The Rev. Peter Bush and his wife Debbie have embarked on the Moderator’s trip together, visiting partners of the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan. They arrived in Taiwan on Sunday, July 9 and will stay until Thursday, July 20, where they will visit Indigenous communities, theological colleges, and preach and worship in several churches. Throughout their stay they will be accompanied by the Rev. Dr. Paul McLean, his wife Mary Beth, and mission staff with The Bible Society of Taiwan.

Arriving safely on Sunday afternoon, July 9, and greeted by Joyce Shih and Carys Humphreys from the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan Ecumenical Relations Committee. From left: Joyce, Mary Beth and the Rev. Paul McLean, the Moderator Rev. Peter Bush, Carys and Debbie Bush.

A highlight of the trip is a special worship service on July 11, celebrating the completion of the Ngudradrekai (Drekay) Bible, after more than a decade of work. Numerous congregations of The Presbyterian Church in Canada have supported this significant translation project through donations toPresbyterians Sharing. During the ceremony, the Moderator will present a special plaque from The Presbyterian Church in Canada, giving thanks to God for this great accomplishment.

The Rev. Dr. Paul McLean joined this project in 2012. Read his fascinatingblog about the upcoming celebration, the Ngudradrekai people and the history of the Bible translation… “As Ngudradrekai churches grew and became stronger, they expressed the need for the Bible in their own language. In 1988 a team of seven Ngudradrekai pastors, with help from the Bible Society in Taiwan and Young Nak Presbyterian Church in Seoul Korea, started to translate the New Testament. A constant challenge was to figure out how to spell words which had only been spoken before.”

This is the Moderator’s first trip to the country. His wife, Debbie, grew up in Taiwan as the daughter of missionaries, the Rev. James and Joyce Sutherland.The group will visit Taiwan Theological College and Seminary where the Rev. Sutherland taught for many years.

May this trip bless us with new ties with a longstanding church partner.

PCC website http://presbyterian.ca/2017/04/03/peter-bush/

PCC Moderator Nominee Announcement: the Rev. Peter Bush

On behalf of the Committee to Advise the Moderator, I am pleased to announce that the name of theRev. Peter Bush, minister at Westwood Presbyterian Church in Winnipeg, Manitoba, will be placed as the sole nominee to be Moderator of the2017 General Assemblywhich begins on Sunday, June 4, 2017, at St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church in Kingston, Ontario.

—The Rev. Stephen Kendall, Principal Clerk

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The Rev. Peter G. Bush, B.A. (Hons.), M.A., M.T.S., M.Div.

Peter Bush, the son of missionary parents, is the teaching elder (minister) at Westwood Church, Winnipeg; having served Knox Church, Mitchell, Ontario (1996–2007) and St. Andrew’s Church, Flin Flon, Manitoba (1989–1996). Peter is passionate about congregations and individuals living the love of Jesus in action and telling the story of Jesus in words.

He has a heart for small congregations, having led workshops, coached leadership teams, and offered training events to help small congregations thrive in remote, rural, suburban and urban contexts. To this end he has authored two books,In Dying we are Born(Alban, 2008) and with Christine O’Reilly,Where Twenty or Thirty are Gathered(Alban, 2006).

For over 20 years Peter has written about Presbyterian involvement in residential schools and was a contract researcher with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

In the last seven years, the Presbytery of Winnipeg has intentionally sought to plant new congregations among the growing non-Euro-Canadian communities in Winnipeg. Peter, cross-cultural liaison for the presbytery, translates Canadian Presbyterianism to these newly formed worshipping communities and interprets these communities to the Canadian Presbyterian Church.

Peter’s wider church involvement includes being clerk of the Synod of Manitoba and Northwestern Ontario (2008-present); and member of the Pension and Benefits Board (2012–present), Committee on Church Doctrine (2005–2011) and, Committee on History (1996–2002, convenor 1999-2002). As editor ofPresbyterian Historyfor over 25 years and a contributor to theRecord, he has told the stories of the people and congregations of the church. Peter coordinates the Reformation @ 500 Project, a Committee on History initiative, inviting exploration of the “five watchwords” of the Reformation in our present context. He is The Presbyterian Church in Canada’s representative on Evangelism Connections, a coalition of mainline North American denominations working to highlight evangelism as a mainline Christian practice and to share evangelism resources.

Peter is married to Debbie (Sutherland), the daughter of Presbyterian missionaries to Taiwan; they have one son.