I love poetry – I always have. In this poetry month at Second, three poems come to mind – all of them old, like me. As aches and pains come and go each day and my mobility decreases, I recall “The One Hoss Shay” (1858) by Oliver Wendell Holmes. The poem is much too long to print here, but the…
The power of one (or two) was alive and well on May 18, 2024 at Berea Curby Presbyterian Church’s Community Meal. The Dismantling Racism and White Privilege Team and Berea Curby invited GLPBY members to fellowship at the monthly Community Meal that Berea Curby offers to their neighbors. Berea Curby was formed when Berea, a predominantly African American congregation,…
Not long after beginning my work with GLPBY in January 2021, (Has it really been 3 ½ years?) I received a gift from old friends, Mike and Cindy Wakeland. A few GLPBY oldies may remember Mike and Cindy when he pastored Tyler Place Presbyterian Church. Cindy, an extraordinary Christian Educator, was at one time my youth leader; as in I…
An Invitation to the Churchwide Gathering in St. Louis My participation in Presbyterian Women (PW) has helped me to form a more vital connection with God, my sisters in faith around the globe, and those with whom I live and serve. Joining with other women in Horizons Bible Studies and sharing our deepest hopes, sorrows, and dreams in prayer and…
Mark’s recounting of Jesus’ entry to Jerusalem ends on a note of queasy solemnity. The atmosphere is appropriately shadowy and foreboding. Jesus has paraded into town, surrounded by the hoots and hollers of those who welcomed him as the one coming in the name of the Lord. They welcomed him with acclaim, but now have disappeared. Jesus makes his way…
“We need not to be let alone. We need to be really bothered once in a while. How long is it since you were really bothered? About something important, about something real?” (Ray Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451) Is something bothering you? I get it. It’s a loaded question. But stick with me for a second. Sit down, and let’s have a…
Here’s a fact which may come in handy for your next trivia night: this year’s mashup of Valentine’s Day and Ash Wednesday will be the third time the start of Lent has been on February 14 since 1945. The other was in the wistful pre-pandemic year of 2018. They will sync up again for the last time in this century…
Jaw-dropping action and eye-popping special effects will be on full display Sunday. We’ll be surrounded by titan-sized heroes who will emerge from clouds of mystery. Dazzling pyrotechnics will fill the air, and time will seem to stop as heaven intersects earth. And that’s only the topline from the Gospel reading! Sunday kicks-off with the Transfiguration in worship and closes with…
This is it. It’s the last time we’ll ask. Truly. We are only DAYS AWAY from the 2024 Association of Partners in Christian Education Annual Event at St. Louis Union Station, and we need your help. I don’t know how much more clearly to say this: We cannot do this without you. 1. We need people-power. Our hospitality team has…
The Dismantling Racism and White Privilege Committee (DRAWP) of the Presbytery of Giddings Lovejoy hosted a gathering at Webster Groves Presbyterian Church to fellowship and share what our congregations are doing around Matthew 25 precepts – congregational vitality, racial justice, and elimination of poverty. Our guest speaker was Rev. Dr. Jessica Williams of the Kairos Center – a ministry dedicated…