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The Presbytery of Sheppards and Lapsley is the local host presbytery for the 2006 assembly. The name honors William Henry Sheppard, an African American pastor, and Samuel Lapsley, a white pastor, who served together as Presbyterian missionaries in the Congo in the 1890s. Sheppard married Lucy Gantt, and they continued work in the Congo for approximately 20 years after Lapsley's death. Currently, there are 91 churches and two new church developments in the presbytery. The Reverend Dr. Thomas Evans is the executive presbyter.
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Greetings from the Committee on Local Arrangements
Welcome to Birmingham, Alabama, to the Presbytery of Sheppards and Lapsley, and to the 217th General Assembly, the first of the biennial Assemblies. The Committee on Local Arrangements has been diligently preparing for your arrival, and is committed to extending you the finest of reputed "Southern hospitality." Thousands of volunteers throughout the presbytery, as well as from adjacent presbyteries in Mississippi and Georgia, look forward to greeting you and assisting in making this a memorable Assembly for you. We are here as your hosts, and invite you to call upon us for any need. While much of the time of commissioners and delegates is committed to the work of the Church, there will be multiple opportunities to experience Birmingham and explore the region. A variety of mission and/or cultural tours have been planned for our guests, including some of the special places of the civil rights movement during the 1960's (Selma and Montgomery) and the space center at Huntsville. The Civil Rights Institute, only a few blocks from the Civic Center where the assembly will meet, is a must for any visitor to Birmingham. High above the city on Red Mountain is a statue of Vulcan, the largest cast iron statue in the world. From its observation deck, there is a 360-degree view of the entire city.
Worship is always a highlight of a General Assembly, and this year will be marked by four joint worship services of three Presbyterian denominations - the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, and the Cumberland Presbyterian Church in America. The first celebration on Sunday evening will involve leadership by all three denominations, and services on Monday - Wednesday evenings will each be led by one of denominations. Those attending the Assembly are invited to worship on Sunday morning at one of the thirty-plus local Presbyterian Churches - PC(USA), CPC, and CPCA.
The Presbytery is named for pioneer missionaries of the Presbyterian Church in the late 1800's to what was then the Belgian Congo. Each had roots in central Alabama. William Sheppard, an African American, attended Stillman College in Tuscaloosa, one of the ethnic colleges supported by our denomination. Samuel Lapsley, a white man, was reared first in Selma and then in Anniston, Alabama. Following Lapsley's death two years after he and Sheppard went to the Congo, Sheppard married Lucy Gantt of Tuscaloosa, a Birmingham schoolteacher, and she joined him as a missionary. Commissioners and guests will have the opportunity to contribute to the continuation of the ministry in Congo that the Sheppards and Lapsley began over a hundred years ago.
We are in prayer for each of you that your time here will be a blessing, not only for you but also for our Church as you seek to discern God's will for our time. We welcome you in the name of Jesus Christ and pray that the theme of this year's assembly will be realized as we meet together as "a great cloud of witnesses" to our Lord.
G. Dana Waters III, Moderator
Jane Carmichael, Vice-Moderator
Committee on Local Arrangements
The Presbytery of Sheppards and Lapsley |
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