Many of you probably remember that, some years ago, our Presbytery supported a variety of “New Worshiping Communities.” A few of those communities still exist, while others don’t. We are certainly in a time of grand experimentation as so much changes within our churches and denomination.  During the pandemic, members of the Presbytery decided that we should strive to put more focus on developing not only new worshiping communities but also widening our vision to include new ministries initiatives. And so the “New Ministries Initiatives” Committee (NMI) was born! Thanks to the generous gifts of the faithful over the years, we have been blessed with a significant budget to support new ministries initiatives within the NCCP. NMI currently supports 5 new ministries:

1.    Mosaics – Rev. Dr. Stephen Moon has led Mosaics for many years, ministering to a multicultural group of UC Davis students. Mosaics offers a free weekly meal on Saturday evenings at Davis Community Church. This delicious meal is well-loved for many diverse entrees and often large groups show up! Mosaics is also a network of various language classes – students are given the opportunity to meet new friends while also exploring new languages together. There is even a West African drumming class offered. 

2.    Mission Project Coordinator – You have probably met Nancy Disher as she spends many Sundays throughout the year visiting the churches of our Presbytery, speaking about the mission opportunities available in both our Presbytery and nationwide. She also seeks to spread the word about larger denominational endeavors such as the “Matthew 25” movement. She is involved with a variety of mission opportunities from Paradise to Nicaragua to Alaska. Are you interested in getting involved in a local mission or even participating in a mission trip? Nancy can help! 

3.    Vietnamese Evangelistic Outreach (VEO) – VEO is a new worshiping fellowship that meets in Stockton weekly for worship. Grace Presbyterian Church and Pastor Philip Trinh have worked faithfully to help this new ministry find its footing. VEO is led by Pastor Timothy Nguyen who offers worship opportunities, Bible studies, retreats, fellowship events, and other activities for their growing church.  

4.    Casas de Paz – Casas de Paz, which translates as “Houses of Peace,” is a gathering of folks who are passionate about offering an inclusive, affirming worshiping community for people in the Spanish-speaking community. This ministry is led by Rev. Liz Vaiz. She leads weekly conversations about social justice, anti-racism work, immigration issues, etc. They are getting involved with different mission endeavors in the Sacramento-area related to their context. Casas de Paz is currently housed in Northminster Presbyterian Church. 

5.    Iama Yoga – Rev. Rola Al Ashkar offers two yoga classes each week, as well as a monthly meal, for locals interested in exploring the connections of mind, body, and soul. “Iama” is a Greek noun for “healing” in the New Testament. The goal is to provide healing and community through the spiritual practice of yoga, to those without a home church, and those who struggle with faith. Her ministry has been housed at Westminster Presbyterian Church but Rev. Al Ashkar has since entered into a time of transition. We’ll keep you posted as to what is next for Iama Yoga. 

Birthing a new ministry is challenging work! There is a lot to do and consider – advertising, sustainability, securing additional funding, assembling a support team, etc. You are encouraged to get to know the folks involved in these new ministries initiatives as they can use all the support they can get. Reach out to these leaders to see about visiting their new ministry. Perhaps there is a way your home church can provide support for one of these new ministries? Or maybe you have your own idea about a new ministry you might like to create. Let us know and we can chat more about your ideas and the process of how they might become a reality. 

We are also seeking to add additional members to our committee – think about joining us! The small committee is currently comprised of Beatrice Russell (Sierra Vista Community Church), Whitney MacLean (Carmichael Presbyterian Church), Deborah Luthi (Davis Community Church), Rev. Philip Trinh (Grace Presbyterian Church), and Rev. Bob Azzarito (Sierra Vista Community Church), and myself (I serve as the pastor of Bethany Presbyterian Church and am the chair of NMI). Please keep all of these new ministries initiatives, their leaders, and our committee in your prayers as we all continue to discern what “new things” the Holy Spirit is up to our Presbytery! 

-       Rev. Jesse Larson

On December 24, 2023, GKI Sacramento and Celtic Cross Church came together for a collaborative Christmas Eve Candlelight service, followed by a festive Indonesian dinner feast. More than a hundred people gathered in the celebration, embracing the spirit of Christmas through carols and fellowship.

Below are a few snapshots captured during this unified event, shared by Rev. Dr. Stephen Moon on behalf of GKI Sacramento.

