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The Episcopal Diocese
of Northern California
Beloved Community
Resource Newsletter
Published by
The Commission for
Intercultural Ministries
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Episcopal Church Becoming Beloved Community | |
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Newsletter Highlights:
- Seeing Our Diversity and Our Neighbors During Disaster Prep
- Continuing Our Walk on Sacred Ground
- Sacred Ground produces "points of light" in dark times
- St. Luke's Episcopal Church, Auburn, Racial Healing Workshop
- Safe. Brave. Peaceful. And Sacred.
- Looking Forward to Pride Month
- Investiture Ceremony for The Rt. Rev. Barry Beisner, Incoming Provisional Bishop of Navajoland
- Rev. Jim Richardson at The Cottage
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"May: Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage" at the Beloved Community Initiative website, a mission of the Episcopal Diocese of Iowa--a collection of articles, videos, interviews, reflection prompts, and prayer.
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The Asian American and Pacific Islander Experience. Explore PBS's new collection featuring a selection of films documenting the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Experience — along with articles, digital shorts and original features exploring America’s continued struggle with democracy, inclusion and justice for Asian Americans, and celebrating the contributions of AAPI Americans to the American story.
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Google Doodle celebrates photographer Corky Lee
UPI News I Tonya Pendleton I May 5, 2023
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May is Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month. Asian-American photographer and activist Corky Lee, who brought attention to discrimination against the AAPI community, was honored with a Google Doodle. In 1998, May 5 was deemed Corky Lee Day.
"I had to think that every time I take my camera out of my bag, it is like drawing a sword to combat indifference, injustice and discrimination and trying to get rid of stereotypes," he told Asamnews in 2020.
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Seeing Our Diversity and Our Neighbors
During Disaster Prep
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May is Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. We take this time to celebrate a broad group of peoples, cultures, and practices. While diversity is exciting to explore, unfortunately it also allows for people to go underrepresented in planning for, responding to, and recovering from disaster.
One of the true joys of my position on the bishop’s staff is the opportunity to interact with anybody who is in need. If at any time, your community could use customized assistance in individual, congregational, or community disaster planning and response, please feel free to contact me. I have access to resources in many languages and cultural contexts. For example, I have disaster preparedness planning sheets in Asian languages among many other cultural resources.
The Bishop’s Disaster Fund is in need of donations. We are entering a time when resources are being provided to long-term survivors, but the fire season is also starting. Please donate now, and help us be ready to help you when the need arises, by clicking here.
Thov Vajtswv foom koob hmoov rau peb txhua tus, nyob txhua qhov chaw. (Hmong) – May God bless us all, everywhere.
Peace,
Mark Dibelka | Missioner for Disaster Resilience
Episcopal Diocese of Northern California
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History I History.com Editors I Updated April 20, 2023 I Original October 23, 2009 | |
Cinco de Mayo, or the fifth of May, is a holiday that celebrates the date of the Mexican army’s May 5, 1862 victory over France at the Battle of Puebla during the Franco-Mexican War. The day, which falls on Friday, May 5 in 2023, is also known as Battle of Puebla Day. While it is a relatively minor holiday in Mexico, in the United States, Cinco de Mayo has evolved into a commemoration of Mexican culture and heritage, particularly in areas with large Mexican-American populations. | |
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Continuing Our Walk on Sacred Ground
The Rev. Cliff Haggenjos, Rector I St. John's Episcopal Church, Roseville
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Top row, L-R: Cynde Martin, Bob Pritchard, Diane Williamson, The Rev. Marcia Hansen, The Rev. Cliff Haggenjos, The Rev. Babs Haggenjos, Joyce Paterson, Helene Scratt, John Scratt, The Rev. John Schively. Bottom row, L-R: Michael Adams, Stephania Kogut, Mary Circle, Pat Oliver, Denise Pyburn, Cathie Wierbeck, Janet Wiese, Elaine Bickford. (Not pictured: Charles Holmes, Jim Barry, Jo Ann Williams) | |
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An often-heard question at the conclusion of the Sacred Ground Dialogue Circle process is, “What do we do now?” Once the 11-session course is completed, participants often need some time to determine how best to live into the process of “Becoming the Beloved Community’ to which the Sacred Ground process points. Continued communal discernment is often a helpful guide as one answers this question.
