This page lists our postings from all of December

Prayer for Peace in Gaza

Even as we celebrate the birth of the Prince of Peace, we are anguished by stories of violence and conflict once again in Gaza [www.pcusa.org/worldwide/israelpalestine]. Citizens and soldiers, young people and old are wounded and killed. We see how violence begets violence, as an eye for an eye leads not to peace, but to deeper blindness. We pray fervently for peace, for a New Year marked by a willingness and commitment to put violence aside and a desire and dedication to seek new relationships of peace. We pray that governments and leaders here and there and around the world will use whatever influence they may have as peacemakers, and that we, too will have courage and faith to pray without ceasing and to be agents of justice and peace for all.

The Presbyterian Peacemaking Program offers suggestions for action, and sources of information.

A few critical looks at Israel’s attack on Gaza – mostly through Jewish eyes

The Israeli airstrikes represent serious violations of international law С including the Geneva Conventions and a range of international humanitarian law.

The U.S. is complicit in the Israeli violations С directly and indirectly.

The timing of the air strikes has far more to do with U.S. and Israeli politics than with protecting Israeli civilians.

This serious escalation will push back any chance of serious negotiations between the parties that might have been part of the Obama administration's plans.

There is much work to be done.

A poem for Christmas

O come, you Splendor very bright,
as joy that never yields to might.

O come and twin all hearts to peace,
that greed and war at last shall cease.

— translated from the Latin of a very early carol,
“O Come, O Come, Emmanuel

JOURNEY         

Wisdom’s representatives lurched
 across the desert on camel back—
obedient to celestial mandate,
ready to pay homage at a royal birth.
Spines jarred by days of riding
ached for respite that never came.
Fur-trimmed robes already carried
stains of night encampments.
Hours of quiet study and scholars’ conversation—
this trio’s normal practice—
now seemed luxury lost.

Journey’s end heaped disappointment on discomfort.
The travelers knelt before an infant
just as they had planned,
and handed over tributes of great value.
Nothing else developed as expected—
no elegant reception, no regal fanfare—
only the couple and their baby
surrounded by some cattle in a barn.

In years to come these men would often wonder
They heard rumors of this child become a man—
preaching loving kindness, urging peace.
What if his message does catch on,
is imitated by the many,
supplanting the greed
on which the world too often turns?         

We wonder still.
          

jk, 12/2008

John D. King, Bloomington, Indiana   

Your WebWeaver thanks his brother Jack for this contribution.

A good thing or a bad thing?

Rachell Zoll, AP religion writer, quotes David Domke, author of The God Strategy: How Religion Became a Political Weapon in America: "Here's a guy who wants to run a progressive administration getting a substantial lift in his wings from the nation's most popular evangelical," Domke said. "But he balances that with Joseph Lowery, who speaks to the more liberal, social justice and African-American heritage."   Read her article >>

Many of Obama’s supporters have been offended by his choice of one of the leading voices in support of “Prop 8" in California, which is aimed to ban all marriages except the “one-man-one-woman” type.

For example, Kathryn Kolbert, president of People for the American Way, writes:  

President-elect Obama's soaring campaign speeches included ... calls for Americans to unite around what brings us together rather than what tear us apart, and we deeply appreciate that he wants to heal the divide in our often deeply polarized country. But Rick Warren is a powerful leader who marginalizes and dehumanizes those who disagree with him – he does nothing to help unite Americans! 

In an interview just last week, Warren compared reproductive choice to the Holocaust and compared same-sex marriage to incest and pedophilia, and he called Christians who work to advance social justice gospel "Marxism in Christian clothing." ... Is this the sort of inclusion millions of Americans voted for on November 4?

For the complete letter from Kolbert >>

Presbyterian minister the Rev. John Shuck, after offering a number of comments on the whole thing, decided to put forth his own solution: his own prayer for the Inauguration – in case anybody asks him.

If Obama had done the right thing and invited me to give the invocation, here is what I would have said:

I offer no prayer to any deity. Those who wish to pray may do so on their own. Instead, I invite us to celebrate and to contemplate the virtues of reason, justice, equality, and compassion that are available to all human beings.

