Witness, Share and Evangelize: Today in the Mission Yearbook - Putting the fun in fundraising

Witness, Share and Evangelize: Today in the Mission Yearbook - Putting the fun in fundraising: Two Texas congregations hold photo scavenger hunts to support the Presbyterian Giving Catalog April 30, 2021 Belle Christoffersen, a youth m...

Change.org - Killing animals for cash prizes?

Wildlife killing contests encourage the wanton killing of animals in exchange for cash or prizes. Coyotes, bobcats, and wolves are among the animals that are hunted by the truckload to count toward a "winning score." Petition starter Joe points out that these contests are not hunting, but instead are “…barbaric practices that promote mass killing of species…” Many states have outlawed these contests – Joe wants Minnesota to be next. End Wildlife Killing Contests in Minnesota 2,490 have signed Joe Hunt’s petition. Let’s get to 2,500!

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Wildlife killing contests take place throughout the United States. These contests put cash prizes on Coyote, Lynx, Bobcat, Wolves, Fox, Skunk, and other predators. Contests can be held by weight, amount of predators bagged or largest predator killed within a given amount of time, with teams hauling in truckloads of animals for the count. These contests operate largely under the radar in Minnesota, knowing that public support would be virtually nonexistent.  Wildlife Killing contests are not hunting: they are barbaric practices that promote mass killing of species by any and all means, from baiting and trapping, shooting, and poisons, to running animals down in vehicles. Many of these events will justify the behavior as a form of population control, but experts have largely disputed this claim stating that Wildlife Killing Contests hold no ecological value.  Contests like this are unregulated with no real set rules or limits, and hold no place in Minnesotas traditionally sportsman-like outdoor recreation. With many states choosing to outlaw these grosume contests, Minnesota can be the next to do so with your help. Be a friend to our natural predators, and sign the petition to introduce legislation to end Wildlife Killing Contests in the Land of 10,000 lakes.

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Change.org - Honorary graduate

Hanna will be graduating high school this year, but without her good friend by her side. Julia McCarthy died by suicide two years ago. Hanna wants to honor her friend with an empty chair at their graduation ceremony. She’s urging the school administration to fulfill this request on behalf of the students and Julia’s parents. Let Julia Graduate!! 6,679 have signed Hanna Huynh’s petition. Let’s get to 7,500!

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This is Julia McCarthy. She was supposed to be a senior at Rockwood Summit High School this year, but she sadly committed suicide a week before Sophomore year started on August 10, 2018. One of her friends asked the school if we could have a chair of remembrance for her at Graduation and the school said okay as long as her parents said yes. Not only did her parents say yes, but said they wanted it so we could honor their daughter. Now, the school changed their mind because they said it would “upset too many students”. We owe it to our past classmate to honor her in the way we couldn’t when she passed. I have created this petition in that hope you all will sign in honor of her. Yes it is sad, but the fact is that it happened and she deserves to be remembered, not forgotten because it’s easier for the school. I’m begging all of you students, parents, and teachers to sign and also email the senior office saying you also want this chair of remembrance for Julia McCarthy. Thank you.

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At Change.org, we believe in the voice of everyday people. Is there something that you want to change? Start a petition today

Protect people, not patents

Protect People, Not Patents Adam Russell Taylor When I received my second vaccine shot, it felt like a dose of hope. I likened this overwhelming sense of gratitude and relief to receiving a shot of vibranium, the rare, super-powered metal from Wakanda in my favorite Marvel movie, Black Panther. Here in the United States, the supply of COVID-19 vaccines is now plentiful. In fact, this nation moved so aggressively to ensure enough vaccine for its own people that the ONE campaign estimated “the federal government has secured 550 million more doses than it needs to cover every American.” Given this national surplus, the main barrier to defeating the virus in the U.S. is vaccine skepticism. For those of us who have been fortunate enough to receive the vaccine, we must pay it forward by working to persuade everyone who can safely take the vaccine to do so. But in many other parts of the world, it’s a different story. While almost 43 percent of the U.S. population has received at least one COVID-19 shot, few other nations are anywhere as close. Overall, only 7.4 percent of the world’s population has had at least one dose of vaccine. Meanwhile, the global numbers of new cases and deaths have both risen in recent weeks, with reported cases recently passing 800,000 cases per day, an unfathomable record-high for the pandemic. READ THE FULL ARTICLE Forward Share

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Our Latest Coloradans Carry the Trauma of Mass Shootings In Our Bones (by Cassidy Klein) But we also hold the comfort of the Rockies. The Recent Amazon Union Effort Failed — Churches Can Help (by Dean Dettloff) Organizers and Christians in Bessemer wonder what went wrong — and how future attempts at unionizing the Amazon facility could be different.  Why Nathan Cartagena Teaches Critical Race Theory to Evangelicals (by Mitchell Atencio) The Wheaton professor isn’t interested in the culture wars, he’s trying to transform the church with “godly race-consciousness.” Black Like Jazz: Imagining a World Without Police (by Josiah R. Daniels) How jazz taught me to resist videos of memed violence where Black pain is only spectacle.

