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PRESBYTERIAN
SUMMER 2024
presbyterian.ca
Connection
GENERAL ASSEMBLY
Moderator-Elect: the Rev. Dr. Patricia Dutcher-Walls
The Committee to Advise with the Moderator will present the name of the Rev. Dr. Patricia Dutcher- Walls as the nominee for Modera- tor of the 2024 General Assembly of The Presbyterian Church in Canada. General Assembly takes place June 2–6 at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ont. To learn more about GA2024, visit presbyterian.ca/ga2024.
Pat has been involved in ser- vice to the church throughout her career. She is an active Session member and minister-in-associ- ation at Trinity Church—a three- congregation amalgamation and transformational ministry in New Westminster and Burnaby, B.C. She retired as Professor of He- brew Bible and Dean of the Facul- ty at Vancouver School of Theol- ogy in 2021. During her vocation as a professor, Pat published five books on the social world and interpretation of the Old Testa- ment, authored several scholarly articles and presented numerous papers at academic conferences. She was Dean of the Faculty at VST from 2013 to 2020.
Beyond the colleges of the church, Pat has had an active teaching and preaching ministry across the country, offering nu- merous sermons, adult educa- tion courses, retreats, workshops and lectures for congregations, synods, women’s groups and conferences. She has been active with the courts and committees of the PCC, including serving on the Church Doctrine Committee, as president of the Board of Di- rectors of Evangel Hall, as con- vener with Hummingbird Minis- tries Council and Moderator of the Presbytery of Westminster from 2020 to 2021. Pat continues as chair of the Strategy and Leader- ship Committee of the Presbyter of Westminster.
Candidates for moderator are asked to submit their biography along with answers to a series of questions that are designed to help the church come to know the candidates better. Below is
a lightly edited sample of Pat’s answers.
What have been your most memorable experiences
in serving the church, and how have those particular experiences shaped or guided your views?
When I was ordained in the Pres- byterian Church (USA) before em- igrating to Canada, one ordination vow particularly impressed me. When asked, “Will you pray for and seek to serve the people with energy, intelligence, imagination and love?” my 26-year-old self sincerely but brashly answered, “Yes, indeedy, I will.” This has stayed as a guiding theme of my service to the church.
Early in my ministry, I discov- ered that by God’s grace I had a gift for teaching, leading students in classes and congregations to discover insights about the world of the Bible and its meanings and interpretation. Teaching in the col- leges of the church and through numerous workshops, lectures and retreats across the country, it has always been a privilege to share in the faith journey of the people of God. Thoughtful and informed biblical interpretation is a key element for following God’s ways in and through the life and witness of the church.
When I was at Knox College, I served as a member and then president of the Board of Evangel Hall, a street mission in Toronto. This allowed me to help in the huge effort needed to fund and construct the current Evangel Hall building, which contains both program space and much needed housing. Through this service, I saw the possibilities for the church to live out the gospel in action. Being a Christian creates not only a private reassurance of God’s mercy and love but also a calling to mission, to living out the same grace we have received in Christ through sharing that grace with our neighbours.
In recent years, with my retire- ment from teaching at VST, but continuing as an elder on Ses- sion, I joined an effort with other leaders of the presbytery to dis- cern and discover ways to help the church meet the challenges of demographic and cultural
changes that have reduced its influence, size and impact. How can congregations imagine new ways to do mission with their neighbours or reimagine clusters or groupings of congregations to do ministry or use the space or the legacy of their buildings to be- come the church in new ways? I am persuaded that God is calling us outside of our comfort zones to discover new efforts in being Christ’s church, in as many ways as we can imagine with the Spir- it’s leading.
What is your image
and vision of the
church at its best?
In recognizing the good work of the agencies, colleges, boards and committees of The Presby- terian Church in Canada, I offer the following as a vision of how a local congregation could live out their calling to serve Christ.
Each vibrant congregation min- isters with a large and diverse group of people eager to wor- ship, learn and engage with one another and with a world in need of God’s love. As a welcoming multi-ethnic, multi-cultural, multi- generational group, they let the love they have received through Christ’s new life shape who they are in the world.
The church nurtures spiritual vitality as a worshipping com- munity, recognizing that they must be rooted in dynamic wor- ship and praise of the God who has graced them with blessings through Jesus Christ. Their lively worship services are vibrant; ser- mons are firmly based on scrip- ture and thought provoking and
relevant. In music, a combination of inspiring praise songs and tra- ditional hymns stir the soul. They have extended their worship well past the bounds of the building through online options.
Their ministries are grounded in ongoing education, both for their members and the community, in- cluding an online community. In addition to biblical teaching and spiritual practices, they offer dis- cussions, podcasts and blogs on issues such as reconciliation with Indigenous neighbours, climate concerns and understanding be- tween races and sexual identities.
Many people of all ages and backgrounds take part in wor- ship, volunteer work and in the congregations’ varied missions, events and groups. This welcome is rooted in their understanding that the community builds its life by reflecting the values of the in- carnation—humans beloved by God are treated with compassion, respect, honesty and integrity. The pastoral leadership of the congregation works at involving folks in the life of the church and they are skilled at recognizing and employing everyone’s gifts and strengths.
Compassionately embodying missional vitality means living out God’s love through being connected and active within the broader community. Their focus is always on the caring, love and redemption represented by the life and teachings of Christ pre- sented in a way that speaks to the culture. A variety of programs and services, including affordable housing and food security pro- grams, either run by the church
itself or in cooperation with other faith and secular groups, meet the needs of the congregation’s diverse local neighbourhood.
In all the congregation does, they remember a prayer from one of their members, “Help us, Lord, to not be afraid to live larger and wider lives so that we can reflect your glory. Amen!”
(This was adapted from the vi- sion my home church, Trinity, de- veloped during our amalgamation process.)
How do you understand the role of the moderator? The first few days of a moderator’s term are defined by the Book of Forms—the moderator’s duties at the General Assembly include to open and close each sederunt with prayer, to see that the busi- ness is properly conducted, and to take the vote and announce decisions. For the other 361 days of the year, I understand the mod- erator’s role as a roving ambas- sador and herald who connects a widely spread-out church, speak- ing and preaching, bringing news of the denomination, listening to the concerns and prayers of the people and congregations, meet- ing with committees and councils as needed or invited, speaking on behalf of the church to the wider society under the guidance of the statements of the General Assembly and theology of The Presbyterian Church in Canada, and holding all of that in prayer without ceasing. I would hope to do those tasks as I have tried to live my whole vocation—with energy, intelligence, imagination and love.
Some publications written by the Rev. Dr. Patricia Dutcher-Walls:
• Reading the Historical Books:
A Student’s Guide to Engaging the Biblical Text
• Jezebel: Portraits of a Queen
• Narrative Art, Political Rhetoric: The Case of Athaliah and Joash
• The Family in Life and in Death: The Family in Ancient Israel
• The Commandments: For a Blessed Life (for the Kerygma Bible study program)