Had a great weekend at our church this weekend with Dr. Frank Spina, one of my colleagues at SPU. Frank spoke on the notion of “The Faith of the Outsider” – a designation seen throughout the Biblical canon and the ways in which God continues to draw attention to the coming Kingdom of God vis a vis unlikely sources such as Rahab, Tamar, and others. This morning he spoke on Genesis 12: 1-3 and God’s covenant with Abram. Is the call of God ultimately an exclusionary message – a line in the sand dividing who is “in” and who is “out”? For Frank, the call of God’s covenant community is a calling to “chose” those outside the understanding of God’s grace and draw them into the “inclusion” of God’s saving embrace. Certainly a welcome message for a Presbyterian congregation to hear…
Presbyterians at First Pres Albany, NY have an inclusive ministry, FYI.
That is great to hear – how does your church define ‘inclusivity?”
http://www.firstpresalbany.org/welcome/welcome.html
Our Mission Statement defines First Presbyterian as an inclusive church that “welcomes persons of differing abilities, of all economic and ethnic groups, of any sexual orientation, to share with us the joy, the power, the challenge of God’s good news in Jesus Christ.”