Portland
Oregon, July 23 - 27
The Georgia Perspective
During the Assembly we
received reports and photos from Bill Thompson the
chairman of the Communications Commission, Ray Miles, Regional
Minister and Michael Weeks, Associate Regional Minister.
Reports from Portland
(Click on photos to enlarge)
Pre Assembly
 From Bill Thompson.
Arriving Sunday evening,
July 24, we will be getting to the 2005 General Assembly late. We
combined our trip to the Northwest with some sightseeing at
 Crater
Lake National Park and visits to my relatives in Olympia (WA) and Coos
Bay (OR). Oregon is the state where my late mother, Edythe Farr Thompson
grew up and earned her undergraduate degree at the University of Oregon
in Eugene. My late father, W. L. Thompson, also went to school in Eugene
at Northwest Christian College. They met in his student church in
Oakridge, where my mother was the church pianist. They married in 1941
and honeymooned at Crater Lake, so Cheri and I visited the awesome
volcanic lake on Tuesday.
The theme of this year’s
assembly is “Jesus Calls Us.” It is only 5 days in length, beginning
Saturday evening and concluding Wednesday evening. The two main event of
the assembly this year are the election of a new General Minister and
President, and changes to the Design for the Christian Church (Disciples
of Christ). As usual, there are pre-convention events led by the
National Evangelistic Association (July 20-22) and Volunteers in Mission
projects (July 20-23 and Monday and Tuesday of the assembly). This year,
there is also a special worship experience event prior to the assembly.
It is called “Essence – Journey Toward the Heart of Worship” which
focuses on contemporary worship. There is also an Elders event on
Saturday. There are a lot of sightseeing events that are also offered
before and after the assembly. Hal and Ann Doster are leading a group
after the assembly on an Alaskan cruise.
The weather is pretty hot
here this summer. We have been in Roseburg and the south part of Oregon
where the temperature has been in the upper 90’s. Today, we are heading
to the coast, where the weather should be much cooler. We’ll update you
on Sunday evening after our first session at the assembly. We will be
attending a reception of the SouthEastRegional Fellowship, which
includes the Georgia region.
Friday, July 22, 2005
 From
Ray Miles It can
hardly be considered at day at General Assembly. We arrived a day early
so we could renew our acquaintance with the natural beauty of Oregon
where we lived 10 or 12 years ago. A full day at the beach and driving
through the mountains renewed our belief that we have an amazing God. A
friend we were with remarked the expansive nature made him feel very
insignificant. The day in the wonder of God's nature made us forget
the issues and problems we face and just let God wash over us. As well
the temperatures were significantly cooler than Georgia so it was
pleasant. We actually had to wear a jacket on the beach until after
lunch. Tomorrow we move into the business of the church at the
Assembly. We are here for a week but our prayers continue for Disciples
of Christ in Georgia.
Another report tomorrow.
Ray
From Bill
Thompson
My roots in Oregon go down
deep. My father was student minister at Oakridge Christian Church, while
he was at Northwest Christian College. My mother grew up in Coquille
Church of Christ (Christian Church), which has been at times affiliated
with the Disciples of Christ (though not at the present time). My
grandfather was chairman of the board of trustees of Northwest Christian
College (a Disciples undergraduate college).
 |
|
I'm not standing on steps. My Aunt is about 4' 10" tall |
Yesterday, I visited with my
Aunt Emma Frances Mulkey Farr, whose late father was Superintendent of
Coos County (OR) schools until his death. I was pleasantly surprised to
see a copy of DisciplesWorld on her living room table, with Sharon
Watkins photo on the cover. “I determined when I first heard the General
Assembly would be in Portland that I would be there. But, I didn’t count
on my body not allowing me to attend.” My aunt is now 85 and still
attends church, but due to physical limitations does not travel much.
Though her church is no longer affiliated with the Disciples, she
maintains her ties and loyalty to our part of the Restoration movement.
In Oregon, that has always been a changing picture, as churches have
cooperated but not always formally with each other and with the
Disciples of Christ. The Turner Convention held in Turner, Oregon, still
brings together churches from both streams of the Stone-Campbell
movement.
The weather at the coast is
wonderful. We drove over to the Pacific Coast at Bandon and found that
we had to put on a sweatshirt and windbreaker to walk on the chilly
beach.
More, when we get to
Portland.
Saturday July 23,
2005
From Michael Weeks.
I had the opportunity to
join 200 other walkers and runners at the Church Extension Spirit Walk
here in Portland during the General Assembly. Walkers took pledges prior
to coming to Portland and raised money for New Church Ministries. Each
of us received a ribbon with the number 357. The number signifies the
amount of Disciple churches started since 2001. Disciples have started
60 new congregations so far in 2005. We are on the way to 1000 new
congregations and will reach our goal a long time before the year 2020.
