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Christmas Greetings
from the Synod of Lakes and Prairies
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Merry Christmas
and a Blessed New Year!
From the staff of the Synod
of Lakes and Prairies ...
Elona Street-Stewart
Gretchen Milloy
Deb DeMeester
Jim Koon
Pam Prouty
Duane Sweep
When they saw the star, they were filled with joy. -- Matthew 2:10
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News around the Synod of Lakes and Prairies
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Keefer named as delegate to 63rd Commission on the Status of Women
 Kathleen Keefer, moderator of Presbyterian Women in the Presbytery of Missouri River Valley, has been selected to serve as a delegate for the 63rd session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women. The Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) is the principal global intergovernmental body exclusively dedicated to the promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of women. The CSW is instrumental in promoting women's rights, documenting the reality of women's lives throughout the world, and shaping global standards on gender equity and the empowerment of women. The upcoming CSW session takes place in New York City in March. The complete story can be found at "Keefer Picked for CSW."
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| Conferences, camps, resources |
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Seattle First will be host
site to NEXT Church in March
"Ruth and Naomi's lives were woven together in a season of despair and displacement. Environmental trauma, poverty, forced migration, food insecurity, personal vulnerability, and power differentials continue  to shape our shared human experience now as it did then. God interlaced the threads of Ruth and Naomi's individual stories. Through God's weaving, these women learned mutual sacrifice, found healing community, and shared liberation." That's the way NEXT Church introduces its coming national gathering on its website. The event takes place March 11-13 at First Presbyterian Church in Seattle. The theme: "Woven Together: Stories of Dissonance, Sacrifice and Liberation." Details, including registration information, are at "NEXT Church."
Minnesota Valleys slates training
events
for church, community leaders
 The Rev. Samuel Son, manager for diversity and reconciliation for the Presbyterian Mission Agency, will be the speaker for the first in a series of training events planned by the Presbytery of Minnesota Valleys that run January through May. The first event is titled "Hopeful Conversations About Human to Human Relationships: Moving beyond hatemongering, fear, scarcity and miseducation" and takes place Tuesday, Jan. 22, at the presbytery office, 4055 Abbott Drive, Willmar. The event, which runs from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. will equip participants to return to their communities with enhanced listening attitudes, equipped to enhance relationships in diverse communities. Additional details about this event and upcoming training sessions can be found at "Training Events."
Austin Channing Brown headlines
2019 Winter Forum in Wisconsin
 Austin Channing Brown, a leading voice on racial justice, will be the keynote speaker at the 2019 Winter Forum of the Wisconsin Council of Churches planned in March in Madison. Channing Brown is the author of the autobiographical "Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness." She is committed to exploring the intersections of racial justice, faith and black womanhood. Her presentations infused with justice, pop culture, humor and truth-telling. Details can be found at "2019 Winter Forum."
YAV program seeks applicants;
international applications still accepted
 From greetings from the Young Adult Volunteers in Albuquerque, New Mexico, to a video about the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)'s YAV program, and then to application information, the latest newsletter from the YAV program offers up information for those who might be interested in becoming YAV volunteers. There's more information about the YAV program at "Possibilities," and application information at "Application Dates" -- now is a good time to apply. The complete newsletter is at "Greetings."
Regarding Ruling Elders:
 Lord, teach us to pray
Joan Gray, who served as moderator of the 217th General Assembly, writes the most recent installment of Regarding Ruling Elders, a resource of the Office of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). The most recent installment, titled "Lord, teach us to pray," opens, "
Prayer is crucial for effective spiritual leadership. Most of us would agree with this, but many of us do not feel good about our practice of prayer. One reason is that prayer is learned behavior, and quite a few Christians have never been taught how to develop and maintain a spiritually nourishing prayer practice." Gray's complete column can be found at "Regarding Ruling Elders."
