A LETTER FROM YOUR SENIOR PASTOR Rev. Chris Henry

Dear Friends,

One of the highlights of the summer for me each year is the opportunity to take a week of study leave, all by myself, for prayerful reflection, reading, and planning in the mountains of North Carolina. I always take a stack of books with me, many of which I’ve intended to read since the previous summer! This year, much of my reading and planning revolved around the theme of rebuilding, a concept that is both deeply rooted in scripture and as current as daily headlines.

I’ve been reading about the loss of trust in institutions, the related rise in a sense of disconnection and isolation experienced by many, the weakening of social ties that bind us together, and the impact of these developments. I also read about how vitally important it is to build and strengthen communities of belonging that point us to a purpose and meaning more significant than ourselves. Again and again, I was reminded of the essential value of congregations like ours in moments like this.

As I moved to my study of scripture and preparation of worship themes for the year ahead, it became clear that our theological tradition has always understood part of its God-given call to be the work of construction. As a congregation, Second Presbyterian Church describes itself as a welcoming community of faith where Jesus Christ transforms lives. The creation of welcoming community and the ongoing process of transformation are acts of building and rebuilding. They ask us to remember our core identity as beloved children of God and open ourselves to the new work of the Spirit among us.

And so, this program year at Second we will devote the abundant resources of this community to the urgent work of rebuilding.

In a time when many have lost faith in the institutions that once provided structure to our common life, we are called to rebuild trust.

Following years of separation and isolation, we are called to rebuild community.

While people of every age struggle to find purpose, we are called to rebuild paths to abundant life.

As deepening division and the forces of polarization tear us apart, we are called to rebuild bridges across the chasm.

Second Presbyterian Church will commemorate 185 years of ministry on November 19, when we celebrate Commitment Sunday in morning worship – an invitation to renew our pledge to build on the work of generations past and for the benefit of those yet to come.

This program year, I’m looking forward to seeing how the Spirit draws us together and equips us for the construction projects ahead.

My solo week was valuable and productive, but my most memorable image of rebuilding came in June when our sons Sam and Ben were enrolled in summer clubs at the Montreat Conference Center. They did what you do at summer camp—art projects, silly games and songs, hiking trails and skipping rocks in the creek—all the while building a brand new community.

What I saw over the course of that week was the power of creative energies set free to build and inspire. Strangers at the start of the week were inseparable friends by Friday. Confidence and self-awareness grew by leaps and bounds. Laughter multiplied and, when the week was over, so did tears.

To the exiles returning to a home they did not recognize or never knew, the prophet Isaiah proclaims a promise that implies a command:

The Lord will guide you continually, and satisfy your needs in parched places, and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters never fail.

Your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt; you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; you shall be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of streets to live in.

God has work for us to do. All are welcome and needed. Hard hats not required.

What a wonderful year awaits us at Second!

See you in church,