Ray and Martha Phillips, of First Congregational UCC Albuquerque, will be traveling this week to South Africa, where Ray’s grandparents, Ray and Dora Phillips, are being given the silver award of the Order of the Baobab by the President of South Africa. The Order is the highest honor given to a civilian SA citizen. Ray and Dora were US citizens.

Southwest Conference was well-represented at Phoenix Pride!

From Church of the Red Rocks:

This is an update on our Hope House project, temporary housing for families with children and, when space is available, homeless elderly women.  We are working hard recruiting volunteers to help with our various task groups. 

The Wellness Ministries of the UCC Newsletter | April 2019, Volume 4, Issue 3

(formerly The Faith Community Nurse Health Ministry Newsletter)

Thursday, May 2, 12–4 p.m., Anshei Israel, 5550 E. 5th Street, Tucson

Interfaith Community Services and the Southwest Folklife Alliance are putting together a symposium for leaders in congregations around helping the people they serve to consider their life, their mortality, and their planning for the kind of care they would want near the end of their life.  We’re doing this as part of the Arizona End of Life Care Partnership (www.azendoflifecare.org).  It’s open to anyone interested in building awareness and confidence in addressing this aspect of life. 

As people of faith, we believe every person has the God-given right to self-determination. One of the founding principles of our country is the ability to participate in our democracy, and yet we continue to see the right of self-determination threatened by significant barriers to voting accessibility. The prevalence of gerrymandering, archaic and antiquated voter registration polices and unconstitutional voter purges make it harder for many individuals to vote. These barriers are especially harmful to low income individuals and persons of color. Additionally, the current system of unchecked money in campaigns means that many voices are being ignored and denied.

In early March, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 1, the “For the People Act of 2019,” a sweeping bill aimed at protecting the rights of American voters and getting money out of politics.

Over the past two years, a coalition of peacebuilding, humanitarian, and faith-based organizations have drafted a bill that would address the root causes of violence and fragility. The resulting legislation has been introduced in both the House and Senate as the Global Fragility Act (H.R. 1580/S.727). This bill would require the U.S. government – in collaboration with civil society – to develop a 10 year strategy to enhance stability and to reduce violence and fragility around the world.

“We have named our facility – Hope House of Sedona. We are quite excited that our new mission has this meaningful name: offering Hope to those in Sedona who truly need it. Extending the reach of Christ has taken on new form and meaning for our church.”

“ . . . all people should have access to the full range of safe and affordable family planning services, and that the government should not impinge on any woman’s freedom of choice to follow her personal religious and moral convictions concerning the completion or termination of her pregnancy.”

Thursday, April 18, 10 a.m. to noon (arrive by 9:30 a.m.)

at Temple Chai, 4645 East Marilyn Road, Phoenix, AZ 85032

The training will have two segments:

1. Training on how to identify persons abusing opioids.

2. How to utilize Narcan for persons that have overdosed on opioids.

Bill Lyons participated on the panel during the HIV and Faith Breakout Session at the 5th Annual Integrated HIV Symposium on March 26.

Faith leaders, people living with HIV, and advocates discussed how their organizations have invited dialog about HIV/AIDS. Faith leaders discussed how to encourage other faith based organizations to serve as catalysts for change in thwarting HIV-related stigma and provide much needed emotional support for people living with HIV.

This panel was organized by the City of Phoenix Fast Track Cities Initiative, a voluntary committee appointed to heighten HIV eradication goals as part of a global United Nations led effort. The committee leverages existing resources to end HIV as an epidemic by 2030.

Our faith teaches us that each person bears the image of God. Sexual or physical violence against any person defies this belief and represents a grave injustice. Violence impacts all of us - tearing apart the fabric of communities and our society. Everyone deserves to live free from violence.

Conference Minister Bill Lyons is a panelist at this event and will be sharing about HIV/AIDS ministry in the UCC at the HIV and Faith Community Forum on March 26. The Southwest Conference, especially clergy, are invited to join us.

Updated lists of volunteer and donation needs for the asylum seeker transition program in Phoenix, provided by Lutheran Social Services of the Southwest.

from justice and peace action network:

Earlier this year the Administration posted a notice for proposed rulemaking through the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to restrict states' flexibility to provide vital nutrition support to people who struggle to feed themselves and their families. It is estimated this change to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) would result in 755,000 people losing access to life-saving nutrition benefits.