From our friends at the Religious Institute.
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If you are looking for a meaningful last-minute gift, please consider making a gift in your loved one's honor to a worthy nonprofit! This guide from our friends at the California Association of Nonprofits, makes some great suggestions for gifts that reflect your values and also some important cautions about online giving.
Of course, we would be thrilled if you would choose to honor someone with a contribution to the California Council of Churches here, or California Church IMPACT here; but we urge you to support the nonprofit that most reflects your values. Thank you! Black Lives Matter Madonna (Copyright: Bromickeymcgrath) Art by Mickey McGrath, O.S.F.S,: We need images of the Black Madonna now more than ever A powerful reimagining of The Magnificat by our dear friend, the Rev. Jim Burklo, Senior Associate Dean of Religious Life at the University of Southern California. You can read more in his blog, musings, here. God in the Belly Full of God, full to birthing, Mary howls: head back, hair tossed, Hands skyward with joy That wrongs are about to be righted, Salvation's about to be sighted. No more groveling for crumbs of charity: She pronounces justice with crystal clarity. She's done waiting for the concentrated wealth of the 1% To trickle down magically to the other 99. The Santa System is stuck in the chimney; And she won't be burned by it again! A new kind of Christmas is coming - To undo the dogma of domination, Snap out of blame-the-victim hypnosis, Chase money-changers out of the temple, Redistribute the common wealth, Restore power to the people, And send the Religious Right empty away. With one magnificent rhetorical swing, Mary bats the political center into left field. Pundits fumble, talk-show hosts mutter, Super-PAC donors quiver, campaign strategists stutter: Mary out-Magnificats them all. So let's get in her line and carry her sign And holler and act as if we, too, Have God in our bellies! Dear Friends, In the wake of the horrific shooting at Tree of Life synagogue in Pennsylvania, regional districts of the Department of Justice are offering "Active Shooter" trainings to help give congregations some tools to improve members' safety. The half day seminar will be December 11 from 9:30 am to noon at the Kennedy Learning Center inside the Robert Matsui Federal Courthouse, 501 I Street, Sacramento, CA 95814. The deadline for registration is this coming Monday, December 3. You may bring up to 3 people from your congregation. You may register here. Registration is NOT complete until you have received a confirmation email. Please arrive at 9:00 am. Bring photo ID since this is a secure facility, and you will need to pass through a metal detector and show your ID. This will give you time to process through security and be directed to the Kennedy Learning Center room. While none of us every wishes to be in a violent situation, we are living in perilous times with horrible events unfolding far too often. If we cannot be at ease in our places of worship, we need to take steps to assure our improved safety. This event is being cosponsored by numerous law enforcement agencies, local, state, and federal and with the Jewish Federation of the Sacramento Region plus the Interfaith Council of Greater Sacramento. Please consider attending this important training. And then let us all practice peace so it is never needed. Thank you. Dear Friends,
In the recent weeks we have seen an increase in stunning violence against our fellow humans. From the horrors of the Pittsburgh shootings to the threats against asylum seekers to yet another mass murder at a neighborhood nightclub, violence has touched millions of lives. What can we do? We offer a few steps you can take, from the fairly easy to more complex, to stop the angry actions and open peace and kindness bringing more sun in a dark and stormy world. First, from a former Board member, Joan Leslie, something you can do quickly and easily. Following the horrors at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh, PA, her church set up a table during coffee hour where each person could write a note of sympathy and support. The address is Tree of Life Congregation, 5898 Wilkins Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15217. If you wish to address the note to the Rabbi, he is Rabbi Hazzan Jeffrey Myers. Otherwise general notes to the entire congregation are fine. Be prepared for the unfortunate “next time” this sort of thing happens to a group; it will occur. Stand ready to offer comfort and compassion. Second, consider reviving our post-911 study guide, Building Bridges of Understanding and beginning a new discussion on religious tolerance. You may find the guide here. Within your own congregation you may have safe discussions about other faiths to learn what’s true – and what is not – about our fellow human beings’ faith perspectives. Third, consider opening discussions in your community with “the other”, anyone who is not part of your congregation or neighborhood. Perhaps, as Pioneer Congregational UCC did in Sacramento, your minister and a local imam can trade pulpits to share insights into what we have in common, how we differ and why. Community dinners (being mindful of dietary laws for others, Jews and Muslims in