vicemodblog

Vice-Moderator November Churchwide Letter

Monthly columns featuring GA Vice Moderator Byron Wade and Stated Clerk Gradye Parsons

Life and thankfulness

BY BYRON WADE

November 2009

Over the past 16 months, I have had the pleasure of serving as Vice Moderator of the 218th (2008) General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). It is a great honor and privilege to listen, learn, and witness the great things our church is doing to uphold the mission and ministry of Jesus Christ.

In my role, I have traveled extensively. One aspect that has not been so great is airport travel. With security measures, overbooked flights, crowded planes, and potential delays, I can never tell if I will make it to my destination. Just a few weeks ago, I left a meeting in Louisville, Ky., to return home to Raleigh, N.C. The trip included a long security line, a delayed flight due to weather that caused me to miss a connecting flight, and a re-booking on another airline through a different city. In all, I arrived home four hours later than expected.

On another level, people are facing many delays on the journey of life — financial hardships due to the present economy, the H1N1 virus or other similar illnesses, the deaths of loved ones, broken relationships, onset of depression, and more. It can make us wonder if the journey is worth the hassle.

In these times, I invite you to take assurance in the God who loves and never leaves us. God walks beside us in these situations and brings us through, so that we can give hope to others on the journey.

One of my favorite gospel songs is "I’ve Got a Testimony," by Clay Evans:

As I look back over my life
And I think things over
I can truly say that I’ve been blessed
I’ve got a testimony

As we enter into the season of Thanksgiving, I pray that you will be able to reflect upon the ways that God has brought you through the hardships, difficulties, and hassles on the journey of life and faith. Then may you give witness to others of a wonderful and gracious God!

The Reverend Dr. Byron A. Wade is Vice Moderator of the 218th General Assembly (2008) of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).

My apologies!

NOTE: Somehow I erased my original "Is it just me or are we supposed to be talking about Jesus?" post. If you sent me a comment, please re-copy and I will respond. Thanks!

November - December travels

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Time really flies by!! Can't believe that in a few months Bruce and I will be six months from serving as Moderator and Vice-Moderator of the 218th General Assembly. I am still having a great time traveling and meeting wonderful Presbyterians in mission and ministry. November and December are no different and below is my travel schedule for the next few months;

• Nov. 1 - Member of the Presbytery of New Hope Commission to install Rev. Scott Phillips as Presbyterian Campus Minister at North Carolina State University.
• Nov. 3 - 5 - Keynote speaker for Boise Presbytery Pastors Retreat at Monastery of the Ascension in Jerome, ID.  
• Nov. 10 - 12 - Presbyterian Camp and Conference Center Association Annual Conference at Ferncliff Camp and Conference Center in Little Rock, AR.
• Nov. 15 - Preach Homecoming Service for Covenant Presbyterian Church in Durham, NC. 
• Nov. 20 - 22 - Moderators Conference in Louisville, KY.
• Dec. 3 - Preach at Presbytery of Coastal Carolina meeting in Laurinburg, NC.
• Dec. 4 - 5 - Visit Transylvania Presbytery in Lexington, KY.   

This ends my travels for 2009 and I definitely look forward to going places in 2010! If you are in any of these areas stop by so we can meet and greet. Until then, peace be with you! 

Is it just me or are we supposed to be talking about Jesus?

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While on a recent Vice-Mod trip, I was having a good discussion with a Commissioned Lay Pastor (CLP) who serves a small congregation in Northern New York. We were getting to know each other when all of a sudden out of the blue he asked "What is your belief about the concept of salvation?" The question stunned me and I remember jokingly telling him that I believe in it. He seemed a little embarrassed to have asked but he went on to tell me a story about a discussion he had with the minister who moderated the CLP's session and asked the minister the same question. The minister shrugged off the question and made it sound like preaching Jesus Christ was not important. On the same trip after I made a presentation on my reflections in this position and mentioning that Mod Bruce and I believe that Jesus Christ holds us together despite our differences, another person approached me and expressed his appreciation that I mentioned Jesus Christ and couldn't understand why more pastors could/would not do so.

