Letters from the General Minister
With Measured Steps
A Letter to Pittsburgh Presbytery from Rev. Dr. Sheldon W. Sorge General Minister March 26, 2020 The Board of Pensions’ CREDO program gathers pastors for intensive eight-day seminars during which the thirty participants are led in a comprehensive, granular examination of …
Prudence or Panic?
A Letter to Pittsburgh Presbytery from Rev. Dr. Sheldon W. Sorge General Minister March 12, 2020 Last week’s letter addressed the growing impact of the coronavirus epidemic on church gatherings. Registration for June’s General Assembly (GA) was supposed to open …
Congregational Health and Physical Contact
A Letter to Pittsburgh Presbytery from Rev. Dr. Sheldon W. Sorge General Minister March 5, 2020 We are in a series looking at markers of congregational health, something we ordinarily term “congregational vitality.” Many measures of health can be adduced …
Vital Ministry
A Letter to Pittsburgh Presbytery from Rev. Dr. Sheldon W. Sorge General Minister February 27, 2020 Vitality – it’s something we all want for our own selves, for those we love, for work about which we care, and for institutions …
Hope That Never Disappoints
A Letter to Pittsburgh Presbytery from Rev. Dr. Sheldon W. Sorge General Minister February 20, 2020 In his litany of the good fruit Christ bears in us, Paul says that Jesus gives us hope that “does not disappoint us.” …
The Memorial Mandate
A Letter to Pittsburgh Presbytery from Rev. Dr. Sheldon W. Sorge General Minister February 13, 2020 In Hebrew Scriptures, God’s people are commanded to erect memorials to help them remember God’s saving acts in very specific times and places. One …
Of Councils, Emperors, and Powers
A Letter to Pittsburgh Presbytery from Rev. Dr. Sheldon W. Sorge General Minister February 6, 2020 As I write, we still await the final Senate vote on whether President Trump shall be removed from office in response to the …
Wisdom Amid Acrimony
A Letter to Pittsburgh Presbytery from Rev. Dr. Sheldon W. Sorge General Minister January 30, 2020 During last week’s Senate trial, Chief Justice John Roberts reprimanded Democrat accusers and Republican defenders of President Trump by asking them to remember …
Justice Delayed
A Letter to Pittsburgh Presbytery from Rev. Dr. Sheldon W. Sorge General Minister January 23, 2020 In his Letter From A Birmingham Jail, Martin Luther King Jr. cites a legal maxim to his clergy colleagues who claim to be in …
Naming the Elephant
A Letter to Pittsburgh Presbytery from Rev. Dr. Sheldon W. Sorge General Minister January 16, 2020 When I was interviewing for their pastoral vacancy, the congregation’s search committee told me that the church needed its next pastor to lead them …
Persistence and Adaptability
A Letter to Pittsburgh Presbytery from Rev. Dr. Sheldon W. Sorge General Minister January 9, 2020 Jesus prizes persistence. He teaches that persistence has more to do with salvation than great faith and power. (Matthew 10:22) Persistence is never …
A Holy Night, A Holy Place
A Letter to Pittsburgh Presbytery from Rev. Dr. Sheldon W. Sorge General Minister December 19, 2020 Much is made of the inhospitable “no room” response Mary and Joseph encountered as they sought accommodations in Bethlehem. Yet there was a place for them, …
Hopes and Fears
A Letter to Pittsburgh Presbytery from Rev. Dr. Sheldon W. Sorge General Minister December 12, 2019 The hopes and fears of all the years Are met in thee tonight. (Phillips Brooks, 1868) These familiar words from verse one of “O …
The One Who Comes to Stay
A Letter to Pittsburgh Presbytery from Rev. Dr. Sheldon W. Sorge General Minister December 5, 2019 Today our presbytery gathers for its final meeting of 2019. My but how our years together have flown by! At our 2009 December …
The Gift of Thanks
A Letter to Pittsburgh Presbytery from Rev. Dr. Sheldon W. Sorge General Minister November 28, 2019 The Greek word for “thanks” is eucharisto, which we transliterate “Eucharist.” Receiving the gifts of Christ’s body and blood both expresses and elicits …