In early January, the Presbytery’s “Funds Redistribution Task Force” held a two-day retreat for the purpose of formulating a faithful plan for our investments and assets in this unprecedented time of sweeping change across our denomination. The members of the task force in attendance for our retreat were Edrine Ddungu (mission committee), Rev. Jesse Larson (New Ministries Initiatives), Maria Mar (NCCP treasurer), Rev. Wes Nordman (bridge EP), Rev. Grace Suwabe (Presbytery Council Moderator), Rev. Brian Spangler (personnel committee), Alice Sundquist (Vitality in Ministry), Pat Terry, and Rev. Joshua Troutmann (task force chair). We all found our time together to be very productive, and felt that the Spirit was present in our efforts, guiding us along the way. 



Our conversations began with a sobering assessment of many of the realities we face as individual churches and as a Presbytery. The most substantial problem we are facing is a lack of people to carry out our missions and operations. Membership seems to be going the way of the dinosaur, and for those few churches experiencing growth, often financial constraints remain. The vast majority of our congregations are comprised of members over the age of 70. Though our church families are full of love and blessed with many gifts, we regularly brace ourselves for the painful passing of beloved friends, we long for assistance in our work on committees, and fewer and fewer churches have enough members to afford a full-time pastor. All of these issues are exacerbated by the financial realities of living in California; very few pastors can live in our neck of the woods on a part-time salary and building costs are exorbitant. 

And yet, ours is a faith of hope. We believe that God is with us in all times and places. We have not been abandoned, but rather the Holy Spirit is offering us new opportunities for ministry in a new landscape that is unfolding before our very eyes daily. Indeed, God is doing a “new thing!” Our Presbytery finds itself in the challenging, but holy, work of discerning a new vision in this era by inventorying our gifts and resources, exploring the needs of our communities, discerning our vision and then enacting a plan. We understand that many of our churches and our Presbytery are long-overdue for restructuring that includes streamlining many of our operations, making our operations more user-friendly in a time of regular staff and volunteer turnover, letting go of “what once was,” and simply acknowledging that we will need to live in different ways than we have in the past. 

Perhaps the biggest challenge our task force faced was striking a healthy balance between living into our Christian values and working towards a faithful vision while also extending the financial viability of the Presbytery for as long as possible. Some members of our Presbytery would prefer that we employ an austere budget, reducing staff positions, grants, missions, and primarily surviving off of the interest of our investments. Others would like us to spend the funds in bold ways now, understanding that we are withering on the vine without a more proactive approach to the times in which we find ourselves. After hours of heartfelt conversation, the task force believes we created a plan that strikes a healthy balance between these two polarities. 

Our plan will first be presented to the Presbytery Council and the Budget and Finance Committee. If Council approves it, the plan will then need to be approved by Presbytery. So, this means our plan is a recommendation at this point. As we all mull over the task force’s plan over the coming several weeks, we simply wanted you to better understand the impetus for the formation of this task force as well as our process. We look forward to discussing the strengths and weaknesses of this plan with all of you. We are thankful that the Spirit has been with us in our work over the past two years, and we are hopeful that this new plan is a big but helpful shift in how our Presbytery will approach our finances.     

Rev. Jesse Larson

Sierra Vista Community Church’s (SVCC) Earth Care Team was formed in early 2022 to help the church and its members reduce their environmental footprint in line with the Presbyterian Church’s call to help restore creation by greening its churches. One of its projects was a nature restoration/pollinator garden made possible by a grant from the Presbytery Mission Committee. Thank you, Presbytery Mission Committee!

We learned of the award on Earth Day Sunday 2023 and announced it to the delight and appreciation of our congregation. The garden was completed late this Fall – the best time for planting. As the twenty 1-gallon flowering native plants in the garden begin to grow, they will supply the pollen, nectar and shelter that attract the native bees, butterflies, moths and birds that help support our local ecosystem. 

Climate change, pesticide use, and loss of habitat has caused insect populations essential to our food production and survival to decline here and throughout the world. Truly wild areas have become limited and unproductive lawns now cover an area the size of New England in our country. 

Douglas Tallamy, an entomologist and professor of wildlife ecology, has suggested that it is the local landscapes, gardens and parks of our cities and suburbs that will need to play a more essential role to sustain healthy insect populations and the idea is slowing catching on. Even adding just a few flowering native plants to our yards is important. The pollinator garden is a start here at SVCC. 

Submitted by Edrine Ddungu

Sierra Vista Community Church, Sacramento, CA Presents

Book: “ Subversive Witness. Scripture’s call to Leverage Privilege”.

In this Bible based book, Dominique Gilliard explains how “unchecked privilege prevents us from seeing that we are inherently connected to one another. Faithful biblical witnesses like Pharaoh’s daughter, Esther, Paul and Silas, Zacchaeus, and Jesus serve as practical models to ‘emulate’ for our modern context, casting a vision for faithful participation in God’s Kingdom as colaborers with Christ.  Through the above- mentioned biblical characters, we will discuss how to:

·       Identify and explain privilege and its power.