The surprising thing that I have heard in my travels is the lack of pastors/laity that do not preach and/or mention Jesus Christ. While I have not heard it a lot, it has been said to me enough that it caused me some alarm. But as I thought about it I can't say that I am really shocked. Following are some true stories that I have heard from others -

*A minister colleague who formerly served in my presbytery was invited by a clergy couple who attended seminary with him to preach a Community worship service at their church in another part of the country. He went and preached so well that people from another denomination on the spot invited him to preach at their church the next night. All seemed to be happy - except the clergy couple who invited him. They were concerned and wanted to talk to him privately. During the discussion one of them said "I have a problem with Jesus." The other spouse politely asked if he would not place so much emphasis on mentioning Jesus. My colleague said "no" and the rest of his time there was strained, to say the least.

*Going back to the airport after a conference, another colleague told the story of interning in a large church on the East Coast during the summer. Her responsibility was working with the church's large Youth Group. The activities were mostly of a social nature and she wanted to do more biblical teaching. As she tried this, the parents of the youth began to complain. Not about how or what was being taught but the kids were on "summer break" and needed to have activities focused on having fun. It got to the point that the pastor in charge over her acquiesced to the parents' demands and my colleague was told to "follow the program."

*At the COGA meeting I attended last week in Louisville, we were told of a Pastor Nominating Committee who didn't mention Jesus Christ at all in their Church Information Form (CIF) as they searched for a pastor. When asked, they said "Jesus is too controversial."

I am in no way a Fundamentalist or a person who is considered an "evangelical street preacher." What I am saying is that I believe that we who called ourselves followers of Jesus Christ may want to preach him to others, for if we don't people will go elsewhere. And I would hate to think that we are losing out on witnessing to others because we don't talk about Jesus. My favorite story that I tell was told to me by an African-American minister colleague:

A young African-American pastor was called to a church right out of a prestigious seminary. He was well trained and theologically brilliant. In his first sermon he wanted to impress the congregation with his theological knowledge and quoted some great theologians and philosophers such as Schleiermacher, Barth, and Kant. After the service was over, he stood at the church door to greet members as they left. Most shook his hand and said polite words. However, the woman who was considered the "Mother" of the Church shook his hand and said, " I don't want to know about Shierman, Bath and Can't. I just want to know what did Jesus say?"

I believe when people come to church they want to hear and experience Jesus Christ the risen Lord. I'd be interested to see what you think!

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Synod of the Northeast trip - part II

 

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The second half of my trip was just as good as the first. However, I forgot to tell you that I visited one other presbytery in my first few days. I was in the Presbytery of Newark last Friday, visiting the Presbytery office in Bloomfield, NJ and was hosted to lunch and discussion at Prospect Presbyterian Church in Maplewood, NJ. It was a small intimate group but very lively discussion! So in my first four days I visited Long Island, New York City, Hudson River, Newark and Geneva Presbyteries. That is a lot of traveling!

For the next week, I spent the first three days staying with my friend Andy James who is the pastor of First Presbyterian Church of Whitestone in Queens, NY. He picked me up at LaGuardia airport when I arrived from Ithaca, NY on Monday and took me to a wonderful Thai restaurant named SriPraPhai that has excellent food! Later on that evening, I was hosted at the church's manse with his congregation and members of the North Presbyterian Church of Queens for a discussion with questions and answers.Tuesday was a full day in the City for Andy and I as went on a Circle Line Ferry sightseeing tour of the Hudson River and Manhattan. We also went next door to tour the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum and afterward we met up with our friend James Tse, who works for the Presbytery of New York for dinner at Harvest Buffet. On Wednesday I took the subway to Harlem to spend time at Rendall Memorial Presbyterian Church, an African-American congregation directly across the street from Harlem Hospital. Every other Wednesday they host was is called "Brown Bag Jazz and Jesus", which is an outreach invitation to the community to come and bring a brown bag lunch and listen to Jazz musicians from the Jazz Foundation of America. There were about 40 people in attendance enjoying jazz from the musicians. I also had the opportunity to spend time with Rev. Spencer Gibbs, the pastor of the church who is also my cousin and former General Presbyter of New York City Presbytery. Afterward, Andy and I ate at a wonderful Indian restaurant named Dawat. This was my first time trying Indian cuisine and I enjoyed it!

