St. Joe's parking

Thanks to all who helped with St. Joe's parking,  We had an eventful St. Joe's weekend, with only one car parked and no open gate Friday, no barricade and maybe a dozen cars parked for free before we started up - "early" at 1 p.m., and a customer who fell and got hurt and a non-customer who relieved himself Saturday night.  All in all we cleared about $1,000, which is similar to last year (not counting the $100 donation from a neighbor), although this year we will be donating a couple of hundred dollars to help cover the cost of Officer Horlander, who was there Friday and Saturday PM.  I think we'll need to think about skipping Friday PM and starting at 11:30 a.m. or 12 noon Saturday next year.  Thanks to Peter, Ruth, Soni, Stephen, and Janine - who helped organize things - and to Dave, Polly, Ben, Teri, Ada, Barbara, and Stephanie - and to Mike who brought us the barricade Saturday - and also to our couple of our "regulars" who parked for free at 12 noon but gave us $10 each as they left.

Jomaris (thanks, Jomaris!) and I talked with Rosa Marina - who had called me Friday night - She reported that she and about half a dozen other Estoreno folks - have been continuing their theological education at Coban.  She said the training is in Spanish, with translation into Q'eqchi' and some other Mayan languages represented.  For the first time, Rosa Marina - according to Jomaris - indicated that her intention partly with the training is to become a pastor.  She seemed to e interested in being part of the rotation of people we call (including Raul Contreras and Ramiro).  She still didn't seem to get that the money we sent her was for ALL of the cortes.

Ramiro and I exchanged Facebook messages Saturday.  He said a couple of his relatives have died - plus there has been some very bad flooding in Izabal - with several outlying communities washed out and I think he said more than dozen people dead.  

As we continue to pray this week for Ramiro's church (Arca de Noe), Pastor Santos (another of the Coban theological education students), and all who worship there, we might also pray for Ramiro and his grieving family, and for the families and communities coping with flooding in Izabal (including those who have lost friends and family members).  (I may mention this to Presbyterian Disaster Assistance also.)

With both Rosa Marina and Ramiro, I mentioned that we have some more money to send the presbytery and that we hope to visit again in June-July 2016..  Rosa Marina mentioned that her visiting of women's groups around the presbytery has continued, but they don't always have enough money for her to visit everyone.  She also said it's about a two-hour drive between Puerto Barrios and her community (San Carlos El Porvenir) and to get to Livingston by boat from that area we'd have to go back to Puerto Barrios.

Let's meet next at church 1:00 p.m. Saturday, August 29, among other things to talk about our (hopefully) participation in the CHPC Generosity team-sponsored mission and ministry event after worship Sundays, October 18 and October 25.

 

-Perry

July network gathering

Mary, Soni, and Perry recently returned from the pre-Big Tent Guatemala Mission Network gathering on the University of Tennessee at Knoxville campus.

The national evangelical Presbyterian church (IENPG) may set up four synods – instead of just having one – and then have a national General Assembly.  One would be in northern/eastern Guatemala where most Q’eqchi’ presbyteries are.  But Amanda thought part of the impetus for this was the conservative southwestern presbyteries that have recently returned the fold trying to flex their muscle.  We might ask our presbytery partners about their thoughts on this, Amanda suggested. Certainly, Ramiro – who is now on the IENPG executive committee – would know something about that.

The IENPG had set up a network of “La Patria” schools – including two successful ones (one of these some of us visited in Coban) that really appealed to non-Catholic Ladino elites and had become a big cash cow for the national church.  But the IENPG siphoned so much money off from these schools that they have become less attractive – including with lots of competition from more and more non-Catholic schools – such that these schools are losing students and now losing money (instead of providing a big surplus for the national church.

The national Presbyterian seminary is also barely functioning – mainly hosting once-a-week classes for nearby Presbyterians – as well as providing staff and some resources for regional theological training programs, which many presbyteries have started on their own or with the seminary.

A backdrop is the 2014 re-release of some of the Walton funds – a fund that Sam and Helan Walton (of Walmart) set up based on Helen Walton’s mission trip travel to Guatemala and conversations with what is now PC(USA) World Mission staff – to support theological education with indigenous Presbyterians – but was frozen for seven years because of allegations of misuse. 

The IENPG met in May, repeated the stand it took vis-à-vis ordination of gays and lesbians with the new PCIUSA) stand on same-sex marriage – that they disagree but they want to stay in partnership with us.  The church has sent a letter to that effect.   However, one presbytery – Occidente – has apparently cut its ties with its U.S. presbytery partner, Minnesota Valleys, because of the PC(USA) stand on same-sex marriage.

One of the speakers to both the joint Guatemala and CEDEPCA mission network portion of program emphasized the ongoing political activity in Guatemala, with charges of corruption and the resignation of the vice president and unheard of protests that even Presbyterians, both Ladino and perhaps indigenous have gotten involved in.

We also heard from Teresa Waggener, the PC(USA) Office of the General Assembly immigration staffperson who talked at Cedar Ridge last September about the arrival of unaccompanied children in the United States.  Teresa emphasized that a federal judge has recently opened up the possibility of closing corporate family immigration prisons just completed, and also how Donald Trump’s rhetoric has attached itself to a Congressional effort to deny federal law enforcement assistance funds to “sanctuary” cities and counties that refuse to use traffic stops, etc. to enforce immigration laws.  Teresa also decried a Congressional effort to tie foreign aid to effective immigration law enforcement (Guatemala only get foreign aid if Guatemalans quit coming to the United States), along with U.S. aid to Mexico to expand its efforts to stop and deport Central Americans trying to cross through Mexico to get to the United States.

Amanda led a discussion about the possibility of a 2017 Guatemala mission network gathering that would be a travel seminar possibly on secular education, theological education, and health education – even subdividing perhaps.

