June 25 Update from Eliana Maxim
Seattle Presbytery
“...now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and to the other apostles, ‘Siblings, what should we do?’....they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.” (Acts 2:37, 42)
Dear friends,
Theologian Justo Gonzalez has said that the purpose of the book of Acts is to show how the Holy Spirit allows the Church to discover and rediscover its mission and provides the Church the ability to move from fear to joy over and over again.
Fifteen months ago, we were all thrown into the unknown territory of doing and being church virtually. How to plan a worship service over Zoom? Would people log on? How awkward is it to preach to a screen? How will we maintain connection and care? And yet, we adapted and, in some ways, may have lived into our call as faith communities more faithfully than we had thought, creating spaces for learning and prayer, fellowship and neighborhood engagement.
Here we are again, at yet another transition point of returning to church buildings and in-person worship. Like the early church, we too can ask of each other: what should we do? We can certainly rely on the framework laid out to us by the apostles and focus on learning, fellowship, breaking bread and praying. But perhaps just as importantly, we can rely on the awareness that we can adapt, that the church has been constantly adapting throughout the ages, and this opportunity is nothing different.
Not everything will work out perfectly, or even as planned. There will be bumps along the road and lots of discoveries to be made. But the presence of the Holy Spirit is unchanging, and she will continue to provide the Church everything it needs to live into the movement from fear to joy in Jesus Christ.
Having resources always helps. So please do take advantage of the updated presbytery webpage on COVID related support, including legal guidance from both the presbytery and denominational legal teams. Many thanks to Rev. Bruce Reyes-Chow who provided us with 90 minutes of an excellent overview on hybrid worship and hybrid church. The conversation around those learnings continues with another gathering next week. If you’d like access to that material, please contact EJ Lee.
And many thanks to all who participated in our summer presbytery meeting (via Zoom) on June 15. Minutes of the meeting will be posted soon, but in the meantime, a warm welcome to Rev. John Bangs serving in a validated ministry at World Concern, and congratulations to Rev. Aaron Williams who moves from a temporary to installed position at University Presbyterian Church. Please note that at the October presbytery meeting we will be electing a General Assembly commissioner alternate as well as Young Adult Advisory delegate. For more information, please check here. The Executive Board will determine in early fall if that presbytery meeting will also be virtual, hybrid, or in-person.
May you stay cool during the heat wave. May you be reminded of the power of the Holy Spirit to move and inspire us to be the Church God needs us to be.
Grace and peace,
Rev. Eliana Maxim
Co-Executive Presbyter