wfn.org | The Gospel and Music Share the Stage During Ecumenical Worship

[PCUSA.NEWS@pcusa.org]

18-June-1997 
GA97073 
 
              The Gospel And Music Share The Stage 
                    During Ecumenical Worship 
 
                       by Julian Shipp 
 
 
SYRACUSE--One of the great traditions of the General Assembly the 
Ecumenical Worship, continued here June 17 during a service combining the 
good news of Jesus Christ with an outstanding jazz performance. 
 
    The Rev. Ofelia Miriam Ortega, president of the Evangelical 
Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Matanzas, Cuba, spoke on  "A 
Conversion of Hope," a  sermon that described Ortega's journey of faith 
when she left her native country Cuba in 1985 in order to work for the 
World Council of Churches as professor of theology at Bossey Ecumenical 
Institute in Switzerland. 
 
    Echoing the "Great Ends of the Church" emphasis of the Presbyterian 
Church (U.S.A.), Ortega said she wondered whether or not it would be 
possible for all churches to mobilize and organize a gigantic 
reconciliation campaign before the end of the millennium, a campaign to 
talk to members of  congregations, the U.S. Congress and the people, to 
"pray for the beginning of a process of healing and mutual reconciliation." 
 
    Ortega said there undoubtedly are memories which paralyze Christians 
and plunge them into stagnation, but she said, there are other types of 
memories which allow them to face the present with a sense of 
reconciliation and start joyously toward the future. 
 
    "Those who apply this in their lives will remember the wonders of God 
and are confident of the future," Ortega said. "We were able to cross the 
Red Sea, and just in the same way, we will be able to cross all the seas 
opening before us, whether red or white, black or blue. A past like this is 
a dynamic one, and it is important to be able to cultivate it." 
 
    The worship offering, which totaled more than $5,000, was donated to 
the Evangelical Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Matanzas, Cuba. 
 
    Following worship, participants were treated to a performance by the 
Dave Brubeck Quartet, an appearance representative of a concert career 
that's brought Brubeck and his associates international acclaim as jazz 
musicians. 
 
    Brubeck's music and the appearance of his quartet after the service was 
provided by 29 Presbyterian congregations in honor of  Frederick and Cleta 
Mathias of Indianapolis. On Dec. 15, 1996, the Mathias' were killed by an 
intruder they apparently surprised as they returned to their residence. The 
Rev. Frederick Mathias was pastor of Northminster Presbyterian Church in 
Indianapolis and also served as pastor of Westminster Presbyterian Church 
in Wilmington, Del. 
 
    "Fred Mathias was a good and faithful Presbyterian who served the 
church in a variety of capacities and always attended General Assembly," 
said the Rev. John M. Buchanan, moderator of the 208th General Assembly 
(1996). 

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