own self-made boundaries.
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Presbytery members gathered for discussion
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On July 12th, I arrived at one of these meetings discouraged by the most recent violence - neighbor
against neighbor, police against r
esident and resident against
police. I prayed for all victims of violence using the words from the Apostle Paul - "For the love of Christ urges us on." Later the same evening, sitting around a table with people I had only recently met, I felt my despair lifted by the hope of others. One person asked - "What if we were to organize something like this in each of the neighborhoods around our churches?"
This past week we received the Department of Justice report on the many failings of the Baltimore City Police Department attributed to deep structural and cultural racism. I am so grateful for the brave residents who spoke with the Department of Justice investigators and to the No Boundaries Coalition who helped facilitate many of the interviews. It is tragic that it took the death of Freddie Gray for such an investigation. And it is tragic that it takes a report from the Department of Justice for us to acknowledge and see the racism that has persisted for decades. And I am sad to say that I believe this is not unique to Baltimore City.
Earlier this month we held a worship service at Hunting Ridge Presbyterian Church. Again we confessed, we prayed and we recommitted ourselves using words of affirmation from the Belhar Confession. Led by Ledonia Kimball (Trinity), we were asked to join alou
d every time the word unity appeared:
We believe that unity is both a gift and an obligation for the church of Jesus Christ. Through the work of God's Spirit, unity is a binding force. At the same time, unity must also be earnestly pursued and sought. We must be continually built up to attain this unity. Our unity must become visible to the world. Separation and hatred between people and groups is sin, already conquered by Christ. Anything threatening our unity has no place in the church. We commit ourselves to resisting anything that threatens our unity. The unity of the people of God is active and made manifest. Thanks be to God.
May it be so.
The
next dinner meeting of the
Apostles & Disciples of Reconciliation will be held at 6pm on Tuesday, Sept. 27 at Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church, 2110 Madison Avenue, Baltimore MD 21217.
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Presbytery
. . . and the Wider Church
Faith Presbyterian Church
will host a free showing of
"The Lego Movie"
at 8pm on Friday, Aug. 26
on its south lawn
. Click
Movie Night
for details.
Havenwood Presbyterian Church in Lutherville, MD has an i
mmediate opening for a part-time Organist and Music Director. This is an exciting opportunity available to a qualified candidate
who can coordinate music for our diverse music ministry.
Interested applicants should email their resume to
Havenwoodsearch@gmail.com
.
Chestnut Grove Presbyterian Church (Phoenix, MD) seeks a part-time (20 hours)
Director of Christian Education and Spiritual Formation. Candidates should email a resume and cover letter to committee chair
Robin Znamirowski, A full job-description is available by clicking
Chestnut Grove.
Other
Does a concert have the power to change the course of gun violence legislation? Probably not.
Can thousands of people raise awareness about gun violence in an impactful way just weeks before an election? You bet we can! Join us for the Concert Across America to End Gun Violence on Sept. 25.
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