The Damascus Project is teaming up with the BTS Center to host a Lenten study based on Speak with the Earth and It Will Teach You: A Field Guide to the Bible by the Rev. Daniel Cooperrider. The book challenges us to re-examine preconceptions about God and the Earth as we humble ourselves before our beyond-human neighbors and identify the spiritual survival skills needed in a climate-changed world. The five-session study will take place on four consecutive Tuesdays beginning February 24, with a concluding discussion with Daniel on March 31. Daniel, based in Madison, is convening pastor of Flicker Wild Church.

Learn more and register.

The Immigration Working Group has alerted us to two more opportunities for those looking to stay on top of the immigration crisis. ICE Verifier Training will be presented by SOPHIA of Waukesha County from 10 a.m. to noon on Saturday, Feb. 28, at First United Methodist Church of Waukesha. Participants will learn respectful ways to document the presence of federal immigration agents in their communities. Episcopal Migration Ministries provides weekly updates on immigration and refugee policy during a call at noon each Tuesday.

Sign up for ICE Verifier Training.

Register for EMM’s weekly call.

The Rev. Elizabeth Hazel, a member of the Conference Immigration Working Group, has written a series of topical prayers suitable for individual or congregational use. Included is a version of the Lord’s Prayer that includes petitions asking God to “lead us not into the temptation to hate, to escalate when tensions get high, to stop caring about what happens to others” and to “deliver us from evil—from danger within and without, especially the temptation to pin whatever we think is wrong with the world on someone else.”

Download the prayers.

Join the Immigration Working Group's monthly Zoom meeting at 1 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 10.

What do faith communities need to do to better respond to U.S. attempts to control Venezuela’s oil? And how can they act to prevent U.S. imperialism in Venezuela and other countries? Find out by joining the next UCC Creation Justice webinar, set for noon on Wednesday, Feb. 11. Panelists will be Phyllis Bennis from the Institute for Policy Studies, Lisa Sullivan from the Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns, and Tim Heishman from the Friends Committee on National Legislation. Can’t make the scheduled time? Sign up anyway to receive a recording.

Register today.

Mark your calendars now for the Savoring Spirit Retreat, scheduled for May 28-30 at Moon Beach Camp in St. Germain. The retreat offers an opportunity to slow down and find healing and peace in this stressful time. The retreat will provide a taste of Wild Church, an emerging community that seeks the Holy by connecting to the natural world. Activities will include wandering (accessible for all abilities), contemplation, sunsets, and campfires within a spiritual community. Retreat leader will be the Rev. Sara Rabe, pastor of First Congregational Church UCC in Fort Atkinson. The $215 fee includes two nights and five meals. Interested? Email Sara for registration details.

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