ACSWP announces call
for sermons on Jerusalem
As part of a study of Jerusalem approved by last summer's General Assembly, the Advisory Committee on Social Witness Policy and the  Racial Equity Advocacy Committee are announcing a church-wide call for sermons on the meaning of Jerusalem for Christians today. ACSWP Co-Chair, Rachael Eggebeen, noted that the Assembly acted, "mindful of the unique spiritual and religious significance of Jerusalem to Christians, Jews, and Muslims and of the need for free unfettered access to Jerusalem's holy sites," and that this gathering of sermons would be "an unprecedented way to gauge that significance for Presbyterians." The complete story can be found in the latest edition of Salt and Light, the newsletter of the ACSWP, at "Sermons on Jerusalem."
Ecumenical Advocacy Days planned
in early April in Washington, DC
The website of Ecumenical Advocacy Days notes, "The history of engaging in "good trouble" is embedded in our faith tradition and our  history as a nation and in the world. In the Bible, we read stories of the midwives who resisted Pharaoh and preserved the lives of Hebrew baby boys. We see Moses challenging the authority of Pharaoh, and Jesus overturn tables run by money changers." In the spring, Ecumenical Advocacy Days will draw on the "good trouble" pioneers from the civil rights era and inspiration from young leaders. The event is planned April 5-8 in Washington, D.C. Details can be found at "Good Trouble."
Monmouth College offers free,
2-week program for high schoolers
Monmouth College, a Presbyterian-related college in Monmouth, Illinois, offers a unique, two-week, summer program for high school  students. And it's free. It's called Lux Summer Theological Institute for Youth, and the upcoming program, concentrating on hunger and poverty issues, has the theme, "A Place at the Table: Thinking Theologically about Hunger and Poverty." The Rev. Jessica Hawkinson, Monmouth's chaplain and director of the program, describes the program as "wonderful - and free!," adding that it "gives high school students from around the country a chance to immerse themselves in big theological questions." This year's program runs June 16-30. Details can be found at "Thinking Theologically about Hunger and Poverty."
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News of colleges, universities and seminaries
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UDTS receives nearly $1 million grant;
part directed to clergy coaching
 The University of Dubuque Theological Seminary has received a $936,102 grant to support its Clergy Coaching in Community and Context initiative, which will launch in 2019. Sparked by a high-performance endurance sports coaching framework used by the Rev. Dr. Elmer Colyer, professor of systematic theology at the seminary, the initiative aims to equip pastors with a community of support to develop skills, form habits and articulate a personal vision for a thriving ministry. Colyer is an accomplished cyclist and (U.S.A.) Cycling licensed coach. The complete Presbyterian News Service story by Paul Seebeck can be found at "Clergy Coaching."
Carroll University launches analytics, business intelligence consortium
Carroll University in Waukesha, Wisconsin, is looking to provide
data analytics expertise to help companies make sense of the massive volumes of data produced by consumers every day.
The university, one of seven Presbyterian-related institutions of higher education in 
the Synod of Lakes and Prairies, announced it ha
s launched the
Analytics and Business Intelligence Consortium
, a membership-based organization aimed at helping organizations across various sectors en
gage with and manage big data. Spearheaded by Carroll's School of Business, the consortium will leverage the university's faculty and alumni to provide members with data analytics expertise, educational opportunities and annual events, the university said. The complete story by Lauren Anderson of the Milwaukee BizTimes can be found a
t
"
Analytics and Intelligence
."
Hastings College creates position
of dean of innovation, creativity
 As a child, Chris Hochstetler found an outlet in his creativity. "I remember my mom used to take us to -- especially in the winter when we didn't have a place to live -- to the Edith Abbott Memorial Library in Grand Island, Nebraska, and that was the first place I really encountered the power of art in different forms," Hochstetler said. Today, Hochstetler is well into his second month as dean of innovation and creativity at Hastings (Nebraska) College, a new position added to the college as part of its major overall and new direction. Hastings College is one of seven Presbyterian-related colleges and universities in the Synod of Lakes and Prairies. The complete story by Shay Burk of the Hastings Tribune can be found at "Innovation and Creativity."
