The tragedy of gun violence in this country seems unending. We pray for those impacted, whether in a South Carolina church two years ago, a Florida club one year ago, or on a Virginia baseball field today, and in all of the other times and places where lives have been shattered. The Council of Churches encourages congregations to recognize all those impacted by gun violence during Stand Up Sabbath services this weekend. Beyond that, may we prayerfully and faithfully work toward a peaceful path where our sisters and brothers are no longer…
Join the Council at Wild Goose!
The Council is a sponsor of the Wild Goose Festival in Hot Springs this July. Members of the staff will be leading workshops and sharing resources. We hope to see you there!
2017 Stand Up Sabbath — June 16-18
About this time two years ago, I accepted the offer to become the next Executive Director of the NC Council of Churches. We agreed that I would spend two weeks with the outgoing ED in June learning the ropes, and then I would really get to work in August. My first day in the office was June 18, 2015. I had heard the news from Charleston that morning when I woke and I knew that event would forever define my first day at the office. The NC Council of Churches…
Special Interest Altar Calls
By now, most of us have read “Dark Money” or heard enough about the subject it explores to recognize that money is suffocating our democracy. Add to this styptic environment a potential new infusion of money, this time through the tax-free political contributions that could flow directly into nonprofit organizations and communities of faith across the country. The alarm bells went off in February at the National Prayer Breakfast when we heard the President promise to “get rid of and totally destroy the Johnson Amendment and allow our representatives of…
Shepherds of Creation
Sermon preached on May 7, 2017 at Church of the Nativity, Raleigh. When I was in kindergarten, we memorized the 23rd Psalm. Of course, it was the King James Version, so different from what we read here today since we’ve all moved on to the modern translations that change so often we can’t keep up our memorization habits. Still, after all these years since kindergarten, I think if I had to do it, I could recite the 23rd Psalm for you in the King James Version. I also still recall…
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…
There’s an App for That
The Council is excited to announce the release of our free app for iOS and Android mobile devices. The current political climate has proven to be chaotic at times and deeply troubling to many progressive people of faith. Each new day seems to bring with it a new set of concerns: health care, HB 2 “repeal,” proposed massive budget cuts, concerns of foreign interference in the election, immigration bans, and threats to withhold funding from sanctuary cities. The list could go on and on and on. It’s hard to keep…
From Sour to Sweet
Confession: I didn’t give anything up for Lent this year and I don’t feel bad about it. Instead, I baked loaves of sourdough bread every Sunday for communion at my church, Southeast Raleigh Table. It’s a time consuming process; beginning Friday evening by feeding my sourdough starter to “wake it up” and begin the process of growing it from a half cup to the two cups needed. That involves some time again Saturday morning and Saturday evening so that everything is ready to begin baking at 6 a.m. Sunday morning….
A Day in the Life of….
Preached on April 12 at St. Paul African Methodist Episcopal Church, Chapel Hill Holy Week, this week, is the most intense week of the Christian year. The secular world might say, looking at us, that the week leading up to Christmas Day is the most intense because they see us scurrying around searching for the perfect last minute gift. Or more likely the gift we forgot to buy because we didn’t know we’d be getting a gift from a friend at the office or an out-of-town relative who just showed…
Standing on Our Heads
Sermon preached by the Rev. Jennifer Copeland on April 1, 2017 at First United Methodist Church, Mocksville for the Western North Carolina Conference United Methodist Women’s Legislative Day. For God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength. Consider your own call, brothers and sisters: not many of you were wise by human standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the…
2017 Legislative Seminar — Thank You plus Worship and Awards Presentation Online
For those who could not be with us at St. Mark’s United Methodist Church in Raleigh, video from portions of the day is available on our Facebook page. The morning worship was led by the Revs. Jill and Rick Edens of United Church of Chapel Hill, and NCCC board member the Rev. Paula Dempsey provided music. Lisa Price and Congressman David Price received our Faith Active in Public Life Award, marking the first time the honor has been presented to a married couple. We hope those who joined us found…
Action Needed Before Monday Night on Guns in Places of Worship
Our friends at North Carolinians Against Gun Violence have issued the alert below. Please note that it requires action before this evening, Monday, March 27. _________________________________________________________________________ We are continuing to try and stop the expansion of guns in congregations that share a space with schools. HB 174 will be on the floor this Monday night. The bill would allow handguns on educational property that is the location of both a school and a place of worship outside the operating hours of the the school. This is unacceptable and must be…
Do the Goose
If you think organized religion has lost its appeal (25% of Americans do; most of them under 40), then it might be time to look again. Look at the Wild Goose Festival in Hot Springs, NC, July 13-16, 2017. Rooted in the Christian tradition, Wild Goose is an amalgamation of spirit, justice, music and arts. Remember how Jesus combined a radical interpretation of justice with a reverence for tradition? He said things like, “I have come not to abolish [the law] but to fulfill.” Then he showed us what fulfillment…
2017 Lenten Guide — Third Sunday
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. I come to the garden alone While the dew is still on the roses And the voice I hear, falling on my ear The Son of God discloses And He walks with me And He talks with me And He tells me I am His own And the joy we share as we…
2017 Ecumenical Prayer Calendar
This Prayer for Unity and monthly ecumenical prayer calendar include by name the judicatories and congregations that are members of the North Carolina Council of Churches and the names of their current leaders. Your prayers for reconciliation are invited for all Christian bodies in and beyond the state. A Prayer for Unity Holy One, whose love has been poured into our hearts through Jesus Christ in the Holy Spirit, and who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish far more than we can ask or imagine,…