October 12, 2025 Eighteenth Sunday After Pentecost

I was reading an article this morning about how to measure vitality in small to mid-sized churches.  In the article, Dr. Lewis Parks suggests that even in an often fast-changing context, there are five markers of a vital church: 

1.       The congregation maintains vital worship of God. 

2.       The congregation is a surrogate family.

3.       The congregation is a blessing to the community where it finds itself. 

4.       The congregation maintains its space for holy space and mission. 

5.       The congregation passes its faith to the coming generations.[1] 

Regarding the first criteria, we can certainly attest to vital worship at McKnight.  We don’t have a flashy band or a fog machine, but we come together on Sunday mornings to offer our praise and prayers and thanksgiving to our God, and we think about our Scriptures together faithfully, and reflect on our faith and our lives. 

Regarding the second point, I have mixed feelings about the term “surrogate family,” because I know that for too many people “family” is a complicated term, but “community” can sometimes sound too big or too distant.  The point, though, still holds, that people are seeking “a place to be known by name, to share their hearts and their resources, and to be enveloped in the warmth of family-like ties,” and repeatedly, I have heard from visitors that our congregation offers warmth and welcome.  And I believe you all can attest to the comfort of having a community in which you can find support and love and prayer. 

For the third point, we have multiple ministries in our community.  From feeding programs to the Mission Barn projects to coffee for the homeless, along with several other ministries, we participate in our community in multiple ways.  For the fourth, we have a beautifully maintained facility, thanks to the faithful service of our trustees and council.  Consistent attention is given to anticipating the upcoming needs of the facility. 

And for the fifth criteria, about passing on the faith, we may not have the biggest program, but we do faithfully work to pass the faith on to our youth and to the young people in our community:  with our church school, in offering opportunities for service and participation in worship, and with our VBS. 

[1] https://www.churchleadership.com/to-the-point/point-new-way-view-small-church-vitality/#prettyPhoto

October 5, 2025 Seventeenth Sunday After Pentecost

First of all, thank you to all of you who worked at and/or attended the Thrive Refugee dinner Sunday night—it was a wonderful success!  We were sold out well ahead of the event, and it was wonderful to see our tables so full and so many people encountering not only the refugee family in question, but also our own church.  We are now “on the map” for a whole new group of people! 

At the same time, we had some good food, and we also learned a little about Guatemalan culture, about different kinds of refugees, and a little bit more about being a neighbor to someone in need.  And many of us saw, even if in small increments, the amount of work that the family in question put into this dinner.  It was two full days of cooking to prepare for that many people, and even with help, that’s a great deal of work.  We thank them for their willingness to share with us for our own education.

Second, please be aware that our book club dates have shifted back by one week, and we are meeting at 6:00 to better accommodate the people who have been attending. 

September 28, 2025 Sixteenth Sunday After Pentecost

In the many uncertainties of our time, one thing is very clear:  we are seeing fractures everywhere.  Between family members, between neighbors, between community members—and certainly all over the country at this particular moment.  The last is painfully visible to us all right now.  This tendency to fracture matters for us Christians, and specifically for us Christians here at McKnight, because we have been called into this community.  We are called by God to be the body of Christ. 

In order to remain together as a called community—as we are told to do, again and again in the New Testament—and also in order to be Christian participants in the discussions in our wider communities, we will need to think about how we handle disagreement and conflict.  Because we are always imperfect and finite people, and we are always still learning, and still listening.  And because disagreements will happen. 

So I was delighted to find in my email this morning the following excerpt from Kate Bowler’s conversation with Dr. Becky Kennedy:  “Repair is the most important thing. You don’t have to get it all right. You just have to be willing to go back, acknowledge the rupture, and choose connection again.”  Dr. Kennedy is talking about parenting, specifically, but the ideas still apply to us in our community. 

Kate Bowler follows up:  “Repair is never simple. It’s tender, humbling work. But it is also what keeps us human—and what keeps us the Church. You don’t have to have the perfect words or the flawless strategy. You just have to stay connected.  No perfect reconciliation. No story tied up neatly with a bow. But the faithful practice of choosing connection—again and again and again.” 