The next day after we ate breakfast at Utopia Bagels and lunch at BKNY, Andy and I made our way to Stony Point Conference Center for the Synod of the Northeast Assembly. While there I had the opportunity to spend time with the Synod YAD's as well as meeting old friends and making new ones. I also made a presentation of my experiences as Vice-Moderator and the Synod had a beautiful evening reception in my honor. I truly had a good time and had a good send-off back home to Raleigh yesterday.

I definitely enjoyed my time in the Synod and I am thankful to everyone who made the trip possible. Next trip - Committee on the Office of the General Assembly (COGA) meeting Wednesday, October 21 - Friday, October 23. 

Synod of the Northeast trip - part I

Today I am in the middle of a ten-day trip to the Synod of the Northeast, my longest Vice-Moderator trip to date. I began last Wednesday as I flew from Raleigh to Islip Regional Airport to visit with the Presbytery of Long Island. There I spoke to the Shepherding Council (similar to a Presbytery Council) about my view of the Presbyterian Church and where we are going. The Presbytery also has a mission partnership with Cuba and I met a female pastor who just arrived from Cuba to spend a month in the US. Long Island Presbytery is going thru a process of realigning their work and how they carry out mission and Ellen Marquardt is doing a great job as Interim Presbytery Executive! I also saw Creighton Berry, a commissioner who was on the Assembly's Church Orders and Ministry Committee with me. He told a powerful and moving story about overcoming discrimination during our committee time. It was great to see him again!

The next day I met with the Presbytery of New York City. Their offices are located inside The Interchurch Center at 475 Riverside Drive. Back before reunion it was the offices of the United Presbyterian Church in United States of America (UPCUSA) but now other denominations as well as local universities have offices there. I spoke to about 18 people about the state of church from my travels. Then I was taken over to Hudson River Presbytery to speak with a small group of Presbyterians at The Presbyterian Church of White Plains where Rev. Urla Eversley is the Interim Pastor and Rev. Susan Andrews is the General Presbyter and Moderator of the 215th General Assembly. All of us had a good time discussing the church and its challenges in the future.

On Saturday, I flew to Ithaca, NY to visit within the bounds of Geneva Presbytery. After being diverted to Syracuse due to weather issues, I was met at the Ithaca airport by Nancy and James Yao, the pastors of two yoked churches in Hector and Lodi, NY. I was there to participate and preach the Hector Church's 200th Bicentennial Celebration.

                 

(Left - Hector Presbyterian Church and Right - Lodi Presbyterian Church)


    

(Left - Woman dressed in 1800's clothing; Right - Hector Church Choir members singing during afternoon celebration).

I had a great time during the Saturday afternoon celebration and preached to a packed house on Sunday morning. I also worshiped at the Lodi Church, being in the midst of faithful members of God's house. After spending time in Watkins Glen (where I saw the NASCAR race track!), I traveled to the new Geneva Presbytery offices in Penn Yan, NY where I was hosted with a reception. Great times were had and met lots of wonderful people and facebook/twitter friends ;-)

Today I am here in Queens, NY with my friend Andy James, the pastor of First Presbyterian of Whitestone where I will stay for a few days. I am being hosted for a discussion with members of his congregation tonight and have other activities this week until I return home on Saturday, October 17. I'll let you know more in a few days!