On April 22nd, 21 graduates of the Sacred Ground Dialogue Circle process gathered at St. John’s, Roseville, for a day-long exploration of potential next steps. After a brief review of the material that had been covered in the dialogue circle sessions, the group spent time watching a short documentary exploring racism’s roots and remedies, and then began discussing how their views about racism had evolved as they moved through the Sacred Ground process. The morning session concluded with the group offering a Litany of Repentance in which the members present offered petitions to God asking for God’s guidance as the work of racial reconciliation continues.
In the afternoon, the group watched another short film and discussed a meditation written by Dr. Catherine Meeks about what it means to be a pilgrim as opposed to being an ally.
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Sacred Ground produces “points of light” in dark times
By Karen Nolan, Diocesan Sacred Ground Coordinator
Sacred Ground facilitators were virtually introduced in April to The Episcopal Church’s new Manager for Racial Reconciliation and Justice, The Rev. Miguel Bustos, who succinctly answered the question posed by the webinar’s title: “What is Sacred Ground in 2023 and Why is It Important to Engage?”
“Our church is a majority white church with a huge stake in white supremacy,” said Rev. Bustos. “We have an obligation to dismantle what was built by and for our church … Racism hurts everyone. If we want to restore the image of God, this is our opportunity.”
The now-11-session Sacred Ground curriculum strives to stir participants “to transformation and action,” Rev. Bustos said, comparing the estimated 20,000 Sacred Ground graduates to “20,000 points of light.”
“And at no time has your light been needed most!” he added. “You will bring light into the world.”
The Rev. Canon Stephanie Spellers, who moderated the webinar, also introduced Lallie Lloyd of Massachusetts as the new lead consultant for Sacred Ground, as the program’s founder, Katrina Browne, takes a step back from day-to-day operations while continuing as a strategic consultant.
Canon Spellers and others said there continue to be updates to Sacred Ground resources and curriculum, which were reorganized a year ago. As they form new circles, all facilitators, regardless of previous experience, are encouraged to review the materials, which can be found at www.episcopalchurch.org/sacred-ground/.
And don’t be afraid to supplement the national program, Canon Spellers said. “We trust you to take the curriculum and make it your own, whether that’s with local history or where your diocese is in the process of becoming Beloved Community.”
Facilitators are also asked to register every circle, even if they still have access to materials from previous circles. It helps the church track participant numbers, which is important for the licensing of materials.
Sacred Ground is now open to churches and groups outside of the Episcopal Church. Anyone who is interested in leading a circle can start by reviewing the materials online, particularly the “Getting Started” section. Online videos and materials are available for those who want to preview the program to potential participants.
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St. Luke's Episcopal Church, Auburn
Racial Healing Workshop
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Group discussion at St. Luke's, Auburn, after Experience of Indigenous People presentation by workshop facilitator, The Rev. Canon Tina Campbell, Diocesan Indigenous Missioner. Group members L-R: The Rev. Canon Mary Hauck, Laura Simkins, workshop facilitator Diane Williamson, Brian Buckle, Jim Evans and workshop facilitator, The Rev. Canon Kathy Hopner. | |
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St. Luke's, Auburn, hosted the "I Will, With God's Help: Journey Toward Racial Healing and Justice" one-day workshop on Saturday, April 29. Participants were from Emmanual, Grass Valley; St. Clement's, Rancho Cordova; and St. Luke's, Auburn.
The workshop facilitators from the Commission for Intercultural Ministries were The Rev. Canon Tina Campbell, The Rev. Canon Kathy Hopner, Diane Williamson, and Jo Ann Williams. They presented historical and current information about the Indigenous, African American, Latino and Asian/Pacific Islander communities as well as the source and impact of white privilege on American society. The workshop was framed within the context of the Baptismal Covenant.
Much thanks to the Rector, Fr. Brian Rebholtz, Senior Warden Bill Gausewitz and Meredith Guy for their assistance in setting up the workshop and for providing a delicious lunch.
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Upcoming Racial Healing Workshops | |
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Watch for registration links in the Diocesan E-News and in the Beloved Community Resource Newsletter for these upcoming workshops:
Saturday, September 9, 2023 - Virtual online workshop
Saturday, October 7, 2023 - St. Mary's Episcopal Church, Napa
Saturday, October 28, 2023 - St. John's Episcopal Church, Roseville
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Safe. Brave. Peaceful. And Sacred.
