THURSDAY MAILING

June 11, 2020

In this edition . . . . June Birthday Greetings Pastoral Concerns Letter from the General Presbyter John Molina-Moore, General Presbyter Note from the Interim Stated Clerk Jan Moody, Interim Stated Clerk From the Director of Business Affairs/Treasurer Todd McCreight, Dir. Business Affairs/Treasurer General Assembly Update In the Midst: Going Deeper with God On-line Retreat ~ presented by Black Presbyterians United of NCP (BPU) Racial Awareness and Mindfulness: A Mini-Festival of the Arts, Awareness, Healing and Justice October 17 - ZOOM Want to grow in Faith & Leadership Wesley Theological Seminary

DISMANTLING RACISM “Bear public witness to the love, truth, and justice of God in Jesus Christ specifically in the areas of racism and reconciliation.”

Birthday Greetings

for the month of June

From

the staff of National Capital Presbytery

debbie, jan, joan, john, lajuan, tara, todd

Graham Bardsley, HR Bruce Hartwig, HR Scott Ramsey

Wayne Blaser, HR LeAnn Hodges Christine Reimers

Mick Burns Su Pong Hwang, HR James Sledge

Scott Carlson Jim McDonald Lyman Smith

Laura Cunningham Don Meeks Alice Tewell

Molly Douthett Dwight Peace Minh Towner

John Green LaJuan Quander Scott Winnette

Pastoral Concerns:

Jeri Fields, interim pastor, Clifton Presbyterian Church, brother, Jerry Fields, Jr., who lived in Savannah, was received into eternal life on June 9th.

Stephen Smith-Cobbs, co-pastor, Trinity Presbyterian Church, Herndon, VA death of his father, Stan Cobbs. After being in home hospice with COPD for some time, Stan Cobbs died peacefully on June 8th. Plans will be announced later for whatever memorial service is able to be done given the pandemic. In the meantime, the family covet your prayers as they mourn the loss of both of their parents in less than six months.

Joan Erickson, Committee on Ministry Administrator, NCP, brother John Sharp died on June 3rd, at Rosemont Care Center, Bryan Mawr, PA, from complications of COVID-19.

Caroline Wilson, interim pastor, First Presbyterian Church, Arlington, VA, mother, Cynthia Fortanier Wager, entered into the care of Almighty God, on Tuesday, June 2nd at the age of 88. She was a proponent of civil rights and actively promoted equality, and she was a staunch supporter of the education of girls and women.

June 11, 2020

Greetings Partners-In-Ministry!

Not too long ago, the local church used to be the gathering place for the community. Over the years we have lost that place in our greater culture. The current state of our society allows us the opportunity to reclaim that position once again. Currently, most of the communities inside our Presbytery are still on some type of stay-home recommendations, which means people are unable to gather around water coolers or talk on the sidelines of little league games to discuss issues of the day. Right now, there is a HUGE issue to be discussed; racism in America. I’m finding an ever-growing number of people who are ready to engage in this 400-year-old topic. Here’s where the church can help gather people for these conversations. All of you have already figured out how to bring people together remotely. Let’s use that new skill set to gather people together who are eager to have these conversations.

If that’s your church, welcome. I want to support each of you wherever you find yourselves on that journey. I know that for some of our congregations this might feel like A LOT. No step in beginning this work is too small. If you need a sounding board on where to begin, I’m always available for a phone call.

Here’s where the Presbytery has placed its first step…

Last week Leadership Council formed the Dismantling Racism Team of National Capital Presbytery. Their original charge was to begin that work through implementing things like mandated training for all Teaching Elders and creating other opportunities for education and awareness throughout the Presbytery. They will still begin that work but they will also create and gather resources and opportunities for our churches to immediately start this work in their pews. The members of the team are: Rev. Neill Morgan, Rev. Sterling Morse and Elder Elsie Reid from Leadership Council; Rev Katie Strednak Singer, Rev. Edwin Andrade, Rev. Whitney Fauntleroy and Elder Charles Kuo from the body; and Rev. Tara Spuhler McCabe and myself as members of the staff.

For those of you who are ready to start, here are a few things we would like to highlight that you can begin to use now. (You can also find all of these, and things to come from the team, on our website at https://thepresbytery.org/mission-highlights/dismantling-racism/)

Small group resources We highly recommend that our churches spend time together in study and prayer using the book “White Fragility”. The Presbytery staff has been reading and discussing this book together over the past few months and it has been very impactful. You can find the study guide here… https://robindiangelo.com/2018site/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/WhiteFragilityReadingGroupGuide.pdf

In our Dismantling Racism section of www.thepresbytery.org under “small group resources” you also find a guide for intentional conversation questions that we are encouraging all our committees, commissions, teams, and sessions to use at the beginning of their meetings.

Worship resources You will also find a collection of videos on our Dismantling Racism page that some of our churches have already begun to incorporate into their digital worship services along with forming breakout groups for discussions.

