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Pastor Appreciation Day Is Sunday, October 10, 2021

9/29/2021

Pastor Appreciation Day is Sunday, October 10, 2021. This celebration happens in the month of October, which also happens to be Pastor Appreciation Month. The celebration of this day began with the idea to celebrate the contributions of priests, ministers, reverends, and pastors to the country, especially in the United States. It is also the day that encourages ministers and pastors to keep up with their good work and continue their contributions.

As Pastor to Pastors in this Presbytery, I know how much more difficult the work has become for these pastors over the past nineteen months, as they've had to pivot and adapt to the challenges of being the Church in a pandemic that has entangled many in a wired and wireless world. One of our pastors even had a baby during this pandemic! She and her husband presented their baby daughter for baptism during worship on Sunday, September 19, 2021.

While Pastor Appreciation Day officially started in 1992, nearly two-thousand years prior to this, the Apostle Paul admonished the members of the congregation in Thessalonica with these words, "And now, friends, we ask you to honor those leaders, who work so hard for you, who have been given the responsibility of urging and guiding you along in your obedience. Overwhelm them with appreciation and love" (1 Thessalonians 5:12, The Message).

Pastor Appreciation Day provides you with an opportunity to thank our pastors for his or her service to the church and community. It is my hope that, either on Sunday, October 10, 2021, or some other time during the month of October, our congregations take time to overwhelm their pastors with appreciation and love.

Faithfully yours,
Danny C. Murphy
General Presbyter

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When is It Ever going to End?

9/3/2021

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A worldwide pandemic, coupled with recent extreme weather conditions during the month of August 2021, makes one wonder: When is it ever going to end?

We have seen cases of Covid-19 continue to rise as the more contagious Delta variant leads to spikes in infections and hospitalizations across the globe. In the U.S., southern states experienced a surge in cases, with many hospitals at or near capacity. According to a recent New York Times article, Florida, Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri, Mississippi, Alabama, and parts of Texas are reporting some of the highest case rates in the country.

A magnitude 7.2 earthquake stuck the Tiburon Peninsula in the Caribbean nation of Haiti. At least 2,200 people were confirmed dead, 12,260 were injured, 136,800 houses and buildings were destroyed or damaged, 24,400 people were displaced, and 650,000 people required humanitarian assistance.

Floodwaters inundated Middle Tennessee, where Waverly, a city in Humphreys County, Tennessee, was the hardest hit. Search and rescue efforts were suspended after identifying 20 people who were killed as a result of water topping the banks of area waterways and flooding the county. Among the dead were 7-month-old twins, swept out of their father’s arms by floodwaters, and 55-year-old Linda Almond Bryant. Bryant started a Facebook Live video. “We’re being flooded right now,” she said as water pushed debris by a door. “Really scary.” It was the last video she appeared to post to her Facebook page. The flood claimed her life, according to her son.

Flash floods swept across western North Carolina in the wake of Tropical Depression Fred. Five people were killed and one person was missing in Cruso, NC, where homes were swept off their foundations. The flood caused at least $300 million worth of damage and destroyed 225 structures in Cruso. This figure did not include damage in the towns of Canton and Clyde.

Ida, a category 4 Hurricane, blasted ashore in Louisiana as one of the most powerful storms ever to hit the U.S., knocking out the New Orleans power grid, blowing roofs off buildings and reversing the flow of the Mississippi River as it rushed from the Louisiana coast into one of the nation’s most important industrial corridors. Hurricane Ida made landfall exactly 16 years to the day after Hurricane Katrina slammed into the state to become one of the deadliest and the costliest hurricanes to hit the U.S. in recorded history.

The devasting Caldor wildfire that set California ablaze has caused thousands of people to quickly flee South Lake Tahoe as the resort city came under an evacuation order and the wildfire raced toward the lake. Our Zephyr Point Presbyterian Conference Center in Nevada, has so far been spared from the furious wildfire raging in California and the Tahoe basin, and has become a safe haven for more than 100 people. At least 729 structures, including nearly 490 homes, have been destroyed by the Caldor Fire.

I am pleased to announce that through our Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA) program the Presbyterian Church (USA) is responding to the COVID-19 Pandemic and to each of the natural disasters mentioned above.

Due to the connectional nature of our denomination, you and/or your congregation may join with other presbyterians and help support our Church’s response using the links below.

COVID-19 RESPONSE
PDA pulled 2.7 million dollars from reserves to seed the COVID-19 ongoing response fund, both in the United States and internationally. These are funds that have been given by donors to PDA’s general fund, meant to meet the response needs of disasters, small or large, that are not able to be funded by special appeals.

Support the COVID-19 response with designated gifts to DR000148

HAITI EARTHQUAKE
Working closely with Presbyterian World Mission, our traditional partners on the ground and ACT Alliance, PDA is responding to emergency needs such as WASH (water, sanitation and hygiene), emergency power generators, shelter, food, first aid and more.

Support the Haiti Earthquake response with designated gifts to OG100000-Haiti

TENNESSEE FLOODING
PDA is responding to this disaster and processed initial assistance grants to meet emergency needs.

Support the Tennessee Flooding response with designated gifts to DR000191

NORTH CAROLINA FLOODING
PDA is working with Presbyterian leadership on the ground as they assess the flood damages caused by Tropical Depression Fred.

Support the North Carolina Flooding response with designated gifts to DR000191

HURRICANE IDA
PDA is responding to Hurricane Ida. The initial assessment of the damage is staggering. The needs of those impacted is changing daily due to lack of access to power, refrigeration, water and housing.

Support the Hurricane Ida response with designated gifts to DR000169

CALDOR WILDFIRE
PDA is responding to U.S. wildfires.

Support Caldor Wildfire response with designated gifts to DR000165

PLEASE NOTE: If you would like to serve on a response team that is mobilized to help people who are suffering due to natural disasters, then please contact Elder Laura Jordan, the moderator of Trinity’s Disaster Assistance Team (TDAT), at 803-466-8440. If your church has a disaster assistance/response plan in place, please share that information with Laura, as well.

Faithfully yours,
Danny C. Murphy
General Presbyter

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Pastor Appreciation Day Is Sunday, October 10, 2021

When is It Ever going to End?

Conquer evil by doing good

Rev. Dr. Danny Murphy, SR.

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