The Southwest Conference is thrilled to introduce our new dedicated website section: Decentering Whiteness: Our Journey Together. This new resource is designed to provide your congregation with clear pathways, resources, and support. Our objective is to deepen your understanding of how whiteness has shaped our society and church life, to build a shared vocabulary, and to create a foundation for ongoing transformation. This is a journey we are taking together, and this new section is our shared map and compass.

Click through to read more.

Various dates/times, August 21 - September 16 via Zoom

Join Election Protection Arizona (EPAZ) to help answer voter questions during the CD-7 election on September 23 across Tucson, Yuma, San Luis, Bisbee, Tolleson, Avondale, Gila Bend and more! Election Protection Arizona volunteers act as nonpartisan poll monitors and help answer voting process questions in real time. This training is virtual through Zoom and will last approximately 1 hour. Completing this training is a prerequisite to serve as a poll monitor. Upon completion of the training volunteers will be allowed to sign up for an in-person shift on Election Day.

AFN is working in partnership with EPAZ to ensure that all voters have an equal opportunity to vote and have that vote count.

INFORMATION AND REGISTRATION

written by Diana Winston in the Scottsdale Congregational newsletter, iConnect:

Even in this era of aggressive immigration enforcement, immigrants in our community are not without rights. Many are unaware of those rights, and as allies to our immigrant friends and neighbors, we can help them by letting them know they are not helpless and by speaking up if we see anything we believe violates their rights.

 Contrary to what some would claim, the Bill of Rights of our US Constitution applies to visitors and immigrants as well as citizens. Generally speaking, people approached by ICE or CBP agents have the right to remain silent. They should not speak or answer questions. They particularly should not answer questions about where they are from or how long they have been in the US. Other general rules are to never lie or run away, and to refuse a search. 

Click through to read more.

The A.C.T OUT Initiative is the next chapter in the Open and Affirming movement—calling churches to move beyond symbolic statements into Advocacy, Community, and Transformation. As hate rises and justice is under attack, we’re organizing a national team to build toolkits, trainings, and campaigns that move churches into real-world activism and faithful advocacy. 

Want to be part of it? Fill out the form to get involved: openandaffirming.org/actout

For my UCC siblings who are delegates to General Synod, I would appreciate your prayerful consideration of the resolution the Southwest Conference UCC and the UCC Movement for Palestinian Solidarity are bringing to Kansas City this week. Thank you, and please share with your network. - Christopher Schouten

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Dear Conference Ministers, General Synod Delegates, and Siblings in Christ,

At this General Synod you will be asked to consider a resolution from the Southwest Conference, "Declaration for An End to Genocide in Palestine." In order to help you prepare for this important discussion and vote, we encourage you to review the resources found in the links below.

Last weekend, the launch of the seventh Climate Hope Affiliate was celebrated in Atlanta, Georgia. Affiliates address the interconnected crises of climate change and societal injustice by developing ongoing relationships with Members of Congress, local media, and others in the broader community. Let us know if you are interested in starting an affiliate where you live.

Arizona Faith Network has already welcomed over 15,000 visits to their Heat Relief Centers this summer. Each visit represents a neighbor seeking refuge from triple-digit temperatures, often with no other place to go.

But the need keeps growing. Right now, vulnerable individuals and families are facing historic challenges, limited shelter access, overwhelmed services, and life-threatening exposure.

See how you can help: Donate supplies, attend a bag-packing event, or volunteer at a cooling & hydration center.

As a faith-rooted organization committed to justice, stewardship, and the flourishing of all creation, the Arizona Faith Network strongly opposes the public lands sell-off proposal embedded in the Senate budget reconciliation package, introduced by Senator Mike Lee.

Selling over 2 million acres of public lands, lands that belong to all Americans, betrays our shared moral and spiritual obligation to care for the earth and ensure equitable access to its abundance. These lands are sacred: They hold ecological, cultural, and spiritual significance for Indigenous communities, sustain local economies, and provide sanctuary for all who seek renewal in creation.

This proposal is not only reckless but also a violation of public trust. Congress is prioritizing short-term political and corporate interests over the long-term well-being of our communities, our climate, and our common home by attempting to force through this sell-off under the guise of budget reconciliation without public input or environmental review.

As people of faith, we say clearly: public lands are not for sale. Their purpose is not to fund tax breaks for the wealthy, but to support life, biodiversity, and intergenerational justice. Once these lands are privatized, they are lost forever, fences go up, access is denied, and the public loses an irreplaceable gift.

We call on Arizona’s Senators to  reject any provision that authorizes the sale of public lands. Let us uphold our sacred trust to future generations by defending our shared landscapes, not auctioning them off.

Let us act with courage and care now for public lands.