Presbytery Representatives – This is the website of Elgin-Portland Pastoral Charge; its two congregations in two church buildings. We work together with governance of an Official Board, which each church council supports. Each congregation sends the Ministry personnel – our Rev. Takouhi, and a representative to Presbytery.
Ted Brett of Elgin, and Margaret Martin of Portland, are currently representing each congregation in the wider work of the church, as Presbytery Representatives. This assignment includes care, sharing, helping to establish and develop healthy pastoral relationships between Ministers and congregations, and healthy, right relations among churches of the United Church, and developing ourselves as church to serve society –relate to the world. Our Presbytery meets as a full court every other month, joining in sharing a supper meal, short worship, and business and committee meetings.
The Four Rivers Presbytery is quite a new entity. After a decision of the Bay of Quinte Conference to re-structure at the church level of Presbytery, Four Rivers Presbytery was formed of Pastoral Charges in eastern Ontario, including Elgin-Portland. (Church language for describing the “bodies” of the church give the continuum… congregation-pastoral charge-presbytery-conference-general council).
We join with the Ministry personnel and representatives from twenty-one pastoral charges, retired Ministry personnel, and members-at-large. In addition to our responsibility to represent Presbytery to our churches, and our churches to Presbytery, we are the volunteers who take responsibility for all the work assigned to Presbyteries from the levels of Conference and General Council. Rev. Takouhi is Chair of the Congregational Life and Christian Education Committee. Margaret is Chair of Pastoral Oversight, and Ted is working with the Asset Management Committee. Being part of Presbytery and its Executive is usually fun, and interesting, and Executive involves the added commitment of at least one more meeting in the months between Presbytery meetings. It is our intention to do our best at providing a link between our congregations and the wider church, and our wider church and our congregations. We have many gifts to share together. Plan to come along to Presbytery sometime to learn about it through experience.