You may remember this moment from the funeral for Reverend Clementa Pinckney, who was one of nine Black victims tragically killed in the June 2015 shooting at Mother Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina. Following his recitation of the hymn, Amazing Grace, President Barack Obama broke into song, and the congregation joined in, a chorus of unity in the face of terrible tragedy.   In the ten years I’ve presided over our Summer Worship Series in Anderson Auditorium, no summer stands out like 2015. The preachers of that summer engaged, acknowledged, and referenced that terrible event in various …

The following extended commentary was originally included as part of President Richard DuBose’s article “Are There Boundaries for Politics in the Pulpit?” which was published on July 4, 2025. We invite you to read the full article here before continuing. Strawman Arguments from the “Unity Perspective” and the “Prophetic Perspective”  To compile the perspectives below, I fed a document that included my notes and some old emails from community members through an AI engine. Here’s the output, augmented by my own voice and edited for brevity. The Unity Perspective: A Christian pastor’s first priority is to proclaim the gospel of …

As this, my eleventh summer, dawned in Montreat, a friend remarked: “Ten summers…so that means you have picked 100 preachers for Sunday morning worship, right?”   His math was correct, more or less – ten years times ten preachers – but the follow-up question was harder. “How’d you pick all those preachers?” The short answer is that I didn’t pick them, and below, I’ll try to give the longer answer.    Pastors are invited to preach for our Summer Worship Series in Anderson Auditorium by a committee composed of staff members and members of the community. I serve on the committee, but …

Over the past several months, Wednesday has become a notable day of the week in our offices at Freeland Hall. It is on the first and third Wednesday of each month that the North Carolina Court of Appeals files its opinions in cases pending in that Court. This past Wednesday passed without news of the Mountain Retreat Association (MRA)’s appeal before that Court that seeks to reverse the decision of the Buncombe County Superior Court in September of 2023, which set aside the decision of the Montreat Board of Adjustment to issue a Special Use Permit (SUP) to the MRA …

With the summer season now in full swing, the valley is once again alive with the sounds of singing, laughter, and meaningful conversations that so often accompany connecting and reconnecting. It’s always a joy to see familiar faces return and new ones discover what makes this place so special.   Before we step too far into the season, I want to update you on Montreat Conference Center’s recently completed fiscal year, which ended April 30th. As we gather thousands of people, it’s fitting to observe, by the numbers, how thousands of people came together this past year to make the summer …

Welcoming summer staff each year signifies for many “the real beginning” to the summer season. That’s because it is hard – perhaps even impossible – to articulate the full impact of the summer staff tradition on Montreat summers – both on those who participate and on Montreat itself. Among the many portals into the Montreat community, few have endured longer or been more influential than the work and legacy of our summer staff. Last year in this space, I sounded a note of caution as we entered the season projecting lower levels of staffing than we’d previously experienced. In the …

The time is at hand to welcome another vibrant summer in Montreat, to greet returning friends and new faces alike to sacred spaces here in the valley for a time of renewal, connection, and joy in our beloved mountains. This summer’s schedule is familiar with six Youth Conferences, Presbyterian Association of Musicians’ two Worship and Music Conferences, the Fourth of July Week, and nine weeks of recreation programs, all framed by ten worship services between May and August. Registrations indicate a similar number of participants of all ages are readying for the multitude of opportunities for worship and learning, exercise …