Excerpted from the NC Council of Churches Lenten Guide, “Love One Another: Reflections on Race, Power, and Privilege” Deuteronomy 26:1-11 When you have come into the land that the Lord […]
On March 23, 2010, President Obama signed the Affordable Care Act. This law put in place comprehensive health insurance reforms that helped to make health care more affordable and accessible […]
Join us for the Council’s 2016 Critical Issues Seminar, focused on Race, Power, and Privilege, on Saturday, April 23 at St. Matthew United Methodist Church, 600 East Florida Street, Greensboro. […]
Join the NAACP, NC Council of Churches, and other coalition partners for the Tenth Annual Moral March on Raleigh. Historic Thousands on Jones Street 2016 takes place on Saturday, February 13; […]
Join us for an opening reception to see the work of Pulitzer Prize winning photographer José Galvez on Friday, February 5 from 6 – 9 p.m. at the City Gallery, 118 […]
To see this message in Spanish click here. Para ver este mensaje en español haga un clic aquí). At the North Carolina Council of Churches, we believe that access to […]
Excerpted from In Those Days and In These, an Advent Devotional Guide from the NC Council of Churches In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all […]
Every year, I have the wonderful task of arranging a series of clergy breakfasts across the state with the goal of educating faith leaders about immigrants in their communities and […]
Excerpted from In Those Days and In These, an Advent Devotional Guide from the NC Council of Churches In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a […]
Earlier this month, more than 170 friends and allies gathered at Durham’s St. Philip’s Episcopal Church in support of our refugee sisters and brothers. We prayed and sang and then broke […]
In the game of bridge, when a trump card is played to win a trick, that’s known as a ruff. In the game of politics, when Donald Trump uses tricks […]
Excerpted from In Those Days and In These, an Advent Devotional Guide from the NC Council of Churches John said to the crowds that came out to be baptized by […]
Excerpted from In Those Days and In These, an Advent Devotional Guide from the NC Council of Churches In the fifteenth year of the reign of Emperor Tiberius, when Pontius […]
Excerpted from In Those Days and In These, an Advent Devotional Guide from the NC Council of Churches Jesus said, “There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and […]
Photo by I. Prickett, UNHCR Against the toxic brew of fear and political opportunism that has enveloped America’s response to the Syrian refugee crisis stand principles of compassion and common […]
Jesus does not care about your latte. Your frappuccino, cappuccino, or mocha, either. At least, he doesn’t care about the cup it is served in and whether it’s branded to […]
The senators and representatives who make up North Carolina’s General Assembly let their 2015 session run on far longer than it should have. Let’s be glad that the curtain has […]
In the final hours of the 2015 legislative session, the NC House of Representatives passed House Bill 318, a measure that would prohibit communities from being so-called “sanctuaries” for people living […]
Pope Francis has been an outspoken leader about the need to welcome immigrants and refugees in our communities. This past Thursday, he continued his positive track record of expressing compassion […]
This fall, the Council is continuing its successful annual Clergy Breakfast series on immigration with events as far east as Wrightsville Beach and as far west as Weaverville. As we continue […]
Last week, the European refugee crisis reached a tragic peak. More than 11 million Syrians have been forced to flee their homes due to violence and persecution. Many of these people […]
The past few weeks and months have been filled with a lot of hatred. Innocent people have been killed while trying to go about their daily lives, whether that be […]
Next week, the American Friends Service Committee is coordinating a national week of action to end immigration detention quotas. The United States has the largest detention immigration system in the […]
A few weeks ago, I, along with the rest of the nation, celebrated our nation’s independence. Last week I, along with thousands of North Carolinians, also attended the Mass Moral […]
By Wayde Marsh, Duke Divinity School Intern On my way to work one day last week, I listened to WUNC as I usually do. I heard a lot about the […]
By Wayde Marsh, Duke Divinity School Intern Storytelling is a central piece of community organizing because through it you offer your listener a way into your life in an organized […]
By Wayde Marsh, Duke Divinity School Intern This past Tuesday, more than 200 people celebrated the career of NC Council of Churches Executive Director George Reed before his retirement at […]
A few weeks ago, The News & Observer published an article entitled “Many NC workers’ death go uncounted,” describing how often workplace deaths in North Carolina are uninvestigated, undocumented, and […]
On April 16, more than 150 farmworker advocates gathered at the United Church of Chapel Hill to network with each other and learn about issues affecting farmworkers. Workshops included an update […]
The Council of Churches’ Legislative Seminar – its top-profile public event of the year – is meant to inform, and it’s meant to inspire. We’re not too bashful to say […]
Recently, more than 75 people of faith, including students, teachers, clergy, and youth, joined together at First Presbyterian Church in downtown Durham to learn more about issues affecting immigrant children […]
The mission of the NC Council of Churches extends into many areas that highlight the links between faith and public policies. And of the various events and activities sponsored by […]
