A Labor Day Prayer

21 in 21: A Green Congregation Challenge

by Vicky Guest, Environmental Ministry Team

We are launching 21 in 21 this fall, challenging 21 congregations to commit to creating a greener world by joining the Green Congregation Challenge. Sign your church up here!

On August 9, the New York Times ran this headline: “A Hotter Future is Certain, Climate Panel Warns, But How Hot is Up to Us”... A hotter future is certain, but how hot is STILL up to us. The SNEUCC Environmental Ministries Team believes that we are called to act as people of faith. We are called to advocate for vulnerable communities who will suffer the greatest impacts of a hotter future. We are called to protect and preserve the world that God made and that God loves. Read more

Afghan Refugees Need Our Support

by Rev. Dawn Adams, Immigration, Refugee and Asylum Task Team

This week, our hearts have been broken watching the disintegration of a nation. We have cried watching the desperation of people trying to leave their home country as it once again falls under the control of a radical group. Instead of mourning and simply offering our "thoughts and prayers" to those affected, the wider church is asking each of us to take action.  Read more

Clergy Affinity Group to Focus on Becoming More Racially Conscious Together We Thrive is hosting three more Affinity Groups this fall, including Becoming More Racially Conscious:  A Learning Journey for White Ministers with Dr. Diane Schmitz, MDiv. This group starts with a series of sessions in the fall, offers a check-in session in January and a closing gathering in spring of 2022.  There are three different time options for the fall.  The first series of sessions starts in mid-September. The second series is an evening time slot for those who prefer not to meet during the day. The third series starts in mid-October and ends before the start of Advent. Registration for the first fall series closes on September 3rd.  Read more Four Local Black Women Leaders Reflect on Phillis Wheatley's Work on the 250th Anniversary of her Baptism Ten years after her enslavement and arrival in America, African-American poet Phillis Wheatley chose to be baptized in what is now the Old South Meeting House on August 18, 1771. As a member of the church, she found a community and a deep spiritual connection, but she also likely felt some unease sharing fellowship with white congregants who owned slaves. To mark the 250th anniversary of Wheatley’s baptism, Revolutionary Spaces, an organization aimed at bringing people together to explore the American struggle to create and sustain a free society, has teamed with Old South Church in Boston to ask four different local Black women leaders to reflect on her work and how it has impacted Black people’s fight for liberation in America. Read more New UCC Resource Helps Congregations Address Youth and Trauma  The United Church of Christ Mental Health Network is pleased to offer a new set of resources to help congregations and other community-based organizations address the mental health effects of trauma on children. Their development was led by psychologist Dr. Vicki K. Harvey; Rev. Amy Petré Hill, mental health and neurodiversity chaplain; and members of the UCC Mental Health Network Board of Directors. They were created in partnership with Advocate Aurora Health, a Chicago-area health system that is one of the largest not-for-profit health systems in the country. More Resources for Coping During the Lingering Pandemic by Deborah Ringen, Minister of Health & Wellness and Faith Community Nurse Wow, it is August already! Summer days bring fun, family, vacations, and the realization that the new school year will begin soon. This year we are faced with rising coronavirus infection rates, the Delta variant and others on the horizon that infect more people, more quickly and even infects some who are vaccinated. Children under 12 are the largest part of the population that is not eligible to be vaccinated yet. Despite the fun outdoor activities of the season, worry and anxiety are increasing during what should be a time of relaxation and renewal. We are called to continue wearing masks, washing our hands, get vaccinated and encourage those who can, to get vaccinated too.  Read more Also by Deborah Ringen: Covid Guidance for Church Offices Climate-Crisis Preaching: A Conversation with Jim Antal and Margaret Bullitt-Jonas  Thursday, September 16, 10-11 AM Preaching on climate change is more important than ever. Please join this informal (virtual) hour-long conversation with two religious climate leaders who between them have preached on climate change more than 500 times. There will be opportunities for questions and discussion. Participants are encouraged to read Bullitt-Jonas’ article, “Preaching When Life Depends on It: Climate Crisis and Gospel Hope” (Anglican Theological Review, Spring 2021) and Antal’s chapter, “Prophetic Preaching: Freeing the Pulpit from Fear,” in his book, Climate Church, Climate World.   More We Are God's Soil - Spiritual Leadership in a Climate-Changed World Thursday, Sept. 30 - Friday, Oct. 1 Climate change is no longer the science community’s prediction for the future. We are living in a climate-changed world — a world that raises provocative questions. Join the Bangor Theological Seminary for Convocation 2021. The two-day event will feature online sessions with log off time for some intentional, self-guided, offline sessions. Incorporating music, the arts, and contemplative practice, Convocation 2021 will inspire and challenge all to ground our spiritual leadership in the common good and in the sacredness of our planetary home. Co-sponsored by the SNEUCC. Learn more and register

Your justice related news, events and reflections are welcome! Please submit to Editor Karen Methot for consideration: methotk@sneucc.org, by the fourth Monday of the month for a Thursday publication date. Thank you!