INDIGENT DEFENSE, CHILD CARE SEE WINS AS PA BUDGET WRAPS
First-ever state funding for indigent defense and a major tax credit to assist families with dependent-care costs were the good news as the legislature finally wrapped up the 2023-24 budget. Leaders signal there's still hope for progress on other bipartisan legislation left out of the last-minute dealmaking on code bills. Read more.
DO MORE THAN REMEMBER THE HOMELESS ON LONGEST NIGHT
On Dec. 21, the longest night of the year, many communities around the country will remember those who have died outside in 2023, and those still living outside. Many who serve and advocate for these neighbors all year will gather to remember. Please join them in urging your senators to act on bipartisan bills that can make a difference.
PLAN TO HONOR MLK WITH DAY OF SERVICE AND ADVOCACY
Martin Luther King Day is a day to remember and honor the slain leader's tireless fight for justice and to join others in community to serve and advocate for a more just world. Together, we can make it a “day on,” not a “day off”–a day for doing the work to which we are called and leading with love. See what's planned in your synod and let LAMPa accompany you.
HELP SHAPE PRIORITIES FOR PA CLIMATE POLLUTION GRANTS
As Christians, we are called to be responsible caretakers of all of creation. Helping to shape policy is one way to do that. The PA Department of Environmental Protection is seeking input on policies to address climate pollution. You can still submit comments online about needs and vision for your community. Learn more and find the link to comment here.
SHOWING UP FOR NEIGHBORS WHO PUT FOOD ON OUR TABLES
Days ahead of Thanksgiving,  LAMPa joined coalition partners in the state Capitol to recognize the contributions of immigrant farmworkers and to advance protections for those workers and their families. Learn about the movement to restore driver's licenses to these vital and too-often-overlooked members of our communities. Read their stories. Add your voice here.
FAITH VOICES URGE ACTION TO PREVENT GUN VIOLENCE IN PA
With gun violence now the leading cause of death among children in the United States, an emerging coalition of interfaith voices gathered in Harrisburg in November to pray, organize, and call on the legislature to act. Learn more. Add your voice in support of bipartisan bills awaiting action in the Senate.
ELCA NAMES JOHNSON AS LEADER FOR NEW VISION TEAM
The ELCA has named the Rev. Louise Johnson, Executive for Administration as the Executive for Vision, a new position in the churchwide organization. Starting in January, Johnson will lead a small team in a new effort that will emanate from the ELCA’s vision, purpose, goal, and priorities, which call for the church to work together to share the difference God’s grace and love in Christ make for all people and creation. Learn more.
Action
Urge Senate to Act on Medical Debt Relief and Prevention
More than half of Pennsylvanians have struggled to pay for health care, with more than a million reporting medical debt already in collections. HB78 would offer medical debt relief and prevention. It passed the House with bipartisan support. Learn more and urge your senator to act early in the new year.
Speak Up Against Hate Crimes: Tell PA Senate It's Time To Act
Reports of hate crimes fill the news in the wake of horrors in the Middle East, but PA had already been witnessing rising hate crime. Years after the massacre at a Pittsburgh synagogue, the PA House passed legislation that would strengthen laws to protect against such crime. Urge your senator to send this package to the governor.
Hold Aid Recipients to Account for Human Rights Standards
U.S. senators have introduced legislation requiring the administration to report to Congress on accountability in the use of U.S. military assistance. The move reflects growing frustration with conduct in Gaza, which the President, a strong supporter of Israel, recently characterized as “indiscriminate bombing.” Learn more
Events
Dec. 26 -- Lutherans Restoring Creation Connections Call - The December call will be very casual and provide time for attendees to simply be with one another and prepare their hearts and minds for the New Year ahead.

All are invited to come and bring one of their favorite prayers, songs, pieces of artwork, or short stories to share (as a link, screen share, or by camera and microphone).
You can sign up for Good Green News and get the Zoom link on the Lutherans Restoring Creation website. View the event page and register here.
Jan. 7 -- Building Community and Food System Equity at the PA Farm Show -- Join the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture Project J.U.S.T., PA Preferred, the PA Food Policy Council, and Pennsylvanians from around the Commonwealth for a special event at the 108th PA
Farm Show. The event aims to foster connections and promote equity in the food system.

Synod and congregational hunger ministry leaders are invited to join LAMPa staff at the event on Sunday, Jan. 7, from 4:15 p.m.-6:00 p.m. at the Pennsylvania Farm Show in Harrisburg in the PA Preferred Banquet Hall. Send us a note to gather with fellow Lutheran hunger advocates around this important part of our work together. 
Jan. 24 -- Voices of Faith in Climate Action -- COP28 and Beyond - Join this webinar by ELCA Witness in Society and learn about the Lutheran presence and major decisions at the recent 28th Conference of the Parties (COP28).

Connect your climate work with developments on the global scene as moved by Lutheran participants in Dubai at the recently-concluded U.N. Climate Change Conference.
The webinar will be begin at 3 p.m. Learn more and register here.
Jan. 28 -- RIC Sunday -- Join a congregation and community to celebrate Reconciling in Christ (RIC) Sunday 2024. Many RIC communities celebrate RIC Sunday on the last Sunday in January. 

ReconcilingWorks and LAMPa want to celebrate with your faith community and are offering resources for worship, learning and advocacy. Let us know how we can accompany you in marking this day.

Resources
The 24-page ELCA Good Gifts catalog offers many ways to honor friends and loved ones with gifts that will make a difference in the world. With more than 50 giving options – from 10 little chicks to help a family escape poverty to a scholarship to help a young leader attend an ELCA seminary – there's something for everyone on your list. The catalog is also a great resource for your congregation. Find this and other World Hunger resources here. Need help planning an event in your congregation? Contact ELCA World Hunger.
The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles featured A Time for Burning, a film of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) as part of the museum series “Works of Enduring Importance: 35 Years of the National Film Registry.”

Produced by Lutheran Film Associates in 1966, A Time for Burning is a 58-minute, black-and-white cinema verite documentary chronicling the struggle between the pastor of Augustana Lutheran Church in Omaha, Neb., and his all-white congregation as he encourages members to reach out to a neighboring Black church. Bill Jersey, one of the pioneers of cinema verite, and Barbara Connell directed the film, which was nominated for an Academy Award. Learn more, including how to access the film, which was re-released in 2023.