Our country is in the midst of twin pandemics. One, the coronavirus pandemic, is dominating headlines. The other is a nationwide spike
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Before I became the Gun Violence Prevention Ministry Coordinator with the Presbyterian Peace Fellowship, I volunteered as a restorative circle facilitator at an elementary school. This elementary school was located in an area with the highest level of childhood poverty
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A Sermon on the Mass Killing in Newtown, CT Preached by Rev. Shannan R. Vance-Ocampo on December 16, 2012, on the third Sunday of Advent at Watchung Avenue Presbyterian Church Texts: Isaiah 12 & John 3: 7-20 Let us pray: O Lord our God—Light of our Salvation. It is
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Response from the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) From Stated Clerk Gradye Parsons and Presbyterian Mission Agency Executive Director Linda Valentine; Pictured above: Sculpture of Rachel weeping for her lost children Also be sure to read Rev. Shannan Vance-Ocampo’s sermon, “Hope Has Two Daughters: Anger & Courage“ A voice was
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America and Its Guns: A Theological Expose by James E. Atwood Purchase from Cascade Books: Wipf & Stock Publishers America leads the industrialized world in gun deaths. Children in the U.S. are 12 times more likely to die from firearms than children in 25 other industrialized nations combined. In
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At 10:30 AM, Sunday morning, August 5, just as the members of the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin were reading scripture and preparing food for their morning service and community meal, a gunman entered the gurdwara (temple) and opened fire, killing six congregants and wounding four others. After shooting and
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Thoughts on the “deep” political message of The Dark Knight Rises and a response to the tragic mass shooting in Aurora, Colorado, on the night of the film’s premier. By Patrick David Heery (WARNING: SPOILERS ALERT) Since the official release of The Dark Knight Rises (the final
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Princeton Theological Seminary Is social justice a priority for the church? Seminarian, Rachel Livingston, contends that social justice cannot be a priority when the church does not even know what it is. But the problem goes even deeper: many in the church do not value social justice, or even agree
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As the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) begins a process of discernment on whether to embrace nonviolence officially, the Presbyterian Peace Fellowship convenes peacemakers from across the church. by Matthew Black We Presbyterians know all about miracles— they happen in committees. This particular miracle begins a few years ago, when some
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