PresbySpeak

This week on PresbySpeak, we feature an interview with two of our seminarians serving in our Ministry and Leadership Incubator. The Ministry & Leadership Incubator of the Presbytery of Philadelphia connects upwards of six seminarians with three local congregations, ideally two per site. Seminarians are mentored at the congregational level and nurtured within a peer cohort facilitated by Presbytery staff. In what is known as the Leadership Lab, the cohort gathers three times per semester to engage in intentional conversations and facilitated workshops about the complexities of ministry within the 21st century. Along the way, seminarians, local congregations, and presbytery leadership work together to design creative local ministry, energize and strengthen smaller churches, and equip the next generation of leaders for vital work and witness today.

What follows is a conversation with two Princeton Seminary students, Jacquelyn Rodriguez and David Buchanon, currently serivng at the Anchor Presbyterian Church alognside Rev. Leah Miller. Listen in to what drew them to this ministry, where they are seeing revitalization possibilities, and the questions they are asking about ministry in the 21st century. We will hear from the two other seminarians serving among us later int he academic year.

Quick aside, if you are interested in learning more about this program or know of seminarians interested in aprticipating, our 2020-21 placement is currently seeking seminarians. You can read more on pur website: www.presbyphl.org /ministry-incubator

Welcome to PresbySpeak, the Podcast of the Presbytery of Philadelphia and collection of our digital resources, keynotes from leadership gatherings, and host for our bi-monthly Covenant Connections ministry stories. This week, we feature the ministry of FUSE, an acronym for the Fellowship of Urban and Suburban Engagement. FUSE is an ecumenical and interfaith collaboration in Delaware County and ministry partner of both Wallingford and Swarthmore Presbyterian Churches and a 2016 recipient of our Dream Tank for Ministry Possibilities Award. As we lean into the 2020 Dream Tank initiative, we thought it would be a good idea to catch up with the ministry supported by our pilot of Dream Tank as you consider applying for this upcoming January’s opportunity.

What is Dream tank? Dream Tank for Ministry Possibilities borrows its framework from popular entrepreneurial reality shows that invite small start-ups to present unique ideas to a panel of potential investors. In the same way, Dream Tank for Ministry Possibilities invites ministry dreamers and innovators in our congregations throughout the Presbytery to draft a plan for a new ministry initiative or the intentional advancement of an existing ministry and present their start-up before a panel of three before our January Stated Meeting of the Presbytery. These pitches are to be five slides presented in five minutes that experiment and risk for the sake of the gospel. These presentations will then be voted on by the full body of the presbytery, with the primary award being a $3,000 seed grant and the runners up each receiving $1,000. More information is available on-line and the current deadline is November 15, 2019. For now, listen in to the ministry of FUSE as you imagine what you might pitch to the Dream Tank.

Learn more: https://presbyphl.org/dream-tank-2020/

How do Jesus’ parables in Matthew 25 speak to the physical structures of a church building? This has been an ongoing question for the faithful of Valley Forge Presbyterian Church (VFPC). Located in the heart of the changing corporate district of King of Prussia, VFPC has discerned a call to make their space universally accessible, aesthetically hospitable, and mutually beneficial for both members of their congregation and local neighbors. Recently, I sat down with Rev. Tim Dooner, pastor of Valley Forge and Elder Michael Henry, Clerk of Session and former moderator of our presbytery. Listen in to our conversation as you consider how your congregation can lean into the call of Christ in Matthew 25, especially as you extend welcome, compassion, and advocacy for your neighbors near and far.

Read the story here:

Quick plug, the Presbytery has recently committed to being a Matthew 25 Presbytery in response to the initiative of the Presbyterian Mission Agency. This movement aims to empower congregational vitality, dismantle structural racism, and alleviate systemic poverty. If interested in learning more, visit our website, www.presbyphl.org and scroll to the link at the bottom. Also, we hope to see all of you on November 9th at our annual Fall Fest, a Presbytery-wide equipping event addressing critical ministry questions. This year, our guest keynoter, is Rev. Jessica Tate, Director of Next Church. Registration also available online.