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From the Magazine Dan Berrigan’s Hidden Works of Mercy (Patrick Henry) The well-known peace activist spent much of his life bringing comfort to the dying.

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Digital Campaigner, Faithful America Faithful America is the largest online community of grassroots Christians working to reclaim Christianity from the religious right for social justice. We are seeking an early-to-mid-career online organizer to help design and execute our digital-advocacy campaigns for love, dignity, and justice. Location: Remote. Deadline to apply: May 16. Questions: jobs@faithfulamerica.org Can theological education equip youth to lead differently? The church and society need youth engaging in important theological work to create social change. Youth Theological Network provides a new way of learning for young Christian leaders.

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For God’s sake, let's get real on climate change

One of the things I like about religion is that our words carry weight.

Our faiths don't call us to “love someone 50%” or “be compassionate by 2050”. They tell us to do what’s compassionate, loving, and just - now.

Send a message to world leaders: the Sacred People, Sacred Earth Demands are the moral compass for climate justice.

Watching last week’s climate summit, it was hard not to notice that while leaders were big on aspiration, there was a lot of hedging. Plenty of “50% by 2035” and “net zero by 2050”.  

To the uninitiated, this language may feel powerful or mystifying. In reality, these “promises” obfuscate and dehumanize what’s at stake.

For example, one of the most important moral challenges of the climate crisis is the growing number of climate refugees, millions of them poor farmers in Africa and Asia forced to leave their homes because of droughts, floods, and wildfires.  

But almost no political leader is willing to state the obvious - that wealthy countries, responsible for the majority of climate-forcing emissions in the atmosphere, owe a generous welcome to these innocent people and reparations to the world’s most vulnerable nations, some of whom have their very existence threatened by this crisis (for example, all 38 small island developing nations).

Or consider another example - the slippery use of “net zero by 2050” as a smokescreen for relying on inadequate or unproven solutions. Earlier this year, Shell Oil, a wealthy fossil fuel giant, pledged net zero emissions by 2050. How do they plan to do this? Through “nature based solutions” (e.g. planting trees), and Carbon Capture and Storage technology, which is yet unproven at scale.  

What’s really needed? Shell, and the entire oil and gas sector, must enter a managed decline and end the fossil fuel era while society massively scales up clean renewable energy.

We understand that these changes are not easy. But the need for them is staring us in the face. Political, financial, and business leaders are failing the most basic test of true leadership by choosing not to speak directly and plainly about the depth of the problem.

As this November’s UN climate negotiations approach, you’ll hear a lot of language that has the dangerous lure of the sirens of Greek mythology. Merchants of spin will tempt us to think that everything is OK when, in fact, we face threats that call for true courage and action based on moral values. Nothing less will suffice.

When grassroots people of diverse religions worldwide created the 10 Sacred People, Sacred Earth Demands, they did so in a spirit of pure-hearted truthfulness.  

Add your name to these demands today, so that we can show world leaders what real courage looks like.

Then, and only then, we’ll have a prayer of building a better tomorrow.

In solidarity and hope,

Rev. Fletcher Harper

Medical Missions Live From Malawi - May 4 | MBF

A Frontline Look at Reenergizing Medical Missions 7:00 PM Central  |  Tuesday, May 4, Part 1 of 2

Dr.med. Jens Vaylann, Assistant Prof. of Surgery, Executive Director actMED Dr. Eva Vaylann, Ph.D, Executive Director actMED Dear Ministry Partner, On Tuesday, May 4th, we will be on the frontlines of medical missions in Malawi for part one of a two-part webcast with Drs. Vaylann. Both Executive Directors for actMED in Malawi, Jens and Eva moved from Germany and have been living full time in Africa since 2017. Jens is an Asst. Professor of Surgery with Loma Linda University and Eva has a PhD in biochemistry and molecular biology.   About 18 months ago, just in time for the pandemic, they relocated to Nkhoma, Malawi to help start the new surgical residency at Nkhoma Hospital where Jens is Director. Eva has been working in the hospital laboratory and is instrumental in helping to set up the first regional blood bank program.  This is a conversation you do not want to miss. Please have your questions ready for us. We look forward to you connecting with us live via Zoom or on Facebook Live on Tuesday, 5/4/2021 at 5 pm PDT/7 pm CDT/8 pm EDT. If you choose to view with Zoom you will need to pay attention to both the login and the passcode included for you below.   Blessings   E. Andrew Mayo  President and CEO  You are invited to a Zoom webinar. When: May 4, 2021 07:00 PM Central Time (US and Canada) Topic: A Frontline Look at Reenergizing Medical Missions Part 1 Please click the link below to join the webinar: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82691064974?pwd=K1pGK1N3bGVXbUN4b0xDSytscFJGdz09 Passcode: 329869   We have a YouTube Channel Over the past year, we have compiled a library of authors, CEOs, pastors and doctors who have a unique medical mission perspective through their education and experience. We recently created an MBF YouTube channel where we share thoughts from authors like Bob Lupton and Peter Greer about their perspectives on how missions are changing as we move into the 21st century. We have interviewed mission leaders, including Dr. Mike Chupp, CMDA, Ted Esler, Missio Nexus, and Dr. John Crouch, In His Image about their views on medical ministry challenges. It can all be found here for your viewing and shared with your churches and committees as the library expands.  Partners in Hope & Healing INTERNATIONAL HEADQUARTERS 9555 W. Sam Houston Pkwy South, Suite 170 Houston, TX 77099 1.800.547.7627 | 1.281.201.2043 | www.medicalmission.org

