Tomas (not his real name) is a church minister in Manipur, Northeast India. He had teary eyes when he recalled what happened on May 3, 2023.
“I have never seen such violence in my lifetime,” he said. “They systematically ransacked our places. That first night, they burnt down a church nearby. The sky turned red by flames.”
A few months later, it was reported that 250 churches of different denominations had been burnt. For several weeks, the manhunt continued.
Over 100 people died. The trauma is unimaginable, especially among women and children.
Recently a group of Presbyterian Mission Agency personnel joined with ecumenical partners from across Latin America and the Caribbean and delegates from the World Council of Churches and the World Communion of Reformed Churches. They gathered in Bogotá, Colombia, at the “International Encounter for Reconciliation in Colombia: Ecumenical Experiences and Learnings in Peace Building.” The PMA delegation included Ellen Sherby, the Rev. Dr. Valdir França, Sue Rheem, and the Rev. Sarah Henken, PC(USA) mission co-worker serving in Colombia, a country seeking peace after more than 50 years of armed conflict.
The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) is among a half-dozen organizations convening the week-long “Christian Zionism and Religious, Political and Economic Fundamentalisms: A Palestinian-Latin American Conversation,” Nov. 4-11 in Santiago, Chile, and available online as well.
Since Russia invaded Ukraine late last month, Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA) has committed rapid response solidarity grants to five ecumenical partners in Eastern and Central Europe addressing the humanitarian crisis created by the unprovoked attack.
The Rev. Dr. Anna Case-Winters, who has taught theology at McCormick Theological Seminary for 35 years, wasn’t all gloom and doom during a recent episode of the “Leading Theologically” podcast hosted twice each month by the Rev. Dr. Lee Hinson-Hasty of the Presbyterian Foundation.
The Rev. Lee Catoe and Simon Doong, co-hosts of “A Matter of Faith: A Presby Podcast,” had an epiphany for the episode they dropped on Epiphany: Why not invite a justice activist who could discuss the struggle for justice among a variety of God’s children? Listen to their most recent podcast here.
The Rev. Dr. Anna Case-Winters, who has taught theology at McCormick Theological Seminary for 35 years, wasn’t all gloom and doom Wednesday during the Leading Theologically podcast hosted twice each month by the Rev. Dr. Lee Hinson-Hasty of the Presbyterian Foundation.
The Rev. Dr. J. Herbert Nelson, II, Stated Clerk of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), was among the denominational leaders participating earlier this month in “What Does God Require of Us? Discerning, Confessing, and Witnessing in an Age of COVID-19 and Beyond,” part of the World Communion of Reformed Churches’ Communion-wide discernment process.