Michael
|
|
|
|
Director of New Church Ministries, Rick Morse rallies the walkers prior to our departure for the event.
|
|
|
|
Director of the Week of Compassion, Johnny Wray explains that a portion of the money raised will provide a well in Africa that will be come the focal point for a new church start. |
|
|
|
We walked along the beautiful river here in Downtown Portland
|
|
|
|
Our former Interim Regional Minister, Zena McAdams
|
|
|
|
My friend Rev. Kevin Arnesman is starting a new congregation in Durango, Colorado
|
|
|
Sunday July 24, 2005
From Ray Miles
"It's already the second night of General
Assembly. It's such a full time greeting old friends and trying to find
every person from Georgia who is here to say hello. What a wonderful
time in a great church.
Last night the assembly opened with a
stirring drum circle from the Yakima Christian Mission an historic home
mission site for Disciples. Our moderator Charisse Gillett then
challenged us in her sermon to come into relationship with one another
because Jesus is calling us to do that. She said the time has come for
us to reach a new agreement with one another to celebrate Jesus. Don't
be afraid of the victory we are promised and be at peace.
Tonight we opened worship with stirring
singing and another message of hope and future looking from our current
General Minister and President. Chris Hobgood challenged us to engage
in mission and not be preoccupied with our internal life. We need to
fall in love again with God and the mission of the church.
Dr. Lisa Davidson challenged us with a
reminder of a message we heard in Charlotte two years ago. " if this
church continues to try to blend into the landscape we deserve whatever
troubles come our way." We must stand up and declare who God has called
us to be, whether people like it or not. Secondly she asked us not "Are
you called to ministry?" but instead "What ministry are you called to?"
A question that makes us think.
Those are great words for the whole church
and for us in Georgia as well. The future is full of promise if God is
in it. My prayers are with you. Pray for us here as we are the church
together in this time.
I'll try to let you know how tomorrow goes but my computer is sick and
acting up. Ray
From Bill Thompson
Sunday evening….
Oregon Convention Center was
filled with vibrant, singing, praying worshippers as Disciples heard the
Rev. Chris Hobgood, Interim General Minister, preach from Leviticus
25:19-23 – a law of the Jubilee. In his sermon/state of the church
address, Rev. Hobgood likened the history of Disciples to five periods
of jubilee. In the first 50-year period, Disciples were born in freedom
and excited discovery of the New Testament principles of the church. In
the second 50 years, we experienced growth and the founding of many of
the agencies of our church (missionary societies, the Pension Fund,
NBA). In the next 50 year period, we saw mission expansion on the
foreign field, along with the establishment of full-time ministries in
many churches. In the 4th 50-year period, Disciples experienced
restructure and destructure. And, like the process of perennial growth,
bulbs retreat during winter, ready to bring growth again. Thus, he sees
the 5th jubilee period as a time of new growth. This growth will be
generous if we focus not on structural changes but an unchanging God.
I was pleasantly surprised
at the number of persons at the assembly session. Many of us attended
regional receptions after the session, which lasted until nearly 10 p.m.
The rooms where the receptions were held were packed with ministers and
laypersons alike. Those who were at the Georgia reception (part of
SERF), were pleased to see Carole Lavery, Dean and Debbie Phelps, Hal
and Ann Doster and others stop by and greet new regional minister Ray
Miles.
|
|
|
|
|
Dean and Debbie Phelps talk with Carole Lavery
|
|
|
|
Hal and Ann Doster were there, too.
|
|
|
|
Rev. John Richardson, regional minister in North Carolina
|
|
|
|
Ray Miles talks with Carole Lavery
|
|
|
Monday July 25, 2005
From Bill Thompson
Cheri and I were up early, attending our
first Pension Fund retired ministers’ breakfast. There were ministers
and spouses present who had retired just 14 days earlier and some who
had been retired more than 15 years. It was amazing to hear how active
were these retired servants of the church.
Then in the convention hall, we heard a
Bible study from Dr. Ofelia Ortega, a Bible professor from Cuba. The
business of the day included discussion of changes to the Design for the
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), the closest we Disciples have to
a constitution. The changes were approved overwhelmingly. Among the
changes, the congregation is affirmed as the basic unit of the church
and is listed first in the document. The general board will shrink from
nearly 190 members to 67 members. This will be a major savings in
administrative overhead for the general church.
For nearly an hour, the new President of
the National Benevolent Association, Dennis Hagemann, presented the
report of N.B.A. and answered questions or heard comments from the
assembly delegates. There had also been a well-attended forum the
previous afternoon where questions and comments were much more pointed.
I will have to say that Mr. Hagemann spoke eloquently of the pain,
regret and sorrow those who are left on the N.B.A. staff feel because of
the Chapter 11 bankruptcy just completed by the flagship organization of
the Disciples. As a result of bankruptcy, N.B.A. has lost its management
contract for all 78 of its H.U.D. financed homes, has sold 11 of its
premier retirement facilities and now has only 5 non-residential
programs that it manages. Hagemann asked us to pray for and support
N.B.A. as it rebuilds. Several residents of the 11 facilities that were
sold reported a good transition to new management, though Fellowship of
John funds were not able to be fully saved and may affect care of some
residents. N.B.A. has pledged to address these Fellowship of John issues
in the near future.