·        Leverage privilege to resist systemic sin.

·        Leverage privilege to create systemic change.

·        Abandon and leverage privilege to proclaim the Good News.

·        Leverage privilege to foster social transformation.

·        Produce fruits in keeping with repentance.

A Five -week Book study. Time: Thursdays on Zoom from 10:00 AM- 11:30 AM.

January ( Jan.) 11, Jan. 18, Jan. 25, Feb. 1, Feb .8.

         Join Zoom Meeting

https://csus.zoom.us/j/85373474234

Meeting ID: 853 7347 4234

Discussion Facilitators: Dr. Béatrice Russell and Pastor Alex Vaiz.

Come Join the Conversation

You are invited to join with clergy colleagues who gather via Zoom each week (Tuesday at 1-2pm) to discuss the lectionary passages for the coming Sunday. The group shares thoughts, insights, and questions about the passages. The conversations not only offer differing perspectives, they provide a forum for support and connection.

Come be a part of the conversation!

(If you would like to know more about the group or to join, please e-mail David Ratcliff at [email protected]. We look forward to hearing from you.)

Special Annual Event for Week of Prayer for

Christian Unity on Tuesday, January 23, 2024

You are invited to attend a Special Annual Event on Tuesday, January 23, 2024 during the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. Sponsored by the North State Ecumenical Conference (NSEC), which was established in 1968 and is comprised of Christian faiths in the Greater Sacramento Area. The event will consist of the following key segments:

Tuesday, January 23, 2024

• 3:30 – 5:00 PM Panel Discussion - Several Christian faith leaders will address

the topic of: How does our faith impact public policy?

• 5:30 – 6:30 PM Dinner –There is a charge for dinner and a *RSVP is required.

• 7:00 – 8:00 PM Worship Prayer Service

This Special Event will be hosted by Reverend Frank Espegren.

You are invited to attend this event in person at the Church

(916.444.0874)

St. John’s Lutheran Church

1701 L Street

Sacramento, California 95811

This Special Event will be hosted by Reverend Frank Espegren.

The Panelists are:

President Tim Nally (Stake President, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints). 

Regina Banks (Executive Director Lutheran Office of Public Policy- California)

Molly Sheahan, MTS (Associate Director for Healthy Families California Catholic Conference)

Pastor Ivan Herman (Carmichael Presbyterian Church)

MC--Rev. LaTaunya Bynum (Regional Minister, Christian Church, Disciples of Christ, Northern California – Nevada

You are invited to attend this event in person at:

St. John’s Lutheran Church (916-444-0874)

1701 L Street

Sacramento, California 95811

There is no charge for this Special Event. Donations may be made to Midtown HART    

To donate please click on the following link: https://www.hartstogether.org/midtown

(When making a donation, please make a reference to: NSEC Special Event). Thank you!

*Important: Please RSVP by completing the attached form.

Public: https://form.jotform.com/233367380273155

Clergy and Staff: https://form.jotform.com/233377460213149

If you want to RSVP by phone for dinner or have questions, please contact Nancy Disher, NSEC Presbytery Representative at (916) 792-7725 or e-mail: [email protected] or [email protected]

Please note: Here are the links for the Livestream broadcasts:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2AeEyuA_DA4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bacJOak4fao



Save the date!

Presbyterian Women’s Churchwide Gathering (CWG) is celebrated every three years! In 2024, the CWG will be held in St. Louis, Missouri, August 8–11

Registration opens in March 2024!

For more information visit: presbyterianwomen.org/gathering

Dates: May 6-8, 2024

Event Theme: Beyond the Land Acknowledgement

Keynote Speaker: Kaitlin Curtice

Kaitlin Curtice is an award-winning author, poet-storyteller, and public speaker. As an enrolled citizen of the Potawatomi nation, Kaitlin writes on the intersections of spirituality and identity and how that shifts throughout our lives. She also speaks on these topics to diverse audiences who are interested in truth-telling and healing.

As an inter-spiritual advocate, Kaitlin participates in conversations on topics such as colonialism in faith communities, and she has spoken at many conferences on the importance of inter-faith relationships.

Besides her books, Kaitlin has written online for Sojourners, Religion News Service, Apartment Therapy, On Being, SELF Magazine, and more. Her work has been featured on CBS and in USA Today. She also writes at The Liminality Journal. Kaitlin lives in Philadelphia with her family.

https://zephyrpoint.org/programs/adult/justice-conference/

Submitted by Faith and Politics team at Faith PC

North Central California Presbytery

5645 Marconi Ave.

Carmichael, CA, 95608

www.nccpresby.org