particular) bring people together. Fourth, reach out to groups serving those embattled – immigrants, felons, the poor, Black communities beset by police brutality and gun violence, etc. – to see how you can help. How you can become a voice for their justice by using your resources. Fifth, hold community forums on issues within your area. Good guidelines can come from the National Issues Forum that helps develop discussions, not debates, by shaping presentations based on multiple options for growth and change, not just two sides on each concern. They have guidebooks on key concerns such as immigration and many other issues. You may find them here. Whatever you do and however you choose to do it, bring your light and humanity to the endeavor. The only way to cast out darkness is to be the sun. Let the healing rays bring greater peace. Thank you. From our friends at Faithful America: The Trump administration is pursuing felony criminal charges against a volunteer with a church group that provides water, food, socks, blankets, and emergency first-aid treatments to migrants along the U.S.-Mexico border. Scott Warren volunteers with No More Deaths—a ministry of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Tucson—and he’s on trial for “harboring” two undocumented immigrants. Warren’s legal team is arguing his actions should be protected under the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act. But while Jeff Sessions has no problem with religious freedom being invoked to excuse discrimination against LGBT people, DOJ lawyers are arguing that aiding migrants "is not required by his beliefs.” The case is receiving national media attention, showing how a crackdown on church ministries to the most vulnerable is a genuine threat to religious freedom. Sign the petition: The Department of Justice must immediately drop all charges against Scott Warren and respect the right of No More Deaths volunteers to freely practice their faith by caring for migrants on the border. It is clear that this federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act is being used to condone the discriminatory behavior by right-wing religious groups, but was never intended to protect work for justice-seeking people faith. Please sign this petition to support Scott Warren living out his faith commitments and to enable him and others to continue working to protect and aid asylum seekers. Let our friends at CAIR help you at a Naturalization Fair!! Can you help us spread the word to those in need (including your families, friends and neighbors) and bring in more volunteers? We want to serve as many people in need of naturalization/citizenship help as possible! We need interpreters, law clerks, pro-bono attorneys and more at the event. If you can lend a hand, please email mzahriya@cair.com! If You Go WHAT: CAIR-SV Naturalization Fair offering free legal help with U.S. citizenship. WHEN: July 26; registration from 8:30-8:55 a.m., event from 9-4 p.m. WHERE: CAIR Sacramento Valley headquarters, 1122 Del Paso Blvd. MORE INFORMATION AND TO REGISTER*: Call 916-441-6269; email mzahriya@cair.com; visit the event on our website. * Advance registration is required.
Dear Friends, We realize this is short notice, but we only recently got our own updates on these marches. Families Belong Together marches across the country will affirm our commitment to both reunification of children and parents separated at the border and also affirm our opposition to the "Muslim Ban" recently approved by the Supreme Court. We think these policies are horrific and violate the key promise of America as a refuge for all people. It, too, breaks up families by denying entry to those whose families are already here. The marches are tomorrow, June 30 in dozens of cities in even the smallest of towns. In California there are marches from Los Angeles and San Francisco to Fort Bragg and Eureka. Find one near you and join in! Please affirm your commitment to fighting for families, affirming the sanctity of families kept intact with sane immigration policies. We need to make clear that this nation wishes to carry on rational immigration standards that benefit new arrivals as they did for our ancestors. To find a march in your area, please go here, get details on locations, and RSVP for tomorrow's march. We must be silent no more on behalf of those being harmed by angry fears and bad decisions. Let your presence be testimony for the love of our fellow humans no matter from where they come. Families Belong Together whoever they may be. Thank you! Dear Friends, Do not mistreat the alien or oppress him, for you were aliens in Egypt (Exodus 22:21) A brief history of American immigration:
