Minner Serovy, Ministry Relations Officer Retires
|
|
This article is reprinted from the Stewardship Ministry Newsletter of the Presbyterian Foundation
Our changing church
February 11, 2020 by Minner Serovy
Editor’s note: We asked Minner Serovy, ministry relations officer for the Presbyterian Foundation, to reflect back on her career in ministry within the PC(USA). She retires at the end of February. She’s provided us with some terrific and hopeful observations.
As I approach retirement, I’ve been asked to reflect on some of the changes I’ve seen in the church over the decades of my ministry. It is a daunting task. Inevitably, it is my experience. Others may present other observations or facts that would show a different picture. (And yes. I’ve had “BOOMER” thrown at me, and I don’t mind it at all.)
We have competition for Sunday mornings.
In my childhood, Wednesday nights and Sunday mornings were, if not sacred, set aside as sabbatical. As I travel my region, I spend a lot of Saturday nights in hotels. More often than not, I see parents gathered in the lobby on Saturday night for pizza and fellowship, and the breakfast room on Sunday morning is buzzing with kids dressed for soccer or softball or some team competition. In other words, these families are not in their churches on Sundays.
Related to this, I think, are changed attitudes about church membership and competition from other non-profits for financial support. We know that post-boomers are more suspicious of institutions, and there is also information to suggest that regular participants in worship and church activities consider themselves to BE members, even if they haven’t taken any formal action toward that. (I know of one church that elected such a person as Elder, and only later discovered that he had never joined the church.)
These do impact stewardship. Those who are with their children’s sports teams are not hearing our ministers’ compelling stewardship sermons, nor are they as able to participate in the mission and ministry of their congregation. As with all donors, they want to make a difference in other’s lives. The huge growth of organizations that are doing good works, and who both make a very persuasive “pitch” and whose messages are in our public media (with pictures), are reaching members in ways that we (the church) is perhaps not.
Our connectional structure is weakened.
Apart from some deliberate efforts to undermine national and mid-council staffs, decline in membership and finances has forced changes there. Technology facilitates communication, both casual and required. Mid-Councils are experimenting with new ways to do things at meetings that match the collective personality of its members. This is good.
I’ve confessed to being pathetically Presbyterian. I love the way we do our work: prayerfully discerning the leading of the Spirit, together, to further Christ’s mission to the world. I love the fellowship and learning in Biblical and theological discussion. Almost as important, I cherish having colleagues in ministry.
Early in my ministry, when I left the national staff to work at one of our seminaries, a new colleague said to me, “If I’d known people like you worked in Louisville, I wouldn’t have said so many nasty things.” WE are the church: leaders in congregations, in mid-councils and national staff. None are sufficient in themselves to fully bear witness to the Lordship of Jesus Christ in the world. (G-3.01).
Donors need to know about the hundreds of missions of our PC(USA), and they need to trust the leaders to be able to achieve their goals. If we are not mutually supportive (and informed!) in missions beyond the local church, we deny them the opportunity to invest time and treasure in those missions.
The denomination is exploding with creative new ministries.
After years of membership losses and conflicts, my sense was that too many congregations suffered a serious loss of self-esteem. They could no longer do what they once did, and they didn’t have models to guide them to a new vision. I now see many of these same churches claiming their new self-image and confidence that they still have a role in the big picture of evidencing God’s love for the world. There are new styles of leadership, new ways to utilize buildings (or live without them), ecumenical cooperative ministries, and a whole host of other “experiments.” God’s church should not be frozen in time.
Each of the agencies of the denomination has a new focus on relationships with our congregations and members, being proactive rather than reactive in sharing their expertise, skills, and enthusiasm. (When I began ministry, a national staff member was expected to notify or ask the Presbytery Exec before meeting with a congregation.) Even with all the new media: websites, e-mails, social media, downloadable documents, etc., nothing beats a face-to-face conversation when building trust and mutual respect. National staff always has listened to congregations, but many members of those congregations never saw it.
The blessings I carry with me into retirement are the opportunities to visit and sit with so many congregations and organizations and church leaders. Sometimes that meant hearing your anger or disappointment, and that’s healthy in any relationship. Sometimes it was to lend an ear to a situation that I couldn’t change, but I was happy to hear it. Sometimes it was to connect people to the services or individual that could help.
Often – I hope often enough – it was to laugh with you and share the joy of the faith we have received and the ministry we share.
For this, I am always grateful.