How can a congregation embody solidarity and non-anxious presence in the midst of increased cultural polarity and fear? For the faithful of Gladwyne Presbyterian Church, their answer has resided in a commitment to local interfaith engagement. A suburban congregation just outside the Philadelphia city limits, this Lower Merion church recently enhanced explorations of the diverse religious traditions in their community so to love their neighbor as themselves. Listen into the conversation with Rev. Todd Stavrakos and Rev. Margaret Somerville, pastors of the Gladwyne Presbyterian Church.

Read the story here:

How can a congregation envision ministry of empathy alongside neighbors all-too-familiar with isolation and neglect? This has been the framing question for Thomas M Thomas Memorial Presbyterian Church (TMT) in Chester since the arrival of their supply pastor, Rev. Dr. Carroll Jenkins, in 2014. The last of five Presbyterian congregations in this three-mile urban center alongside the Delaware River, TMT has recently re-established their commitment to intentional community engagement as incarnations of the gospel. "We are really trying to identify people who have particular needs and out of those needs there is a spiritual thirst. As we can identify that we can help them find the spiritual resources that will strengthen them and help them to go forward,” remarked Rev. Dr. Jenkins. “We [have begun] to talk about how we can improve the quality of life within the community.”

Listen to the Podcast that framed the Covenant Connections story available here: [insert link]

Our guest preacher for our May 21, 2019 Stated Meeting was Rev. Dr. Victor Aloyo, Associate Dean for Institutional Diversity and Community Engagement at Princeton Theological Seminary

At our Stated meeting, a panel of local leaders engaged in conversation on adaptive ministry.

How can a church engage the intergenerational landscape of their changing neighborhood? This is a common question asked by congregations throughout our Presbytery and around the country. For the faithful of Old Pine Presbyterian Church in Old City, the answers are not as complicated and glitzy as what many might imagine. A congregation that recently celebrated its 250th anniversary, maintains a cemetery with 285 Revolutionary War soldiers buried on its grounds, and shares property with the Presbyterian Historical Society, this historical faith community has also embraced a steady influx of young families and individuals and doubled membership in the last seven years.

Guests on this episode are the Rev. Jason Ferris and Rev. Rebecca Blake, pastors at Old Pine. Read the story here: https://presbyphl.org/authentic-and-intergenerational-community-at-old-pine-presbyterian-church-by-rev-greg-klimovitz/

Thursday, February 28, 2019 from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at United Lutheran Seminary.

Tod Bolsinger, author of Canoeing the Mountains: Christian Leadership in Uncharted Territory, helped us reframe our leadership for the sake of the church today. Rather than seeing graphs of decline or propaganda of a hopeful church, we will acknowledge the challenge of our time and hear stories of resurrection and hope from real leaders doing the work of Christian ministry in today’s drastically changing world. Change is inevitable. But how we respond to it matters.

Sponsored by Southeastern Pennsylvania Synod’s Brave New Church initiative and the Ministry and Leadership Incubator of the Presbytery of Philadelphia.

https://presbyphl.org/events/canoeing-the-mountains-an-all-day-ecumenical-equipping-event/

Thursday, February 28, 2019 from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at United Lutheran Seminary.

Tod Bolsinger, author of Canoeing the Mountains: Christian Leadership in Uncharted Territory, helped us reframe our leadership for the sake of the church today. Rather than seeing graphs of decline or propaganda of a hopeful church, we will acknowledge the challenge of our time and hear stories of resurrection and hope from real leaders doing the work of Christian ministry in today’s drastically changing world. Change is inevitable. But how we respond to it matters.

Sponsored by Southeastern Pennsylvania Synod’s Brave New Church initiative and the Ministry and Leadership Incubator of the Presbytery of Philadelphia.

https://presbyphl.org/events/canoeing-the-mountains-an-all-day-ecumenical-equipping-event/