GA Daily Dispatch

July 3, 2010

The 219th General Assembly opened for business today, with the morning given to orientation for commissioners, followed by afternoon and evening plenary business sessions. The main business of the day was to elect our moderator for this General Assembly. The Assembly elected as moderator elder Cynthia Bolbach from First Presbyterian Church of Alexandria, Virginia. She will lead our plenary sessions at GA this year, then will be an ambassador for the PCUSA across the USA and around the world for the next two years until GA convenes in Pittsburgh in 2012. You can learn more about her at her website.

In this afternoon’s opening session, Pittsburgh Presbytery was recognized for being among the top ten presbyteries in 2009 Mission Giving for Special Offerings ($185,697) and for donations for other appeals, such as disaster relief ($146,160). When the General Assembly Mission Council shared its report on how the PCUSA is committed to “growing God’s church deep and wide,” they showed the whole assembly a video profiling our own Rev. Eugene and Dina Blackwell, and their work with our newest church development, House of Manna. The video elicited an ovation from the entire Assembly, as together we all celebrated the work of the Holy Spirit among and through us.

In today’s plenary session, The General Assembly Nominating Committee announced its nominations for new terms of service on national church committees. Pittsburgh is particularly well represented in their slate of nominees. We have three nominees for a second term of service on their respective committees, and two for new committee service.

Renewal of terms has been nominated for:
Johnnie Monroe, Presbyterian Committee on the Self-Development of People
Valire Carr Copeland, Presbyterian Publishing Corporation Board of Directors
Stewart Pollock, Advisory Committee on the Constitution

New service nominations are for:
Jay Lewis, General Assembly Permanent Judicial Commission
Kears Pollock, General Assembly Mission Council

Proud of our presbytery,

The Rev. Dr. Sheldon W. Sorge, Pastor to Presbytery


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