The Rev. Dr. Portia Hopkins, Chaplain I The Belfry I May 8, 2023
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[Editor’s Note: Rev. Portia is ministering to the students at The Belfry due to the recent traumatic events at the UC Davis campus.]
The Belfry is the Lutheran-Episcopal campus ministry to U.C. Davis and, as of last fall, to Sacramento City College. The two sites could not be more different—the Davis site has been around for more than 40 years and has engaged with thousands of students; Sac City has been around less than a year and didn’t really even begin to connect with students until about two months ago. Davis has a small house right across from campus, with spaces for students to relax, study, hang out with friends, meet with the chaplain, and pray and worship in our chapel; Sac City meets in the yard outside All Saints Episcopal Church in good weather, and in a corner of the parish hall in bad. Davis serves a residential university community; Sac City serves commuter students obtaining vocational certificates and degrees, or students aspiring to transfer to a four-year program. Davis has its share of first-generation and second-language students; at Sac City, those students are the vast majority.
But what distinguishes the two sites is as nothing compared to what unites them—in both places, the Belfry serves as a safe, brave, peaceful, and sacred space—a refuge from the pressures outside, and a place to be nourished, fed, cared for, and strengthened to persevere.
Safe. Brave. Peaceful. And Sacred. These are the four words that hold our mission to young people. We say: The Belfry is a safe space, where everyone is welcome; a brave space, where everyone has a voice; a peaceful place, where everyone can find their center; and a sacred space, where everyone is invited to encounter God.
Many of the students who find us have had negative experiences with religion, particularly Christianity, which has far too often been presented to them as judgmental and harsh, designed to make them feel inadequate. They have experienced racism, misogyny, trans- and homophobia in what should be spaces filled with love and joy and acceptance. For some this is traumatizing, for others merely off-putting. As chaplain, one of my greatest joys is when a student who has experienced unconditional love and acceptance as the wonderful person God made them to be says to me something like—“Oh, is THIS what Christianity is really about? All parts of me are welcome here? You are here simply to help me without asking anything of me? I never knew that was possible!”
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‘Higher love’ transcends threats of violence against Pasadena’s All Saints Church
Episcopal News Service I Bob Williams I Posted May 11, 2023
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Interfaith leaders from Pasadena and Los Angeles gather to support All Saints Church on Sunday, May 7, after the Episcopal congregation received threats targeting the church and its clergy for their LGBTQ+ activism. Photo: Bob Williams | |
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Uplifted by interfaith solidarity and a sermon that sparked dancing in the aisles, the people of All Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena claimed “higher love” over homophobic threats to bomb the sanctuary and use a gun to “kill the pastor” in opposition to the parish’s LGBTQ-affirming ministries.
With local police and heightened security in place for May 7 Sunday services, the Rev. Mike Kinman, All Saints’ rector since 2016, preached “the gospel according to Steve Winwood,” highlighting the songwriter’s lyrics “bring me a higher love” and leading the congregation in dancing to Kygo and Whitney Houston’s recording of the pop hit.
Video of Kinman’s sermon and the full service is here.
Kinman also used his homily to address the “people who made the death threats … I can only imagine you have deep wounds to lash out against us in this way … Everyone has wounds, and those wounds cause anger. Please hear me; taking that anger and turning it into hate isn’t going to give you what you need. … So, what is the way? Jesus says, I am the resurrection and the life … What Jesus offers is the higher love for which we long.
“You can hate us, but we will not hate you.”
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Differentiating Between the What and the How
Episcopal Church Foundation Vital Practices - Vestry Papers I Alan Yarborough Posted May 2023
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“Fight for the things that you care about, but do it in a way that will lead others to join you.” – Ruth Bader Ginsburg
I won three different strength-of-character awards in grade school, which has always fascinated me because during that time I was always lying. I lied to my dentist, my orthodontist, the mechanic and anyone grasping for human connection through small talk when they asked if I had a girlfriend. Despite living in a liberal town, with supportive parents, I lied in deeper ways to close friends, teachers, my parents and myself, all to hide and protect myself from a world that told me I did not belong.