Minner Serovy has served the Presbyterian Church (USA) in various roles beginning in 1988 as Associate for Specialized Personnel Services. She later served as Director of Admissions and Student Relations at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary and most recently with the Board of Pensions, first as a Regional Representative and then as Director of Presbyterian CREDO (CREDO offers clergy the opportunity to examine their spiritual, vocational, health and financial lives and prayerfully discern God’s call to wellness.)
She is a graduate of Carroll College in Wisconsin, with a year in Tubingen, Germany, and completed her M.Div. at Union Theological Seminary in New York City. She also has graduate training in Family system.
|
|
Get to know the 'strength and power' of Haiti
|
|
March 18 is the deadline to sign up for reflection-and-action trip
by Darla Carter | Presbyterian News Service
LOUISVILLE — The indomitable spirit of the Haitian people will be lifted up this spring as a delegation from the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) takes a nine-day trip to the island nation, along with interested members of the public.
Like recreationists do in the United States, people in Haiti also play
cornhole. A nine-day reflection/action trip to the island nation has
been set for May 6-14. (Contributed photo)
“For years, PHP has been organizing reflection-action trips as a way to allow churches to meet our partners and see the work they do,” said Valery Nodem, PHP’s Associate for International Hunger Concerns. “The hope is that Presbyterians become energized to work together with them, and to explore ways to be part of the same kind of efforts in their communities at home.”
“We are inviting people from the churches and mid-governing bodies who may be interested in developing partnerships in Haiti,” said Edwin González-Castillo, PDA’s Associate for Disaster Response for Latin America and the Caribbean. Participants will “see the reality that our siblings in Haiti are facing and also see and witness the work of our partners and the church,” he said.
For more information on the upcoming trip, go
here
.
Consider giving to
One Great Hour of Sharing
to enable Presbyterian Disaster Assistance to respond quickly to catastrophic events and to support the Presbyterian Hunger Program in its work to alleviate hunger and eliminate its root causes.Place article copy here. Be sure to make the articles short and concise as people tend not to read much more than a couple of paragraphs. Place article copy here.
|
|
Presbyterian mathematician, Medal of Freedom winner Katherine Johnson dies at age 101
|
|
|
|
President Barack Obama presents former NASA mathematician and longtime Presbyterian Katherine Johnson with the Medal of Freedom in 2015 as professional baseball player Willie Mays, right, looks on. (Photo courtesy of NASA/Bill Ingalls)
|
|
A central character in ‘Hidden Figures,’ Johnson was a pioneer in American space history
by Mike Ferguson | Presbyterian News Service
LOUISVILLE — Katherine Johnson, a mathematician and a longtime Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) ruling elder who was an important contributor to NASA’s space program, died Monday at age 101, NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine announced. She was 101.
Johnson, a central figure in the book and movie version of “Hidden Figures,” was a longtime member of
Carver Memorial Presbyterian Church in Newport News, Virginia
.
In 2015, President Barack Obama
awarded her
the
Medal of Freedom
when she was 97. Obama called her “a pioneer in American space history” and noted the award is presented to individuals “who have made especially meritorious contributions to the security or national interests of the United States, to world peace, or to cultural or other significant public or private endeavors.”
The Rev. Dr. J. Herbert Nelson, II, Stated Clerk of the General Assembly of the PC(USA), said that Johnson “lived a life of courage that ought to be emulated by all of us who profess a faith in Jesus Christ.”
|
|
Tons of downloadable resources are only a click away
by Mike Ferguson | Presbyterian News Service
LOUISVILLE — An array of Lenten resources designed to help congregations, mid councils and individuals mark Jesus’ journey to the cross and, just days later, his victory over the grave, have been gathered into one place on the website of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)
By clicking
here
, Presbyterians and others can lay their hands on a number of worship and other resources related to Lent, which begins with Ash Wednesday on Feb. 26 and ends on Easter Sunday, April 12.
|
|
This Day in History - February 21, 1863
|
|
This day in history, Feb. 21, 1863, Congress passed a law — pushed by members of Minnesota’s delegation — to expel the Winnebago people from the state. The Act was fueled by fear, prejudice, and greed; it resulted in land theft and the deaths of more than 550 Winnebago people.
The Winnebago (also called Ho Chunk) were expelled from Minnesota in the wake of the Dakota-U.S. War of 1862, a war in which the Winnebago did not participate. Yet Minnesota’s leaders were so eager to free up the Winnebago’s reservation lands for settlers to farm that they expelled the Winnebago before they officially exiling the Dakota.
