217th Presbyterian General Assembly

The 217th Presbyterian General Assembly was hosted by the Presbytery of Sheppards and Lapsley for the 2.3 million-member Presbyterian Church (USA) at the Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex from June 15-22, 2006.

The Assembly opened with the election of Joan S. Gray (Presbytery of Greater Atlanta) as moderator, succeeding Rick Ufford-Chase. Elder Robert Wilson of Fellowship Presbyterian Church in Huntsville was nominated as vice moderator.

Committee meetings were held during most of the week with all Assembly business tracked on "Les", a computer network accessed from laptops used by delegates throughout the Assembly.

Notable guest

Several notable guests were invited to the General Assembly:

• Bishop Munib Younan of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land led an ecumenical service on Saturday.
• Rev. Bernice Powell Jackson, North American president of the World Council of Churches preached at the ecumenical service on Saturday.
• The Rev. U-Choan Tan of the Presbyterian Church of Taiwan read the epistle at the ecumenical service on Saturday.
• Rev. Setri Nyomi, general secretary of the World Alliance of Reformed Churches, preached at the worship celebration on Sunday
• The Chorale Presbytérienne du Congo performed at the worship celebration on Sunday

Excursions

Attendees to the Assembly had several programmed tours available during the week:

• Black Belt of Alabama: A day-long of Auburn University Rural Studio works in the Black Belt region, including stops in Newbern and Greensboro.
• A Church, A Mission and an Iron Man: A half-day tour of South Highland Presbyterian Church and Vulcan Park.
• Birmingham: Dark Yesterdays to Brighter Todays: A half-day tour of 16th Street Baptist Church and the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute at Kelly Ingram Park.
• History Lives in Selma, Alabama: A day-long tour to Valley Creek Presbyterian Church, Sturdivant Hall, First Presbyterian Church, the Old Depot Museum, Brown Chapel AME Church, the Live Oak Cemetery, and Edmund Pettus Bridge.
• Yes, Virginia, There is a Third World: A day-long visit to the Servants in Faith and Technology (SIFAT) training center in Lineville.
• Caring Times Three: A half-day tour of First Presbyterian Church, including stops at the Ruth and Naomi Senior Outreach, First Light Ministry, and Greater Birmingham Ministries.
• Montgomery - Civil War to Civil Rights: A day-long visit to Montgomery, with stops at the State Capitol, the Rosa Parks Museum, Civil Rights Memorial, Memorial Presbyterian Church, Dexter Avenue King Memorial Baptist Church, and the Alabama Shakespeare Festival Theatre.
• ...the holy Catholic church: A day-long tour to the Ave Maria Grotto and St Bernard Abbey in Cullman and the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament at the Our Lady of the Angels Monastery in Hanceville.
• Canoe the Cahaba with Moderator Rick: a four-mile float down the Cahaba River, passing along the site of the Living Rivers: A Retreat on the Cahaba, led by Randy Haddock of the Cahaba River Society.
• Huntsville, Alabama: Rockety City U.S.A., Antebellum to Anti-Gravity": A day-long trip to Huntsville with stops at Twickenham, the Downtown Historic District, First Presbyterian Church, and the U. S. Space and Rocket Center.
• Tuscaloosa, Alabama: Art and Education: A day-long visit to Tuscaloosa with stops at Stillman College, the Cypress Inn, and the Westervelt Warner Museum of American Art.
• Music, Music, Music: A half-day tour including stops at the Alabama Theatre for an organ performance, and the Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame at the Carver Theater.
• Birmingham: Gateway to Good Health and the Good Life: A half-day tour to the Lakeshore Foundation, the Southern Progress Corporate Headquarters, and the Andrew Gerow Hodges Chapel at Samford University's Beeson School of Divinity, with architect Neil Davis as guide.

Notes

• Birmingham has also hosted General Assemblies in 1917 and 1957.
• Chelsea potter John Rodgers was commissioned to produce 400 sets of communion ware based on a Congolese wooden chalice given to the Presbytery of Sheppards and Lapsley in recognition of their early mission work to that African nation.
• Assembly participants each received a tote-bag made by the Women's Center Matete in Kinshasa from traditional Kasai Kuba cloth, further representing ties with the Congo.
• A $150 million gift to the Presbyterian Church (USA) from Stanley W. Anderson of Denver was announced on June 15 during the Assembly.
• Commissioner Nelson L. Erwin, 73, of San Angelo, Texas suffered a heart attack on an elevator and died during the Assembly.