Regional trainings We hope that all of you participate in this year’s Racial Awareness and Mindfulness Festival on October 17th. You can register here…https://2020raf.eventbrite.com.

I want to personally thank the saints that came before me who first begun this work in our Presbytery. It is through their time and passion that we now have a foundation to build on. Without their commitment and love for this Presbytery, we would find ourselves reaching for straws on where to begin.

John General Presbyter, National Capital Presbytery

A Note from Interim Stated Clerk, Jan Moody

June 11, 2020

In her May 26th remarks upon retiring as the NCP Stated Clerk, Sara Coe said that throughout her tenure she tried to be a neutral interpreter of the Book of Order and support to the clerks of session. As I begin my work as Interim Stated Clerk, I hope to follow Sara’s example of servant leadership and to serve as a staff resource for NCP. We as a presbytery face many challenges as we adapt to the new normal of preparing for worship, session, congregational, presbytery committee and commission, NCP and General Assembly meetings through remote platforms. We are acquiring new skills as we discover imaginative ways to observe communion, install church officers, and ordain ministers while maintaining constitutional integrity. As we are pushed beyond the walls of church buildings into communities connected through cyberspace, let us wrestle together with the mixed blessings of challenges and opportunities for fresh ways to serve as faithful disciples of Christ.

Grace and Peace,

Jan

Highlights from the May 26, 2020 NCP Meeting

• Election of 2020-2021 Moderator Elder Michael Rankin and Rev. Diane Hendricks • Remarks from Elder Sara Coe upon her retiring as Stated Clerk • Election of Stated Clerk Search Committee • Appointment of Interim Stated Clerk Elder Jan Moody • Amendment to the Manual of Administrative Operations to provide a provision for authorizing

electronic meetings of the presbytery • Dissolution of Riverdale Presbyterian Church • Commissioning of General Assembly Commissioners

June 11, 2020

Dear Friends,

These last five years serving as your NCP Director of Business Affairs and Treasurer have been some of the best years of my career. Working with a wide range of NCP churches, pastors and church members, addressing business, financial and property challenges, has been a rewarding way to give back to the PCUSA which has done so much for me and my family over the years.

I'll miss working with my great colleagues on the Presbytery staff and the friends I've made among our 104 churches.

I'll also look forward to staying active at Bradley Hills Presbyterian, where my wife Cathie and I have been members since 1993. We look forward to doing more travel in the years ahead, especially to see our dear granddaughter Thea in Massachusetts, who turns 1 this month.

All the best,

Todd McCreight

General Assembly Update Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 224th General Assembly (GA) will be held online June 19, 26-27, 2020. The Committee on the Office of the General Assembly made this difficult decision after careful consideration of the health and well-being of Baltimore, the hosting community, commissioners, advisory delegates, observers, and staff. Listed below are ways to observe and participate in the work of the General Assembly. GA links include:

• Schedule @ https://ga-pcusa.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/GA224-Online-Docket.pdf.

• Live stream @ https://www.facebook.com/spiritofga. • Events: including the Poor People’s Campaign event on Saturday,

June 20, at 10 a.m., and the Hands and Feet Youth Rising event on Tuesday, June 23, at 3 p.m. @ https://ga-pcusa.org/events/.

• Online Bible Study: with focus on Lamentations 5:20–21 on June 24, at 7 and 10 p.m.@ https://www.pcusa.org/news/2020/6/2/online-bible-study-opens-new-opportunities-224th-g/.

We pray and give thanks for the faithful work of commissioners, moderators, advisory delegates, worship leaders, and OGA staff in this season of lament and hope.

In the Midst: Going Deeper with God Online Retreat

presented by Black Presbyterians United, National Capital Presbytery July 11, 2020 - 9 am to 12:30 pm

Black Presbyterians United presents this online retreat to BPU member congregations and those who share in the mission of BPU who may need to discover, renew, or restore a deeper relationship with God. In these challenging times, come, take time to be still, reflect, hear, and receive God’s invitation to draw nearer. The retreat will include short talks, times for individual reflection, and shared time in breakout groups. Together, we’ll explore ways to go deeper in faith.

A Mini-Festival of the Arts,Awareness, Healing, and Justice

Saturday, October 17, 2020

10am - 5 pm

Location: ZOOM

Racial Awareness and Mindfulness:

Register: https://2020raf.eventbrite.com/

“RethinkingReconciliation: Addressing the

(Powerful) Elephant in the Room”Christena Cleveland

"Race, Ethnicity, and the Bible"Gay L. Byron

Add a little bit of body textPLUS: WORKSHOPS | MUSIC | DRUMMING | EMOTIONALEMANCIPATION CIRCLES | CAUCUSES | INTERPLAY | CHILDREN'S TRACK

| MULTIRACIAL FOCUS | INTERGENERATIONAL APPROACH |COMMUNAL LEARNING | VIRTUAL LUNCH SPACEORGANIZER: Therese Taylor-Stinson, Race and Reconciliation Team, National Capital Presbytery

Mission Coordination Committee; CONTACT: taylorstinson2@earthlink.net

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