September 21, 2025 Fifteenth Sunday After Pentecost

This week I have been working on reports for our annual Charge Conference, and I want to say … we have been busy at McKnight UMC!  Our participation in multiple concerns continues steadily, including the North Side Feeding Program, Victims of Domestic Violence, Global Links, Lions Club, and the North Hills Community Outreach, particularly the Millville Food Pantry.  We continue to support the preschool with our visits, with low rent, with love gifts such as Halloween, Easter, and Christmas treats, as well as with our participation in their graduation each year.  This summer, we had a successful Wild Wonder VBS, drawing from the neighborhood as well as from the preschool. 

Additionally, we have begun our McKnight Caring program.  Our first quarter of the program was “Caring for our World,” and included that science-based VBS (Wild Wonder), an e-cycle event, a visit from Michael Airgood who spoke to us about the current situation in Ukraine, and we have started our anti-racism book study, While the World Watched, by Carolyn Maull McKinstry (meeting Tuesdays at 7:00 p.m.—we’d love for you to join us!). 

We move now into our “Caring for the Community” part of the McKnight Caring plan, looking more locally.  Knowing that this church has a long history with Church Union/Bethany House, I have been in discussion with Rev. Larry Homitsky of Church Union, and he is planning to speak to Council on the 8th of October and to our congregation during a worship service afterward, date TBD.  Later in October, we are planning to participate in the McKnight Village Halloween festivities, which include both a parade on October 25th at 11:00 a.m. and trick-or-treating on the night of Halloween (please email if you can participate!). 

September 14, 2025 Fourteenth Sunday After Pentecost

As we enter fall in earnest, things really are ramping up here at McKnight!  I’m looking forward to the beginning of our book club, which starts Tuesday the 16th, and I’ve noticed that (as planned) we have two books left on the counter, because I ordered a couple extra.  If you have asked for a book but not picked it up, please let me know as soon as possible, so I can put a post-it with your name on your copy.  If we don’t hear from anyone, we’ll assume that all “orders” are now fulfilled and that the books are free to anyone else on Sunday.  (And here’s your gentle reminder that the book is also in our library system, and it’s really easy to reserve a book online now—and then all you have to do is go to your local front desk to pick it up!)

We’re also well into preparations for our refugee dinner—many thanks to all who have signed up to help and to everyone who has purchased tickets!  I’m really looking forward to this time of good food and fellowship together, and to learning more about the situation of some of the refugees who have been settled in Pittsburgh. 

And of course, the students are back at the preschool as well—it is so good to hear their laughter and their play when they come outside for playground time!  I invite you to keep the students and the families and the teachers all in your prayers. 

September 7, 2025 Thirteenth Sunday After Pentecost

I was delighted to see that our books, While the World Watched, (finally) arrived today!  I ordered one for everyone who asked, plus two extras, and I’ll have them ready this Sunday.  Our local public libraries have copies as well.  You are welcome simply to read them on your own, but if you’ll be joining us for discussion, we will be meeting four Tuesday evenings at 7:00 p.m.:  the 16th, 23rd, and 30th of this month, and the 7th of October.  These meetings will be in place of our usual Bible Study, which will begin again on October 14th.   

If you’re joining us, the schedule is as follows: 

            For the 16th:  chapters 1-6

            For the 23rd:  chapters 7-12

            For the 30th:  chapters 13-18

            For the 7th:  chapters 19 through the end of the book (5 chapters)

Let me know if you would like me to set up a Zoom link; otherwise, I will assume that everyone wants to meet in person. 

October 14th will begin our study of the Psalms, which you might think of as the hymnbook of the Bible.  The Psalms have been important throughout both Christian and Jewish history.  They are acts of prayer and worship, and they include celebration and praise and petition and lament.  They cover the spectrum of human life, and they bring it all—and I do mean all—before God.  I am looking forward to studying them with you! 

Also, please remember to buy your tickets for the THRIVE dinner, either online or this Sunday, as after the 8th of this month we will open up sales to the community.  You can also follow the volunteer link to help out with set-up or cooking either Saturday or Sunday, or with clean-up on Sunday. 

August 31, 2025 Twelfth Sunday After Pentecost

As we gear up for a new year of ministry (in the sense that things are starting up again after a summer hiatus), I’m excited about some upcoming ministries.  I’m particularly excited about our THRIVE dinner coming up on September 28th.  Elsewhere in the newsletter, you’ll find more specifics, as well as some opportunities to volunteer.  We are looking forward to eating some authentic Guatemalan food together, as well as to learning more about the culture and the migration process!

