Elders - Leadership and Service
New Officers—Elders and Deacons—trained and ready to serve!
This picture is from the recent training session for Elders and Deacons.
The Session of the Church is the group of elected leaders, called Elders, who serve as chairpersons of the different Councils that help to keep the Church working together. This group meets monthly and is moderated by the Pastor. Session members are elected for a three year term.
Here is what our Book of Church Order says about who elders should be:
Elders should be persons of faith, dedication, and good judgment. Their manner of life should be a demonstration of the Christian gospel, both within the church and in the world. It is the duty of elders, individually and jointly, to strengthen and nurture the faith and life of the congregation. Together with the pastor, they should encourage the people in the worship and service of God, equip and renew them for their tasks with the church and for their mission in the world. —Book of Order G-6.0303 and 4.
Nominees for Class of 2015
Marjorie Clark, Jeff Gallagher, Richard Gibbons, Anne Grier, Kay Herrell, Allison Mays, Lucretia McCulley, Christiane Rimbault, Jeff Wells (to be elected at the congregational meeting on March 4th - learn more about our nominees here!)
Class of 2014
Helen Adams, Sharon Blount, Ben Dendy, Greg Dickie, Tom Edmonds, Sheri Highfill, Sue Munro
Class of 2013
Julia Allred, Bryan Carr, Elsa Falls, John Moeser, Cheryl Moore, Larry Palmer, Cherry Peters, Bryan Tims
Class of 2012Jim Brashler, Kathy Erhardt, Jeff Gallagher, Dick Gibbons, Frances Johns, Harlan McMurray, Mary Nelson Myers, Bill Schutt
Session Leadership Assignments:
Worship: Bill Schutt, Greg Dickie
Christian Education: Julia Allred, Helen Adams, Sue Munro
Administration: Mary Nelson Myers & Sheri Highfill
Budget & Finance: Cherry Peters, Tom Edmonds
Property: Dick Gibbons, Harlan McMurray, Cheryl Moore,
Mission: Elsa Falls, John Moeser, Tom Edmonds
Stewardship: Jeff Gallagher, Larry Palmer, Ben Dendy
Membership: Frances Johns, Bryan Tims, and Sharon Blount
Personnel: Kathy Erhardt, Bryan Carr, and Cherry Peters
Who is Jesus Christ to me?
Each Elder and Deacon are asked to answer this question as part of their officer training. Here are some of the new elders' responses:
Sue Munro - Jesus is fully God and fully human which is an unexplainable mystery of the triune God.
As God the Son, who came to live on earth as a human being, Jesus's life and words reveal God to me in understandable human ways.
Jesus was the living God present in common life; He reveals God in a human context. Because He was human, He helps me believe that God knows and understands me.
Jesus is my example for a godly life, my teacher, my friend and my support, but He is also Lord and master.
Ultimately, Jesus is my savior, and the world's, through his reconciling work on the cross, his triumphant resurrection and his intercessory work on my behalf in heaven.
Greg Dickie - God is often described in vague terms. God does not have a body. God does not have a gender. God speaks from a burning bush or from a cloud. With rare exceptions, God is not seen by humans. For me, Jesus puts a face on God. Jesus allows me to understand God because I can better relate to Jesus’ humanity.
There are many instances in the Bible where God’s actions are loving and forgiving. However there are also many times when God is seen as harsh and vindictive. Jesus’ ministry puts the focus on love instead of fear. As Christians we believe that Jesus is both fully human and fully divine. This idea of being fully two things is difficult for the Western mind. However it is a truth that is essential to understanding the nature of God and our relationship to God.
Jesus demonstrates a range of emotions. He is kind and forgiving. He can also be stern and demanding. Jesus could get angry. He got tired and cranky. He scolds his mother. This gives me hope. Since we believe that Jesus is the perfect human, the reflection of God, this tells me that the range of what is acceptable in God’s eyes is greater than we often imagine.
Jesus helps us see beyond the idea that following a series of rules is the way to please a judging God. Rather Jesus emphasizes that our day to day actions of love, compassion, and mercy are the key elements in finding the Kingdom of God. Loving the unlovable, providing care for those in need, being forgiving even when it is very difficult to forgive, are the elements of Jesus’ teachings and actions. And these are the very things that Jesus calls us to do.
God shows us that through the death and resurrection of Jesus that death does not have the last say. Rather, Jesus provides the promise of eternal life. Jesus is our hope and our salvation.
What are the major strengths and needs today at Second Presbyterian Church?
We are a strong downtown congregation that is devoted to mission. We are literally on the doorsteps of many of the social ills that beset our city. I feel that we respond in a very compassionate manner in caring for the poor, the imprisoned, the hungry, and the homeless.
We are a welcoming and inclusive congregation. We have a more diverse congregation than many other churches. I think everyone feels welcome.
We have a strong commitment to effective preaching and solid Christian education. We have a strong commitment to traditional worship and a strong music program. We have a beautiful and historic church building. However it is not a museum. Rather we have adapted our historic structure to meet the day to day needs of an active congregation.
We have a large number of members who have a very strong commitment to Second Presbyterian. We have a strong financial base which allows us the freedom to take on new ventures.
Tom Edmonds - Like many contemporary Presbyterians, the roots of my faith development lie in the Baptist tradition. In my early years in the church, much time was spent in our religious instruction, worship and music naming and characterizing Jesus. Thus, terms like personal savior, sustainer, defender, intercessor and friend were familiar ones as we explored this person who took human form and lived among other humans in real time, yet who was also a mysterious part of the triune entity we called God. These terms became ingrained and rather easily rolled off the tongue, but they also had real meaning and significance. They still do for me today, and I often think about and reflect on Jesus in these ways.
With respect to how I live my life and spend my allotted time here on earth, however, I tend to characterize Jesus more in the ways Levy Armwood did in his recent sermon at our church in which he challenged us to minister more like Jesus ministered. In this regard, Jesus is more exemplar, teacher and motivator; and I believe we are called to live out our faith, as well as honor and glorify God, by doing the kinds of things Jesus emphasized and accomplished when he lived and taught among humankind.
It has always seemed to me, and there is certainly scriptural authority for this view, that faith in Jesus simply as savior and intercessor, unaccompanied by acts of compassion and charity for those who need our help to make it in this life, is pretty empty and ultimately unsatisfying. As was Jesus, we are God’s agents in this world, and to the extent we are in a position to accomplish good things and enhance virtue by our actions, we are called to minister in ways similar to those practiced by Jesus in helping others who need us and improving conditions in society at large.