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Let Communities Lead! The world can end AIDS, with communities leading the way. In 2022, an estimated 2.2 million people in the Western Pacific Region were living with HIV. Each of these people, their families and the organizations of communities living with, at risk of, or affected by the disease are shaping the HIV response. World AIDS Day 2023, under the theme, “Let communities lead,” is an opportunity to reflect on the progress made to date, to raise awareness about the challenges that remain to achieve the goals of ending AIDS by 2030 and to mobilize all stakeholders to jointly…

With the rise of authoritarianism in the US, attacks on queer and trans beloveds both through legislation and right-wing protesters at drag shows, anti-immigrant policies and rhetoric, as well as the censoring of books and school curricula, we are seeing an increase in the targeting of sacred spaces for violence.  Across religious traditions, we are seeing online threats, pride and Black Lives Matter banners torn down, hate speech graffiti-ed on synagogues, violent actors appearing at sanctuaries and disrupting services, and more. So, how can congregations be prepared?  Why is this violence escalating, and what community safety practices can we engage in now that…

 

Authorized Ministers are invited to sign up for six free sessions of individual coaching here:  

We pay tribute to Ruth Schweitzer-Mordecai, a longtime board member of Pacific Center for Spiritual Formation (PCSF) who died on June 29, 2022 at the age of 85. Ruth was dedicated in her commitment to discovering, embracing, and sharing transformative psychological and spiritual practices. She joined PCSF in 1995 and became integral to our mission of providing opportunities for individuals to experience Christian contemplative practices that are ecumenical in scope and welcoming to interfaith spiritual practices. Along with New Testament scholar Marcus Borg, Ruth wrote a chapter for the book, Jesus Reconsidered (2007), and worked collaboratively to create PCSF events…

I want to share a few things I’ve been thinking about throughout this past week about the work of Administration. What do I mean by Administration? I’m talking about our Bylaws, our HR and Insurance policies, our Financial statements, our Safe Conduct Policies—and anything else that we put in place as a matter of course to make sure God’s work can happen. While it may seem odd for this newsletter format, I decided to lay it out in bullet points just because the points may or may not be related to one another. I’ll let you decide. Administration is the…

I visited one of our local churches last Sunday, only the second time since before Pandemic and the first time that I shared the morning message. Before I launched into my sermon, I took a minute to bring greetings on behalf of our siblings in the churches of the Northern California Nevada Conference and offer a word of gratitude for their partnership in the work we do together in the wider church. Many of you have heard me say something similar in the past as I have joined you in worship. This time, after 18 months of not being able…

In the wake of the collapse of Afghanistan, we have learned that many of the 50,000 Afghan refugees relocating to the US are headed to or already in the Bay Area and Sacramento. The reason for this is, in part, due to the fact that these areas of our Conference have some of the largest Afghan communities in the US. On Monday, I was part of an ecumenical conversation hosted by Pacific School of Religion and included my ecumenical counterparts in other denominations as well as leaders from Church World Service and the Council on American-Islamic Relations. We learned about…