The challenges we face are immense.

May we put away selfishness, greed, and short-sightedness.

May we work together against all forms of tyranny.

May we seek as our highest and our common goal the well-being of future generations.

May we work as tirelessly for the rights of others as for our own.

May we find a way to live within our means, with one another, with our non-human relatives, and with Earth.

And may we discover the courage, intelligence, imagination, and compassion available within us and among us to face the great work that lies ahead.

For John Shuck’s blog >>

For the "inaugural prayer" entry above>>

So now it’s your turn!
What are your thoughts on Obama’s choices?
And if he were to turn to you
instead of Warren or Lowery or Shuck,
what would be your prayer?

The Israel/Palestine Mission Network invites us to join in their letter to President-elect Obama before his inauguration – supporting “Israel's right to exist and right to live in safety and security, [as well as] peace and justice in Palestine.”

Here is their email note seeking signers for the letter >>

Two sentenced for slavery; PC(USA) calls on Florida’s Gov. Crist to act

We received this note on Sunday, Dec. 21:

Dear friends, 

I am a retired PCUSA mission co worker, and I have worked in Venezuela, Colombia and Spain in three theological education centers. I am never invited to respond to anything, since I have lived outside of the States for a good time and cannot understand the concept of high steeple churches. Most Presbyterian and Reformed Christians live in small communities with no buildings. Most Reformed Christians are poor in the real world. 

I do not understand the discourse Weston uses, nor do I wish to. I am alarmed about the way we are eliminating the prophetic and cutting edge of our great denomination.

I just pray that we will indeed become a multinational and yea, verily, even a Spanish speaking denomination. It will broaden our wings, open our eyes, and help us to meet the real challenges of our time. English [language] and tall steeples restrain our visionary sense of life.

Greetings to all, from Venezuela.

Rev. Donna Laubach Moros, D.Min. retired, Presbytery of Middle Tennessee
Teacher
Seminario Teologico de la Gran Colombia
Seminario Evangelico Unido de Teologia, España

What are your thoughts about this perspective
(not “outside the box,” maybe, but outside the States)?

Michael J. Adee, Executive Director & Field Organizer of More Light Presbyterians, offers his Christmas reflections.  He begins:

Of Advent and Christmas, Madeline L'Engle in her book, The Winter of the Heart, said: "This is the irrational season when love blooms bright and wild. Had Mary been filled with reason, there'd have been no room for the Child."   More >>

Responding to the recent “reorganization” affecting racial ethnic and women’s groups and programs, the Witherspoon Society has sent a short letter to the leaders of the Advocacy Committee for Women’s Concerns, the National Network of Presbyterian College Women, and Racial Ethnic Young Women Together, with copies to staff and members of the General Assembly Council, expressing “shock and dismay” at the loss of excellent staff leadership and the weakening of “the great history of our denomination’s commitment to advocacy on behalf of gender and racial justice in church and society.”

The Witherspoon Moderator, the Rev. Jake Young, then pledges to the three groups: “We stand ready to support you—and to ask our members to support you—in any way that will be helpful.”

For the full text of the letter >>

On October 31, we posted a short essay raising some critical questions about Prof. Weston’s proposal that the PC(USA) needs to return to the good old days of its supposed power and glory, when a “Presbyterian Establishment” (his term) of older white males, mostly clergy, and many tall-steeple pastors, appeared to manage the denomination so well.

Since then, a large group of professors at Presbyterian seminaries, and others, have issued a similar and much sharper critique.

And most recently, the Rev. Dr. Vic Pentz, pastor of Peachtree Presbyterian Church in Atlanta, sent us a note expressing his lack of interest – even as pastor of the largest congregation in the denomination – in playing the Establishment role.

Dr. Weston has now responded, arguing that Pentz is not saying, as we summarized his note, that he has “more important things to do” – although we thought that being “out in the world with our congregations joining God in the work of the Kingdom" might qualify for most of us as being more important than playing Establishment Leader.