The Council’s 2015 Legislative Seminar is about a month away, and we have an exciting program of preachers, workshops, and presenters planned. If you’ve already registered to be with us, […]
Join us on April 14 at Greenwood Forest Baptist Church in Cary for the Council’s 2015 Legislative Seminar. Held every two years, the Seminar equips people of faith with the […]
This year’s summit will focus on issues affecting children and youth coming to our state from Central America. Rev. Julio Ramirez-Eve will preach during opening worship and music will be […]
Apparently I scare Civitas. Maybe it’s my upbringing. I was raised by a single mom (my parents divorced when I was a toddler) who was fortunate to have a solid […]
Of the many decisions and activities that unfold in the arena of public affairs, the ones that tend to show up on the NC Council of Churches’ radar are those […]
On November 20, President Obama announced that his administration will make changes to immigration policy through an administrative relief program. This will include changing removal priorities, expanding Deferred Action for […]
Last week, the largest detention center in the United States opened. The 50-acre center, located in Dilley, TX, will hold up to 2,400 migrants who have crossed the border illegally […]
The past two months the NC Coalition for Justice for Immigrants has been busy with its annual clergy breakfast series. This year we hosted five events across the state, as […]
The Council’s 2014 Advent Devotional Guide is now available as a free download. Each year, Council staff take a social justice theme as a focus for these guides to be used during […]
Yesterday, President Obama took a courageous and controversial step toward reforming our country’s immigration system. He announced his plan to allow millions of undocumented immigrants to apply to stay in this […]
As I have been traveling across the state educating clergy about immigrants in their communities and facilitating discussion through the Clergy Breakfast tour, I have heard from some amazing people: […]
Last week, advocates joined with farmworkers from across the state to remember fallen farmworkers who have died in the fields of North Carolina. The event took place on November 1, […]
There’s no getting around the fact that when North Carolinians went to the polls on Nov. 5, they gave a thumbs-up to the conservatives who’ve been in charge at the […]
What do Tuesday’s elections mean for North Carolina? How can people of faith in the state continue to affect positive change? Join the staff of the North Carolina Council of […]
The last couple of months have been particularly frustrating for Latinos who have been hoping for action in regard to repairing our country’s immigration system. Latino voters in North Carolina […]
For the past two weeks, the NC Religious Coalition for Justice for Immigrants has been on the road for its annual clergy breakfast series on immigration. These breakfasts are designed […]
On September 16, two former NC Council of Churches President were among a select group of 13 religious leaders who met with US Secretary of Labor Thomas Perez to discuss how […]
This year, the NC Council of Churches is continuing its successful statewide series of “Clergy Breakfasts” on immigration. These events are geared towards busy religious professionals and faith leaders, and they […]
The recent trial of Alamance County Sheriff Andrew Johnson has focused on alleged profiling abuses against Latinos. He is accused of detaining and arresting Latino drivers without probable cause. During the […]
Meet one of our community leaders, Helen Livingston, of Scotland County. I first met Helen through the phone when I started with PHW, and almost instantly we were kindred spirits. She […]
Please join the North Carolina Council of Churches at the 2014 Faith and Health Summit, which will be held on Friday, October 10, 2014 at Ardmore Baptist Church in Winston-Salem (501 […]
News about children at the border – what’s happening to them, what politicians believe or say about them, where they are going, what will happen to them — continues and […]
This past week I have been focusing on the crisis of the thousands of refugee children at the border who are being held in detention centers. I have blogged about praying for […]
As we head into a long Independence Day weekend, most Americans are anticipating a Friday off from work and a time to spend with their families celebrating the largest secular […]
I am admittedly a person who does not care about sports. However, the World Cup is one event that can even make a sports observer as apathetic as myself tune […]
Program Associate Jennie Wilburn has created a worship resource for Pentecost as an opportunity to break down linguistic and cultural barriers through the Holy Spirit. Jennie writes: This collection of […]
I am delighted to announce that our Governing Board has elected Jennie Wilburn to the position of Program Associate for Immigrant and Farmworker Rights. Jennie is a 2009 cum laude […]
Date: Easter 3 – May 4, 2014
Topic: Immigration
Focus Text: Luke 24:13-35
The story of Jesus’ appearance to the disciples on the road to Emmaus, unique to Luke’s Gospel, is central to the evangelist’s message about the resurrection of Jesus and its meaning. It is one of the more unusual stories we hear about encountering Jesus, but it is Luke’s way of conveying that the surprising and the unexpected are to be found in the wake of Jesus’ resurrection. One of the most surprising things, at least for those disciples within the story, is that the stranger they meet on the road turns out to be the risen Christ. At every turn this story is about revealing and discovering Jesus—through scripture, through the breaking of bread, and even through encountering a stranger on the road.
