All Church / All Ages Fishing Tournament On the Trinity River At River Park. Saturday, September 27, 4:00—7:00 p.m. The Fellowship Committee welcomes one and all,… Read More »All Church Fishing Tournament on the Trinity!
Refresh. Reconnect. Reaffirm. St. Stephen All-Church Retreat at Mo Ranch Labor Day Weekend – August 30 – September 1, 2014 This Labor Day Weekend,… Read More »All Church Retreat Cost and Registration information!
Because of the involvement of the Carter Foundation this year, the sign-up and work schedule has been changed. You must register with Habitat and sign… Read More »Habitat For Humanity: October Build Means August Sign Up
Refresh. Reconnect. Reaffirm. St. Stephen All-Church Retreat at Mo Ranch Labor Day Weekend – August 30 – September 1, 2014 The ad hoc Communications and… Read More »Refresh. reconnect. Reaffirm. SSPC All Church Retreat at Mo Ranch!
Due to localized flooding, today’s orientation meeting for Room In The Inn is postponed. The new date will be determined in upcoming days. The summer… Read More »Room In The Inn Orientation postponed
I will be away from June 12-18 to attend the Presbyterian Church (USA) General Assembly in Detroit. I will be there not as a delegate, but as an advocate, hoping to dissuade commissioners from voting in favor of divesting from, boycotting, or sanctioning Israel and businesses supporting it. Those who promote boycott, divestment, and sanctions (called “the BDS movement”) are good-hearted people outraged by the plight of Palestinians in the occupied territories. Unfortunately, sanctions on Israel are not a solution to the problem and reflect a misunderstanding of the situation on the ground. Furthermore, for our church to promote such sanctions will only further alienate our Jewish friends in the United States while doing little or nothing to advance us to a positive role in promoting peace in the Middle East. To take such a position undermines the very nature of Presbyterian peacemaking: we are a reconciling community, not one that chooses sides.Read More »PC(USA) Sanctions Against Israel Are the Wrong Way to the Right Answer
Briten Up Your Summer!! All Adult Classes are Combined as Brite Divinity Professors and Brite Doctoral Students Share Their Knowledge Summer Long!! June 1 – August 17; … Read More »Briten Up Your Summer, Adult Lecture Series Each Sunday Morning
Youthful Pioneers On Mission to Change Themselves and Their Destinations
By Beth Fultz, Director of Christian Education
Over Memorial Day Weekend, I had the opportunity to return to the Kansas City area gathering more information on the Youth Mission Trip for our return July 19 – 26. My original goal for the trip was to venture to Omaha, Nebraska, for the wedding of Angela Rose, a youth member from my last church assignment in Plano, over nine years ago. Thankfully, Dolores Morgan, Business Manager at St. Stephen, was free to be my travel companion as we took five days to journey the routes of Olathe, Kansas, Kansas City, Kansas; Omaha, Nebraska, and Oklahoma City – home of my younger brother. On our journey we took in scenic beauty of the American Plains, observed historical routes, played the license plate game (only 13 shy of 50 states), stopped at hometown bookstores, and met with personnel at all four church sites for the Youth Mission Trip.
Arriving in Olathe at First Presbyterian Church, I realized again that this church lay on the historic Santa Fe, Oregon and California Trails. The Oregon and California Trails began when pioneers sought new opportunities and new homes. They headed out of St. Louis on river boats to Independence, Missouri, where they boarded wagon trains and headed west. Most of the seekers were shopkeepers and farmers hit hard by the economic times of 1837. Their journey lasted over 2,000 miles and 90% of those who ventured, gained.
The Santa Fe Trail was a two-way commercial route for settlers in the Mexican territory to retrieve supplies. A frontiersman, William Bucknell, took off to trade with the Indians and wound up in Santa Fe. The purpose of this 750 mile trade route was profit not homesteading.Read More »Youthful Pioneers On Mission to Change Themselves And Their Destinations
Further Insights from My Recent Middle East Trip
By Rev. Dr. Fritz Ritsch, St. Stephen Presbyterian Church, Fort Worth, TX
This June, I will be attending the Presbyterian Church (USA) General Assembly meeting in Detroit, MI. I’m not going as a delegate, but rather as an advocate. I will be trying to convince commissioners to vote “no” to the several motions that will be before the assembly this year to use economic sanctions and other tools to punish Israel for its occupation of the West Bank. I will be there in cooperation with an organization called “Presbyterians for Middle East Peace” (PFMEP), whose stated mission is to promote investment in peace rather than divestment in Israel. They sponsored my trip this past February to Israel and the PalestinianTerritories. It was an eye-opening trip that confirmed my opinion that boycotting, divesting, or sanctioning Israel is a bad idea for Jewish-Christian relations, Palestinians and Israelis, and peace in the Middle East. Read More »Presbyterians and Middle East Peace
Youth Mission Trip, July 19 – 26, 2014, Kansas City & Olathe, KS Projects: United Church of the Good Shepherd (PCUSA)- Painting, Waxing, Parking Lot Striping, &… Read More »Youth Mission Trip to Kansas City, Kansas, July 19 – 26
