Events Calendar

2024 Spring Retreat for Pastors and CPs

The Encouraging Churches to Flourish Unit of the Beaver-Butler Presbytery is offering a retreat for pastors and CPs in conjunction with Shenango Presbytery on May 21-22 at Villa Maria Education and Spirituality Center in Pulaski, PA.

This beautiful setting will offer time for quiet reflection, meaningful worship and fellowship with colleagues. Plus, keynote speaker Byron Borger from Hearts and Minds Bookstore will offer insights on the importance of story in our ministries.

Cost of $55 includes overnight lodging and meals. Commuter cost is $40.

Watch a video here to learn more.

To register, fill out the form and return it with your payment to the Beaver-Butler Presbytery office (P.O. Box 279, Zelienople, PA 16063). Registration deadline is Friday, May 3.

Click here to download a flyer and form.

Mediation Skills Training Institute

Cranberry Community United Presbyterian Church will host a Mediation Skills Training Institute event June 24-28. This five-day event is designed to equip church leaders with the knowledge and skills necessary to deal effectively with interpersonal, congregational and other forms of group conflict. It also includes a component on congregational mediation and consultation, placed within the context of family systems theory. Although focused primarily on the church setting, the skills learned are directly transferable to other settings, including the business and academic worlds.

The gathering will be presented by the Lombard Mennonite Peace Center.

For more information, click here. A downloadable brochure is available by clicking here.

Civil Rights Pilgrimage Bus Tour

The Presbytery of Donegal is sponsoring a Civil Rights Pilgrimage Bus Tour to Virginia, Georgia, Alabama and Tennessee from Oct. 19-26. The package includes eight days and seven nights of lodging, breakfast, transportation, museum tour fees and speakers.

The cost is $1,625 per person for double occupancy and single occupancy is $2,175 per person (may be less depending on participants). Lunch and dinner are NOT included in the price. A limited number of single rooms are available.

More information is available by clicking here.

Boundaries Training for Pastors and Lay Pastors

Huntingdon Presbytery will hold Boundaries Training for Pastors and Lay Pastors on Saturday, April 20, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Zoom

To register, click here.

Lackawanna Presbytery Calendar

Click here for upcoming events around Lackawanna Presbytery.

Presbytery of Lehigh Calendar

Click here for upcoming events around the Presbytery of Lehigh.

Presbytery of Philadelphia Calendar

Pittsburgh Presbytery Calendar

Mission Trip to Charleston, WV

The Presbytery of Redstone Mission Team is planning a spring trip to Charleston, WV, the week of April 28-May 4. Work will include flood relief or general repairs for those in need. Cost is $300 with the volunteer paying $150 and the balance coming out of the Mission Team Fund. If interested, e-mail Phyllis Frye at pfrye1234@windstream.net or call 724-468-3740.

Pastor and Elder Training Workshops

A Preaching Laboratory will be the focus of a Pastor and Elder Training Workshop on Saturday, May 4. Presented by the Inter-Presbytery Leadership Formation, this gathering will be led by the Revs. Skip Noftzger and Craig Kephart.

All workshops are from 12:30 to 3:30 p.m., are free and will be offered in person at the Presbytery of Redstone office along with an online option via Zoom. To register for the workshop, contact Karen Gray at Redstone at (724) 837-6737 or secretary@redstonepresbytery.org.

Trip to Lancaster

Redstone Presbyterian SeniorCare has planned a trip to Lancaster on Aug. 1-2, which will include an experience “Daniel” at Sight and Sound Theater.

The bus will depart Redstone North Huntingdon at 7 a.m. on Thursday, Aug. 1, and travel to Lancaster. Upon arrival, travelers will spend time shopping at Kitchen Kettle Village and Bird-in-Hand Market. (Those who wish can have a little hotel rest time in the afternoon, instead.) The first evening we include the timeless classic joy of the musical “Sound of Music” at the Dutch Apple Dinner Theater.

Friday morning after breakfast at the hotel the bus will travel to Sight and Sound for the 11 a.m. production of “Daniel.”

Tickets for the shows and lodging range from $330 to $445 depending on occupancy choices. To reserve your spot by phone, call Justin at 724-832-8401 ext. 3378.

