The Jesus call, “I was in prison, and you did not visit me,” is heard even in Pakistan, a Muslim country one-third the way around the world, where the sun rises nine hours earlier than it does in the Eastern Time Zone in the United States.
The Al Amana Centre (AAC) in Oman was founded in 1987, but its roots date back to the country’s first Christian mission in the late 19th century. Its initial iteration was evangelistic ministry, but quickly grew into medical care to serve the common good and live out a Christian witness among non-Christian people and education. It was the only modern hospital in the middle eastern country at the time and remained the only modern medical provider in Oman for nearly 80 years.
Deadlines being what they are, I’m writing this Thanksgiving piece on gratitude long before the bird’s in the oven, the potatoes have been mashed and the pumpkin pies are cooling on the wire racks. The hardest part is putting fingers to keyboard without those olfactory cues. Nonetheless, it’s not difficult to reach inside a grateful heart, as we do every year at this time, and thank God for being alongside us on the journey.
Red-tagging and other human rights violations are done systematically in the Philippines, according to Filipino human rights advocate Jimarie Snap Mabanta.
It was a key message to her audiences as she traveled the U.S. this past summer embarking on a six-city, two-week tour that included Los Angeles; San Francisco; New York; Washington, D.C.; Philadelphia; and Chicago.
Of the many tools a farmer can usually rely on to help ensure a successful crop yield — resources to control weeds, fight pests or build healthy soil — Kotema Lanto found nothing in his toolkit to counteract the devastating impact of climate change on the family farm.
Transgender Day of Remembrance is a day to name and mourn the many transgender, nonbinary and gender-nonconforming people murdered each year because of their gender identity. On this day, we raise awareness of the extreme violence committed against transgender people simply for existing as they are. On this day, we commit to the work of creating a healed world where all gender identities and gender presentations are met with not only respect but celebration.
While the world tries to rush us into Christmas, decorating the day after Halloween and packing it all up once the gifts are opened on Dec. 25, Advent is a season of preparation that — like our holiday gatherings themselves — takes time and care.
The Rev. Dr. Neddy Astudillo, an eco-theologian and Presbyterian pastor who coordinates the Climate Justice and Faith Spanish online program at Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary, went to Matthew 20:1–16, the Parable of the Laborers in the Vineyard, and a landmark study using the board game Monopoly to offer a sermon during the Presbyterians for Earth Care conference.
South Presbyterian Church in Rochester, New York, recently celebrated the beginning of the second decade of selling its building and implementing its Acts of Faith community, a throwback to a first-century model of being the church.
Like so many people she knows, Mary Osburn has more than she could ever need or want.
Which is exactly why the longtime ruling elder and Mission Committee chair at the First Presbyterian Church of Fulton, Missouri, immediately thought of the Presbyterian Giving Catalog when helping to plan the church’s annual Christmas Fair Trade International Market last year.