This is a horrifically ugly chapter in Minnesota history. It includes the little known story of the Knight of the Forest, a secret Klan-like group that formed to expel all indigenous peoples from the state.
There’s probably lots of Minnesotans who have no idea the Winnebago ever lived here. Unlike the Dakota and the Anishinaabe, this was not their home land. Like many Indigenous nations, they kept getting pushed westward as settlers encroached on their lands.
Read More
|
|
Mark Davis will lead the Adult Convocations. He will explore the question of what we can learn from those who experienced exile in Biblical times--facing new contexts and yet remaining faithful. How do we tell our stories in the language of those with whom we live? How do we use the power of story for healing a broken world?
Mark is the pastor of St. Mark Presbyterian Church in Newport Beach, California. He is no stranger to Synod School. Mark and his family attended Synod School when he was the pastor of Heartland Presbyterian Church in Clive, Iowa.
|
|
Bryce Wiebe will lead the Youth Convocations. He currently serves as the Director of Special Offerings for the PC(USA). Bryce has served as Christian Educator at First Presbyterian Church in New Haven, Connecticut. He has written children's plays, developed educational materials, created worship experiences and led Bible studies engaging issues of economic justice.
Bryce has visited the synod before. In 2019 he was a worship leader at the fall synod meeting.
|
|
Leadership for Such a
Time as This
The Shape of Leadership, a program for ministry leaders, is an experience for a time such as this. What’s important for us is to increase the confidence and courage of those who journey with us, because that’s what God’s church and world needs from God’s leaders. We desire to help ministers connect (re-connect) with God outside the context of ministry, because that’s what will help each and every one of us to flourish. And we, together, learn new ways of being leaders for a church that is in a season of unknown hope - we don’t know what God is up to, but we have faith that it is good.
In Shape, we delve into adaptive leadership, conflict, power, and what it means to lead change; and we don’t shy away from sensitive topics, but rather welcome them into our brave space so that we can learn to step into the hardest parts of ministry with confidence and courage.
To find out more about the Shape of Leadership,
click here
. New groups are starting in May in the Twin Cities, Alexandria MN, and Marathon WI. (A new group will begin in September in New Jersey.) Please join us, and shape your leadership for the 21st century church.
|
|
Conflict Workshop
This workshop is specifically designed to provide church leaders with the knowledge and tools necessary to address, manage, and resolve conflict in a healthy and effective manner. Participants will learn about conflict management styles, including their own default style, what the other styles look like, and how to grow in their ability to use and understand different conflict management styles. Other components of the workshop will include learning how family of origin influences one’s attitudes about conflict, plus strategies for responding to conflict in the moment, opportunities for prayer, refle
ction, worship, and much more.
The cost for this workshop is $450 for double occupancy or $550 for single. Limited scholarships are available for PCUSA pastors and lay leaders, sponsored by the Omaha Presbytery Seminary Foundation.
Please click here for an online application form.
|
|
|
March 15 is Self-Development of People Sunday
|
|
|
|
|
Presbytery of Central Nebraska to Host Co-moderator
|
Co-moderator Ruling Elder Vilmaire Cintron-Olivieri will be at the presbytery meeting on March 28.
|
|
|
|
Eco-Palms for Palm Sunday
|
|
Eco-Palms and your church: your role in supporting social and environmental justice
More than 300 million palm fronds are harvested each year for U.S. consumption alone — most of them for Palm Sunday
,
but also for floral displays for church-related events. Your congregation’s commitment to purchase eco-palms plays an important role in protecting forests, local jobs, and sustainable livelihoods in the harvesting communities.
Order Deadline - March 13
|
|
2020 Woods Lecture - March 23
|
as speaker for the 2020 Woods Lecture
|
|
|
|
2020 Vital Congregations Gathering, April 27 - April 30
|
Vital Congregations works with pastors, church committees and middle governing bodies to provide training, materials and consultation for all worshiping communities and in planting new congregations.
Registration is open for the 2020 Vital Congregations Gathering in Austin, Texas.
|
|
|
|
Save the Date!
2021 Churchwide Gathering of Presbyterian Women
|
|
Keeping In Touch is a monthly publication of the Synod of Lakes and Prairies of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)
To subscribe email: office@lakesandprairies.org
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