Here at the North Carolina Council of Churches, I’ve had the distinct privilege of working alongside immigrant families, faith leaders, lay activists, and immigrant rights organizations across the state in pursuit of humane fixes to our broken immigration system. While my time at the Council is drawing to a close, I know that immigration reform for our country is not a matter of if, it’s when. How long will we let political games take precedence over real human suffering? I believe that in 20 or 30 years issues that seem controversial today – like whether immigrants deserve human rights, due process, and the chance to become a part of society – will be obvious.
One thing that was strongly emphasized at Duke Divinity School by my New Testament professor, Dr. C. Kavin Rowe, was that Christian knowledge ultimately consists in discipleship. Knowing Jesus entails […]
I’ll never forget how it felt to serve dinner to this group. About 30 hungry, tired farmworkers arrived back at their camp just as it was getting dark, and they were kind enough to welcome us into their humble space for a shared meal. This group of mostly young men had been busy harvesting sweet potatoes down East. Most were indigenous Mexicans who learned Spanish as a second language, who didn’t know any English.
As we spooned out rice and beans and poured soda from two-liter bottles, I was struck at how rare it is for any of us to meet the people who actually produce and harvest the food we eat. From our history of slavery to our modern industrial context, our society has not really reckoned with the grim reality of those at the bottom of our food chain.
The Council helped organize a Service of Repentance and Consecration in front of the General Assembly Building prior to the Moral March and HKonJ People’s Assembly held earlier this month in Raleigh. […]
Here’s an immigrant congregation in Durham that is giving back to the community and making a real difference. It’s a beautiful story about what it means to be the church together. Do you know any immigrant churches in your neighborhood? How are they fostering community?
This video was produced by Uniting NC, a great organization working to make North Carolina a place in which all people, including immigrants, have the opportunity to thrive and to engage in their communities.
Dear Friends,
I will be leaving the NC Council of Churches at the end of March to focus full-time on Tomatillo Design, my new communications shop that works with nonprofits to create amazing, affordable websites.
Since I began working at the Council as an intern in the summer of 2006, I’ve had the incredible privilege of working with the most dedicated, talented and likable group of coworkers imaginable. From its founding more than 75 years ago to today, the Council has worked on a wide range of progressive causes and I’m proud to be a small part of that legacy. Every day at the office I felt encouraged by the witness of recent saints like Sister Evelyn Mattern and Collins Kilburn.
A cross-section of North Carolinians and progressives from other states flooded downtown Raleigh on Saturday as part of HKonJ 2014. Longtime activists from across the state walked with college students, parents […]
Join the NC NAACP, the North Carolina Council of Churches, and coalition partners for this weekend’s Moral March on Raleigh and HKonJ People’s Assembly. Events include: A Mass Meeting and […]
The Raleigh News & Observer reported recently that work may be getting harder for North Carolina’s poultry workers. If the Obama administration gives the go-ahead, new policies already backed by […]
Education is one of the critical issues of our time. How we as a society choose to invest in our young people has dramatic implications for our future. Today, thousands […]
It’s now just four weeks until this year’s HKonJ People’s Assembly. There is nothing more important for people of faith to do this winter as we work for prophetic social justice than […]
One of the most frustrating aspects of the immigration debate is how quickly the talking heads and politicians lose sight of the people whose lives are so deeply affected by […]
In these waning days of 2013, when the outlook for winning comprehensive immigration reform looks rather bleak in the short term, many of you have been asking me: what can we do?