Yet I remember how God reached me through the Episcopal Church, imperfections and inconsistencies aside, with a message of belonging. I do not remember what Father Bill said 20 years ago, but I most certainly remember how he made me feel when he supported the ordination of Bishop Gene Robinson. Father Bill ran toward dissent and confronted it, lovingly, on behalf of others. Since that time, the Episcopal Church has repeatedly reminded me that I belong.
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Looking Forward to Pride Month
If your congregation is participating in a Pride celebration in June, please use the hashtag #EDNCPride if you post about it on social media, so that everyone in the Episcopal Diocese of Northern California (EDNC) can see what you are up to!
If you would like to march with Trinity Cathedral in the Sacramento Pride Parade on Sunday, June 11, please email John Kraynak at jjkinlaca@gmail.com. The parade starts at 11 a.m., and Cathedral Dean Matthew Woodward will be celebrating the Eucharist at 10 a.m. “wherever we happen to be standing in the parade preparation grounds.”
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Just in Time for Pride
The Episcopal Migration Ministries’ Rainbow Initiative is in the process of producing resources for congregations to use as they observe Pride Month (June) or World Refugee Day (June 20) either within their own church or at a communitywide event.
The resources will focus on asylum seekers and refugees who come to the United States because they are persecuted in their home countries for their LGBTQ+ status.
Resources will be posted online at https://episcopalmigrationministries.org/rainbowinitiative/, at the bottom of the page. The goal is to have them out before the end of May.
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Investiture Ceremony for The Rt. Rev. Barry Beisner, Incoming Provisional Bishop of Navajoland
The Beauty Way Special Edition I April 2023
On Saturday May 20, 2023, at 10 am PT, The Rt. Rev. Barry Beisner will be installed as incoming Provisional Bishop of Navajoland. The service will incorporate the Episcopal liturgy with the healing and blessing service of a traditional Navajo Medicine Man prayer blessing. Read more here and for the link to view the ceremony.
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Episcopal delegates to UN Indigenous forum focused on ‘Doctrine of Discovery’ following Vatican’s repudiation
Episcopal News Service I Melodie Woerman I Posted May 1, 2023
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Ronald Braman, the Rev. Brad Hauff and Melissa Chapman Skinner walk to the United Nations building on April 17 to begin their work as delegates from The Episcopal Church to the 22nd session of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. Photo: Lynnaia Main | |
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The March 30 statement by Pope Francis repudiating the “Doctrine of Discovery” had a major impact on the three people who represented The Episcopal Church at the 22nd session of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues that met April 17-28 in New York.
The Roman Catholic Church was the last major Christian denomination to repudiate the doctrine, making the pope’s statement “a significant advancement,” said the Rev. Brad Hauff, the Episcopal Church’s missioner for Indigenous ministries and a member of the Oglala Lakota tribe.
Previously, addressing the doctrine’s negative impacts was harder when “over 50% of the world’s Christians were not on board with it,” he said.
The Episcopal Church led the way as the first Christian body to repudiate the Doctrine of Discovery through an act of General Convention in 2009.
Monarchs and nation-states used the doctrine, which dates to 15th-century papal statements, called “bulls,” as justification for the subjugation of Indigenous peoples in Africa, Asia, New Zealand, and the Americas. In the United States, this included forced removal of tribes from their ancestral homelands to reservations, massacres and removing children from their families to attend residential boarding schools designed to erase their culture.
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The Rev. Jim Richardson at The Cottage | |
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The Rev. James D. Richardson visits The Cottage, hosted by Diana Butler Bass, to discuss his book, The Abolitionist’s Journal: Memories of an American Antislavery Family. Rev. Jim is the former Interim Dean of Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Sacramento. In the book he layers his story with that of his great-great grandfather, who played a role in the Underground Railroad, served as a chaplain to a Black Union regiment in the Civil War, and founded a college in Texas for the formerly enslaved.
Visit The Cottage at dianabutlerbass.substack.com.
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Fear is the cheapest room in the house/I would like to see you living/In better conditions....
God wants to see/More love and playfulness in your eyes/For that is your greatest witness to the Divine. Fear is the cheapest, shabbiest, and most uncomfortable place to live.
