In 2012 the United Methodist Church’s General Conference held an Act of Repentance with Native Peoples, challenging the church to implement actions that demonstrate a genuine attitude of repentance and healing. A key element of this repentance is learning and …
POWER Interfaith to host Phila. mayoral candidates forum April 16
POWER Interfaith will convene leaders from 60 Philadelphia area congregations to talk with the city’s 2023 mayoral candidates April 16, at 3-6 p.m., about what it will take to make their communities safer. The interfaith anti-racism social change organization’s Faith …
EPA clergy of color invited to renewal retreat in June
Just weeks after an Annual Conference focused on the theme “Possibility,” Eastern PA clergy of color will get to explore their own possibilities of learning self-renewal and restoration through a joyful, guided process of spiritual and emotional nurture. And they …
Veterans Day: Honoring former Buffalo Soldier, revered church scoutmaster
As America honors its military veterans on Friday, Nov. 11, Wharton-Wesley UMC in Philadelphia, is proud that one of its own served during World War II in a U.S. Army unit with a special inherited history. Louis M. Stukes Sr., …
Wholeness Centers to spur BIPOC church-community ministry partnerships
The Eastern PA Conference is placing a new milestone on its justice-centered Dismantling Racism: Path Toward Wholeness initiative with the launch of its Wholeness Centers program this month. Wholeness Centers are intentional church-based partnerships with local residents and groups in …
‘Now Is the Time’ offers a racial justice vision in verse
One song performed during EPA’s Annual Conference in May pronounced a vision of racial justice and harmony. And those who created it hope others will continue to give it voice and make it a favorite among churches and beyond. “Now …
‘Building Communities of Hope and Joy’ at Mission u
“God’s desire for us is to build communities of hope and joy.” The Eastern PA Conference United Women in Faith (formerly United Methodist Women) invite all to join in exploring that inspiring, unifying desire at monthlong sessions of Mission u …
Juneteenth: Hope for the future wrapped in a history lesson
Juneteenth, historically celebrated on June 19, will be observed as a federal holiday this year on Monday, June 20. It commemorates the delayed emancipation of enslaved African Americans in the U.S. But more than 150 years after the first Juneteenth …
Black-Brown Youth Retreat explores identity, relationships
“Black, brown, black, brown, black, brown.” That’s how the Rev. Will Brawner instructed the youth at the Black and Brown Youth Retreat, April 1-3, to sit in chairs encircling Gretna Glen Camp & Retreat Center’s largest meeting room. He mixed …
EPA leaders learning ‘3R’s’ of dismantling racism
Dismantling Racism may start with learning a new form of “the 3Rs”: Relationships, Recognition and Revelation. Relating openly and lovingly to others who are different—especially cross-racially or cross-culturally—can lead to honest recognition of what one doesn’t know and then to …