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Worship Service In-Person and on Zoom

Sunday, July 14, 2024, at 11:00 a.m.

8th Sunday After Pentecost

Join Zoom Meeting: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81137141806


Meeting ID: 811 3714 1806


Dial in: 929 436 2866


To view recent Sunday sermons, click here.


Lunch and Learn July 21


Please plan to stay after worship July 21 for lunch and discussion of key actions of the 2024 Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) General Assembly. We will hear a firsthand report from our own Perry Chang, who was one of the commissioners from Mid-Kentucky Presbytery to this year’s Assembly. There will be plenty of opportunity for questions and discussion.


Grill masters Ben Langley and Jerry Van Marter will provide the meat for our lunch together. You are invited to bring accompaniments (salad, dessert, etc.). Or just come—there will be plenty!

General Assembly Adventures and Misadventures


By Perry Chang


For 10 days in late June/early July, I served as our presbytery’s Ruling Elder Commissioner at the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) General Assembly (GA). Some of the things I was involved in (during committee work on Zoom from home the first week and in-person in Salt Lake City for plenary) did not go as I had hoped, but plenty of other things went well. Here are a few highlights:


Moderator Election

I gave the nominating speech for our long-time friend Marian McClure Taylor and my new friend Danny Morales for the offices of co-moderators of the General Assembly. Taylor recently retired as pastor of South Frankfort Presbyterian Church, and Morales is a hospice chaplain and pastor of New Covenant Presbyterian Church in Liberty City, Florida. However, the other pair of candidates were elected. The new co-moderators are CeCe Armstrong and Tony Larson, both pastors in South Carolina. [Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) - Armstrong and Larson elected Co-Moderators of the 226th General Assembly (pcusa.org)


Divestment from Fossil Fuels

I was part of an informal team that tried to shepherd through GA a proposal that would have steered the denomination away from investment in companies that explore, produce, or develop fossil fuels. This proposal passed, and then failed, and then – ultimately – passed in a watered-down form. Before the divestment vote, I sat between two men who, it turns out, were both retired oil and gas company executives who opposed divestment. I did more listening than arguing, and I learned from our conversations. [Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) - General Assembly backtracks on complete divestment from the fossil fuel industry (pcusa.org)]


Engagement with General Electric and Palantir

The Assembly approved a proposal endorsed by the CHPC Session and Mid-Kentucky Presbytery that the denomination’s Mission Responsibility Through Investment Committee begin focused engagement with two companies heavily involved with the Israeli government’s occupation and policing of Palestinian lands. General Electric makes components for aircraft, etc., involved in the carpet-bombing of Gaza. Palantir Technologies helps target Palestinians for “preventive detention” (meaning they haven’t necessarily done anything wrong yet). This same technology is apparently used by some U.S. local law enforcement agencies. [PC(USA) to engage GE and Palantir on human rights concerns - The Presbyterian Outlook (pres-outlook.org)


Divesting from Bonds of Occupying Countries

The Assembly approved a commissioner’s resolution proposed by Hunter Farrell, a long-time friend of CHPC and commissioner from Pittsburgh Presbytery, that would steer the PC(USA) away from investment in government bonds from countries involved in long-term occupation of foreign territory. Farrell said the measure was aimed at the governments of Israel, Morocco, and Turkey.[PC(USA) investing agencies asked to sell bonds of occupying countries - The Presbyterian Outlook (pres-outlook.org)


Cash for Clean Energy

I joined a couple of colleagues in seeking permission for Ronald Newman, an official from the U.S. Treasury Department, to speak to the Assembly about a program to give congregations cash – instead of tax credits – for making investments in clean energy and energy conservation. The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) temporarily allows nonprofits (who do not pay taxes) to get cash payments for investments in clean energy. For example, if a congregation bought a $100,000 electric-vehicle bus, the federal government could potentially give them a $40,000 or even $50,000 check. Publication 5817-D (Rev. 4-2024) (irs.gov).