But why don’t you read Weston’s blog (on his delightfully titled “Gruntledcenter” blogspot) for yourself.

And if you have thoughts of your own to share –
for or against any of these writers! –
please send a note,
to be shared here.

We recently reported on the resignation of Richard Cizik, long-time leader in the growing and broadening public witness of the evangelical community, because he is apparently not willing to back down on his increasingly open attitude toward committed same-sex relationships.

Now over 50 evangelical leaders, many of them influential in the NAE, have joined in supporting his leadership in moving the NAE toward “a broad, wholegospel agenda [which] is reflected in the NAE's official policy statement, For the Health of the Nation: An Evangelical Call to Civic Responsibility, which he helped write and implement. Its principles of protecting religious liberty, nurturing families, the sanctity of life, justice and compassion for the least of these, human rights, seeking peace, and protecting God's creation must remain an enduring contribution to the Evangelical public witness in America.”

The full text of the letter >>

Also ...

Progressive evangelical Sojourners leader Jim Wallis praises Cizik as a “pioneer for New Evangelicals”

BBC News reports that a recent study shows strong evidence of children and adults being used as slaves in Sudan's Darfur region. Kidnapped men have been forced to work on farmland controlled by Janjaweed militias, the Darfur Consortium says. Eyewitnesses also say the Sudanese army has been involved in abducting women and children to be sex slaves and domestic staff for troops in Khartoum.

More >>

Rabbi Waskow, director of the Shalom Center in Philadelphia,  was one of the religious leaders interviewed for the Newsweek article on same-sex marriage. He responds to the article by saying that his comments were seriously oversimplified, and argues that the whole issue could be understood more clearly if we recognize that Torah, Hebrew Scripture, is rooted in human experience and culture, and our understanding of Torah must evolve as culture evolves.

So he concludes:

Try thinking about the Torah as not only a living wisdom for the future but an echo of real life from the past – try to understand it as a breathing crystallization of the lives of the people. THAT is why at the Burning Bush moment the future tense is crucial, just as earlier – when the issue was fruitfulness and procreation for the troubled clan of Abraham, down to Joseph, it was crucial for God to be El Shaddai – the God of Breasts, the Nurturing God.

The future tense – Becoming – is what we need today. Instead of rigidly defending marriage as it used to be, we can honor the God Who Becomes by expanding the circles in which marriage – a new kind of marriage – becomes possible.

The full essay by Rabbi Waskow >>

Top Ten Questions about the Fidelity/Chastity Standard from a Single Presbyterian

C. K. Walter writes to support the proposed amendment of the “fidelity and chastity” requirement in provision 6-6.0106b of the Book of Order. His concern is focused not on the question of homosexuality, but on the church’s expression – whether intentional or not – of suspicion and condemnation of most adult singles in the church and the wider society.

Agence France-Presse reports:

Homelessness and hunger increased in an overwhelming majority of 25 US cities in the past year, driven by the foreclosure crisis and rising unemployment, a survey showed Friday.

Out of 25 cities across the United States surveyed by the US Conference of Mayors, 83 percent said homelessness in general had increased over the past year while 16 cities, or nearly two-thirds of those polled, cited a rise in the number of families who had been forced out of their homes.

In Louisville, Kentucky, the number of homeless families increased 58 percent in 2008 to 931 families from 591 people in 2007, with the rise blamed on soaring food, health care, transportation and energy prices.

The rest of the story >>

Does this report mesh with your own community these days? What’s your sense of what’s being done about the rising incidence of homeless and hunger where you are? Are you aware of things that churches or others are doing, that might be helpful models for the rest of us?

Bill Andress, of the Sudan Advocacy Forum, provides the latest update on the situation in Sudan and Darfur -- with continuing genocide, but some bits of hope.