Hafiz
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This afternoon as I sit here writing my A Few Shades Braver Blog after taking a short break, it appears that we as a people have made a collective decision to accept the invitation to occupy the cheapest rooms in the house.
A few days ago, I listened carefully to a couple of journalists support the fear market, actually they were a couple that I have a bit more appreciation for than most because they do seem to care about the truth, but they allowed themselves to engage fear rather than courage. I imagine that it is very easy to fall into the trap of accepting that invitation when there is so much negative energy jubilantly dancing in so many of the streets in our cities and towns, but they had an opportunity to reshape the narrative by imagining an outcome that did not support fear. Since most of what was said was simply conjecture because no one really knows what the future will bring, it could have a better outcome than one could imagine if fear did not dominate the analysis. It is disappointing to listen to the ways in which media framing is seldom used to support moving out of fear’s room. It is usually quite the opposite and is used to support being afraid.
In a period that spanned the past few days, we have witnessed a sixteen-year-old teenager being shot for ringing the wrong doorbell when trying to pick his brothers up from a play date, a young woman being shot because she got on the wrong van as she was returning from a sporting event or as in one case when a young driver pulls into the wrong driveway.
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Our Work Unfinished: A Black Composers Perspective
American composer Adolphus Hailstork is a national treasure and one of the most important composers working today. In Done Made My Vow he calls upon words from President Barack Obama’s early speeches to share his perspective as an African American with his students. Stanley J. Thurston leads the combined forces of the Cathedral Choral Society and the Heritage Signature Chorale in this and other works by African American composers.
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Sunday, May 14, 2023, 1 pm PTy 14, 2023 - 4:00pmMay 14, 2023 - 4:00pm
REPORTOIRE
Adolphus Hailstork: Done Made My Vow
With text from Barack Obama
Other repertoire to be announced.
TICKETS
➝ Online: register for pay-what-you-wish livestream
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West Texas diocese calls for volunteers, donations as Title 42 immigration restrictions expire
Episcopal News Service I Shireen Korkzan I Posted May 10, 2023
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Migrants gather on May 10 between primary and secondary border fences as the United States prepares to lift COVID-19 era Title 42 restrictions that have blocked migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border from seeking asylum since 2020, near San Diego, California. Photo: Mike Blake via REUTERS | |
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The Plaza de Paz Respite Center in San Antonio, Texas, is facing a shortage of volunteers, food and supplies to serve the hundreds of migrants and asylum-seekers arriving every day. The shortage is anticipated to worsen as a large influx of asylum-seekers is expected to cross the U.S. border when Title 42 restrictions and the federal public health emergency end on May 11.
As of May 10, an estimated 155,000 migrants and/or asylum-seekers are waiting in northern Mexico to cross the U.S. southern border, and an additional 28,000 migrants are in U.S. Customs and Border Protection custody. Although the terms migrants and asylum-seekers are often used interchangeably, not all migrants are asylum-seekers.
In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Trump administration issued Title 42, a policy that blocked land entry for migrants at the U.S. border. The policy has allowed federal authorities to expel more than 2.8 million migrants from the United States. Government officials said the policy was intended to mitigate the spread of coronavirus. While many migrants returned to their home countries, many others stayed in Mexico and waited for another opportunity to cross the border.
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ICE to test smartwatch-like tracking devices for migrants facing deportation
CBS News I Camilo Montoya-Galvez I Posted April 24, 2023
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U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Monday unveiled a smartwatch-like device to track migrants released from federal immigration custody, saying the technology could help the government monitor a small fraction of the millions of individuals with pending deportation cases.
The wrist monitor, which uses GPS technology, will be the latest device used by ICE to track migrants enrolled in the Alternatives to Detention program, an agency initiative that the Biden administration has vastly expanded to supervise migrants determined not to pose a risk to public safety or national security, such as asylum-seekers processed along the U.S.-Mexico border.
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Climate Change: A Conversation with Katharine Hayhoe, Chief Scientist, The Nature Conservancy
Episcopal Parish Network I Posted April 25, 2023
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Solar panel installation. Image via Canva. | |
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Since 2001, The Climate Center has been a leader in making climate solutions a reality in California at speed and scale. We are a think-tank, do-tank working to turn bold ideas into action for a climate-safe future.
