July 21 Pastor's The Buzz Message

Recently, in a Facebook discussion group of Presbyterian Leaders, there was a re-focus on a documentary film that came out in 2022/2023, "At the River: Grace and Struggle in the Segregated South," a documentary produced and directed by Carolyn Crowder, a retired psychologist who specialized in parent education. When she was in high school and college, she wanted to document the stands some Presbyterian pastors took in the Deep South during dangerous times. "I, and many other young people, watched and learned from their bravery and commitment in calling out the injustice that was all around us." Indeed, some Southern Presbyterian ministers who came to the banks of the river of life, chose to leap in and question the status quo of white privilege. They were, of course, harassed by the Ku Klux Klan, and threatened physically, and some lost their pulpits. Over the years, while living in NC, I met many of these Presbyterian ministers, some were removed not only from their pulpits but also from our denomination itself. On Thursday, Aug. 20, at 6 pm, we will show the movie and then discuss it in the church's Fellowship Hall. Please come. Who knows! We could start showing such evocative films as a "summer series" in the years to come if there is interest.