We also anticipate our new, one-time book club on Carolyn Maul McKinstry’s While the World Watched.  Next week I’ll set up a reading and meeting schedule for you, but on Sunday book copies will be available to those of you who ordered ahead.  If you did not order ahead, I do have a few extras, so just ask on Sunday, and the local library system also has the book. 

August 17, 2025 Tenth Sunday After Pentecost

For this week’s pastor’s letter, I’d like to share with you the new vision statement for the entire United Methodist Church, from our Council of Bishops:

The Council of Bishops, in conjunction with the Connectional Table, is pleased to announce the unveiling of a new vision statement for The United Methodist Church. This vision reflects the Church's deep commitment to embodying God's dream for the world.

The vision states:

The United Methodist Church forms disciples of Jesus Christ who, empowered by the Holy Spirit, love boldly, serve joyfully, and lead courageously in local communities and worldwide connections.

This vision statement complements the Church's longstanding mission statement, inspired by Matthew 28:1-20: "The mission of The United Methodist Church is to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world."

The vision encourages United Methodists to embody the following principles:

•         Love Boldly: Passionately love God and, like Jesus, embrace and include people of every age, nation, race, gender and walk of life.

◦         Inspired by Matthew 22:37-39 and John 13:34-35

•         Serve Joyfully: With a Christ-like heart, journey alongside the most vulnerable, offering care and compassion with joy.

◦         Inspired by Psalm 100:1, Nehemiah 8:10, John 13:14-15 and 1 Peter 4:10

•         Lead Courageously: Follow Jesus’ example by resisting and dismantling all systems of evil, injustice, and oppression, striving for peace, justice and reconciliation.

◦         Inspired by Joshua 1:9 and Ephesians 6:10

“This new vision is not simply a statement or a plan, it is a catalyst for transformation,” said Bishop Tracy Smith Malone, President of the Council of Bishops. “It is a vision that will help the Church embrace the opportunities before us, to follow where God is leading us, and to more fully engage in our mission of making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.”

The Council of Bishops and the Connectional Table will work with General Agencies to create resources that inspire and equip disciples, leaders, and congregations to live into this vision. Resources will be shared at Annual Conference sessions and with leaders within local churches this summer, with lay member resources anticipated to follow in late 2025/early 2026.[1]

August 10, 2025 Ninth Sunday After Pentecost

Yesterday I had my annual meeting with our District Superintendent, the Rev. Paul Ritchey.  The meeting is designed as a check-in:  we go over the evaluation forms from SPRC, he asks if I have any particular concerns, either personally or for my churches, and then what he can do for me.  The meeting went well, and as is my habit, I took notes.  I wanted to share with you something Paul mentioned in the course of our discussion, and that is the question “What do you do to get ready for worship?” 

As a pastor now, I start my Sundays with prayer and a short Bible study.  I give all of that work I’ve done during the week, in preparation for Sunday morning, to God, and ask that God receives that gift.  No pastor feels more human and more humbled than on Sunday morning—hoping to offer to God and to the people something that touches on God, that invites people to worship, that invites us into a deeper consideration of Scripture and of our relationship to the One who loves us.  So my prayer time is important:  I give that morning to God, knowing how very human I am. 

When I was a layperson, the question would have surprised me completely.  I would have been thinking, “I get dressed and ready, I marshal the kids, and I go to church.”  But having heard Paul’s question (originally asked by David Jeremiah), I wonder now what “getting ready” for worship might look like.  Do I quiet my soul—spend 10 minutes in nature, listening to God’s creation?  Do I still do my daily Bible study?  As a pastor now, I can tell you that your pastors present and future would be very happy to be included in a simple prayer that morning! 

So I ask you now:  what do you do to get ready for worship? 

August 3, 2025 Eighth Sunday After Pentecost

As I write this, we’ve completed two days of vacation Bible school, and while it’s hard work, it’s also good work.  The kids are learning two songs about wonder, they’ve heard some of Psalm 104 and are memorizing the 24th verse, and they are getting plenty of love and crafts and outside time.  Oh, and did I say the volunteers are amazing?  The preschool teachers are all pitching in, as are some church members, and we’re working together to make this a great time for the kids.  

I don’t mind admitting to you that while I have kids of my own, the idea of teaching a roomful of other people’s kids is a little scary for me, so I’m happy to see it going so well.  Much of this is due to the many volunteers, especially Carla, who has contributed her expertise from the very beginning of the planning stages.  I am very thankful for the many gifts of all the people who have and are contributing! 