Our Vision
We believe in thriving, healthy communities. We envision a future where everyone in California enjoys clean air and water, renewable and reliable energy, healthy food, thriving nature, and more.
California has the tools and know-how to make this vision a reality — if our elected leaders act with the urgency the climate crisis demands. California must put policies in place as soon as possible to accelerate equitable climate action, putting us on track to remove more climate pollution than we emit while securing resilient communities for all by 2030. That’s how we’ll keep our friends and loved ones safe from worsening climate disasters, create millions of family-sustaining jobs, and give everyone the chance to thrive in the clean energy economy.
As goes California, so goes the world. Working together, we will ensure California leads once again toward a climate-safe future for all.
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Episcopal Armed Forces and Federal Ministries offers educational resources in ‘Just War Project’
Office of Public Affairs I Posted April 20, 2023
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A multiyear collaboration among academic experts and Episcopal leaders and chaplains culminated this spring in a project that explores just war theology and curates resources for both military chaplains and the public.
Funded by a Constable Grant and called for in a 2015 General Convention resolution, the Military Chaplains Just War Education Project seeks to “advance the study of Just War principles” and to extend “this religious teaching to the formation of the Church’s military chaplains for meeting the pastoral needs of current members of the Armed Services and veterans, including those coping with moral injury and other forms of combat-related trauma.”
The Standing Commission on World Mission partnered with the church’s Armed Forces and Federal Ministries Office on the project, which includes videos featuring military chaplains and academic, government, and military experts; articles on just war, pacifism, and moral injury; and an updated chaplains handbook—all housed on a new webpage.
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Cops converse with community about policing in Placer County
Granite Bay Today I Sarah Yee I Posted April 13, 2023
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Lieutenant officers Luke Sincerny from the Rocklin Police Department and Jeff Kool from the Roseville Police Department answer questions after the conversation from audience members. Photo courtesy of Sarah Yee. | |
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Rocklin Parks and Recreation Office Building’s Senior Activity Room is small but the Racial Healing Project’s monthly Community Conversation is anything but.
The conversation on Mar. 8 featured police lieutenants from the Roseville and Rocklin police departments, a longtime Roseville resident and a psychology consultant, and the Placer District Chair of the United Domestic Workers of America Union as panelists. The panelists shared stories and the community members pitched questions as the room discussed compared and contrasted the evolution of policing in Placer County to both local and national reform movements.
These community conversations and the non-profit organization that hosts them have deep roots in the community.
“(The Community Conversations on Race) is what the focus is of the organization right now, to draw more people together to understand where racism comes from, how it’s propagated, what the historical context is, and to really understand our own feelings about race,” J. Merrill said. “The goal of the conversations is to help people be able to talk civilly and emotionally and from the heart. Listening is the most important thing rather than always opening our mouth.”
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Call for A Season of Pentecost for Gun Violence Prevention
Episcopal Peace Fellowship I Posted April 24, 2023
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The "Knotted Gun" sculpture at the United Nations Headquarters | |
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The Episcopal Peace Fellowship (EPF) calls The Episcopal Church to A Season of Pentecost for Gun Violence Prevention. This is a call to deepen our commitment as people of faith to confront the epidemic of gun violence through action at the grassroots level, in our parishes and dioceses. It is time to build on the work of Bishops United Against Gun Violence, as well as EPF’s Gun Violence Curriculum and our other resources and campaigns. This is an invitation to open the church doors to the winds of the Pentecost Spirit, pledging to engage in specific actions for gun violence prevention in the Pentecost season, from Whitsunday to Advent 2023.
Why now? None of us can avoid the horrific news: one hundred mass shootings in the first 65 days of 2023. And it is not just mass shootings: an average of 114 Americans are losing their lives daily by firearms, many overcome by suicidal despair which takes the lives of 28,000 adults and children every year. As we struggle against numbness and hopeless surrender to a new normal, we realize this is not just “news” for many of our neighbors. African Americans suffer from poorer health, premature aging, and shorter life spans from the stress of “living while Black,” including the trauma of gun violence plus lethal policing in many communities. Gun-related deaths are eight times higher for Black men than White men. These grim statistics are mirrored in other minority communities.