Earlier on Hunter Farrell, PC(USA) World Mission director (pictured above), shared with us World Mission's struggles, including the mid-term re-call of four PC(USA) mission co-workers from Brazil and South Sudan, the possible re-call of as many as mission co-workers in a year or two if financial trends continue, continued efforts to solicit financial support for World Mission partnership efforts, and continued efforts to get much more than the 15-20% of PC(USA) congregations that are connected with World Mission and/or PC(USA) mission co-workers.  On the other hand, Hunter argued that he believes the denomination has turned the corner from pure congregationalism, as more and more congregations/Presbyterians realize the importance of staying connected with other Presbyterians/Christians - via not only the PC(USA), U.S. presbyteries, and other congregations but also via the PC(USA) and its partners around the world.

The largest amount of time for the gathering was taken by worship/Bible study led by CEDPCA staff/leadership - especially Judith Casteneda - which included participants reading the Mark passage about Jesus' followers encountering him on the road to Emmaus and using the Listen/Judge/Act method of biblical interpretation to understand/apply it.   

Lots of CHPC folks on the PC(USA) staff were at Big Tent (along with Elisabeth and her family).  At the Guatemala gathering were lots of old friends of CHPC Guatemala mission, including:  Ellen Dozier, Amanda Craft, Ellen Sherby, and Sandi Thompson-Royer.

-Perry

Ramiro in charge

Presbytery Treasurer Ramiro Quib, who has visited CHPC twice, at a meeting of the Executive Committee of the Guatemalan national Presbyterian Church (IENPG) at Monte Sinai.  Ramiro is now a member of the Executive Committee.

With the youth

A phone call with Pastor Raul Contreras Tut, of Altar de Noe church, and a game of Guatemala partnership bingo with tres leches cake were high points of partnership activities with a dozen youth participating in CHPC’s Home Mission Experience Monday night.  After technical problems struck, Pastor Jane outlined for the kids there a briefly history of the partnership, and Stephanie, Jane, Vincent, Luiz, Mary, Perry, and Soni shared trip memories/things they’d gotten out of the partnership (and invited age-qualified kids to participate in the 2016 trip.  Mary, Soni, Stephanie and Anna also helped model a cortes and juapiel. 

Elisabeth, with help from Blake, called Raul and told him about the youth’s Home Mission Experience and asked for prayers for traveling mercies for friends and family and for people affected by flooding in Kentuckiana.  Raul reported that one of his relatives had married a relative of Pastor Jose Domingo, of the Espiritu Santo church.  Raul also mentioned that Jorge, a leader in the New Jerusalem Church (?), had died.  And he apparently reported on a youth meeting coming up and on the selection by the national Presbyterian church of Ramiro (who we had tried calling too) as a delegate to their national council.  Some of Raul’s news we couldn’t hear.

Thanks to Vincent, Mary, Ross, and Soni for trying with the technology, and to Stephanie, Luiz, and Vincent for cutting and serving the cake and to Stephanie for creating and M.C.-ing the Guatemala partnership bingo game, which Brian and Daniel won (with Brian getting a little Guatemala bus and Daniel a little Guatemala cresch scene as prizes).  (One adult suggested we play the Guatemala partnership bingo game not only with youth and their parents/youth leaders but also with more CHPC adults.)

-Perry

Mid-summer prayers

This week Crescent Hill Presbyterian Church will pray for and with our Guatemala partners:

-On Sunday, July 19, and during the week thereafter: Familia de Noe church in El Estor’s Sinai neighborhood, Pastor Benjamin Sacul and family, and members, deacons, and elders.

-On Sunday, July 26, and during the week thereafter:  Lirio de los Valles church in El Estor’s San Jorge neighborhood, Pastor Mario Xo Ical and family, and members, deacons, and elders.

-Sunday, August 2, and the week thereafter:  Puerto del Cielo congregation in the El Estor suburb of La Union of El Estor, Pastor Leonel Cacao, and all worshipers

-On Sunday, August 9, and the week thereafter: Arca de Noe church in El Estor, Pastor Santos Teyul Mucu and family, and members, deacons, and elders.

June prayers

This month Crescent Hill church will pray with and for our Guatemala partners:

 

-On Sunday, June 7, and during the week thereafter:  Makajam congregation, its leaders, and all worshipers.
 

-On Sunday, June 14, and during the week thereafter:  Estoreño Presbytery Executive Committee, President Luis Botzoc, and other officers.

 

-On Sunday, June 21, and during the week thereafter:  Estoreño Presbytery Presbyterian Women organization, President Carmen Quib Caal, and other officers.

-On Sunday, June 28, and during the week thereafter:  Estoreño Presbytery youth and young adult organization, President Ramiro Quib, and other officers.

-On Sunday, July 5, and during the week thereafter:  Rosa Marina, the Guatemala Presbyterian church Presbyterian women organization’s organizer in Estoreño Presbytery and her peers across the country.

 

-On Sunday, July 12, and during the week thereafter:  Peniel church in Boqueron, Pastor Fidel Juc, and members, deacons, and elders.

May prayers

Pray with and for our Guatemala mission partners this month:

 

-Sunday, May 10, and the week thereafter:  Puerto del Cielo congregation in the El Estor suburb of La Union of El Estor, Pastor Leonel Cacao, and all worshipers

 

-Sunday, May 17, and the week thereafter:  Galilea congregation, Pastor Anselmo Tzul Turcios, and all worshipers

 

-Sunday, May 24, and the week thereafter:  Huracan Mich congregation in Panzos, Pastor Oscar Tzul Coc, and all worshipers

 

-Sunday, May 31, and the week thereafter:  Marc’am congregation, Pastor Gonzalo Tiul Choc, and all worshipers