Below you’ll find the latest news and updates from South Highland.
PNC Survey 4/9/23
Greetings, South Highlanders! The Pastor Nominating Committee has been hard at work preparing for our upcoming pastoral transition. As part of that process, we want to hear your thoughts on the past, present, and future of South Highland, as well as the qualities and skills that are most important for our next Senior Pastor to possess. A short survey was provided to all SHPC members via email. Paper copies were also available to pick up at various locations throughout the…
Thinking Outside the Toolbox
I was quite moved during the construction of a Habitat home for the Tonnesha Banks family last fall. On my first day at the build, I noticed a blessing written on a stud in a wall. The next week there were more prayers and blessings written on the frame of the house. This continued for several more weeks until the frame was covered over with sheet rock and siding. God’s presence can be found in every room of the Banks’…
Inside Matthew 25 at SHPC
South Highland has now completed two years as part of the Matthew 25 Initiative. The goals for this initiative are described on the Presbyterian Mission website. Our group of Matthew 25 Initiative advisors are known as the M25 Ambassadors. In-person and Zoom meetings occur quarterly. At the 2016 Together for the Gospel Conference, historian-theologian-author Jemar Tisby spoke of the essential elements of all genuine racial reconciliation, an A.R.C. of Racial Justice (also economic and social justice). Tisby said there must…
New Year’s Resolutions
Are you looking for ways to keep your New Year’s Resolutions? The Matthew 25 Initiative suggests you consider volunteering to assist migrants arriving in Birmingham in January. Trinity West in Homewood expects to receive and assist these migrants in arranging their travel plans from Birmingham to other cities to unite them with their sponsors. Trinity West Homewood is the location. Volunteers will greet the migrants, provide them with food and warm clothing, assist them in contacting their sponsors in other…
A Year of Resettlement in Alabama
South Highland’s Matthew 25 team partners with Inspiritus Birmingham to minister to refugees who have relocated to this area. Here is an update on the team’s first year of service in this important mission. The Inspiritus Alabama Refugee Resettlement Team is celebrating ONE YEAR since the arrival of our first client ever on December 3rd, 2021! We have welcomed 112 refugees and Afghan allies to Central Alabama since launching our refugee resettlement program. We have also grown by two new…
Family Gratitude
On December 10, 2021, Nasir, Gul Bakht, Omid and Arman Akbary arrived in Birmingham, having fled Kabul, Afghanistan, on August 25th. All they wanted was a chance – for safety, work, education, and a home. As we celebrate the one-year anniversary of their arrival here, Nasir and Gul Bakht wish to thank the many South Highlanders who are easing this transition. Your ongoing donations of time, transportation, goods and money are so greatly appreciated. South Highlanders have been driving instructors, car…
Welcoming the Stranger to Alabama
Since December 2021, eighty-six special immigrant visa holders, humanitarian parolees and refugees have some to Alabama from Afghanistan, Ukraine, Sudan and Yemen. Supported by Inspiritus, SHPC’s care team walks with one family as they adjust to life in America after fleeing Afghanistan last year. The Akbary family now has stable housing, employment for the father, kindergarten for the older son, and transportation. The family has come a long way since December but they still have lots of new things to…
Why the PC(USA)
Pastor, editor and former GA moderator John M. Buchanan reflects on what drew him to the PC(USA)and what keeps him coming back. Originally published in Presbyterian Outlook. I am certain that I am not alone in occasionally wondering whether the whole notion of Protestant denominations is an anachronism; that maybe the elaborate denominational structures and traditions that evolved over the last 500 years or so have served their purpose and should now fade away. An even more disconcerting thought is that…
2022 Confirmand Faith Statements
Our confirmand class this year included Angeline Arden Turnbull, Bartley Stokes Goodrich, John Bartow Lloyd, and Patrick Grey Watts. Below is each confirmand’s personal faith statement: Arden Turnbull: I believe that God is the Creator of everything. He loves me and all of his other creations, and wants me to enjoy all the beauty. He will always help me overcome challenges. God is always with me, can always hear me, and gives me strength when he knows I need it. Even when I sin,…
Dr. Hurley visits Pakistan’s Forman Christian College
Dear South Highlanders, One of the things our youth at South Highland say consistently every summer, after they have been to Montreat Youth Conference and try to describe it to the congregation is, “You just have to be there to understand fully.“ That is certainly true of the crown jewel of Pakistan, Forman Christian College. Monday, March 28, our team spent the day at a remarkable institution that has had and is having an incredible impact in shaping the future…
Dr. Hurley Shares From Pakistan
Dearest South Highlanders, I’m writing you from Lahore, Pakistan. We are experiencing the amazing power of God at work through the small Presbyterian Christian communities, schools and churches we are visiting. I look forward to preaching the baccalaureate sermon this coming Sunday to graduates, their families and friends at Gujranwala Theological Seminary (Note: Dr. Hurley preached this service this past Sunday, and it can be viewed here.) Meanwhile, we all pray for Ukraine and those who are suffering such terrible…
Rev. Dr. Hurley’s First Days in Pakistan
Dear friends, After an exhausting 20 hour or so trip from Atlanta to Lahore, Pakistan, after our first night in the lovely Guesthouse of the Presbyterian education board, we were warmly greeted by members of the board on Wednesday morning with flower garlands, big smiles and greetings of hello in English and Salim, or Peace, in Urdu. We met with leaders there, Veeda Javaid, the amazing lady who heads the Presbyterian education board oversight of Presbyterian Christian schools across Pakistan,…