And then there are the children. Shockingly, the number one cause of death for our children and adolescents is not disease or automobile accidents, but death by firearms. In 2020, 30% of child deaths by firearms were suicides, 5% were unintentional deaths, and 65% were by violent assault. “Living while a child” now includes active shooter drills in school. What was a safe space for many has become a new source of fear and anxiety.
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Every year, gun violence kills more than 4,700 Latinx people in the United States. It deeply impacts Latinx youth and creates cycles of generational trauma.
But when members of Latinx communities confront this public health crisis, we often face unique challenges—including language barriers. Many policies don't directly translate to Spanish. It's another hurdle that worsens already difficult circumstances.
As we work to end gun violence, members of Latinx communities deserve the language we need to advocate for gun safety. Our new Spanish Language Media Guide will be a game-changer. Together, we're making sure the people most impacted by this crisis are leading the movement to end gun violence.
Thank you for being a part of this life-saving work, and for helping create a safer future for everyone.
José Alfaro
He/Him/El
Director of Latinx Leadership and Community Engagement
Everytown for Gun Safety
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Faith leaders ask Biden to mark Mother’s Day with prayer day against gun violence
Religion News Service I Adelle M. Banks I Posted May 3, 2023
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Lauren Giesler holds a sign with photos of her daughters as she joins other activist mothers at a rally at the state Capitol, March 28, 2023, in Nashville, Tennessee, the day after a shooting at a Christian elementary school in the city. (AP Photo/John Amis) | |
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More than 550 faith leaders have asked President Joe Biden to declare Mother’s Day an occasion for Americans to pray for an end to gun violence.
“While some may throw up their arms and say that this is a battle too large to win, we, an interfaith coalition, made up of Christians, Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, and other faith traditions, remember the miracles of ancient times and remain optimistic that this scourge can be overcome,” said the signatories of the letter organized by the Fellowship of Reconciliation.
Signatories and leaders of the organization that seeks nonviolent alternatives to conflict say that legislation, in addition to prayers, is needed for the country to reach a new juncture in addressing gun violence. They thanked Biden for his signing of a March executive order that increased background checks before firearms sales and urged additional action in the wake of shootings that killed students and staff at a Tennessee school and employees of a Kentucky bank in recent months.
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California Senate Bill (SB) 4
Planning and zoning: housing development: higher education institutions and religious institutions.
Abstract
The Planning and Zoning Law requires each county and city to adopt a comprehensive, long-term general plan for its physical development, and the development of certain lands outside its boundaries, that includes, among other mandatory elements, a housing element. That law allows a development proponent to submit an application for a development that is subject to a specified streamlined, ministerial approval process not subject to a conditional use permit, if the development satisfies certain objective planning standards.
Existing law, the Zenovich-Moscone-Chacon Housing and Home Finance Act, establishes the California Tax Credit Allocation Committee within the Department of Housing and Community Development. Existing law requires the committee to allocate state low-income housing tax credits in conformity with state and federal law that establishes a maximum rent that may be charged to a tenant for a project unit constructed using low-income housing tax credits.
This bill would require that a housing development project be a use by right upon the request of an applicant who submits an application for streamlined approval, on any land owned by an independent institution of higher education or religious institution on or before January 1, 2024, if the development satisfies specified criteria, including that the development is not adjoined to any site where more than one-third of the square footage on the site is dedicated to industrial use. The bill would define various terms for these purposes. Among other things, the bill would require that 100% of the units, exclusive of manager units, in a housing development project eligible for approval as a use by right under these provisions be affordable to lower income households, except that 20% of the units may be for moderate-income households, and 5% of the units may be for staff of the independent institution of higher education or the religious institution that owns the land, provided that the units affordable to lower income households are offered at affordable rent, as set in an amount consistent with the rent limits established by the California Tax Credit Allocation Committee, or affordable housing cost, as specified. The bill would authorize the development to include ancillary uses on the ground floor of the development, as specified.
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In one week the seven members of the Senate Appropriations Committee will decide whether or not to advance our sponsored bill SB 253, the Climate Corporate Leadership and Accountability Act.
It should not be a mystery how much the world’s biggest corporations are contributing to the climate crisis — that’s why we are doing everything we can to push this bill forward each step of the way.
Senate Pro Tem Toni Atkins’ strong leadership on climate last year earned her an A in our 2022 California Environmental Scorecard. But we must continue to push our legislative leaders like Pro Tem Atkins to ensure California is a leader on global climate action every year.
