Pastoral Cohorts Coming This Fall! Preaching to the Heart and Mind

Registrations are now being received in the presbytery office for participation in a pastoral cohort centered on cultivating the art of preaching to the heart and mind.

Last month, nine members of Grand Canyon participated in the Whitworth Institute for Ministry. Throughout the week we encountered intensive Scripture study by Mike Breen, a leader in disciple making ministry, and powerful worship leadership from Brenda Salter-McNeil, a leader in reconciliation ministries. In between these morning and evening sessions, the nine of us attended workshops focused on preaching to hearts and minds in which we listened and learned, discussed and deepened, shared and planned what it might look like to encourage one another and help each cultivate and strengthen our own gifts in preaching to hearts and minds.

I am pleased to announce that there will be multiple opportunities to participate in a hearts and minds preaching cohort, including:

·         General Cohort I: Fourth Thursday of the month from 11:00 – 1:30 at Memorial with lunch provided (first gathering on September 23, single gathering over Thanksgiving to Advent on December 9).

·         General Cohort II: Fourth Thursdays of the month from 4:00 – 6:30 at Valley with dinner provided (first gathering also on September 23, single gathering over Thanksgiving to Advent on December 9).

·         Native American Cohort: The Thursdays before presbytery meeting beginning at noon and running to noon Friday with meals provided and hotel accommodations for those traveling from out of town.

What can you expect at each cohort? Each meetings will have a unique focus but follow the same general format:

·         Corporate worship or contemplative prayer,

·         Collegial reflection on a theme of the day (e.g. preaching to the imagination, listening to the text or exegeting the congregation),

·         Sharing a meal together,

·         Prayer with and for one another and our ministries.

To register for the cohort, please email Carolyn McBurney at pbyoffice@gmail.com. If you have questions about the cohort, please email me at bradmunroe1963@gmail.com. If you are wondering about what the “early adopters” experienced at the Whitworth Institute for Ministry, feel free to contact one of them: Mike and Kelly Nieto (Valley), Kelsy Brown (Pinnacle), Kelsey Woodruff (Valley), Jen Fraser (Gilbert), Mike Japenga (Chandler), Mary Saylor (Emmanuel), Cynthia Jennison (Memorial) or Terry Palmer (Gilbert).

Love hanging out and encouraging one another,

Brad Munroe

Faith and the Election: Ethical Foundations for Voting: Part II

In an email exchange this week, one reader wondered why I was encouraging this exercise in connecting our political discourse to biblical, theological and ethical foundations; he expressed concern that “talking politics” may be divisive. My response was that Jesus calls his disciples salt and light (Matthew 5:13-14) – this is who we are! If we do not preserve our community’s health, who will? If we do not shine light into the darkness, God will raise up another. It is incumbent upon us Jesus followers, therefore, to elevate the tone and content of our civil discourse.

Toward the goal of being who we are – salt and light – here is how the Gilbert Presbyterian Young Adult Fellowship responded to this invitation:

Proverbs 6:16-23 talks about how important it is to follow the 10 commandments. I would want to pick a candidate who understands how living your life the way Christ would is, in my opinion, the only way to lead a nation into peace and prosperity. (Molly Russell)

1 Thessalonians 5:11 “Therefore encourage one another and build up each other, as indeed you are doing.”I have had a hard time with the election because of the negativity. I would vote for a candidate who is concerned with the well-being of others, and who wants to lift people up. I am interested in a candidate who emphasizes a positive message for the future rather than a negative message about all that is wrong with the world. (Chelsea Brooks)

Acts 10:44–45 describes the Holy Spirit’s reaching beyond Israel to include the Gentiles. At Montlure this year we learned about having the courage to change. To me this means keeping an open mind and learning and growing through experiences. Personally, I would like to see a candidate who values the ability to change and grow. (Maddie Russell)

Psalm 21:11 says, “If they plan evil against you, if they devise mischief, they will not succeed.”I would vote for a candidate who can see through all the dishonesty and chaos to what is really important. Someone who will not be fooled by appearances. (Josh Humphreys)

Jeremiah 29:11 says, “For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope.”I want a candidate who wants all to prosper and will work with and for all to make that happen. (Pam Russell)

Ephesians 4:1-3 says, “…lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”Our next president will lead by example. That example is for all—here and around the world. (I wonder do I live by these same expectations I have for my new president?)” (Jan Palmer)

1 Peter 1:13-16 says, “Therefore prepare your minds for action; discipline yourselves…be holy yourselves in all your conduct; for it is written, ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy.’”I am drawn to candidates who have the strength and integrity to maintain ethical standards under pressure; someone who holds to certain principles (respect for human dignity, concern for the well-being of all, justice, equality, and transparency) despite the temptation to sacrifice them for expediency or personal gain. (Jen Fraser)

Next week a new topic…promise,

Brad Munroe

Faith and the Election: Ethical Foundations for Voting: Part I

Last week I issued an invitation for folks to communicate their theological and ethical sources used to guide their voting practices. The rules were (1) name no candidates, (2) speak no vitriol, and (3) keep it brief. Here is how you responded to this invitation:

Micah 6:8 is my guide:  do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with God.  Justice is fairness for all.  Mercy is compassion towards all.  Humility acknowledges that I don't know it all.  I seek leaders who are inclusive, compassionate, and willing to ask for help, seek consensus, work together.(Ann Larrabee, Christ Tucson)

“In the centuries following Jesus' death many sought meaning in the fine tuning of the theological framework of faith. Saint Augustine cut to the bone with his dictum: what he saw in Jesus' life was a preferential option for the poor. These words will be with me as I vote." (Stu Cameron, Honorably Retired)

I consider the effect of my vote on the next generation. I Timothy 5:8: “If any one does not provide for his relatives, and especially for his own family, he has disowned the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”  This would include political, social, and spiritual provision as well as economic. (Joe Miller, Phoenix Orangewood)

Kant’s categorical imperative (whatever I do must easily become universal law under which all can live) means that I will not support a candidate or party whose only weapon is fear-mongering, because the more they can make us fear the more they can control us. (Carol Schurr, Immanuel Tucson)

Isaiah 2:4 4 "...Then they will beat their swords into iron plows and their spears into pruning hooks." Therefore, during this election I am going to cast my vote for candidates who are serious about gun violence prevention. (Lesley Abram, St. John on the Desert, Tucson)

Matthew writes, "I was hungry and you gave me food to eat. I was thirsty and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger and you welcomed me." I will not vote for any candidate who bars the stranger, or immigrant from our country. In Exodus 23:9 it is written: "Don't oppress an immigrant. You know what it's like to be an immigrant, because you were immigrants in the land of Egypt." (Lesley Abram, St. John on the Desert, Tucson)

            Thank you to all who shared their thoughts through this public forum. (Next week I’ll share the responses from Gilbert’s Young Adult Fellowship, so stay tuned.) I encourage us all to frame our conversations with one another boundaried by our theology and ethics as we seek to express our faith in Christ Jesus “on earth as it is in heaven.”

Looking forward to the Big Event and the Ignite the Spark!

Brad Munroe