Advocacy for Haiti victims

Web link: EPPN urges Haiti advocacy; Resource type: Web site

EPPN urges prayer, giving and advocacy for Haiti;
White House grants temporary protected status to Haitian refugees in the U.S.

By Matthew Davies, January 15, 2010

[Episcopal News Service] The effort to assist victims of the Haiti earthquake should be expressed through prayer, financial support and advocacy, the Episcopal Public Policy Network has urged in a policy alert issued Jan. 15.

"Like hundreds of millions of Americans and other people around the world, my heart has broken as I've seen the images of the devastation brought to Haiti by this week's earthquake," said Alexander Baumgarten, director of government relations for the Episcopal Church, in the alert. [ read more ]

How Episcopalians can help Haitians in need

Web link: ENS article on Haiti; Resource type: Web site

Haiti earthquake prompts the desire to help, asks the question of how

By Mary Frances Schjonberg, January 13, 2010

[Episcopal News Service] Whether it is a tsunami overwhelming southeast Asia, hurricanes demolishing the U.S. Gulf Coast, or an earthquake devastating Haiti, many people feel the need to give of themselves to help those who suffer.

The question is how best to do that at each stage of the aftermath and how best to meet the needs of those hurt by the disaster.

As people contemplated how to respond to those needs in the hours since a magnitude 7.0 earthquake shook the Port-au-Prince area to its foundation at just before 5 p.m. on Jan. 12, governments and the United Nations began moving bulldozers, cranes and hospital ships into position.

"It's heavy disaster logistics," Robert Radtke, president of Episcopal Relief and Development, told ENS. [ read more ]

EPF's Statement on President Obama's Afghanistan Strategy

Web link: EPF Statement on Afghanistan Strategy; Resource type: Web site

The Episcopal Peace Fellowship calls on President Obama and Congress to rethink their strategy on the Afghanistan War. EPF believes that intensified hostilities undermine the function of international law in the struggle against terrorism and generate a cycle of violence, chaos and evil that is antithetical to the teachings and example of Jesus.

Additionally, we continue to be alarmed by the application of Just War Theory to escalate our troop levels in this war. [ read more ]

US Social Forum in Detroit

Web link: US Social Forum 2010; Resource type: Web site

The US Social Forum is scheduled to be held in Detroit from June 22-26, 2010. It is described by the planners as a "movement building process". It is expected that 25,000 people will come to Detroit to participate in the Forum.

The USSF website is the source of information about the US Social Forum -- the goals, the history and more. Most importantly, you can discover ways that you can participate in the planning of the Forum. There is a link to the Detroit Local Organizing Committee, as well as a USSF Planning Wiki with resources useful for planners of the Forum in Detroit. [ read more ]

350.org, resource for environmental action

Web link: 350.org; Resource type: Web site

Explore the site www.350.org, a source of information and a call to action regarding climate change legislation.

The mission of 350.org is as follows:

350.org is an international campaign dedicated to building a movement to unite the world around solutions to the climate crisis-- [ read more ]

Powerful Speech from President Mohammed Nasheed, President of the Maldives

Web link: Climate Vulnerable Forum; Resource type: Web site

Address by His Excellency Mohamed Nasheed, President of the Republic of Maldives, at the Climate Vulnerable Forum on November 9, 2009.

We gather in this hall today, as some of the most climate-vulnerable nations on Earth. We are vulnerable because climate change threatens to hit us first; and hit us hardest. And we are vulnerable because we have modest means with which to protect ourselves from the coming disaster. [ read more ]

Essay: And grace will lead me home

Web link: Essay: And grace will lead me home; Resource type: Web site

[ read more ]Mark Achtemeier is a Presbyterian pastor and a seminary professor. He's also a man who has been open about how he has changed his mind on the question of the full inclusion of LGBT Christians into the church. He details the process that led to his re-thinking in an essay that was delivered to a group of Presbyterians who are working, among other things, for full inclusion in that denomination.

An Invitation to an Inclusive Church

An essay by the Rev. Paul Bresnahan, Salem, MA

We have now received an invitation from Catholicism to return to the Mother Church. For those unhappy over The Anglican/Episcopal Church’s “liberal” stance on the ordination of gays and their inclusion in our leadership and membership, there is room in Rome. [ read more ]