Please use our form to send an email to Pro Tem Atkins to urge her to use her influence to get SB 253 onto the Senate floor.
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Our planet cannot afford for this critical piece of climate legislation to fail this year.
SB 253 is a long-overdue bill that would finally require the largest corporations doing business in California to be fully transparent about the greenhouse gas emissions they create.
There are many anti-climate corporate polluters fighting against us on this bill and the Appropriations Committee is unfortunately where many bills go to die, so we need every voice in support of it that we can get.
Thank you for using your voice to push for more from our Senate Pro Tem!
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Office of Government Relations I The Episcopal Church
Compelled to Action
We recognize and celebrate all the ways Episcopalians live out their commitments to love their neighbor. Episcopalians answer our call to respond to human need and seek to build a better world in many ways. Volunteers and patrons support outreach ministries that fund schools, provide shelter for those experiencing homelessness, establish food pantries to feed the hungry, and much more. Clergy and lay leaders provide pastoral support to help our community members and neighbors through life changes, care for those who are grieving, and help families to mark transitions and celebrations.
Many Episcopalians join marches and protests, helping to build a movement for positive change. Some are committed to socially responsible investing, using the power of investments to push for change. Episcopalians vote – and support others in voting – and fill out the U.S. Census. Some run for office or work as civil servants.
Episcopalians also advocate for better policies and laws that can help us all live in a more just and compassionate world. This guide is focused on engaging the government, and how the work of advocacy can help to bring about systemic change that will bring us closer to God’s kingdom.
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As followers of Jesus, we are called to follow the way of love that Jesus teaches us, and to love our neighbors as ourselves.
We understand that the laws enacted at the federal and state levels impact the systems that operate within our communities. They either contribute to building just systems and the Beloved Community, or they diminish justice and equity within societal systems. As people of faith, we have an opportunity to advocate for laws that are just and help to build the Beloved Community.
The Action Alerts provided below are supported by the General Convention and/or the Executive Committee. Please review these Action Alerts and consider submitting a letter to elected officials encouraging them to support legislation that builds justice and the Beloved Community.
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Tell Congress to Defend the Human Rights of Palestinian Children. We recognize the connections many Episcopalians have to Palestinians, in particular to Shadi Khoury, a 16-year-old Palestinian and a student at the Ramallah Friends School, and his grandmother Samia Khoury, the co-founder of Sabeel. In October of 2022, Shadi was kidnapped from his home in East Jerusalem, arrested, and detained by Israeli forces. After 41 days, he was released and put under house arrest. We know that this case is one among many that partners such as Defense for Children International – Palestine (DCIP) regularly document. The Episcopal Church is a founding member of Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP), which is one of our partners who have been engaged in this. A CMEP statement on Shadi’s arrest and detention can be found here.
Tell Congress to Protect Our Privacy Online. The 80th General Convention of The Episcopal Church resolved that we have yet to fully grapple with the ramifications of transitioning into the Digital Age. The Church, with the Office of Government Relations and the Episcopal Public Policy Network, will support policies that regulate tech companies and technologies to ensure that consumers’ rights are being protected, especially privacy. This is extremely important because, while digital technology has seen incredible progress over the past 20 years, regulations have failed to keep up the pace.
Tell Congress to Protect Dreamers. Right now, the House is considering bills to restrict asylum and to bolster border security. While Dreamers are not part of the conversation, they remain a high priority for The Church as litigation against Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) moves forward, and we will advocate for these protections as well as for protecting asylum in any bill that moves forward.
Tell Congress to Support Environmental Justice. As Episcopalians, we are taught to love our neighbors and care for God’s creation. Unfortunately, not all people are able to care for or have a healthy environment. Communities of color, low-income communities, and tribal communities are less likely to have access to clean air, water, and land. The Episcopal Church opposes environmental racism and calls on us to seek environmental justice for communities that are facing the burden of climate change, pollution, and land loss, while also lacking opportunities to seek sustainable solutions to these problems.
Tune in to our new podcast Episco-Pols! Go deeper into issues we cover like immigration, healthcare, foreign relations, the environment, and much, much more, all through the lens of The Episcopal church.
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The Episcopal Diocese of Northern California
The Commission for Intercultural Ministries
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