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Racial Justice
With the rhythmic beat of the drum and the melodious notes of the soprano saxophone, the Convocation for Communities of Color began with a jazz rendition of the hymn “I’m Going to Live so God Can Use Me.” Recording artist and convocation musicians Warren Cooper and Perpetual Praise filled the room with the sounds of familiar hymns performed with a jazz flair and in a way that lifted the spirits of all in the room, a room that truly looked like God’s beloved community with people of color of every hue.
Nearly 400 people took part in Tuesday’s Office of Public Witness webinar offering listeners, among other suggestions, tips on how to respond to people seeking asylum or refuge in the United States — and ways to lobby their member of Congress to alter the laws and budgets that impact people fleeing their country for a new life in the U.S.
The Rev. Denise Anderson noticed something about the infamous news footage of white nationalist marchers in Charlottesville, Virginia in the Summer of 2017: Most of them were young.
Before she told the audience what Reproductive Justice is, the Rev. Shanea D. Leonard had to say what it isn’t.
“Most people think that it’s all about abortion, but it’s not,” Leonard said at the top of a Tuesday afternoon webinar, presented by the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) Office of Public Witness (OPW) in Washington, D.C. “It’s so much more than that, but it’s inclusive of that as well.
The siren went off at 3 a.m. Oct. 29.
“Anytime you hear the siren, that means there could be an explosion at the refinery,” said Emma Lockridge, whose home is just a few blocks away from the Marathon Petroleum refinery in Southwest Detroit.
So, she called Marathon and asked what was going on.
“Nothing,” was the reply, though she looked out of her window and saw, “red, billowing smoke.”
Lockridge decided to jump into her car and document the event on video, bursts of fire and smoke flaring onto the screen.
By grace, Synod of the Trinity staff became involved with the Community Responders Network in Central Pennsylvania last spring to support them in getting three reader’s theater-style skits around bias into video production.
By grace, we met Ann Van Dyke, the writer of those skits, and as we got to know her, we learned of her work in civil rights for the state of Pennsylvania for many years.
Out of her personal calling, Van Dyke offered to do some work with us around hate.
The Racial Equity Advocacy Committee issued this statement Monday:
While not the most widely known or celebrated holiday, Juneteenth is certainly one of the more significant holidays in the history of this nation.
To celebrate Intercultural Church Day, worshipers at the Presbyterian Center in Louisville Wednesday were invited to sing verses of well-known hymns — “How Great Thou Art” and “Blessed Assurance, Jesus is Mine!” among them — in English, Korean and Spanish, as well as in the “language closest to your heart.”
On a day that began with a snowstorm and ended with sunny skies, the 18 pastors gathered at Zephyr Point Presbyterian Conference Center on Lake Tahoe for the Mentoring Event for Leaders of Color in Pastoral Ministry found inspiration in training and continued relationship building during Tuesday’s sessions.