While the pace of progress on immigration reform has been appallingly slow, we need to keep speaking up and taking action to show elected officials that this movement isn’t going away. I will be participating in the North Carolina Fast for Immigrant Families on December 17.
Here is a detailed invitation by our friends at FaithAction International House.
Date: Christmas 1 – Dec. 29, 2013
Topic: Hope for Refugees
Focus Text: Matthew 2:13-23
This story reminds us both of the circumstances of refugees and displaced peoples and of Israel’s story of suffering and hope, bondage and deliverance. As followers of Jesus we are also listeners to the story of Israel, because his story is their story. To listen to Israel—to hear her story—is to listen to the suffering of slavery, exile, and diaspora. Yet, it is also to listen to a story of God’s faithfulness in spite of Israel’s unfaithfulness and God’s deliverance in the face of their persecution.
I witnessed my first naturalization ceremony a few weeks ago at the International Festival in Raleigh. Close to 300 people from dozens of different countries became citizens of the United […]
NC Policy Watch
This week, House Speaker John Boehner stated flatly that there will not be any conference with the bipartisan Senate immigration reform bill. We’re hearing one excuse after another about how immigration reform is too complicated and there isn’t enough time for a vote. After months of dithering, it’s clear that House leaders are hoping to run out the clock on immigration. If it holds true that the House doesn’t vote on any other immigration bills, then an amendment to deport DREAM-eligible immigrants — which passed with overwhelming GOP support in June — will be the only immigration measure to have received a vote on the floor of the House in 2013.
Andres Sandoval went to a doctor in Benson, North Carolina four years ago complaining of stomach aches and difficulty sleeping. He was diagnosed with leukemia, and as a pesticide applicator, […]
More than 10,000 people of faith committed to the FAST Action, 40 days Prayer and Fasting for Immigration Reform. As we closed the 40 days on October 18th, we recognize the need for action and escalation is only growing as we approach a shrinking timeline for legislation.We must continue to lift up the moral imperative of immigrants’ rights and immigration reform with a pathway to citizenship.
Now many people of faith from all traditions are joining labor, immigrant and community leaders in setting the moral compass and raising our voices. Many faith organizations are joining the Fast for Family Unity beginning November 12th.
My morning devotional was about All Saints’ Day, a time for remembering those who have come before us. There is no doubt that Christians have a great inheritance from those […]
We’ve seen our share of drama out of DC lately, with more to come. Immigration is one of the next main policy areas that the House of Representatives is likely […]
I was both excited and nervous as I unpacked my boxes in the parsonage to begin my first year as a pastor. It had been a busy day with people coming in and out of the house, but after a while I was sitting alone and I looked around my new home trying to decide how I was going to arrange my furniture. As I moved and pushed my furniture about, I felt prompted to look out through the front door to observe the community in which I would be living. I peered out of the window and there was a house diagonally across the street that caught my attention.
***POSTPONED*** This year, the NC Council of Churches is continuing its successful statewide series of “Clergy Breakfasts” on immigration. These events are geared towards busy religious professionals and faith leaders, and […]
This year, the NC Council of Churches is continuing its successful statewide series of “Clergy Breakfasts” on immigration. These events are geared towards busy religious professionals and faith leaders, and they […]
This year, the NC Council of Churches is continuing its successful statewide series of “Clergy Breakfasts” on immigration. These events are geared towards busy religious professionals and faith leaders, and they […]
It’s been 102 days since the US Senate passed a bipartisan comprehensive immigration reform bill with overwhelming support. Since then, however, all progress has been stalled by the U.S. House […]
In celebration of World Day of Migrants and Refugees on September 24, Pope Francis said:
Migrants and refugees are not pawns on the chessboard of humanity. They are children, women and men who leave or who are forced to leave their homes for various reasons, who share a legitimate desire for knowing and having, but above all for being more.
Here in our own political context, we might re-word the Pope’s powerful message to say: Immigrants are not pawns for Congress.
It’s been 90 days since the US Senate overwhelmingly passed a comprehensive immigration reform bill, but the House has done nothing with it. In those 90 days, more than 100,000 immigrants have been needlessly deported.