Maximum Terms for Temporary Pastors

The Assembly approved a proposal from Mid-Kentucky Presbytery that would change the maximum amount of time that a “temporary pastor” (such as Pastor Tami) can serve without needing to be renewed (in other words, a “term”) from one year to three years. With a lot of congregations now calling temporary pastors, it doesn’t make sense to think of all these assignments as super-short-term, leaders of our presbytery argued. Three years is about the average time that temporary pastors serve. This change to the Book of Order must be approved by a majority of the PC(USA)’s 166 presbyteries before going into effect.


A Unique Worship Experience

For the first time, I got to worship at a Japanese American church. The bilingual (Japanese and English) Japanese Church of Christ is a joint PC(USA)/United Church of Christ congregation. Along with a nearby Buddhist temple, this church building is the last remaining landmark from the old inner-city Salt Lake City “Japan Town.” After worship and lunch, a young-adult-filled Japanese drum group associated with the congregation entertained us.


Party to Celebrate Bob Abrams' Birthday


Bob Abrams turns 101 on July 31. We are blessed indeed! Bob's daughter Lorna Pray will host a party with cake and ice cream on Sunday, July 28, after church in the Henry Young Fellowship Hall. Join the celebration to wish Bob a Happy Birthday!

Garden Camp a Big Success


Stephen Bartlett reports that this year’s Garden Camp was “a big success.” A total of 20 children attended over a two-week period in June (9 the first week and 11 the second week)—double the number from last year. There was “a great outpouring of mostly positive energy from the kids and the counselors and the parents/guardians,” Stephen says.


The campers worked the garden in teams, cleaning up the fig plants, cutting vines, trimming tree branches, and shoveling out soil, plants, and vines that had entered the parking lot. They ground corn and helped prepare corn bread using the corn meal. They took home jars of salsa made with the tomatoes, onions, and peppers they had diced and preserved in a pressure canner. They also took home pies made with rhubarb from the garden. Other activities included games and Father Coyote stories by the giant tulip poplar tree and hiking to the Mary T pool for an afternoon swim.



“No one was hurt. Everyone had a good experience,” Stephen says. “Some kids made important new friends. Others saw campers they had not seen since before the pandemic.”

The Garden Camp was sponsored by Crescent Hill Presbyterian Church and Sustainable Agriculture of Louisville (SAL). (salouisville.org)


***Save The Date***


Cedar Ridge Camp Worship and Picnic – August 18


(more information to come)

Middle East Prayer Group


Each Thursday from 11:30 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. on Zoom. Please email Soni Castleberry at soni.castleberry@gmail.com to get the link for the week and to be added to our group email list for regular communication.

July Birthdays


Please remember these wonderful folks in prayer and, if possible, reach out to them with a card, phone call, text, email or however you choose to honor them. To double-check your listing, contact Soni Castleberry at soni.castleberry@gmail.com or phone or text at 502-417-6481.


July 2 - Simon Bartlett Turner, Paul Seebeck

July 6 - Polly Cushman

July 7 - Jan Kirstein, Patricia Lloyd-Sidle

July 8 - Rebecca Barnes

July 11 - Rebecca Baird

July 12 - Tami Recob

July 24 - Darrell DeMarsh

July 25 - Madeline Wilding

July 29 - Anita Cary

July 31 - Bob Abrams

Westminster Weekly Submissions Deadline

Please have all Westminster Weekly submissions turned in every Wednesday by noon. Use this link to send submissions to the church office. Thank you!

Visit the CHPC website to stay connected

with our faith community!

Westminster Weekly Archives
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Deacon of the Month

Deacon of the Month for July is Shannon Langley. If you or someone you know is in need of a kind gesture, please reach out to Shannon at 502-396-8980 or at Langleyse@gmail.com.

Elder of the Week

Soni Castleberry is your Elder of the Week for the week of July 7, 2024. She can be reached at 502-417-6481 or at Soni.castleberry@gmail.com.


Don Mead will serve the week of July 14, 2024. He can be reached at 231-649-3800 or at Mead@msu.edu.

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