Recent News
July 10, 2024
General Assembly Resolution on Cuba
By way of the consent agenda presented by the International Engagement Committee, the 226th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) approved the commissioner’s resolution by consensus on reaching out in concern for the Presbyterian Reformed Church in Cuba and the people of Cuba.
This resolution presented by commissioners R.E. Dennis Smith (Cascades) and Rev. Dr. Hunter Farrell (Pittsburgh) was a joint effort by various CPN leaders, especially our Co-Conveners, Susan Keil Smith and Rev. Deborah McEachran.
The resolution:
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Urges the agencies of our denomination to find ways to respond to the economic crisis that afflicts the people of Cuba and our siblings in the Presbyterian Reformed Church in Cuba and to report their progress to the 227th General Assembly;
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Calls upon the Stated Clerk to declare a church-wide Sunday of Prayer for the Presbyterian Reformed Church in Cuba; and
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Urgently calls upon the Government of the United States to respond to the dire humanitarian crisis in the nation of Cuba by removing Cuba from the list of State Sponsors of Terrorism (SSOT).
Ruling Elder Smith presented the resolution with great knowledge and poignancy. Catherine Gordon, from the PC(USA) Office of Public Witness in Washington DC, spoke on behalf of the resolution and the advocacy work being done ecumenically. Rev. Edwin González-Castillo, director of Presbyterian Disaster Assistance, also spoke on behalf of the resolution citing the obstacles in sending aid and funds because of the embargo and Cuba being on the list of State Sponsors of Terrorism (SSOT).
We are overjoyed with the acts of solidarity and action demonstrated by the approval of this resolution by the General Assembly, and we continue to advocate within our means and our own government for the people of the Republic of Cuba and our siblings in the Presbyterian Reformed Church in Cuba.
Así nos ayude Dios.
Find the resolution here: https://www.pc-biz.org/search/3001378
Paz,
Vilmarie Cintrón-Olivieri, along with Jose Manuel Capella-Pratts
R.E. Vilmarie Cintrón-Olivieri Vilmarie.Cintron-Olivieri@pcusa.org
Rev. José Manuel Capella-Pratts JM.Capella-Pratts@pcusa.org
Regional Liaisons for the Caribbean
Presbyterian World Mission,Presbyterian Church (USA)
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Please note that discussions & additional information pertaining to this resolution,
along with a number of new CPN initiatives,
were a part of the program during CPN's Annual Gathering 2024.