And what can one add to the horror of forced migration since the 17th Century as Black African slavery. No rights, no freedom, no citizenship for over 300 years, massive exploitation. All of this and more was done to people who we, as people of faith, consider to be the backbone of our complex society. We make promises. We don’t keep them. Today’s Supreme Court Ruling upholding a Muslim ban – and make no mistake, that’s what it is – is a reversal of history and an appeal to the worst parts of American history and to our worse natures. This ruling capitulates to fear not to reason, not to love, and not to the very principles we claim to honor as Christians. Attorney General Jeff Sessions just called those of us opposed to this ban, “The lunatic fringe”. No, we are speaking to our core Constitutional and faith values. Despite our national commitment to Religious Freedom, religion is being used to bar thousands who are fleeing oppression and who now cannot come to America to seek refuge. Mark you, if those seeking asylum and are Christians from the designated nations now barred entry, this ban will not be upheld. This isn’t about national security. This is about religious discrimination of the worst order. With the chaos of our Southern border and reversal of the existing laws about the treatment of refugees, the separation of families and internments of children, now we have barriers to Muslims from countries that have done no harm to us at all. We are descending to rival our darkest actions, our most base nature. History will not judge us well. This decision cannot stand. We must raise our voices everywhere against the retreat to fear and demonizing of our neighbors. We are called to do this. It must be our charge. Thank you. Update: Keep tuned for updated action alerts following Wednesday's executive order. There is still a lot of work to do, especially in reuniting the families that have already been separated! Dear Friends, California Council of Churches is embarking on a nationwide movement with beloved allies to stand against the oppression of immigrant children and their parents. It is https://stopfamilyseparation.org Why are we doing this? The actions being taken by this nation against refugees and their children cannot stand. We, as people of faith, must act and do so both in the name of our nation's principles and as those motivated by core faith values. When our country's Attorney General, Jefferson Sessions can cherry pick Romans 13 to demand that we blindly follow whatever our administration does, we must come back, full tilt, to stand for the fullness of what we believe. The decision to stop refugees who are lawfully applying for legal status and to take their children into custody is neither consistent with democratic laws nor with fundamental human rights nor with our faith teachings in even Romans 13. We are seeing images that are so appalling, so un-American, we almost have no words. In an abrupt overthrow of existing law, President Trump and AG Sessions have declared that refugees are making illegal entry into our country. Nothing could be further from the truth. Our laws guarantee that those petitioning for refugee status be protected, that families be housed together, while their cases are being evaluated. These are people running for their lives - running from violence in their own countries, running from domestic violence, and threats to their children. They are obeying the laws that are on the books - they are coming into the US at appointed ports of entry - and suddenly having their children ripped away, with no word where they are. The children are terrified, locked into what are supposed to be temporary holding pens for those waiting for deportation. They have nothing - no clothes, no toys, nothing. Most of all they have no idea where their parents are and the parents have no idea where their children are. Our elected officials have sought entry into these holding pens to no avail. But the few journalists and physicians who have gained entry at one of the better facilities say conditions are unspeakable. The children are terrified, and there is no system to assure they can ever be returned to their own parents. No records are being kept properly. Only the boys have been seen at a distance. No one knows where the babies and girls have been placed. No one. Saying this is reminiscent of Nazi Germany is not an overstatement. The same practices exist now that existed then. And this is our nation engaged in this massive abuse of human rights. We are now the nation practicing crimes against humanity. We all know Scripture calls us to embrace "the alien" recalling the days of bondage in Egypt. When we omit that fundamental moral teaching and blithely replace it with an offhand misinterpreted call to obey are government blindly, we must rise up on behalf of the children and their parents. We cannot let this stand! Please join us as we begin taking our voices to the public arena to witness for justice and humanity. Please stay in touch with us as we move through this horror to end the inhumanity and threats to these fragile and vulnerable children. We have embarked on a new collaboration in the company of United Methodist Women and our allies at Texas Impact. We are starting with a petition to AG Sessions and ask that you join us, sign the petition, and begin using your voice as a person of faith to counter the actions of harm made worse by the pretense of religious approval. Well, we don't approve of our government in these actions! https://stopfamilyseparation.org Please sign the petition. Pass it onto your friends, family, neighbors. We cannot keep silent in the face of this despicable abuse of human beings. We cannot be silent in the face of these atrocities. The faith community must make our beliefs known. Please join us in ending this harm. We must speak out for these children! Thank you! |
AuthorThe Rev Dr Rick Schlosser Archives
October 2022
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