Witness, Share and Evangelize: Today in the Mission Yearbook - ‘Addressing the root causes of hunger is always better than focusing on the symptoms’

Witness, Share and Evangelize: Today in the Mission Yearbook - ‘Addressing the root causes of hunger is always better than focusing on the symptoms’: An International Peacemaker in the midst of war takes on hunger at the source April 29, 2021 Jaff Bamenjo, an international peacemaker for t...

Study, Learn and Grow: Race, faith and climate change

Study, Learn and Grow: Race, faith and climate change: God loved the world, not just one people By Neddy Astudillo | Presbyterians Today Markus Spiske/Pexels The first time I became aware of a co...

WCC NEWS: Simple vaccination message: 'Do to others, what you want them to do to you'

During intense global vaccinations to fight COVID-19, churches can play a vital role in guiding people to better health in informing them on vaccine hesitancy and advocating for equity in immunization, international church leaders told journalists. 28 April 2021 The World Council of Churches (WCC) convened a press briefing from its headquarters on 28 April. Prof. Dr Isabel Apawo Phiri, WCC deputy general secretary; Archbishop emeritus Dr Anders Wejryd, WCC president for Europe; and Dr Mwai Makoka, WCC programme executive for Health and Healing, informed journalists of the WCC's campaign for World Immunization Week. "It is a good thing for the WCC to engage and for churches to commit themselves to this," said Wejryd, who was introduced as a "WCC Vaccine Champion." "It's a good thing to start in a very basic ethical sentence -- "do to others, what you want them to do to you; and don't do to others, what you don't want them to do to you," said the WCC Europe president. 'I don't want to be infected' "I don't want to be infected by COVID-19. And I absolutely don't want to be the one that brings it on to someone else. I think that is the very basic thing. It is all about solidarity." He said that naturally, there are risks with vaccinations. "But those risks are minimal, compared to the risks that follow from the infection from the actual disease, which obviously, is such a strange and difficult one." Phiri spoke of the WCC in the arena of health. "Part of our mission is to promote healing. Health and healing have always been important in the work of the World Council of Churches, from its inception. "And this is because of the mission of Jesus Christ that included healing," she said. "So part of our mission is to promote healing." She added: "WCC facilitated the establishment of national-level Christian health associations in several countries, especially in Africa, to promote ecumenical cooperation in health service delivery among different churches." Church healing ministry Makoka said that, in a 1964 WCC consultation, a key issue that came out was that "the healing ministry belongs to the whole church, and that specialized programmes, like church hospitals and clinics, must reasonably be integrated into the life and witness of the church.” He outlined four interventions. "The first one is health education, that churches, local church congregations, can be places to be places or health education. The other one is practical actions. The third one is advocacy for care for creation. And the other area is public witness, taking a public stand on key issues, each one in their area of influence." He said there is now a handbook the WCC has produced to accompany churches in establishing and running sustainable health promotion ministries. There is also material for churches to deal with "bottlenecks" in dealing with COVID-19 issues. Some of the journalists' questions related to how the WCC supports the global campaign for vaccine equity include easing intellectual property rules around patents to enable the quicker and more equitable manufacture of vaccines. During the annual World Immunization Week, an initiative by UNICEF taking place 24-30 April, the WCC has intensified its support. It has done this by appointing influential members from the fellowship to join the 300 Vaccination Champions, which its long-time child-rights partner UNICEF is mobilizing for world immunization. The objective is to exercise influence through social media blogs and other channels to raise awareness about the critical role of immunisation through vaccination in saving lives. WCC acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca encourages religious leaders in all contexts to lend weight to vaccination programmes: "We must do all we can to protect people from COVID-19 and other potentially fatal diseases. It is our duty to exercise the influence trusted upon us, beyond the pulpits in our local churches." Watch the recording of the press briefing WCC Vaccine Champions ready to serve - WCC news release 23 April 2021 WCC publishes first-of-its-kind handbook to help churches promote good health - WCC news release 28 April 2021 Health-Promoting Churches Volume II See more

The World Council of Churches promotes Christian unity in faith, witness and service for a just and peaceful world. An ecumenical fellowship of churches founded in 1948, today the WCC brings together 350 Protestant, Orthodox, Anglican and other churches representing more than 550 million Christians in over 120 countries, and works cooperatively with the Roman Catholic Church. The WCC acting general secretary is Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca, from the Orthodox Church in Romania. Media contact: +41 79 507 6363; www.oikoumene.org/press Our visiting address is: World Council of Churches 150 route de Ferney Geneve 2 1211 Switzerland