Jamestown golfer managing
director of golf operations of CGA
The North Dakota pipeline continues to produce for the Colorado Golf Association (CGA). Not only have North Dakotans been a constant  presence on the CGA staff in the new millennium, but they've become fixtures as managing directors of operations for the association in the last seven-plus years. The latest is Ashley Barnhart, an alumna of the University of Jamestown, who had been the director of junior competitions for the CGA. She became managing director of golf operations for the association on Nov. 1. The University of Jamestown is one of seven Presbyterian-related colleges and universities in the Synod of Lakes and Prairies. The complete story by Gary Baines of the CGA can be found at "A North Dakota Pipeline."
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| News from the Board of Pensions |
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Board Connections: New BOP
website
created to better serve its members
 The latest edition of Board Connections, a newsletter from the Board of Pensions of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), notes the Board's relaunch its website, pensions.org, to better serve its members and employers. The newsletter notes, "This new, dynamic website features a fresh, modern look that's easy to navigate on any device and an enhanced search function so you can easily find what you're looking for." Details can be found in Board Connections.
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| News around the PC(USA) and more |
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Porter demonstrates effect of 'Doctrine
of Discovery' with blanket exercise
One day recently the Rev. Irvin Porter invited about four dozen staff working at the Presbyterian Center to stand on the blanket of their choosing among about 20 covering a conference room floor. As he and  three others read from a script created by the group Roots of Injustice, Seeds of Change: Toward Right Relationship with Native Peoples -- which outlined the cruel effects of the Doctrine of Discovery on Native Americans -- an assistant periodically rolled up corners and edges of the blankets until there was scant room for participants to stand. As the blanket exercise played out, crowd members, playing the part of the up to 30 million Native Americans present in what Europeans called the New World when Christopher Columbus landed on Caribbean islands more than five centuries ago, took a seat as disease, warfare, broken treaties, forced migration and mandatory boarding school took their toll. In the end, a half-dozen people remained standing on the gathered-up blankets. The complete Presbyterian News Service story by Mike Ferguson can be found at "Effects of the Doctrine of Discovery."
American Indian women break barriers
in PC(USA); more effort needed
With Native American women installed as executives in such places as the Synod of Lakes and Prairies, the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) is  becoming a more diverse denomination, but there's still work to be done, said the Rev. Danelle Crawford McKinney, a Presbyterian Women board member. McKinney, whose great-grandfather was one of the first Native American Presbyterian pastors in Dakota Presbytery, is a student rights specialist at Haskell Indian Nations University in Lawrence, Kansas, and an enrolled member of the Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate. The complete Presbyterian News Service story by Gail Strange can be found at "More Needs to be Done."
Moving ahead,
A Corp board
 gets some friendly advice
As the board of directors for A Corporation, the corporate arm of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), prepared to meet this week at the Presbyterian Center in Louisville, a three-page letter of advice and encouragement awaited. Labeled a welcome letter to the Moving Forward Implementation Commission, the letter -- signed by the leadership of the General Assembly Way Forward Commission, the All Agency Review Committee and the Way Forward Committee -- was also sent to A Corp members. Attached to the letter is a 10-item "to-do" list created by the Way Forward Commission just before the start of the 2018 General Assembly. The complete Presbyterian News Service story by Mike Ferguson can be found at "Moving Forward."
PC(USA)'s CFO calls on A Corp
board to be clear in direction
The A Corporation met last week in Louisville, it took on the kinds of tasks you'd expect of the corporate body of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) -- approving committee charters and recommendations, electing corporate officers to one-year terms and scheduling dates and places for the board's 2019 meetings. It also heard a plea from one of those officers, Mike Miller, the PC(USA)'s chief financial officer. He urged the board to err on the side of over-communicating, and work to allay anxiety over what the "new day" at the A Corporation will mean for the operation of the Presbyterian Mission Agency, and, to a lesser degree, the Office of the General Assembly. The complete Presbyterian News Service story by Mike Ferguson can be found at "Being Clear."
