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Rep. John Larson came to Faith Church for many reasons. Rep. Larson has visited numerous times, bringing information and keeping us informed. On this visit, he did two important things: he presented a copy of a proclamation in conjunction with having Rev. Camp’s words read into the Congressional Record, and he made a contribution of $1000 to be used for mission through Faith Church.
REMARKS BY STEPHEN W. CAMP ______ HON. JOHN B. LARSON of Connecticut in the House of Representatives Monday, September 18, 2017 Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to include in the Record remarks made by the Reverend Stephen W. Camp at the Be the Light Interfaith Candle Lighting Vigil at Congregation Beth Israel in West Hartford, CT on August 23, 2017. The Reverend Stephen W. Camp, M.Div., Senior Pastor, Faith Congregational Church of Hartford, CT ``The prophetic voice Maya Angelou once said, `I've learned that people will forget what you have said; people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.' America was sent a message recently, a message that America rarely feels as deeply. As America watched the unfolding story centered in the little sleepy college town in Virginia. it was forced to feel, the kind of feeling that one never forgets. It was reminiscent of Selma and ``Bloody Sunday.'' It brought to mind Birmingham with the dog and fire hoses; it reminded America of the open hostility and defiance of a George Wallace. As America watched in recent days, some were stirred by the memory of ancestors and family members being marched into ovens, reminded of some of the worst inhumanity that our world has produced. The genie, we thought, was back in the tightly dosed bottle, the monster was locked away in its cage, but here it was again raring it ugly head, saying, ``I'm not dead yet! America felt pain once again. For some I'm sure, it simply felt like a scab had been ripped off an old wound. Still others may have thought these days were behind us, a past just-as-soon forgotten. But lest we forget, lest we ignore for even a moment--this pain rooted in forced Indian reservations and the buying and selling of human beings, lest we forget, it will surely surface and seek to cause havoc and pain until it is faced and fixed. The events of late teach all of us, as if any had doubt; that America is not healed yet. The work is not done. It seems just yesterday that Jewish cemeteries were vandalized, or just the other day that terrorist bombed a mosque or burned churches in the south. Were they just isolated incidents? No, but somehow they connected us and called us to feel, to be awake, to be alert--to mobilize for good. And here we are again. Charlottesville conjured up old feelings. Many who marched in Charlottesville that day, as we watched, most of us glued to the television, as they boldly marched, unhooded this time, khaki wearing white men, with their contorted angry faces, and carrying tiki torches, trying it seemed to desperately symbolize their power, their might, but only succeeding to pull back the scab and memory of historic oppression, failing to offer even a flickering of light, and of peace. We watched with sadness while they shouted hateful words and embodied a most detestable part of the American mosaic, frankly, only making many of us remember and feel the acute sickness that is still a part of America. For those who marched with counter intent, with ``never again'' etched upon their hearts, with ``non-violent direct action'' embedded in their spirit, many of them young people who have gotten the lessons that many of us who are older have tried to teach. So many counteracted and confronted, they stood tall and whether we liked it or not, they stood their ground and they gave us hope that one day the pain would give way to promise. We can take heart, because through them we knew that ``we shall indeed, overcome.'' But dearly, we have not yet reached that Promised Land. We have not yet fully embraced the place that Dr. King and Rabbi Hershel who marched arm in arm tried to show and to teach us. We haven't yet felt how Malcom who epitomized both the hope and the worry of the movement for justice, worry that integrity in the movement would be comprised given the times they were in, yet united with a yearning to taste real freedom for all. All of them understood that justice had a cost attached to it. However, we still haven't learned yet, how to include all the voices, sit with all the pain, open and feel all of the diverse ways we are together, but there is hope shining through, maybe given the Boston event, that we will get there. The beloved community will one day be! Think of the blueprint that was left to us, the light that was given and passed to us, as they each in their own ways, gave their lives to pass on to us, a real hope for a better tomorrow. What I guess Charlottesville has challenged me to do, is to keep singing songs of justice, keep speaking words of peace. The challenge is to sing a new song in this often strange land, this place where America is still striving to form a more perfect union, this place where free speech should always be celebrated, must always be protected, but never allowed by any to be abused. We are called to sing together the words of peace, the words of hope, sing so as to feel that hope and that peace until it is never forgotten, until it is so deeply felt that no one is left behind without voice or value. So we come together again, gathered by the many ways God gathers us, we come together to sing even when we may not feel like singing, sing even though the words may not always be dear to us or the language understood by everyone is not plain. We come together to share words of peace, even when it seems the world is bent upon acts of violent expression. We come together knowing that love trumps hate, that without love and hope we perish, so we hope, we believe and work for a better day. Maya Angelou was right, people will never forget--when it is felt. It is our work, to help each other feel the presence of peace. It's our work to care for one another, to bind up those who are broken, to repair the world and make the world a just place for all. This is our work to feel, not the hate that some would have us feel, but to offer a binding, sustaining and enduring feeling that builds community and opens hearts to know and feel that another world is possible. It is there, don't you feel it, can't you see it? It is there, just over the horizon. Let's go there together! Thank you.''
