An Invitation to Attend "Common Faith, Common Mission" Conference on April 20, 2004 at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary

Dear Presbyterian Colleagues:

We are pleased to invite you to a conference being co-sponsored by Pittsburgh Theological Seminary and the Office of the General Assembly.  "Common Faith, Common Mission" will be held in the cafeteria of the seminary in Pittsburgh, PA, on Tuesday, April 20, 2004.  The event will focus on a matter of crucial importance for the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), namely, the core values of our Reformed faith, as articulated in our Constitution.  During our time together we will seek to discern how these values might shape the future mission of the denomination and serve as a resource for the renewal of our congregations.

The Constitution is one of the great assets of our church.  It lifts up our common faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and the great truths of the gospel in our Book of Confessions.  Our Book of Order, also built on deep Reformed theological convictions, calls us to an ordered life as a covenant community, to mutual accountability in the body of Christ, and to faithful worship of God.  At the same time that we celebrate these enduring truths, we also live in a dramatically new missionary situation in 21st century America that calls for fresh approaches to our life, relationships, and ministry.  We hope this conference will help the church both to affirm the great strengths of our Constitution and to develop a fresh vision about where God is leading us in a new century.

A full agenda is planned for this "Common Faith, Common Mission" event.  We will begin with worship in the seminary chapel, followed by a simple boxed lunch.  The Stated Clerk of the General Assembly will address the participants about the gift of our Constitution and what insights it offers about Presbyterian core values.  There will be brief responses from a variety of Presbyterian leaders and thinkers who represent some of the diversity of opinion in our church.  Small groups and group plenary will provide opportunities for interaction and discussion among participants.  We will conclude by 4:30 p.m.

We will also offer a special event beginning at 10:00 a.m. the same day to introduce a four-session curriculum being produced by the Office of the General Assembly that relates to the foundational documents of our Constitution.  The curriculum is designed for use by any group in the church that wants to learn more about our core beliefs and confessional principles.  It may be of special interest to Christian educators and pastors who are looking for confirmation class, adult education, or officer training materials.

Directions to the Pittsburgh Theological Seminary campus are available at the seminary's website - www.pts.edu. Registration for the conference is available on-line at www.pcusa.org/oga.   We encourage seminary students to register your intention to attend.

Please feel free to pass along this information to others who might have an interest in attending.  We hope you and your colleagues will join us on April 20th to discuss together how we might enable the core values of our Constitution to shape our life and ministry for the 21st century.

Yours in Christ,
Carnegie Samuel Calian, President          Clifton Kirkpatrick, Stated Clerk
Pittsburgh Theological Seminary             Office of the General Assembly

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