Advent journey is not easy
for followers of Jesus
Sara Lisherness, director of the Office of Compassion, Peace and Justice of the Presbyterian Mission Agency, writes in the most recent  newsletter of her office, "We live in a time of deep polarization and pain. Tragic fires and other large-scale disasters, senseless shootings, and children being separated from their families and held like criminals, are in the headlines. These are just a few of the events that break one's heart - on a list that is almost too long to fathom. ... The Advent journey is not just a journey of hope and anticipation for the coming of the babe in the manger, it is a reminder that the journey of faith is not easy if we are to follow Jesus, who invited us to 'take up the cross and follow him.'" Her complete column can be found in the current issue of the Justice & Peace newsletter.
Racial equity, women's ministry urges donations in memory of Cannon
 The Presbyterian Mission Agency's Office of Racial Equity and Women's Intercultural Ministries is inviting gifts in memory of the Rev. Dr. Katie Cannon through the Christmas Joy Offering. Cannon was the first African American woman ordained in the United Presbyterian Church. Gifts in memory of her will be used for scholarships for leadership development opportunities for women of color. This complete story, and more, can be found in the current newsletter from the Office of Racial Equity and Women's Intercultural Ministries at "In Memory of Katie Cannon."
PC(USA) delegation meets, prays
with people seeking asylum
It's been a long four months for Marleny and her family. Since Aug. 28, she, her daughter, son-in-law and nine-year-old grandson have been on the road from El Salvador to the U.S. border. They've been at the Mexico-U.S. border for two weeks and are still waiting to talk with border officials. A Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) delegation met with Marleny and other families awaiting their turn this weekend across the river from Brownsville, Texas. The complete story by Rick Jones of the Office of the General Assembly can be found at "Seeking Asylum."
Immigration experts advise visitors
to US-Mexico border to tell story
Rather than trusting media or government versions of what's going on along the U.S.-Mexico border, Presbyterians are better off engaging  with people and partners in the trenches of the immigration issue. "If you are a group going to the border, tell your story when you get home," Teresa Waggener, an attorney with the Office of Immigration Issues, told the Rev. Dr. J. Herbert Nelson II, stated clerk of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), during his "Coffee with the Clerk" Facebook Live session this week. Preach a sermon, write a letter to the editor or agree to an interview with a reporter, she suggested. The complete Presbyterian News Service story by Mike Ferguson can be found at "Immigration Stories."
Presbyterian agencies surpass
$100,000 #GivingTuesday goal
The Presbyterian Mission Agency and the Office of the General Assembly exceeded their $100,000 goal on #GivingTuesday, receiving  $105,673 during the event held last week. "I am grateful for everyone who supported God's mission on #GivingTuesday through the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)," said the Rev. Dr. J. Herbert Nelson II, stated clerk of the General Assembly of the PC(USA). "Particularly in this season, as we anticipate the celebration of God's greatest gift to us, I am encouraged by every gift that Presbyterians offer to God. These acts of generosity express our gratitude to God for all that God has done for us." The complete Presbyterian News Service story by Pat Cole can be found at "Surpassing the Goal."
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| Just one more |
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It's not a church sign,
but still a pretty good sign
From time to time we peek at the humorous church signs. You know, the sign proclaiming, "If you think it's hot here ... " (As you can tell, your editor is already thinking ahead to July or August.) But there are also church-sign generators. Some are quite good and it's difficult to tell the real ones from the fake ones.
But then there's the Indian Hills Community Center sign in Indian Hills, Colorado, a community of about 1,300 located 30-or-so minutes west-southwest of Denver. You have to like humor and enjoy puns -- a lot of puns. The sign has become popular on social media, with such gems as "Life is short. If you can't laugh at yourself, call me. I will." You can read about the ever-changing sign and find a few more good ones at "Indian Hills Community Center."
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