The main topics in this update:

THE MISSING FIVE POUND NOTE

Chippenham George worked for the Post Office and his job was to process all the mail that had illegible addresses. One day just before Christmas, a letter landed on his desk simply addressed in shaky handwriting: 'To God'. With no other clue on the envelope, George opened the letter and read:

Dear God,

I am an 93 year old widow living on the State pension. Yesterday someone stole my purse. It had £100 in it, which was all the money I had in the world and no pension due until after Christmas. Next week is Christmas and I had invited two of my friends over for Christmas lunch. Without that money, I have nothing to buy food with. I have no family to turn to, and you are my only hope. God; can you please help me?

Chippenham George was really touched, and being kind hearted, he put a copy of the letter up on the staff notice board at the main Fareham sorting office where he worked. The letter touched the other postmen and they all dug into their pockets and had a whip round. Between them they raised £95. [$190 USD] Using an officially franked Post Office envelope, they sent the cash on to the old lady, and for the rest of the day, all the workers felt a warm glow thinking of the nice thing they had done.

Christmas came and went. A few days later, another letter simply addressed to 'God' landed in the Sorting Office. Many of the postmen gathered around while George opened the letter. It read,

Dear God,

How can I ever thank you enough for what you did for me? Because of your generosity, I was able to provide a lovely luncheon for my friends. We had a very nice day, and I told my friends of your wonderful gift – in fact we haven't gotten over it and even Father John, our parish priest, is beside himself with joy. By the way, there was £5 [$10 USD] missing. I think it must have been those thieving fellows at the Post Office.

George could not help musing on Oscar Wilde's quote: 'A good deed never goes unpunished'

Thanks to John Jackson and his
“Everything Is Connected” email newsletter

The Rev. John Shuck, in his sermon on December 14^th, the Third Sunday of Advent, focused on lightheartedness – a virtue in somewhat short supply these days, perhaps, but one we might take more seriously. If “seriously” is the way to take it?

You might enjoy the sermon too – complete with poetry about feathers.

We recently posted a short note about a recent issue of Newsweek, which offers some very helpful reflections on marriage equality, and reasons why the so-called Biblical arguments against same-sex marriage are less than compelling.

The Rev. Melissa DeRosia, a member of the General Assembly Council, and pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Caro, Michigan, has written to other members of the Council, with copies to staff members involved, expressing deep concern about the changes being made, and the dismissal of staff. She notes especially the concern of young women whose programs are most seriously affected, the lack of consultation in the process, and the lack of any rationale for the changes being made.

The full text of her letter >>

Background on this "redesign" >>

Workers win at Republic Windows in Chicago

More >>

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Smithfield Packing workers choose union representation

Workers at Smithfield Packing, the world’s largest meatpacking plant, vote yes to union representation

Jobs with Justice announces that this week workers at Smithfield Packing in Tar Heel, North Carolina, chose union representation with the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW). Workers voted 2041 to 1879 for a voice on the job.

If you believe that faith never changes, and that “Church” should be a reasonably stable set of beliefs and behaviors that we can depend on in a changing world – then DON’T READ THIS SERMON.

But if you believe that faith is a radical attitude of trust which enables us to be open to the new and the strange, even to the “Other;” if you think living as “Church” means being on a journey, a pilgrimage with no settled end, but always moving forward, higher, deeper, into light and often through darkness – and that we do this best when we have the right kind of company on the way – then read this reflection/sermon.

The Rev. Vic Pentz, pastor of Peachtree Presbyterian Church in Atlanta, Georgia, has sent this comment on Dr. Beau Weston’s paper urging the creation of “a new Presbyterian Establishment.” We might note that Peachtree is listed as having over 8,500 members, which we assume qualifies as the kind of “tall-steeple” congregation which Weston discusses as a source of the right kind of leadership for the PC(USA). Pentz is saying (in your WebWeaver’s crude summary) he has more important things to do.

More Light Presbyterians urges that we let them hear other voices:

Please do take a moment to send a note to Newsweek thanking them for the marriage equality cover story.

Sadly, Newsweek is being bombarded right now by anti-gay extremist religious voices. After the narrow anti-gay, unjust victory in California with Prop-8, anti-gay people seem to be flexing their muscles once again and behaving like school-yard bullies.

