Dear Friends,
Greetings in the name of our risen Lord and Savior, Jesus.
The Westminster Seminary California Annual Conference is one of the highlights of our year and one of the best opportunities for us to visit with you face-to-face. We are disappointed and believe it to be the better part of wisdom to cancel the 2022 Annual Conference (January 14-15). We have been experiencing increasing rates of illness and positive cases of infection from the Covid virus. We are currently facing a situation where conference presenters, administrators, staff, and student volunteers are sick. For their sake and yours, we think this difficult decision is prudent.
You may be experiencing similar illnesses in your area as well. We pray for your health and safety. In addition to the obvious concerns for your well-being, and our community here, we don’t believe this situation will allow us to deliver a conference to the standards that we expect of ourselves in our pursuit of excellence.
We sincerely regret any inconvenience as we are aware many of you have been looking forward to coming and have made travel plans. It is our sincere hope that we will see each other again, soon – and hopefully at the 2023 Annual Conference.
In Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 28, which asks how the knowledge of the providence of God helps us, the answer reads, “We can be patient in adversity, thankful in prosperity, and for the future have good confidence in our faithful God and Father that no creature will separate us from his love. For all creatures are so completely in his hand that without his will they can neither move nor be moved.” Westminster Seminary California wholeheartedly embraces this reality. We have so much for which to be thankful, including our relationship with you. Our hope for the future is not in hope itself but in our good and gracious God. For the present, we pray we grow in patience and grace as we face the challenges of living and serving in a sin-cursed world. We are pleased to travel this road with you.
Thank you for your patience and partnership. May the Lord be with you and grant abundant blessings to you and yours in 2022.
Sincerely – for Christ, His Gospel, and His Church,
Your brothers and sisters in Christ at Westminster Seminary California
