Latest News

The Church of the Brethren’s Office of Peacebuilding and Policy was one of dozens of religious, humanitarian, and other nonprofit organizations joining in a letter to members of Congress opposing the White House rescissions proposal that was approved by the House of Representatives this week.

An Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Superfund site clean-up of an empty lot adjacent to the driveway of the Church of the Brethren General Offices in Elgin, Ill., was completed last month.

God of Life, whose Son is called the Prince of Peace,You have created peace and urge us to embrace it—to turn our swords into plowshares and our spears into pruning hooks. We raise the conflict between Israel and Iran to You,recognizing that all life is sacred,and that all humans are created in Your image,precious in […]

The post A Plea for Peace: Israel, Iran, and the World appeared first on WCRC.

Young adult leader says United Methodist systems function to protect power, are resistant to change and preserve a table that was not built with everyone in mind.

[Episcopal News Service] Christ Episcopal Church in Toms River, New Jersey, is considering its options after the town Zoning Board of Adjustment refused June 12 the parish’s request for a variance, which would allow for a 17-bed overnight shelter on its campus. The parish and the diocese are considering whether to appeal the 5-2 decision to the Ocean County Superior Court. The church’s attorney, Harvey York, predicted during his closing argument to the board that a no vote would prompt an appeal. The Rev. Lisa Hoffman, Christ Church’s rector, told Episcopal News Service that she is “not surprised but very disappointed” by the board’s decision. “We will continue to do whatever we can to assist and support the homeless in our community,” she said. Christ Church and the Affordable Housing Alliance need an exception to the church’s zoning classification to open the shelter. The town’s administrative code says that zoning board members must consider whether the request “can be granted without substantial detriment to the public good and will not substantially impair the intent and purpose of the zone plan and zoning ordinances.” New Jersey Bishop Sally French told ENS that she was also disappointed. “I do appreciate that all members of the zoning board recognized the need for such a shelter, and I hope and pray that there is a way forward that will permit the church to continue their Gospel ministries of care for the poor, the homeless and the vulnerable,” she said. The diocese and the parish “remain committed to this work and to continuing to serve those in need.,” French added. As board members cast their votes, they gave their reasoning. Nels Luthman would have approved the variance, noting that the town’s zoning structure does not allow for such a shelter anywhere. “Wherever we would put it in this town, we would need a use variance,” he said, adding that he knows the Christ Church shelter would not help every person experiencing homelessness, “but it’s a step in the right direction.” Board member Dana Tormollan disagreed. “We’re not solving the problem; we’re putting a small Band-Aid on it,” she said before voting no. Jason Crispin, the board chair, acknowledged that Toms River has a “homelessness problem,” but he said the Christ Church site “is not adequate.” Crispin said he was also worried about how the shelter would be staffed and secured. Approving this variance, he said, could lead to a flurry of requests for non-residential uses in neighborhoods. A video of the meeting is here. The shelter proposal calls for updating the church’s circa-1882 parish house while adding 949 square feet. The Affordable Housing Alliance and the Toms River Housing and Homeless Coalition have operated out of the building since 2023. The AHA would run the shelter with a grant from Ocean County. Some Toms River residents have said that a shelter on church property would make the town a “magnet” for people experiencing homelessness. Others said it would put neighborhood homes and the children who live in them at risk. An expert witness at an earlier board meeting predicted a 15% decline in the value of homes near the shelter. The zoning board’s rejection comes in advance of an anticipated July 30 vote by the town council on Mayor Daniel Rodrick’s desire to acquire the church’s property and five other lots, either through purchase or use of eminent domain. The mayor said previously that it is a “coincidence” that his land-seizure plan became public during the town’s zoning board’s deliberations. “One thing has nothing to do with the other,” he said. Rodrick wants to create a park on the church’s 11 acres. He has not said what will happen to the ashes of 325 people interred in a memorial garden on the property. It is not clear how area residents would feel about a large park in their neighborhood, but Rodrick told ENS that, if he had to put the proposal to a vote, 85% of voters would approve it. The mayor’s plan became a topic in the local June 10 primary election, as did Rodrick’s actions to reduce the size of the police force, close an animal shelter, and close a local emergency medical service after accusing it of “financial irregularities.” Rodrick claimed during the May 28 town council meeting that his four candidates would win by 65% and his opponents would face “massive loss.” Instead, two lost to challengers who oppose Rodrick’s plan. One Rodrick candidate defeated an incumbent who supports the church while the other incumbent, who opposes the effort, won a spot on the November general election ballot. The primary results mean that no matter how the November election turns out, the mayor will no longer have a majority when the new council convenes in January. Christ Church held a prayer vigil the evening before the primary. “In these times when we find ourselves being challenged, what the people of God do is we pray and we vote,” Hamilton said French attended the vigil. “This isn’t partisan politics, this is about supporting those who are vulnerable and in need, and supporting our church, this particular church and all faith communities,” she said. French said the diocese and the parish “remain committed to this location,” adding that they will defend the church’s “right to stay on this piece of property where we have been for so many years, and we will do that through whatever means are available to us.” – The Rev. Mary Frances Schjonberg is a freelance writer who formerly was a senior editor and reporter for Episcopal News Service.

Friday, June 20, is World Refugee Day. Please consider taking some time in your worship spaces this month to talk about refugees, to pray for their situations, and to honor their stories.