If we, the progressive faith voices do not speak up and are not heard, the extreme anti-gay religious voices will dominate the conversation and continue to be bullies.

No more bullies, just more light and more love!

To speak out and send an email go to  http://www.hrcactioncenter.org/campaign/newsweek

Thanks,

Michael

Michael J. Adee,
Executive Director & Field Organizer, More Light Presbyterians

Longtime lobbyist and media spokesman recently said 'I'm shifting' on gay unions.

Richard Cizik resigned Wednesday night as vice president for governmental affairs of the National Association of Evangelicals (NAE) during a week of growing uproar over his comments that he is shifting his views on same-sex unions.

Over thirty faculty members and theological educators at most of the Presbyterian Church seminaries, and at other seminaries and colleges, have joined to produce a brief statement which is sharply critical of the occasional paper entitled “Rebuilding the Presbyterian Establishment,” by William J. (Beau) Weston, which was published earlier this year by the Office of Theology and Worship of the PCUSA General Assembly. (Click here for a comment from the Witherspoon Society on Weston’s paper.)

The signers of the document, who include former Stated Clerk Clifton Kirkpatrick, now teaching at Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary, and Dr. Eugene TeSelle, professor emeritus at Vanderbilt Divinity School (and Witherspoon Society’s Issues Analyst), state in their opening paragraph: “While we celebrate the intent and desire of the author to offer a constructive reflection on the future of the Presbyterian Church, we are deeply troubled by the perceived authoritative status vested in this document by many of its readers and the perceived endorsement of this document by Theology and Worship. As professors and theological educators associated with the PCUSA we feel called to highlight several problematic aspects of the document that draw into question its legitimacy as a source of theological discernment on the future of the Presbyterian Church.”

They summarize each of their points thus:

1) The author does not provide qualitative or quantitative data to support his assertion that increasingly inclusive leadership in the structures of the PCUSA has led to its decline.

2) The argument to “rebuild the Presbyterian Establishment” is rooted in a model of ecclesiological power and authority rooted in a hierarchical rule that has clearly been rejected by the PCUSA as oppressive and unbiblical.

3) The proposal for “rebuilding the Presbyterian establishment” fails to respond to the needs of the church in the 21^st century.

4) The proposal that “tall-steeple” pastors, who Weston claims are the “natural leaders of the church,” should provide the primary leadership of the denomination will reestablish a denomination led almost exclusively by white, male pastors.

5) The claim that we no longer need structures of inclusivity fails to recognize the deeply pernicious nature of structures of racism and sexism in our culture and our church and contradict the Book of Order.

They conclude:

... We recognize that the challenges of the 21^st century church in the United States may very well require a renewed conversation about the role of institutions and structures in living out God’s reconciliation in our world. However, we believe a more nuanced historical, theological, and cultural analysis is required to adequately think through the challenges before the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) in this new century. With that in mind, we call upon leaders, friends, colleagues, and lay-persons to engage in a meaningful and informed dialogue on the future of the church. Indeed, there is a critical need for ongoing reflection and discernment in casting a faithful vision for the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) guided by the inclusive, all encompassing, call of the Realm of God on earth.

The full text of the statement >>

This incisive look at the U.S. health-care system (if “system” is the right word here) was published in the Washington Post on Nov. 23. We’re a little slow here, but we think it offers a very helpful survey of the problem, which will hopefully be getting renewed attention in Washington.

The “five myths” they list are:

1. America has the best health care in the world.
2. Somebody else is paying for your health insurance.
3. We would save a lot if we could cut the administrative waste of private insurance.
4. Health-care reform is going to cost a bundle.
5. Americans aren't ready for a major overhaul of the health-care system.

Shannon Brownlee, a visiting scholar at the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center, is the author of Overtreated. Ezekiel Emanuel, an oncologist and author of Healthcare, Guaranteed, is chairman of the center's Department of Bioethics.