Redstone Presbytery Calendar

Spring Pastor Retreat

Byron Borger of Hearts and Minds Bookstore will join Shenango Presbytery for its Spring Pastor Retreat on May 21-22 at Villa Maria Retreat Center. The gathering will provide space for reflecting on “How Story Influences Us.” Shenango pastors can attend for $115 (overnight with a private bath) or $70 to commute.

To register by May 3, click here.

Pastors’ Canadian Canoe Trip

Howard Gaston, who is serving at Neshannock Presbyterian Church in New Wilmington, PA, is hosting a Pastors’ Canadian Canoe Trip from Sept. 22-30. This trip is open to clergy and others engaged in pastoral ministry.

This trip is about “less” and yet it hopes to provide you with “more;” more God, more peace, more inspiration. Take the risk and experience faith and ministry in a very simple place. This trip will be a challenge to renewal and growth in our life and ministry. These experiences may come in packages that are not totally expected or perhaps even appreciated.

Registration is limited to eight participants and will be on a first come, first served basis.

More information is available by clicking here.

Communion Training for Ruling Elders

All sessions, particularly those whose churches do not have pastoral leadership, are invited to send ruling elders (they don’t have to be on the session currently) to this Communion Training event on April 28 from 3-5 p.m. Participants must be approved by the session of their church of membership to be authorized. Note that there is an advance assignment that includes reading sections of the 2023-2025 Book of Order.

There is no cost to participate. The registration deadline is Friday, April 19. Register by submitting your name, church, email, phone number, and date of session approval to attend this training to susan_sharp_campbell@hotmail.com. If you have any questions, you may contact Susan at this email address or 304-667-9428.

More information is available by clicking here.

Being Vital Today

The Presbytery of West Virginia will hold an Expanding Your Ministry Toolbox gathering on Saturday, May 4, from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Zoom. The focus of this gathering is “Being Vital Today.”

We live in a new post-Christendom world in which the church is no longer the center of our society. This new world is unlike any world the church has ever existed in before. Thus, we need to be ready to answer a new set of questions; we cannot assume our new world understands what we do anymore.

This course, for which you will find an introductory video by clicking here, will explore the “7 Marks of Vital Congregations” that the Office of Vital Congregations of the Presbyterian Mission Agency has identified to help us live more fully as disciples of Christ and to identify talking points to share with those who are seeking to believe. It will be taught by Brian Coulter, pastor of First Presbyterian Church, Fort Worth, TX, and a consultant with the Presbyterian Mission Agency Office of Theology, Formation and Evangelism.

Cost is $40. Register by April 29. Contact Susan Sharp Campbell for more information.

Jazz Concert: Spring Can Really Hang You Up

A jazz concert featuring Bill Carter and the Presbybop Sextet will be held at the First Presbyterian Church of Clarks Summit, PA, on Sunday, April 21, at 4 p.m.

April “mixes memory and desire,” wrote the poet T.S. Eliot. This poignant springtime theme will be explored by the Presbybop Sextet in a musical celebration for Jazz Appreciation Month. The music will feature compositions and arrangements by Bill Carter and Bill’s mentor, Al Hamme, in memory of Al’s passing in September of 2023.

The concert is also a launch event for Bill’s new book “Thriving on a Ruff: Jazz and the Spiritual Life,” which will be available at the concert. Bill will be signing books at a reception following the show.

The concert is open to the public free of charge, with a free-will offering taken to help defray the costs of the event.

Celebrating 150 Years

First Presbyterian Church of Belle Vernon will celebrate 150 years in ministry in April. The weekend begins on Saturday evening, April 27, at 6 p.m., with a concert featuring Westward Road, a trio providing a unique blend of gospel and modern worship music. The concert is free to the public, and a love offering will be received.

The celebration continues Sunday morning with a special worship service highlighting what the Lord has done in the past 150 years and looking forward to those to come, until the Lord returns. For more information, contact First Pres at 724-929-7616. To hear a preview of Westward Road’s music, visit their website by clicking here.

Rise Against Hunger

Upper Ten Mile Presbyterian Church in Prosperity, PA, will host a Rise Against Hunger event on Sept. 28. Upper Ten Mile encourages you and your congregation to get involved in this life-changing ministry. See the attached letter from CRE Cody Rogers for details about the food-packing event and how you can get involved.