Dear PSWR Family and Friends, 

The PSWR Regional Assembly 2020 will be held on Friday, October 16 and Saturday, October 17. As you have probably heard by now, we will be having our first ever all-digital event. While it is unfortunate that we cannot gather in person, we are excited for the opportunity this event gives us to intentionally connect with parts of our region that might otherwise not be able to attend the event.

The reality is that the world is changing around us. Our theme for this year, “The New and Living Way” offers us the opportunity to discern together what we need to do to truly live into this new reality. It’s not enough merely to exist. As children of the living God and believers in Christ, may we hold fast to the hope we profess and find ways to thrive as we respond to the calls of this moment.

During the assembly, we will have three educational opportunities related to our theme. These will include an opportunity to explore the practical skills needed to remain spiritually health during times of crisis, a panel discussion reflecting on the theme “The New and Living Way” and how the panelists see all the changes in our world calling the church into the future, and some practical tools for living out Jesus’ call to a ministry of reconciliation. But wait, there’s more! Watch for announcements about our post-assembly educational opportunities!

We have two phenomenal preachers who will inspire and challenge us during our worship services. Friday night’s speaker is Rev. Chanhee Heo who is a Ph.D. student in Religious Studies at Stanford University, studying Religions in America. She is currently serving as a Reconciliation Ministry commission member and General Board Committee member. Originally from South Korea, Chanhee is a first-generation immigrant and temporarily living in Carrollton, TX with her husband, in-laws, and their two energetic dogs. Saturday’s speaker is Rev. Yolanda M. Norton who is currently serving as the Crump Visiting Professor of Black Theology at the Seminary of the Southwest in Austin, TX. She is especially committed to womanist biblical interpretation, which focuses on the implications of reading the text alongside Black women. Her work continues to interrogate how various portrayals of women in the Hebrew Bible impact women of color—especially Black women—who encounter the Bible today. She has published chapters in I Found God in Me: A Womanist Biblical Hermeneutics Reader, Global Perspectives in the Old Testament, and Liturgical Press’ new feminist commentary on the Psalms (Books 2-3). She has been featured in Essence, Ebony, the New York Times, and a host of other print and media platforms for her creation of the Beyoncé Mass.

Whether this is your first or 50th+ regional event, it’s an opportunity to be reminded that we are part of the larger Body of Christ, to be renewed spiritually, and to reflect on how we can use the resources of our faith to truly live into “The New and Living Way.” We hope you will join us!

Blessings,

Rev. Jenny Crosswhite
Regional Assembly Coordinator