Excerpted from A Season of Hope. An Advent Guide for Lectionary Year B from the North Carolina Council of Churches. In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting…
PHW Faith and Health Summit: Thank You
It has been a little over a week since our third PHW Faith and Health Summit, themed “Making Connections: We’re Worth It.” The day began with worship and a keynote address by The Reverend Richard Joyner. We were inspired and challenged to see the world through relationships, and to embrace the possibilities and calling of God even when it does not fit our desires, comforts, or plans. It was a truly powerful word and a remarkable, energy-filled way to begin our day. From there we attended workshops, shared a meal,…
Partners in Health and Wholeness Announces Photography Contest
They say a picture is worth a thousand words, and we want to hear what you have to say. The theme of this year’s PHW Faith and Health Summit is, “Making Connections: We’re Worth it!” in order to honor the image of God in each of us, to celebrate the good work that is being done around health and wholeness, and to remind us that we are not alone in these efforts. Art has the power of connecting people to one another and to themselves. Art, and in this case,…
Apply for PHW Collaborative by May 31 to be Eligible for June Mini-Grant
The next Partners in Health and Wholeness Mini-grant Cycle will begin June 5. Interested congregations must apply to join the PHW Collaborative (previously PHW Certification) by May 31 to be eligible. Priority is given to projects that address one of PHW’s four cornerstones: healthy eating, physical activity, tobacco prevention and cessation, and mental health. In the past, mini-grants have been used to fund healthy church meals, community garden expansions, cooking demonstrations, exercise classes, supplies for blood pressure checks, and much more. We look forward to hearing all the creative proposals…
Shine a Light on Postpartum Depression This Mother’s Day
We often struggle to address mental health in our communities of faith. This Mother’s Day, as we honor those who bring forth life and contribute so much to our communities, let us also acknowledge one of the most common complications of childbirth: postpartum depression (PPD). As many as one in seven mothers suffer from postpartum depression, and only 15% of them receive professional treatment. As a society, we already stigmatize mental illness and struggle to talk about it. But when depression arises (in about half of PPD cases for the first…
PHW Launches Collaborative; Certify for 2017
We are pleased to introduce the PHW Collaborative. Mostly, it is a change in the name, so if your congregation has been a part of the Partners in Health and Wholeness Certification Program, you actually already know about the PHW Collaborative. At the heart of it, the program is the same. But words are important. The language we use every day reflects our values and at the North Carolina Council of Churches we make an effort to be very intentional with the language we use. As Partners in Health and Wholeness…
2017 Lenten Guide — Ash Wednesday
For this year’s Lenten Guide, each member of the Council staff chose a verse from a favorite hymn to write about. We will post their reflections throughout Lent, for Ash Wednesday, each Sunday and throughout Holy Week. When we have run with patience the race, We shall know the joy of Jesus. “I Want to Walk as a Child of the Light” ~ United Methodist Hymnal #206 Today, Ash Wednesday, the entire Lenten journey is ahead of us. We are standing at the starting line for this particular race, this…
Pope Francis Advocates for Breastfeeding in Worship
In the past Partners in Health and Wholeness had a program dedicated to helping worshipping communities promote breastfeeding and support breastfeeding mothers. This week, the most prominent religious leader in the world, the Pope, took it a step further. In a homily during a baptism service in the Sistine Chapel, Pope Francis encouraged mothers to feed their babies if they cried, reminding those gathered that Mary would have breastfed Jesus when he was hungry. As a breastfeeding mom and an advocate for health and wholeness, I am excited to see how this pronouncement…
PHW Mini-Grants Now Open
We are excited to announce that we are now accepting mini-grant applications. Congregations who were certified in 2016 (and have not already received a grant from the last cycle) are eligible to apply. We look forward to reading all the wonderful, meaningful, and creative health-related projects your congregations have planned. For great stories on what past grantees have done, read our congregational spotlights. For more information and to complete the application, click here. If you have questions please contact your Regional Coordinator or call the main office at 919-828-6501. This grant cycle closes on…
Advent: A Call to Action
The themes of Advent are particularly resonant and difficult this year. For me, this is in light of two major events, the recent election and the recent birth of my first child. This time seems particularly dark and scary, and we as a nation seem in desperate need of light and hope. Many of us feel a more tangible and urgent need for the hope and promise of the incarnation to be born in us and our world again. Come, Lord Jesus. Sometimes, when I feel overwhelmed, as I often…
We Didn’t Know it Was You
I recently heard the song, “Sweet Little Jesus Boy” for the first time in a beautiful recording by Straight No Chaser. For days the lines, “We didn’t know who you were,” and “We didn’t know it was you” echoed in my mind. How often do we, as a culture, as the church, and as Christians encounter Jesus and not recognize him? It is far too often, I’m afraid. As Parker Palmer said in his stirring reflection on the On Being blog, “If I’m going to celebrate Christmas with a good…
August is National Breastfeeding Month
Did you know that August is National Breastfeeding Month and that this week is World Breastfeeding Week? Breastfeeding has some important health implications for both mom and baby. It also has social, emotional and justice implications as well. For example, because only 13% of employers offer paid leave in the U.S., many women stop breastfeeding sooner than they’d planned. The surgeon general recommends exclusive breastfeeding until six months of age, but this does not often become a reality. According to an article by Sili Reico on Momsrising.com, “28.8% of mothers…
Gun Violence and Public Health
New York City’s Health Commissioner, Dr. Mary Bassett, recently published a blog on the Huffington Post about Gun Violence as a public health issue. It is essential that we pay attention to this important aspect of the conversation about common sense gun control legislation. As Dr. Bassett states: “The mission of public health is to protect and promote the health, safety and wellbeing of entire populations. When public health professionals notice a troubling trend, we can’t sit on the sidelines. We must take action.” The fact that there are troubling…
Eating Faithfully
What does it mean to eat faithfully? This is a deeply personal, yet essentially communal question that we often don’t take the time to consider. Delving into this question, however, can have some profound and worthwhile outcomes. In this article from the Duke Clergy Health Initiative, Reverend Grace Hackney addresses this question. It is a worthwhile and inspiring read when considering the theological implications of and motivations behind the choices we make around food. In it, Reverend Grace Hackney says: “I was convinced through my work at Cedar Grove that…
Creating Healthier Food Pantries: Workshop and Lunch
Every congregation I have worked with has collected and donated food as a part of their mission and outreach. Feeding the hungry is an essential part of both the history and calling of the church, so we host canned food drives, stock food pantry shelves, and fill backpacks. This is important and meaningful work. But do we always know how this food affects our neighbors? Through their work as registered dietitians with the Partnership for Community Care, Caitlin Romm and Sheri Vettel have time and time again encountered patients dealing…