The evening session was led by the
General Youth Council. It began with a concert by the Portland Taiko (taiko
is the Japanese word for drum). This spectacular group is a premiere
North American taiko ensemble that was established in 1994. We were led
in worship by members of the General Youth Council of the Christian
Church (Disciples of Christ). Dr. Lisa Davison, professor of Old
Testament at Lexington Theological Seminary, brought the evening sermon.
|
|
|
|
NBA gives report to the Assembly.
|
|
|
|
Pre-worship music provided by Portland Taiko
|
|
|
|
General Youth Council led the worship service.
|
|
|
|
Wide shot of the Assembly stage while Youth Council leads worship.
|
|
|
Tuesday, July 26,
2005
From Ray Miles
"We just elected a new
General Minister and President, Sharon Watkins. I can't sing the
doxology which has spontaneously erupted because the emotion within me
is so great, so deep and so overwhelming. I am filled with hope
for the future of the church to the point where tears well up and fill
my eyes. Leadership is powerful when built on relationship with a
person and with God. That is what we have now. Sharon
Watkins is my friend and she is dedicated to loving God and this part
of God's church. If anyone can make the Disciples of Christ new and
fresh she is the one. She will help us sing a new song in a new
Day and the Disciples of Christ can move into being what god expects
us to be."
I wrote that earlier today
to try to capture the emotion which filled the hall as we voted and
the results were clear to us. For the Disciple of Christ in
Georgia what does this mean? It means we have a chance to
revitalize and become new just as the whole of the Disciples do that.
With Sharon as General Minister and President there is a new sense of
hope and a new realization that god is not finished with us and has a
vision for us to move towards. Isn't that what we are feeling in
the Region as well?
The other neat thing today
was to gather with people at lunch who were involved in helping
Disciple seminarians at the Atlanta seminaries feel part of the church
and prepare them fully to do ministry in the Disciples of Christ.
Again it is a symptom of hope that we are looking towards future
ministries rather than past events.
If today holds any message
for your congregation it is that looking into God's future will give
us the energy and vision to be what God has called us to be.
Your congregation can do the same if it looks not to become what it
used to be but what it is called to be. The theme of the
Assembly is "Jesus Calls Us".. It is true.
From Bill Thompson
This morning I gave the
invocation at the breakfast sponsored by the European Evangelistic
Society, an organization with mission work in Germany at the
University of Tuebingen. Speaker for the breakfast was Dr. Dennis
Lindsay, on the staff at Northwest Christian College. He was a staff
member of the E.E.S. some years ago. He spoke about “Bread Broken
and Scattered, The World Church and Biblical Interpretation.” This
is one of the series of “Dean E. Walker Lectures” sponsored by the
E.E.S. Disciples have a witness through this organization in the
heart of the protestant reformation. This lecture should be
available within the next several months and I would commend it to
all thoughtful Disciples. (www.eesatlanta.org)
 The
big news of today is the election by a near unanimous vote of
Dr. Sharon E. Watkins as our new General
Minister and President. This historic event is a most hopeful sign
for the future of our churches. I think the most telling thing about
her acceptance address was when she said, “This is not about me,
this is about us. We are in this together…”
I don’t think there were many dry eyes in the house after the
election.
At the lunch break, we
ate with Dean and Debbie Phelps and shared their excitement with
Dean’s new ministry with the regional church in Indiana. As we
headed to the restaurant, Cheri and I spoke with Chuck and Linda
Rolen of Murray, Ky. He was minister at Griffin First.
This assembly has been a
renewal of connections for many of us in ministry. It has also been
a refreshing time of focus on the future as a church. I have not
heard the negativism of some past assemblies.
We’re leaving in the
morning, so hope Michael or Ray will add their reports of the
closing day of the assembly.
Wednesday, July 27,
2005
From Ray Miles
General Assembly has
concluded and we have a new future ahead of us. The overall mood of
the Assembly is that of hope. From the discussions of the National
Benevolent Association to the discussion on the more contentious
items the overall atmosphere seemed to be one expressing a desire to
be one church and be one people.
During the installation
of Sharon Watkins as General Minister and President there was
profound emotion. The applause was spontaneous and more prolonged
than any time I remember in recent General Assemblies. It was a hope
for the church and recognition of the presence of the Holy Spirit
active and alive in our midst.
During the prayer of
installation, one image projected on the big screens was of Sharon
kneeling with the cross of the communion table silhouetted in front
of her. It seemed to me to be an omen that if we keep Jesus and the
Cross of Christ in front of us, we will move ahead. Sharon’s sermon
emphasized the idea that we are a church whose time has come. If we
are faithful to the one who calls us and who has given us our
mission, we shall thrive and move ahead.
Coming out of the
Assembly there were actions taken that all of us do not agree on,
but the emphasis of our unity at the table of the lord is what will
give us strength. We can be a strong church again, focused on
congregations and becoming faithful expressions of God in our
community.
To see the exact actions
taken, check the general Assembly website. The overall sense I have
coming out of this Assembly is that we have turned the corner and
begun the journey to reclaim our heritage as faithful and strong
congregations of the people of God.
Plan to come to our
Regional Assembly November 18-19 to continue the renewal and focus
on God’s future. Sharon Watkins will be there and you can meet and
hear more of her vision for the church we can become.
|