Durham Herald-Sun
On Sunday August 25, about a hundred Durham residents and faith leaders from seven different traditions gathered at the People’s Plaza to pray for our elected officials. As people with different stories, different colors of skin, even different faiths, we were united in our hope that Rep. Butterfield, Rep. Coble, Rep. Price and their colleagues in the House will support a just and moral immigration reform that offers a pathway to citizenship, unifies families, supports workers, and moves us forward together.
If you’ve been following immigration reform, you know that this month is crucial to the effort for overhauling our nation’s broken immigration system. While the US Senate passed a reform bill earlier this summer, the fate of millions of immigrant families lies in the House of Representatives. This month there are a number of key events happening across NC. When you participate in a prayer vigil or march, you’re letting our leaders and the media know that North Carolinians are serious about reform. We hope to see you there.
RSVP on Facebook. Join us as we ask for fair and compassionate immigration reform. Vengan todos a una vigilia de oracion para la reforma migratoria. Inviten tambien a sus familiares […]
Somewhat lost this summer amidst all the conversation about comprehensive immigration reform is a little-known bill called the “Agricultural Guestworker Act” (or “Ag Act,” HB 1773) that has already passed out of the House Judiciary Committee. This harmful bill is a thinly veiled attempt to strip farmworkers of the few rights they have on the job while propping up agribusinesses’ bottom line.
Bishop Joseph Gossman, who died yesterday, was a great friend of the North Carolina Council of Churches. He led the Diocese of Raleigh into full membership in the Council in […]
We’re proud to be publishing these brand new church bulletin inserts on comprehensive immigration reform. With large color pictures and up-to-date facts and figures, these 8.5×5.5 inserts explain where things stand with federal legislation and offer congregants many different ways to get involved.
In these fever-pitch days of summer, with the once-in-a-generation chance at real immigration reform in Congress, we’re hearing a lot about how reform is good politics (for both parties) and good for the economy. These are of course important factors, especially in the political context of a major legislative fight on Capitol Hill, but for Christians, should these be the most determinative considerations?
Since the end of slavery in America, no workers have been more exploited than the men and women who bend to the earth in backbreaking labor, picking fruits, vegetables, and tobacco. Despite miracles of agricultural progress and innovation over the decades, the harsh lives and working conditions of migrant laborers have changed very little. Their cause has been championed in the past by Edward Murrow, Cesar Chavez, and the United Farmworkers. But that list is incomplete without Baldemar Velásquez . Velásquez was among hundreds of thousands of children who joined their migrant parents working long hours in the fields. Inspired by that early experience, Velásquez founded the Farm Labor Organizing Committee (FLOC) in 1967.
With the end of the 2013 legislative session in sight, Republicans in the General Assembly are making a final push to adopt photo identification as a requirement for voting. The […]
Only in today’s Washington would legislation that grows the economy, reduces the debt, curtails illegal immigration, helps the GOP politically and enjoys public approval in the 80% range be seen as a problem for the House Republican caucus. With every flimsy excuse crumbling, it comes down to John Boehner. Actually his choice is pretty simple: a bipartisan majority for reform with a path to citizenship for the 11 million undocumented immigrants in America exists right now; he should find a way to have that majority express its will.
Workshops and additional details coming soon.
The 2013 Summit promises to accomplish four main goals:
1. Offer a unique statewide, bilingual ecumenical gathering for faith leaders who work primarily with immigrant congregations;
2. Help equip these faith leaders to deal with the daily challenges faced by their congregations, especially related to their immigration status;
3. Provide a space for networking and sharing of best practices;
4. Train immigrant rights allies, especially in faith communities, to organize and mobilize around immigration issues.
People of faith from across North Carolina are invited to gather at houses of worship on Tuesday night at 7pm to pray for comprehensive immigration reform. Faith leaders will lead […]
I finally had the chance to go my first Moral Monday earlier this week. Walking around Halifax Mall with our Executive Director, George Reed, I was struck by how many people we both knew. I’m deeply proud of the involvement by clergy and faith communities in particular. So many of our members are represented not only in the crowd but also in the faces of those participating in civil disobedience and getting arrested. As we celebrate Independence Day this week, we give thanks not only for the many freedoms our country offers, but in particular for the countless faithful voices speaking up and speaking out for those who are being pushed to the margins by this General Assembly.
