Celebrating the Faithful Ministries & Witness of Lowe Avenue Presbyterian Church, Omaha, Nebraska
Posted Sunday, July 05 2009 @ 05:51 AM by Michael Adee
Please join the National Board of Directors and Staff of More Light Presbyterians, as we celebrate the faithful ministries and witness of Lowe Avenue Presbyterian Church, Omaha, Nebraska. "We give thanks for the amazing history, mission service and community outreach of Lowe Avenue Presbyterian Church," declared Rev. Janet Edwards, Co-Moderator. Tomorrow afternoon, July 5, is the final worship service at Lowe Avenue Presbyterian Church, Omaha. The River City Mixed Chorus, Omaha's gay and lesbian chorus, will be providing special music. Founded in 1887, Lowe Avenue Presbyterian Church led its community and presbytery in women's ordination, community mission, and as the first welcoming and affirming More Light Church in Nebraska.
Vikki Dearing, Co-Moderator, said today: "Please know that I will be thinking of and praying for you and everyone at Lowe Avenue. I give thanks for the ministry and witness Lowe Avenue has had over the years and I pray that the remaining members will be seeds for inclusion in the congregations you move to."
"I remember like it was yesterday, driving in a snowstorm with Martha Juillerat and Janie Spahr to a gathering of Presbyterians at Lowe Avenue Presbyterian Church, during one of our Midwest field outreach tours. It happened to be Super Bowl night and I remember Martha reminding me playfully that I was riding with 2 lesbians who were going to miss the Super Bowl because of a church meeting! As we shook the snow off our feet we were greeted so warmly by our friend Cleve Evans and the loving people of Lowe Avenue Presbyterian Church. It was a night of sacred conversations, hospitality and grace that I will never forget," recalls Michael J. Adee, Executive Director & Field Organizer.
"Congregations like human beings have their own life cycle, and God does not call us to be successful, but to be faithful," Cleve Evans, Elder, Lowe Avenue Presbyterian Church, said of this moment from his message below.
Cleve and all of the members and friends of Lowe Avenue, know that your National More Light Presbyterian family stands with you now and in the days and seasons to come. We pray that you will continue to know, affirm and experience a deep sense of God's presence and grace.
We give thanks for the remarkable history, ministry, witness and legacy of Lowe Avenue Presbyterian Church. We commit to work 24/7 so that someday the entire Presbyterian Church (USA) ministers as you have so faithfully done these 122 years by recognizing the call and gifts for ministry of women, accepting LGBT persons and their families, doing mission by caring for all persons in your city, and by simply being God's beloved community.
To send a note of appreciation & care to Lowe Avenue Presbyterian Church, you may send that note to Cleve Evans at clevelandevans@cox.net
Lowe Avenue Presbyterian Church, we give thanks to God for you and stand with you.
Peace and grace,
Vikki Dearing and Janet Edwards, Co-Moderators, and Michael J. Adee, Executive Director & Field Organizer, National Board of Directors, More Light Presbyterians
"God's Whole Family!" National Welcoming & Affirming Presbyterian Conference, September 4 - 6, 2009, hosted by Second Presbyterian Church, Nashville, TN & produced by MLP. Don't miss the event of the year. More information & registration online at www.mlp.org
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Dear all,
Tomorrow afternoon, July 5, at 2 pm, we are having the closing service for Lowe Avenue Presbyterian Church in Omaha. The congregation must dissolve because we simply do not have the membership or funds to keep going.
Lowe Avenue has a long history of being a progressive congregation. The church ordained four women as elders in 1937, being one of the first, if not the first, Presbyterian churches in Omaha to have women on the session.
The reason I am a member at Lowe Avenue is because when I moved to Omaha in 1986 the River City Mixed Chorus, Omaha's gay and lesbian chorus, was rehearsing there. They continued to rehearse there until 1995 when they moved to a larger rehearsal space at First Methodist Church. The chorus will be singing at our service tomorrow, because we wanted to make a statement as a More Light Church about our support for the GLBT community in our final service.
I have been thankful for the support Lowe Avenue has given me as an openly gay elder. I have been chair of the Mission Committee for the last several years. Among other things, we have organized a program where over 100 needy children in our part of Omaha have received Christmas gifts every year. I hope the suburban churches who have helped us with this can take over that project.
I am also very thankful that Missouri River Valley Presbytery was the final switch to a pro-ordination stance this year. I know Lowe Avenue's support of GLBT issues was part of that.
I especially remember at this time the other gay people who have been members or regular attenders of Lowe Avenue over the years. This includes those like Jerry Kruse, Kevin, Donavan, and Frank M. who had to move away from Omaha, Gilbert Ward, who though officially an Episcopalian thinks of himself as an associate member of Lowe and who will be the organist at tomorrow's service. And I especially remember Marty Matson, Frank Townsend, and Lonnie Peterson, who have died. I know that several other MLP people remember Lonnie, who was on session with me and served our church faithfully and well in spite of multiple medical problems. He served as chair of our property committee for several years in spite of having to use a wheelchair most of the time. He was always positive and spiritually astute, and I miss him.
Congregations like human beings have their own life cycle, and God does not call us to be successful, but to be faithful. Lowe Avenue has had a faithful ministry for 122 years. Still, this is a very sad time, and I hope all the readers of this list will pray for the members of Lowe Avenue as we celebrate the end of our ministry tomorrow.
Cleve Evans
Lowe Avenue has a long history of being a progressive congregation. The church ordained four women as elders in 1937, being one of the first, if not the first, Presbyterian churches in Omaha to have women on the session.
The reason I am a member at Lowe Avenue is because when I moved to Omaha in 1986 the River City Mixed Chorus, Omaha's gay and lesbian chorus, was rehearsing there. They continued to rehearse there until 1995 when they moved to a larger rehearsal space at First Methodist Church. The chorus will be singing at our service tomorrow, because we wanted to make a statement as a More Light Church about our support for the GLBT community in our final service.
I have been thankful for the support Lowe Avenue has given me as an openly gay elder. I have been chair of the Mission Committee for the last several years. Among other things, we have organized a program where over 100 needy children in our part of Omaha have received Christmas gifts every year. I hope the suburban churches who have helped us with this can take over that project.
I am also very thankful that Missouri River Valley Presbytery was the final switch to a pro-ordination stance this year. I know Lowe Avenue's support of GLBT issues was part of that.
I especially remember at this time the other gay people who have been members or regular attenders of Lowe Avenue over the years. This includes those like Jerry Kruse, Kevin, Donavan, and Frank M. who had to move away from Omaha, Gilbert Ward, who though officially an Episcopalian thinks of himself as an associate member of Lowe and who will be the organist at tomorrow's service. And I especially remember Marty Matson, Frank Townsend, and Lonnie Peterson, who have died. I know that several other MLP people remember Lonnie, who was on session with me and served our church faithfully and well in spite of multiple medical problems. He served as chair of our property committee for several years in spite of having to use a wheelchair most of the time. He was always positive and spiritually astute, and I miss him.
Congregations like human beings have their own life cycle, and God does not call us to be successful, but to be faithful. Lowe Avenue has had a faithful ministry for 122 years. Still, this is a very sad time, and I hope all the readers of this list will pray for the members of Lowe Avenue as we celebrate the end of our ministry tomorrow.
Cleve Evans