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Catholic Medical Mission Board (CMMB) will host a ribbon-cutting Thursday, Oct. 22, at 3 p.m. (Eastern time) at the Brethren Service Center in New Windsor, Md., the new home of CMMB’s Distribution Center. CMMB CEO Mary Beth Powers and Church of the Brethren general secretary David Steele will speak during the ceremony. Attendees can assemble hygiene kits to support communities in need globally.

Los asistentes escucharán a los líderes de ambas organizaciones y armarán kits de higiene mientras CMMB se une a la comunidad de servicio del Centro de Servicio de los Hermanos. La Junta de Misiones Médicas Católicas (CMMB) celebrará una ceremonia de inauguración el jueves 22 de octubre a las 15:00 (hora del este) en el

Patisipan yo pral tande lidè tou de òganizasyon yo epi rasanble twous ijyèn pandan CMMB ap rantre nan kominote sèvis Sant Sèvis Frè yo a. Konsèy Misyon Medikal Katolik (CMMB) pral òganize yon seremoni koupe riban jedi 22 oktòb la a 3 pm (lè lès) nan Sant Sèvis Frè yo nan New Windsor, Md., nouvo

[Episcopal News Service] A federal appeals court panel has ruled in favor of The Episcopal Church and 26 ecumenical and interfaith partners in a lawsuit contesting the Trump administration’s removal of “sensitive locations” protections for houses of worship in immigration enforcement. The three-judge panel of the Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled, 2-1, that a lower court judge erred in finding that the faith-based plaintiffs lacked standing to file their lawsuit. The plaintiffs have argued that the Trump administration’s intensified immigration enforcement actions have driven some worshippers to stay home. The lower court judge ruled in April 2025 that The Episcopal Church and other plaintiffs had not sufficiently demonstrated an imminent threat. The Court of Appeals reversed that decision, sending the case back to the U.S. District Court to rule on the merits of the plaintiff’s arguments. “Plaintiffs’ members likely face imminent harm from increased enforcement at their houses of worship,” the Court of Appeals opinion says. “That harm is traceable to the new enforcement policy.” Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe and House of Deputies President Julia Ayala Harris issued a joint statement Oct. 20 after the appellate court ruling was handed down. “As faith leaders who have borne witness to the harm of ICE enforcement on our congregations — and the impact of immigration in one of our families — we give thanks to God for today’s milestone in our multifaith effort to protect religious freedom,” the presiding officers said. “In The Episcopal Church, we cannot truly be ourselves when some cannot freely worship with us. Civic engagement is an important way Christians can demonstrate love for our neighbors, and with this litigation, we are challenging unjust policies that fall short of respecting the dignity of all people.” The interfaith group of religious denominations and organizations sued the Department of Homeland Security in February 2025 after the Trump administration rescinded a policy that had protected houses of worship, schools and hospitals. Since then, the Trump administration has escalated its campaign of immigrant detentions and deportations to include aggressive enforcement operations in targeted cities across the country. The deployment of Immigrations and Custom Enforcement officers, as well as Customs and Border Protection agents, has rattled communities, sparked protests and sometimes resulted in violent and deadly confrontations with both immigrants and U.S. citizens. There have not been widespread reports of raids inside houses of worship, though in cities with a large federal presence, some churches have been joining efforts to assist immigrant families who are afraid to leave their homes to go to work or school or even to get groceries. One Episcopal church in Minnesota also was on a list of houses of worshiped where Homeland Security was reported to have spied on activists holding meetings there. The Episcopal Church is one of 12 denominations that have signed onto the federal lawsuit, which also includes the Disciples of Christ, Mennonite, Methodist, Presbyterian and AME Zion churches. Other plaintiffs include regional denominational bodies and other religious associations. The plaintiffs, represented by the nonpartisan Georgetown University Law Center, have argued the Trump administration is violating religious freedom protections in the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993. – David Paulsen is a senior reporter and editor for Episcopal News Service based in Wisconsin. He can be reached at [email protected].

[Anglican Journal] Nov. 30 marks the 50th anniversary of the ordination of women as priests in the Anglican Church of Canada. Dioceses and parishes across Canada are holding events to commemorate the occasion, ranging from themed Sunday Eucharist services to a two-day event in Victoria. Ontario Archbishop Anne Germond formerly served as acting primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, the second female primate after Archbishop Linda Nicholls. Germond calls women’s ordination a “significant historic event for our church” and says women’s leadership gifts, though present before 1976, have flourished and enriched the church since that milestone. She said parents have approached her on parish visits to say their daughters were inspired by seeing her in a leadership role. Ordained in 2002, Germond said she has been welcomed both at the parish level and in the national church. Still, she said, there are challenges women in ordained ministry face, including the balance between family expectations and a career in the church. Read the full article here.

When Alexis Humphreys began working on a grassroots effort to confront Elon Musk’s xAI data center in Memphis, Tennessee, she said it started with about 10 people. Now it’s more than 300 people, she said. Their story of fighting for…

The post Creation Justice: How people in Memphis have been taking action against hyper-scale data centers appeared first on United Church of Christ.

She was one of many who came forward to the communion table, taking with her two tiny cups brimming with grape juice and a handful of bread cubes back to the pew. There, a non-verbal, five-year-old squirmed in a stroller…

The post The good old church dinner gets reimagined as hunger and loneliness rise: Free meals are life-saving ministries appeared first on United Church of Christ.

The United Church of Christ, in collaboration with the Central Pacific Conference, has released a joint statement lifting up in prayer the families, friends, and communities in the wake of the tragic shooting in Bend, Oregon, and condemning yet another…

The post National Ministries, along with Central Pacific Conference release joint statement condemning school shooting in Bend, Oregon appeared first on United Church of Christ.

Issues of safety and welcome have long been a topic of conversation in the United States. The days of racial segregation provided overt and legal signs that warned of potential dangers. Separate waiting rooms, water fountains and schools for Whites…

The post Unsafe and Unwelcome appeared first on United Church of Christ.

With national midterm elections just weeks away — which are set to become the most expensive on record — voices are clamoring for attention from televisions and computer screens, billboards and mailboxes. Much of the messaging is intentionally crafted to…

The post ‘Pause our doom-scrolling. Quiet our hearts’: Resources offer prayer and care at height of election season appeared first on United Church of Christ.