Kirkpatrick speaks of sabbatical; and his study of Acts, other books
By Paula R. Kincaid, The Layman Online, September 29, 2003
MONTREAT, N.C. – Stated Clerk Clifton Kirkpatrick, just back to work after his first sabbatical in 28 years, told the General Assembly Council about his time off during its opening plenary session Wednesday at Montreat Conference Center in Montreat, N.C.
Kirkpatrick first spoke of his time in Albania, where he had traveled as a member of a World Council of Churches’ committee on a search for a new general secretary.
He said the search committee spent time in an Albanian Orthodox monastery, and there he said he found “a spirit of Jesus Christ that touched my life.”
He called Albania a desperate place, but added that seeing the “resurrection of the church – the church that had almost been obliterated with mass murders and killings and churches destroyed – to see Orthodox church after Orthodox church alive and growing … that was really powerful in my life.”
“I am part of a church that helped in that church’s resurrection,” said Kirkpatrick, adding that the PCUSA helped through its participation in the WCC. “Friends, it makes a difference in Albania,” he said.
During his sabbatical, Kirkpatrick said that along with spending time with his grandchild, family and local church, he studied the book of Acts and other literature about the church and mission.
In Acts, Kirkpatrick said there was a deep reliance on prayer and a belief that “the love of God in Jesus Christ was intended for every person on the earth.” He commented on the tension, related in Acts between Jerusalem, or in our case, Louisville, and the local churches.
“I want to say to all of you, if we are to be focused on Christ’s mission, take some time to take a look at Acts,” he said.
Kirkpatrick also gave reviews of other books he had read while on sabbatical.
He ended with a saying he had heard, “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together. … I think we in the Presbyterian Church are in it for the long term, God has called us in this together.”