July 27, 2025 Seventh Sunday After Pentecost

Pastor Becky is on vacation this week. Please give a warm welcome to Rev. Dr. Edwin Chr. van Driel this Sunday as he fills in for Pastor Becky!

The Rev. Dr. Edwin Chr. van Driel occupies the Directors’ Bicentennial Chair in Theology at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary. He teaches mainly in Christology, ecclesiology, and the interaction between Biblical studies and theology. Van Driel is deeply invested in helping the church think about its existence and calling as it moves into an increasingly post-Christian world.

Van Driel is the author of Rethinking Paul: Protestant Theology and Pauline Exegesis (Cambridge University Press, 2021) and Incarnation Anyway: Arguments for Supralapsarian Christology (Oxford University Press, 2008). He also edited What Is Jesus Doing? Divine Agency in the Life of the Church and the Work of the Pastor (IVP Academic, 2019) and the T&T Clark Handbook of Election (forthcoming from Continuum). His work has been published in academic journals such as Modern Theology, The International Journal of Systematic Theology, Worship, and The Scottish Journal of Theology, but also in popular magazines such as Christian Century, Call to Worship, and The Presbyterian Outlook.

To continue reading more about Rev. Dr. Edwin Chr. van Driel, click the link below or visit https://guides.pts.edu/facultyseries/creachandvandriel

July 20, 2025 Sixth Sunday After Pentecost

Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of this week I have been at a writing retreat, working on my final set of ordination papers.  It’s a tough but interesting set of questions, and I hope you’ll give me grace on the letter this week as I need to focus there. 

Please also pray for our VBS.  We have a good number of kids and a good number of volunteers, and even though this is my first time running a VBS, we are looking forward to a good week!

July 13, 2025 Fifth Sunday After Pentecost

As we come together each week for worship, what are we doing? You might be surprised at how many different “obvious” answers people can come up with in response to that question. For instance, we are making space in our lives to pay attention to God. We come to offer our lives and our joys, and our concerns. We come to spend time with one another, to remember ourselves as part of the Body of Christ, and to check in with each other about concerns and needs and our lives in general.

All of those things are true, and there are many more good answers besides. But the specific one I want to consider in this letter is this one, by Ellen Davis: “Worship is a vigorous act of reordering our desires in the light of God’s burning desire for the wellness of all creation.”

Ellen Davis is a professor of Old Testament at Duke Divinity School, and she points to the many places in the Old Testament where God is at work, creating, healing, and renewing. Many of us are more familiar with the New Testament—where we can also see places where God (in this case Jesus) is at work, healing and renewing. And we know that all that Jesus did for us, on the cross and in the resurrection, was done to bring us back into a place of healed relationship with God.

But why does Davis call worship a “vigorous act”? She is pointing out that worship is not something we consume, and it’s not something we watch—it is something we participate in. As we were taught early in seminary, “liturgy” means “work of the people.” And our participation affects us.

June 22, 2025 Fourth Sunday After Pentecost

It turns out that jetlag is as real coming west as it is going east, and I feel like my brain is still half asleep, but it is so good to be back—I am so looking forward to seeing all of you on Sunday! I had a rich and wonderful time in the Netherlands and am looking forward to sharing more about my trip with you in the near future.

But first, Annual Conference 2025: everything went very smoothly. There was a beautiful service combining the waters from all over Western Pennsylvania for a service of remembering our baptism and our common call. We commissioned and ordained new elders and deacons, and celebrated the service of those who retired this year. We had a service honoring those pastors and their spouses who have died in the last year, and included their families in our remembrance. We voted on the constitutional amendments, the tally of which will only be announced when all annual conferences have voted. And we voted on more “local” legislation as well: the annual budget for the conference, affirming nominations for conference positions, clarifying points in previous legislation, etc.—the usual run of documents.

June 15, 2025 Trinity Sunday

As you read this, I will be winding down the trip in the Netherlands and preparing for the flight home.  I will go right from the airport in Pittsburgh to Erie for Annual Conference.  I ask your prayers for traveling mercies, and for our Annual Conference as well:  that it be a good time of fellowship and worship and reconnection in the conference, as well as a constructive time of legislation for the Conference. 