[Episcopal News Service] Activities marking Juneteenth – June 19 – are set to take place in churches and dioceses across The Episcopal Church in the coming days, ranging from helping to restore a                                                                                    historically Black cemetery to concerts, worship services and speakers. Juneteenth commemorates the date in 1865 that federal troops arrived in Galveston, Texas, to ensure that all enslaved people in the Confederate state were freed. This came more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on Jan. 1, 1863, but the order couldn’t be enforced everywhere until after the end of the Civil War on April 9, 1865. The official end of slavery in the United States came with the ratification of the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution on Dec. 6, 1865. Juneteenth, also known as Juneteenth Independence Day or Freedom Day, became a national holiday on June 17, 2021. While Texas and more than two dozen other states already observed Juneteenth as a state holiday, interest in a federal holiday was renewed in the summer of 2020, during months of racial reckoning that followed the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and several other Black people. In 2021 Missouri Bishop Deon Johnson wrote collects for Juneteenth that others are welcome to use. The Episcopal Diocese of Newark has made available liturgical resources  for the observance, and the Episcopal Diocese of Michigan has created a private devotion for Juneteenth. The following is a list of some Juneteenth events hosted by Episcopal churches and dioceses. Check online for additional events. All times are local.  Church of the Nativity – Church of the Nativity, Grand Junction, Colorado, is hosting a celebration on June 14 from 2-6 p.m. in the town’s Lincoln Park. This family-friendly event will feature local performers, guest speakers, kids’ activities and information booths. The Episcopal Church in Western Oregon – The Episcopal Church in Western Oregon is cosponsoring a Juneteenth Freedom Day celebration June 14 at 1 p.m. at Allen Temple CME Church in Portland. The event will bring together churches, community members and civic leaders to commemorate Juneteenth and to celebrate Black freedom, resilience and culture. Keynote speaker will be the Rev. Allison Cannady-Smith, pastor of Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Portland. The program will include music, prayer, and time for fellowship and reflection. St. John’s Cathedral – On June 14 beginning at 5 p.m., St. John’s Cathedral in Jacksonville, Florida, will host an evening of music, reflection and community featuring the Jacksonville Gospel Chorale, a keynote address by Jacksonville educator Tammy Hodo, and a book signing with Alton and Gwen Yates. The event is free and open to all. Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles – The diocese’s Program Group on Black Ministries and the Union of Black Episcopalians H. Belfield Hannibal chapter will present a Juneteenth Evensong on June 14 from 4-7 p.m., at St. John’s Cathedral in Los Angeles.  Washington National Cathedral – Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., will celebrate Juneteenth on June 15 at the 11:15 a.m. Sunday Holy Eucharist, with music from the cathedral’s Contemporary Worship Ensemble.  Episcopal Diocese of California – The annual Juneteenth celebration of the Episcopal Diocese of California will take place on June 15 at 6 p.m. at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco. Presiding will be the Rev. J. Sierra Reyes, the diocese’s canon to the ordinary. The preacher will be the Rev. Sakena Young-Scaggs, senior associate dean for religious and spiritual life at Stanford University and pastor of Stanford Memorial Church. The service is sponsored by the Afro-Anglican Commission of the diocese and the Northern California Vivian Traylor chapter of the Union of Black Episcopalians. Church of the Epiphany – On June 17 at 12:10 p.m., the Church of the Epiphany, Washington, D.C., will host a Juneteenth event featuring performers from the Coalition for African Americans in the Performing Arts who will bring to life the experiences, trauma and jubilee of the enslaved Africans in Galveston, Texas, through music, dance and narration when they experienced freedom for the first time. Diocese of Virginia – St. Peter’s, St. John’s and St. Philip’s churches in Richmond, Virginia, will host a Juneteenth Day of Freedom Celebration. It begins on June 19 at 8:30 a.m. at St. John’s with a walk to Peter Paul RVA, an organization that serves people in the city’s East End. The day also includes a community picnic with a bounce house, games and face painting. More information is on the event flyer.  Episcopal Diocese of West Missouri – On June 19, the Diocese of West Missouri will host a tour to Pierce City to visit the lynching site of three African Americans, followed by a trip to Diamond, Missouri, to the George Washington Carver Museum. A bus will depart at 8:30 a.m. from St. Augustine’s in Kansas City. Reservations are required. St. Clare of Assisi – Members of St. Clare’s in Ann Arbor, Michigan, on June 19 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. will take part in restoration efforts at Woodlawn Cemetery, which was founded decades ago by Black residents of Washtenaw County because other burial options were restricted by racism. More information about the project is here. St. Barnabas’s Memorial Episcopal Church – St. Barnabas’s in Falmouth, Massachusetts, will host the city’s Juneteenth celebration, with music, food and live entertainment on June 19 from 1-5 p.m. The Episcopal Diocese of Maryland – Memorial Church, Baltimore, and the diocese’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission will host a Gospel Evensong service on June 19 at 6:30 p.m. Featured guest artists include the Unified Voices of Johns Hopkins Gospel Choir, dancer Shonnita Johnson, poet Kenneth Something, and Lady Brion, poet laureate of Maryland. The Rev. Karen Mercer, the Rev. Ruth Elder, the Rev. Canon Randy K. Callender and the Rev. […]

Global South World ranked the top 100 most influential journalists on TikTok in Latin America. Coming in at number 14 was Rev. Eugenio Albrecht from Argentina.

The watchword for the week: Since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 5:1   Let the whole earth be joyful in you, O God, We greet you with gladness and celebrate your gift of peace. We know that you are creating us, you are alive in us, […]

The World Council of Churches (WCC) annual review 2024 is now available in four languages: English, German, French and Spanish. Entitled “Pursuing Peace Together,” the annual review records many of the WCC’s activities undertaken in 2024 and continuing into 2025.