Investing in ministry

Dear friends,

There is a lot of turmoil in the world of investing these days. It is dominating the news.  As I write this, Wall Street just experienced a technological glitch and China’s stock market has lost thirty percent of its value in several days.  Then there are the Greeks who seem unable to pay their debt as their country is becoming an investment disaster.   Brazilians, Russians and Chinese are meeting to see if their block cannot generate its own investment.  People want to know where to put their money so that it will be safe, but nothing seems full proof.  There is always talk of emerging markets, but there is disagreement about which ones are a good bet. So what should people do: invest in stocks, bonds, real estate, gold etc.?  It is a perplexing world.

Then there is this little church called Parkview that sits in this world, a quiet, friendly place with people who want to make a difference, but perhaps don’t always have the time.  Nevertheless we have been talking about getting the Kansha building ready for residents/or interns to live there.  We have been fortunate that the Presbytery is interested in assisting us, that we have a nice building on the corner and beyond that we have two anonymous “angel investors” who want to donate a significant amount for the upgrading of the Kansha if matched by congregational participation. So as organizations of Parkview please consider making a contribution you are comfortable with. Jujikai is already doing that and other individuals are stepping forward.  We are very pleased by this and flattered by confidence people put in the congregation and its ministry.  They are in a sense investing the future of the church, although they themselves will not reap any benefit other than satisfaction perhaps.  I am enthusiastic about the possibility of our small church training young men and women to minister to the multicultural community which increasingly is the reflection of our society.

In “First Peoples, Australia “(PBS, KVIE) one can learn that the first Australians traveled from East Africa to Australia about 50,000 years ago, to be spread out across that vast continent that was eventually ravaged by drought.  The first peoples adjusted on an isolated continent by creating a social network in Australia.  For survival the groups sought each other out.  Survival depends on a strong social network.  I learned that the more peoples engage with each other and emotionally invest in each other, the more we develop the human species in the right direction. This is what we want to do at Parkview: to bring out the greatest possible diversity of people so we can all learn to eradicate the differences that divide us and enrich our community.  This is what we want young ministers to experience.  This is how we make the world divided by tribalism and by economics a better place.

I know you too are invested in this church.  You are invested emotionally, socially and financially through your pledge or other ways of giving and just by being in church. We need you to continue what you are doing so we may do our part in transforming our state, our country and the world Church. Thank you for continuing to invest in this church in so many ways. May God bless its ministry.  Aart