 

Anticipating that I will not have had time to prepare for the coming Sunday, I have arranged for one more sub for you this weekend:  a young student from Pittsburgh Theological Seminary named Gregory Brown.  Gregory is one of those quiet, popular types of students, and he has a deep, rich voice—I look forward to listening to his sermon online, and I trust that you will make him feel welcome and supported in this time of ministering and learning. 

June 8, 2025 Pentecost

As you all already know, this week I am in the Netherlands on a learning trip, encountering churches and ministries in the Netherlands, so this will be a short letter.  I ask your prayer for our group of 12 travelers, that this might be a rich time of listening and learning, and that the trip go smoothly and well. 

In the meantime, for Sunday I have asked the Rev. Tom Hoeke, a newly retired UMC pastor with many years in Western Pennsylvania, to sub for me on Sunday.  Rev. Hoeke is a particularly appropriate sub in this case since he himself immigrated here with his family from the Netherlands when he was a child.  I know that you will all make him very welcome. 

June 1, 2025 Seventh Sunday of Easter

For this newsletter I’d like to introduce a denomination-wide summer reading program.  All United Methodists are invited to participate:  we’ll be reading the book of Romans as well as 1 and 2 Corinthians through the summer, a chapter a day.  There’s an entire webpage devoted to this (you can find that here: https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/articles/read-a-chapter-a-day-summer-2025-challenge-resources?utm_source=%2BREAD+A+CHAPTER+A+DAY&utm_campaign=342cfdaaf8-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2024_01_31_01_12_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_-c99e73e62b-417344691&mc_cid=342cfdaaf8&mc_eid=a23df2b577, as well as a Facebook page.  There’s also a Zoom small group available as well (see on the webpage above). 

I hope you can join us as we read, even if you miss a few days.  It’s a time of focus for our entire denomination, and a short time of study for you each day.  Maybe you’re a morning person and prefer to do this with your first cup of coffee, or maybe you’d like to use it as a way to wind down before bed.  However and whenever you do it, and whether or not you use the extra denominational resources, you’ll have an opportunity to encounter the gift of Scripture, and to know that you are doing it with thousands of other Christians, all reading the same thing on the same day.  And if it’s easiest for you to do it on the computer, you can use Bible Gateway or some other such online resource for the Scripture—just google the chapter for the day. 

It all begins on June 9th.  You can sign up here (https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/articles/read-a-chapter-a-day-summer-2025-challenge) if you’d like some emails to keep you on track. 

May 25, 2025 Sixth Sunday of Easter

As I write this letter, just in the last few weeks we have hosted a voting site for an election, an e-waste collection (and one that aims to recycle everything and not simply dispose of it all), and I have booked my first wedding in our beautiful sanctuary.  We even already have two registrations for our VBS!  Good things are happening at McKnight!

I am working to book some of the speakers and events that we have been contemplating, with special focus on the ones you prioritized on the forms that you sent or gave back to me.  For instance, I am meeting here with a representative from THRIVE next Thursday, and she and I hope to schedule the refugee dinner and talk at that point, once she has seen the facilities.  We’ve already had Micheal Airgood here, and he spoke a little about his time in Ukraine, but we may want to have him back for a more extended reflection than can happen in a sermon—please let me know what you would like.  And—of course—we have the upcoming VBS.  As we get more on the calendar, we will keep you informed.

May 11, 2025 Fourth Sunday of Easter

As we continue to discern together what we are to be doing in this moment in our culture as McKnight UMC, part of the body of Christ, we have a LOT of things upcoming.  First, tomorrow is our FREE e-waste recycling event.  Invite your friends—it’s a good opportunity to put the church on their mental maps, so to speak, and they can come for smoothies or açaí bowls, too.  

On Sunday, we’ve got Michael Airgood coming to lead worship.  Michael is a licensed local pastor in our own United Methodist conference, and he has spent a great deal of time in Ukraine (including recently) and will be speaking to his experience and ministry there.  We will also have a guest pianist (Fabio Gentili) while Alex is in Ecuador; I’ve heard him play and he’s pretty amazing.  It should be an excellent Sunday at McKnight, full of worship and good music and some time for reflection. 

We’re also turning toward gearing up for our science-based Vacation Bible School—please see elsewhere in this newsletter for details and to save the date.  We want to make sure that all the kids who attend VBS experience church as a friendly place, full of love, that they hear something of God’s love for them, and that they learn about this wonderful creation that God has given us to live in.