World Communion Sunday in "Mayberry RFD"

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Today I traveled to the town of Mount Airy, NC for a visit with First Presbyterian Church of Mount Airy, NC (FPCMA) where my good friend Rev. Dr. Steve Lindsley is the pastor. Many of you may know that Mount Airy is famous because this is where the actor Andy Griffith was born and raised as well as scenes of the Andy Griffith Show were filmed under the fictional guise of the town of Mayberry in which he was Sheriff Andy Taylor. Every year the town celebrates "Mayberry Days" and is the home to the Andy Griffith museum, among other things. It is a small, quaint town that is a few miles away from the Virginia state line.

Steve and I have been friends and colleagues in ministry for the last 16 years. He preached at my church and I preached his first installation when he accepted the call to become the Associate Pastor at First Presbyterian Church of Lexington, NC. He has been doing a wonderful ministry there the past six years and FPCMA is a growing congregation!

Today lots of things were going on in the life of the congregation - World Communion Sunday; Faith in Action Sunday where the church celebrated its involvement and support of local ministry agencies; The Fall Discipleship Dedication in support of the church's "15+ Plan", a churchwide plan that encompasses stewardship and discipleship for the church's future; and a lunch sponsored by the High School Youth who reported on their recent Mission trip to Emerald Isle, NC. To top that off they had a Brass Quintet that performed during worship. It was a busy day in the life of FPCMA!

[Pictures of the Rev. Dr.'s Steve Lindsley and the FPMCA Youth and Adults doing a movement routine during their mission trip report]

Shortly after my arrival, I spoke to about 60 people during a morning discussion about my experiences as Vice-Moderator and issues relating to the denomination. Very good questions were asked! Then I preached for worship on the Joshua 24:15 text (. . . "As for me and my house, we are going to serve the LORD.) on the subject "What is Your Choice?" and assisted Steve with Communion. Afterward I attended (and was fed well!) the Youth Mission Trip presentation. It was very exciting to see the young people share their experience and how much of an impact it made on their lives. After a short conversation with Steve and his family, I made the 2 hr. 30 minute drive back to Raleigh.

Amidst all of the issues the church focuses on, it was great to experience a congregation that is truly engaged with its community and has a vibrant ministry. That is one of the privileges that Moderator Bruce and I are blessed to see and experience firsthand! Blessings to my friend Steve and the congregation in "Mayberry" and I hope to hear how God has blessed them in the future!

October Travel Schedule

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After a pretty long hiatus from national Vice-Moderator travel over the summer, it is time to get back in the Saddle (or better yet "plane seat!). I have had a wonderful time visiting with local congregations and presbyteries as well as spending time with family and the church that called me as their pastor. But from here on out until GA 219 in Minneapolis this coming July I will be on the road quite a bit. October is by far the busiest month of travel to date. Below is my October schedule:

Oct. 4 - Preaching at First Presbyterian Church of Mt. Airy (NC) for World Communion Sunday.

Oct. 7-17 - Synod of the Northeast Itineration

+ Oct. 7 - Midday Event in Long Island Presbytery

+ Oct. 8 - Visit to New York City Presbytery and Hudson River Presbytery. Dinner and Conversation at White Plains Presbyterian Church.

+ Oct. 9 - Visit to Newark Presbytery

+ Oct. 10 - Fly to Ithaca, NY and meet staff of Hector Presbyterian Church.

+ Oct. 11 - Preach for the Bicentennial Celebration of Hector Presbyterian Church.

+ Oct. 12-13 - Susquehanna Valley/Genesee Valey/Cayuga-Syracuse Presbytery visits.

+ Oct. 14 - Visit churches in Hudson River Presbytery or Four Faith Parish.

+ Oct. 15 - Travel to Stony Point Center for Public Policy Advocacy Event (PPAN) and Synod Assembly.

+ Oct. 16-17 - Synod Assembly and return to Raleigh.

