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Epiphany Stars
"Epiphany is the celebration of God’s manifestation or self-revelation to the world in Jesus Christ. In particular, we celebrate the revelation of God’s promise and purpose to the nations of the world, as the magi came from the East to worship to the Christ child, and...
What Do You Expect?
I was pregnant with my first child in December 2000. When my pastor colleague and I divided up the services we would lead and preach during that Advent season, I requested the third Sunday. Mary’s Magnificat, Luke 1:46b-55, was the lectionary text assigned for that...
History and Hope
Isaiah 11:1-9 Common English Bible (CEB) A shoot will grow up from the stump of Jesse; a branch will sprout from his roots. 2 The Lord’s spirit will rest upon him, a spirit of wisdom and understanding, a spirit of planning and strength, a spirit of knowledge and fear...
A Season of Active Waiting
Advent is a season of waiting, waiting for the birth of the Christ child, waiting for the second coming of the Messiah. But it ought not be a season of twiddle-your-thumbs waiting or rush-around-to-get-everything-done-before-December-25th waiting. No, instead, we...
Announcing the APCE Award Winners
ENRICH- Educator of the Year Michael Waschevski Michael Waschevski was called as an Associate Pastor of First Presbyterian Church, Fort Worth, Texas, in 1999 after having served churches in Michigan and Texas. He serves as Associate Pastor for Christian Formation and...
A Last Hurrah for Christmas
Many have sung the repetitive carol, “The Twelve Days of Christmas.” Many church leaders can (and have) explain(ed) our reasoning behind not singing Christmas carols in worship until Christmas Eve/Day and the twelve days after. An intercultural congregation in...
Catching Up with Past Educator of the Year Recipients
Dorothy Brown Henderson, APCE Educator of the Year 2005, sought to reinvent herself in retirement. After serving as a long-time educator in the Presbyterian Church in Canada and authoring resources and curricula for church programs, Henderson is now a full-time...
The Mission of Brown Jesus
She sat in the middle of the crowd of about 100 students at a distinguished Christian university in Southern California. Following my keynote remarks titled “The Gospel and the Politics of Race,” she raised her hand sheepishly and asked the ten million dollar...
Annual Event Theme Reflection
Theme reflection by Rev. Lisle Gwynn Garrity from A Sanctified Art LLC “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few” (Luke 10:1). Jesus commissions seventy followers with these words, inviting them to be peace-bearers in new lands. Perhaps we might utter a...
Getting Outside the Box: Discipleship Through Retreat, Mission & Justice Ministries
Theme reflection by Theresa Cho Depending on what translation you read, Luke 10:1–11 is either titled “The Sending of the Seventy” or “the Seventy-Two”—leaving many commentaries to refer to this passage as “. . . Seventy(-Two).” The parentheses are significant because...