Communications Staff 1/6/23 Communications Staff 1/6/23

End of Year Reflection

Centering people placed on the fringes of society requires intentional focus that isn’t distracted by hatemongers or those who love institutions more than people.

Communications Staff 12/21/22 Communications Staff 12/21/22

2022 Advent Devotion 5

So, as we go through Advent, may we set aside our preconceived ideas, our fears, and our assumptions, as well. May we be open to sitting at the table together with those unlike us, maybe to share a meal, stories, laughter and even tears with our Palestinian and Israeli brothers and sisters. May we be watching to see what God might do in our midst, even through us, in unexpected ways.

Communications Staff 12/14/22 Communications Staff 12/14/22

2022 Advent Devotion 4

The crimson of Christmas-to-come can carry a different meaning for the infertile. Hidden in the shadows of city sidewalks, behind the anticipation of the birth of the Child so easily conceived, Advent for infertile and low-fertility women can come with the silent dread of seeing a crimson ribbon where none should be.

Communications Staff 12/7/22 Communications Staff 12/7/22

2022 Advent Devotion 3

Queer Bars are often the last place where strangers can be their whole selves, regardless of how society and families attempt to fragment them. These bars are where one does not have to mask their Queerness and Transness. They are where one can feel the pain and sorrow of loneliness and abandonment yet never be alone or discarded. These bars, open when the streets are all but empty, are a safe haven, a refuge, of hope within the Season of Advent. Queer bars are the nativity scene of the birth of Divinity in our time.

Communications Staff 11/29/22 Communications Staff 11/29/22

2022 Advent Devotion 2

Harvest comes again and there are peppers and potatoes and apples to be picked by people the sustenance of the peoples. The movement repeats. However, there is an anticipation, an excitement about the possible. What will the Divine do in our midst? How might we be invited into participation in the struggles and celebrations of justice.

Communications Staff 11/27/22 Communications Staff 11/27/22

2022 Advent Devotion 1

Now comes Advent, its own invitation into darkness but leading towards seeking the light, searching for a new sound, a song of renewal, a shared chorus of God’s good news among us.

Communications Staff 11/10/22 Communications Staff 11/10/22

North Carolina Chapter Statement on Disaffiliation

We remain convinced that a total and full inclusion of all persons, in every aspect of ministry, regardless of race, gender or sexual orientation is a clear reflection of the Kingdom of God.

Communications Staff 11/7/22 Communications Staff 11/7/22

Oregon-Idaho Chapter Supports 2 Ballot Measures

The Oregon-Idaho Chapter of MFSA is setting an example of what it means to vote your values this Midterm Election season and call on all to prayerfully consider, as you fill out your ballot, how your choices reflect your values.

Communications Staff 10/27/22 Communications Staff 10/27/22

A Call to Care for All God’s Creation

As elections approach and federal environmental protections diminish, it is more important than ever that we Justice-Seeking People of Faith come together to take action on climate justice.

Communications Staff 10/14/22 Communications Staff 10/14/22

Help Support Our Justice-Seeking Work

Because of the generosity of our movement, together we have been able to advocate for more just social policies both in the church and the world, make progress on much-needed infrastructure work, and continue to offer unique educational opportunities that deepen our collective intersectional systemic analysis and lens in order to more effectively organize across our movement.

Communications Staff 10/4/22 Communications Staff 10/4/22

Western Methodist Justice Movement Provides Episcopal Discernment- Through a Social Justice Lens

The Western Methodist Justice Movement (WMJM) hosted a Jurisdiction-wide web event in July 2022 to “develop questions with a social justice focus for episcopal candidates.” The intention for these questions is to “assist annual conference delegations and other groups to keep social justice concerns before episcopal candidates through the discernment process of electing new bishops this November 2022.”

Communications Staff 9/8/22 Communications Staff 9/8/22

Ecumenical Forum Reflections on the 50th anniversary of Martial Law and the Return of Marcos

In the lead-up to the upcoming 50th Anniversary of the Declaration of Martial Law in the Philippines on September 21, International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines (ICHRP) is organizing an ecumenical forum that will look at the implications of the Marcos Regime, and its recurrent form, for faith leaders and human rights advocates within the ecumenical community.

Communications Staff 8/31/22 Communications Staff 8/31/22

Introducing Carol Ngwenyama

Welcome Carol, the new Organizing Associate Intern at MFSA.

Communications Staff 8/4/22 Communications Staff 8/4/22

“If we do not give up”: Reflections on Disability and LGBTQ+ Advocacy

When LGBTQIA+ people are fully affirmed in the Church and elsewhere, they bear witness to God’s creativity and the variety of ways in which fruits of the Spirit like love, joy, and kindness can be expressed to others. Similarly, people with disabilities may experience gender, sexuality, and life differently because of their diverse bodies and minds. I think the intersectionality of the disabled and LGBTQIA+ experience is something we should celebrate!

Communications Staff 7/29/22 Communications Staff 7/29/22

MFSA Joins Religious Organizations Calling for Free Exercise of Religion

MFSA joined 34 other religious organizations in an amicus brief to the Supreme Court expressing our support for Bremerton School District in “defending its students rights to follow their own consciences and pray according to their own religious beliefs.”

Communications Staff 6/27/22 Communications Staff 6/27/22

East Ohio MFSA presents two Bishop James S. Thomas Leadership awards

In 2004, the East Ohio chapter of the Methodist Federation for Social Action (MFSA) inaugurated an annual award to recognize people for excellent leadership in peace and justice ministries in the church and the world.