Blumberg writes, “Dr. Christina Puchalski is familiar with death. The palliative care doctor and founder of the George Washington Institute for Spirituality and Health (GWish) has seen countless patients facing the end of life ― but there are still moments that shake her foundation.” She continued, “Sometimes, Puchalski noted, the most crucial thing a doctor can offer a patient is their presence and a willingness to listen. With these tools doctors can attend not only to their patient’s physical needs but to their spiritual concerns as well, she said. The definition Puchalski uses for spirituality at GWish, which marked its 15th anniversary this year, focuses less on religious affiliation and more on a person’s “search for ultimate meaning.” How patients make sense of their illnesses, and even their aches and pains, should be part of the “whole person model” doctors employ, she said.”
Read more about how spirituality affects medical care here.
Evangelical pastor Adam Phillips moved to Oregon to start Christ Church: Portland in the spring of 2014. Nine months later, the evangelical denomination Phillips worked for kicked him out and pulled two years of funding from the church.
Phillips’s transgression? Advocating for the full inclusion of LGBT Christians in the church.
A new short documentary by The Atlantic traces Phillips’s journey from rising evangelical star to outcast to leader of a new, inclusive congregation. It’s been less than two years since the Evangelical Covenant Church dealt Phillips that blow, and in that time the pastor has built up a thriving church community that doesn’t compromise on its convictions. Watch the video here.
Two-thirds say employers should provide birth control in insurance plans, but public is split over same-sex wedding services and use of public bathrooms by transgender people
The U.S. public expresses a clear consensus on the contentious question of whether employers who have religious objections to contraception should be required to provide it in health insurance plans for their employees. Fully two-thirds of American adults say such businesses should be required to cover birth control as part of their employees’ insurance plans, according to a new Pew Research Center survey, while just three-in-ten say businesses should be allowed to refuse to cover contraception for religious reasons.
When it comes to views about employer-provided birth control, services for same-sex weddings and use of public restrooms by transgender people, there are large differences between some religious groups.
Read more here.
About four-in-ten blacks are doubtful that the U.S. will ever achieve racial equality
Almost eight years after Barack Obama’s election as the nation’s first black president –an event that engendered a sense of optimism among many Americans about the future of race relations1 – a series of flashpoints around the U.S. has exposed deep racial divides and reignited a national conversation about race. A new Pew Research Center survey finds profound differences between black and white adults in their views on racial discrimination, barriers to black progress and the prospects for change.
The first team of responders, The Rev. Emily Heath of Exeter, NH, and Chris Breen, a seminarian from Cambridge, MA, arrived in Orlando on the morning of June 14th in time to join a gathering with national UCC staff, Florida Conference staff and Florida pastors.
A second team of first responders composed of Connecticut clergy went to Orlando on June 15. They are: The Rev. Thea Racelis, pastor of the South Congregational Church of Middletown, The Rev. Jack Davidson, Associate Minister of the First Church of Christ Congregational in Redding, and The Rev. Mia Douglas, Director of Discipleship at Asylum Hill Congregational Church in Hartford.
Read more here http://www.ctucc.org/news/20160614_orlando_teams.html
Photo source: http://www.history.com/topics/black-history/muhammad- ali
Muhammad Ali (1942-2016) was an American former heavyweight champion boxer and one of the greatest sporting figures of the 20th century. An Olympic gold medalist and the first fighter to capture the heavyweight title three times, Ali won 56 times in his 21-year professional career. Ali’s outspokenness on issues of race, religion and politics made him a controversial figure during his career, and the heavyweight’s quips and taunts were as quick as his fists. Born Cassius Clay Jr., Ali changed his name in 1964 after joining the Nation of Islam. Citing his religious beliefs, he refused military induction and was stripped of his heavyweight championship and banned from boxing for three years during the prime of his career. Parkinson’s syndrome severely impaired Ali’s motor skills and speech, but he remained active as a humanitarian and goodwill ambassador. Read more.