covid-19

Rev. Dr. James Forbes speaks on ‘COVID-19: A Parable of Plagues before Deliverance’ during lecture series

In a lecture series sponsored by Union Presbyterian Seminary and the Center for Social Justice and Reconciliation, the Rev. Dr. James Forbes spoke on “COVID-19: A Parable of Plagues before Deliverance.” Forbes, considered to be among the most significant prophetic voices in our nation, is pastor emeritus of The Riverside Church and professor emeritus at Union Theological Seminary in New York, and has for decades helped frame the nation’s theological sense of justice.

Minute for Mission: International Roma Day

It humbles me the extent to which our Roma friends and colleagues practice hospitality, always laying a table for us with whatever they have. They are among the poorest of the poor, marginalized by a society that feels threatened by an alien culture living in their midst. I don’t use the word alien as a negative, just a reality. They are a people with deep traditions, a strong sense of family and community, their own language, their own music, their own style of dress. They do not wish to be assimilated, but they do wish to live in peace with their neighbors, if it is only possible. Often, should a job be posted, as soon as a Roma man or woman applies, it is not available. The Roma are also subject to violence (pogroms) and blamed for any bad incident that takes place in a community. It is assumed that they will steal what is not nailed down.

‘When we can’t trace God, follow God’

“I bring you greetings from the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.),” the Rev. Dr. Diane Moffett told the online audience of St. Stephen Baptist Church in Louisville on Sunday. Moffett was the featured speaker during the church’s Women’s Day celebration. “We are your partners in ministry,” said the president and executive director of the Presbyterian Mission Agency. “God has called us to preach good news to the poor, recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed.”

A shot of hope

As we begin the second year of the COVID-19 pandemic, there are reasons for hope, including vaccines approved for emergency use authorization by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Yet even 95% efficacy for a vaccinated individual means that, statistically, 19 out of 20 people are effectively covered against becoming seriously ill from coronavirus, but 1 in 20 is not.

One Great Hour of Sharing gifts empower ‘the least of these’

Mama O is a wounded healer. Her moment of greatest need intersected with the critical healing and support services provided by Black Women’s Blueprint, a civil and human rights organization specifically focused on the needs of Black women and girls since 2008. At 65 years of age, she is among the eldest survivors of sexual violence in the organization. And now, she’s returning the gift.