Oct. 21-23 - COGA meeting in Louisville, KY

Oct. 29 - Preaching for the Presbytery of the Peaks meeting in Martinsville, VA.

Oct. 31 - Keynoting College of Faith event at Kirk of Kildaire PC in Cary, NC

As you can see I will be away from home most of the month. I definitely look forward to travelling but please keep my family and congregation in your prayers as Bruce and I continue to give witness to and experience God's mission and ministry in places near and far.

Richmond, Chapel Hill and an Ordination

Last week I had three Vice-Moderator visits in a few days' time. My first visit was last Wednesday as I drove to Richmond, VA to the campus of Union-PSCE.

I was invited to spend a whole day of activities at the school where I received my Master of Arts in Christian Education back in 1994. As many of you now know the school is federated since 1997 and just about everything is located on Union's side of the campus. Where PSCE used to be located now belongs to Baptist Theological School at Richmond (BTSR). They have done a fine job restoring and renovating the old campus. I began my time by preaching chapel service in the beautiful Lake Chapel in the Allen and Jeannette Early Center for Christian Education and Worship. I preached on the subject "What Happens Next?", giving all the challenge of following Christ in today's world. Afterward I ate at the weekly Community Lunch for students and staff at the Belk Center and had conversations with various people. I was given a tour of the Morton Library and I have to say that is one of the finest libraries I have ever been in! Next I went across the street to the the offices of the Presbytery of the James and Synod of the Mid-Atlantic where I met with staff and given a tour of the building. I ended my time with a Question and Answer session with students and faculty followed by a pizza party before heading back to Raleigh. It was only the second time in 15 years that I had set foot on campus and I need to make it a point of coming back more often. The highlight of my visit was being escorted by Rev. Syngman Rhee, Director of the Asian American Ministry and Mission Center and Moderator of the 212th General Assembly. It was a honor to assist him with communion during chapel and getting to talk about life and ministry. Thanks to President Brian Blount and all faculty and staff for being great hosts!

The following Sunday I was the guest preacher at University Presbyterian Church in Chapel Hill, NC with Rev. Bob Dunham, Pastor and Anna Pinckney Straight, Associate Pastor. I preached both the 8:30 and 11:00 services (and two children's messages) and was taken out to lunch by Bob and his wife, Music Director Thomas Browne, and Anna at 411 West. But the highlight of my day was being a part of the Presbytery of New Hope Commission to Ordain Sarah Wiles as Minister of the Word and Sacrament at Wake Forest Presbyterian Church. Sarah, a recent graduate of Union Theological Seminary in New York and under care of New Hope Presbytery, was ordained at her home church as a pastoral resident at First Presbyterian Church of Ann Arbor, MI in the Fund for Theological Education/Lilly endowed Transition Into Ministry Program. I have known for the past 13 years when I first came into this presbytery as an adult member of the Youth Committee and she was a high-schooler on the Youth Council. It has been a privilege to see her grow and follow God's call into the ministry and I was honored to be a part of her special day!

Well, I had a great time last week and looking forward to more visits with Presbyterians throughout the U.S. and the world. Next trip be next week with a 10-day itineration to the Synod of the Northeast!

Shameless plug for World Communion Sunday worship resource

Hey all! I pray that you are well and enjoying the coming of the fall season. I have not written in about a week and will blogpost soon about my latest trips. But I wanted to put in a "shameless" plug about the worship resources for this coming Sunday, October 4. I am sure that many of you are aware that this Sunday is World Communion Sunday, in which we celebrate a common bond through Lord's Supper/Eucharist with all other Christian communities of faith. Each year the Presbyterian Peacemaking Program develops resources for the Peacemaking Offering which is collected on this Sunday and provides resources for Worship. I was asked to provide the Worship resource this year and I hope you will check it out and use it in your worship on Sunday. Here is the link:

http://www.pcusa.org/peacemakingoffering/worship.htm

Be on the lookout in the next few days about my latest trips and my Oct. - Nov. travel schedule!