The article >>

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that Pittsburgh Presbytery, on December 4, rejected by a vote of 125-54 a proposal similar to one passed in 2006, which would have undone the action of the 2006 General Assembly to allow candidates for ordination to declare in conscience their “departure” from particular ordination standards. Because the GA Permanent Judicial Commission struck down the 2006 action, a majority of presbyters this time apparently thought the same fate would await a similar action, and voted against it.

Presbyterian Peacemaking Program Update December 8, 2008

The Presbyterian Peacemaking Program staff wishes you a blessed Advent and a joyous celebration of Christmas.

NEW PEACE NOTES

The Winter 2009 issue of Peace Notes is available at http://www.pcusa.org/peacemaking/pubs/pubs.htm#1 .

This double issue is optimized for the Web; pictures will be fuzzy compared to the print version. Adobe Acrobat is required.

On December 11, CNN will broadcast a documentary “Planet in Peril” that will include information on work done at La Oroyo, Peru by Presbyterians and Peruvian partners.   More >>

Early in 2008 a paper was published by the PC(USA)’s Office of Theology and Worship, arguing that the key to restoring the Presbyterian Church to its old glory lies in giving the reins of control back to “the Presbyterian Establishment,” which means the tall-steeple pastors and mature, successful elders (mostly male, white, straight, and otherwise decent and orderly).

At a recent conference of moderators of presbyteries and synods of the PC(USA), the Rev. Tony Aja preached a sermon under the title "Dreaming in Color," which many in the group heard as an interesting and challenging response to the "establishment" idea.

Here's a report on the sermon from Presbyterian News Service

Accord sends ‘unmistakable message’ to ensure human rights, he says

Jerry Van Marter of Presbyterian News Service reports that the Rev. Gradye Parsons, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) General Assembly stated clerk, has issued a statement praising the Dec. 2 agreement between the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) and Subway, the third-largest fast food chain in the United States.

The agreement commits Subway to take steps to increase wages and improve working conditions for the Florida farmworkers that harvest tomatoes for Subway’s suppliers. Subway joins Yum! Brands – parent of Taco Bell – as well as McDonalds, Burger King and Whole Foods grocery chain in partnering with the CIW to improve the lot of Florida’s farmworkers and put an end to human slavery in the fields.

“Subway’s decision sends an unmistakable message to the rest of the retail food industry and to Florida growers,” Parsons said. “The industry can and must ensure human rights for farmworkers.”

He also wrote: “The significance of these agreements is that they not only promise a significant wage increase for farmworkers but that they also guarantee the full-participation of farmworkers in creating and upholding a more just food system.”

The full report >>

Philippe Sands, professor of law at University College London, writes in The Guardian UK:

...  President Bush leaves the Obama administration with some difficult decisions: looking back, how to address a legacy of abuse, illegality and global disrepute? Looking forward, what to do with present and future detainees? Obama needs to say five things on day one, to America and to his global audience.

First, he should state that he will not use the phrase "war on terror", words that tend to legitimise the struggle of those who seek to harm us.

Second, he should announce that the US will ... no longer use torture or cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment, as defined by international law.

Third, he should declare the closure of Guantanamo ...

Fourth, he must address what will happen to the 50 or so detainees who will remain in the US ...

Fifth, he should announce that the US will honour and underscore its historic commitment to international efforts against impunity, so that past detainee abuses will not be forgotten. ...

David Savage, reporting in the Los Angeles Times, says that the outgoing Bush administration is planning to announce a broad new 'right of conscience' rule permitting medical facilities, doctors, nurses, pharmacists and other healthcare workers to refuse to participate in any procedure they find morally objectionable, including abortion and possibly even artificial insemination and birth control.

In an editorial on December 2, 2008, the New York Times declared:

The gun lobby has long intimidated politicians with its war chest and its trumpeted ability to deliver single-issue voters, especially in tight races. After this year’s election, those politicians should be far less afraid and far more willing to vote for sensible gun-control laws.

The Rev. Betty Hale expresses her feelings after the recent election, and reflects on Robert Gagnon's recent warnings that the election of Obama would open the way for a "war on Christianity."

Moderator Bruce Reyes-Chow plans on-line conversation with Beau Weston on "Rebuilding the Presbyterian Establishment"

We recently posted some critical reflections on a booklet by Beau Weston, entitled Rebuilding the Presbyterian Establishment [PDF] published by the The Office of Theology and Worship.  The paper has generated a great deal of conversation throughout the church both praised in some places as well as criticized in others.

Moderator Bruce Reyes-Chow has announced that he will hold an open, online chat with Weston on Tuesday, December 9.  His announcement continues:

This will be a grim Thanksgiving for millions in the U.S.

Hunger and food insecurity is on the increase in the U.S. as families face ultimatums: to pay for food or rent, food or medicine. The situation has been made worse with the U.S. facing the worst food inflation in 17 years. Families are running out of food by the end of the month, parents are skipping meals so children can have enough to eat, and families are doing without minimally adequate, balanced and healthy diets.

Children are among the most vulnerable U.S. populations. According to a recent report from the USDA, hunger among children worsened in 2007, increasing by more than 50 percent. 691,000 children suffered from hunger sometime in 2007, up significantly from 430,000 in 2006.

A new Briefing Paper from the Oakland Institute, Season of Hunger : A Crisis of Food Inflation & Shrinking Safety Nets in the U.S., examines the causes of growing hunger and food insecurity in the U.S. and suggests long term and structural changes required to reform the precarious food system, emergency food assistance programs, wages, and employment in the United States.

The L. A. Times, in a brief editorial, takes note of the reality that while women may be playing expanding roles in their churches, including ordained ministry (well, for many Protestant churches, at least), there is growing resistance to this development, in Protestant as well and Catholic churches.

The closing paragraph sums it up:

In the Roman Catholic Church, tradition is cited as the grounds for not ordaining women. In Protestant churches, resistance to female pastors is likelier to be grounded in biblical passages such as 1 Timothy 2:12: "And I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man, but to be in silence." In either case, the arguments that keep women from full participation are attributed to a higher authority. So why do they sound so much like the complaints about assertive women that long have issued from the mouths of men?

Started on December 1, 1988, World AIDS Day is about increasing awareness, fighting prejudice, raising money and improving education. World AIDS Day is important in reminding people that HIV has not gone away, and that there are many things still to be done.

AIDS was first identified in the USA in 1981. The epidemic has now spread to every part of the USA and to all sectors of society. It is thought that more than one million people are living with HIV in the USA and that more than half a million have died after developing AIDS in the USA.

The story of Christ's birth is a story of promise, hope, and a revolutionary love.

So, what happened? What was once a time to celebrate the birth of a savior has somehow turned into a season of stress, traffic jams, and shopping lists.

And when it's all over, many of us are left with presents to return, looming debt that will take months to pay off, and this empty feeling of missed purpose. Is this what we really want out of Christmas?

What if Christmas became a world-changing event again?

Welcome to Advent Conspiracy.

Worship Fully,
Spend Less,
Give More,
Love All

Here’s a simple, provocative affirmation of the meaning of Advent today.

For more on the group that’s behind this, go to their FAQ page.

Thanks to John Shuck for suggesting this.

Presbyterian theologian and teacher Bill Placher dies at age 60

Placher is best known in Presbyterian circles, perhaps, as one of the members of the committee that produced the Brief Statement of Faith of the reunited PC(USA).

GA actions ratified (or not) by  the presbyteries   

A number of the most important actions of the 219^th General Assembly have now been acted upon by the presbyteries, confirming most of them as amendments to the PC(USA) Book of Order.

We provided resources to help inform the reflection and debate, along with updates on the voting.

Our three areas of primary interest have been:

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PVJ's Facebook page

Mitch Trigger, PVJ's Secretary/Communicator, has created a Facebook page where Witherspoon members and others can gather to exchange news and views. Mitch and a few others have posted bits of news, both personal and organizational. But there’s room for more!

Voices of Sophia blog

Heather Reichgott, who has created this new blog for Voices of Sophia, introduces it:

John Harris’ Summit to Shore blogspot

John Shuck’s Shuck and Jive

Got more blogs to recommend?