| International Newsletter of Metropolitan Community Churches with the focus on MCC congregations all over the world.
In this Issue Justice and Social Action MCC Key West (Florida) is organizing the community for a protest to the appearance of Fred Phelps and his anti-gay and hateful rhetoric this weekend. Participating will be representatives of the school system, the Naval Air Station, the Congregation B'nai Zion, and the City of Key West.
Spring cleaning at New Creation MCC (Columbus, Ohio) didn't mean sprucing up the church; it meant going to the elderly and homebound in their neighborhood and doing those things for them that they could no longer do ... painting, removing storm windows, cleaning yards, and making repairs.
New Spirit Community Church (Berkeley, California) prepares meals once a week for YEAH! (Youth Emergency Assistance Hostel), as well as collecting toiletries and clothing for them.
Quotes by Rev. Renwick Bell were heard on NPR (National Public Radio) as he addressed the crowd protesting CVS' sale of expired products, especially baby formula and medications, in low income areas. Church of Our Savior MCC (Boynton Beach, Florida) was also mentioned.
MCC Sydney (Australia) reminded its members about Fair Trade by checking for that label on coffee, chocolate, rice, tea, sugar, sports balls, and cotton products. By doing so they can assure that the workers are being reasonably paid. www.fairtrade.com.au
MCC of the Redwood Empire (Guerneville, California) participated in the 2009 Human Race - Be the Change earlier this month. 10,000 people raised over $1,000,000 (USD) for 400 nonprofit organizations. It is the largest fundraising event in Sonoma County.
MCC Lubbock (Texas) sent $500 (USD) to Sylvia's Place, a ministry of MCC New York (New York) which houses and provides programs for homeless LGBT youth.
Folks from MCC Melbourne (Australia) participated in the Trivia Night sponsored by Equal Love to raise funds for their national day of action for same-sex marriage in August.
Exodus MCC (Abilene, Texas) has completed one-third of its goal to raise the funds needed to build a Habitat for Humanity House.
At King of Peace MCC (St. Petersburg, Florida) they have just completed a campaign to support Heifer International by purchasing various animals to be given to some of the world's poorest people to help them become self-reliant.
Rev. Elijah Nealy was a special guest at the Unity Banquet, produced by the Houston (Texas) Transgender Unity Committee. Resurrection MCC was again proud to be a Platinum sponsor of this event.
Rev. Dan Koeshall delivered the invocation at the San Diego (California) City Council meeting.
The first Sunday of each month, MCC NOVA (Fairfax, Virginia) delivers breakfast to people who are homeless.
MCC Corpus Christi (Texas) is collecting teddy bears to be given to the Homicide Survivors Support Group, which supplies the bears to the police department for children who are victims of a crime.
MCC of the Chesapeake (Annapolis, Maryland) participated in the American Cancer Society's Relay For Life by fielding an overnight team.
The Business Fair at First MCC of Atlanta (Georgia) was a great success, both for the 19 exhibitors and as a fundraiser for the Food Bank. People learned about the diverse careers of other congregants, while enjoying refreshments, music, and fun prizes.
MCC of the Quad Cities (Davenport, Iowa) is collecting children's art and school supplies for Rick's House of Hope.
The Wichita MCC (Kansas) Loaves and Fishes food pantry served 1027 people during the month of April, three times the number a year ago!
We're Going Green Open Arms MCC (Rochester, New York) planted bird and wildlife friendly plants on their property, including butterfly bush, bee balm, and coneflower.
MCC Los Angeles (California) partnered with People for Parks to provide greener space at the 28th Street Community School. They beautified the entrance by removing dead plants, replaced them with native perennials, planted trees, and even cleaned the alley, sidewalks, and parking lot.
FirstCoast MCC (St. Augustine, Florida) welcomed several area churches and a nearby synagogue to a special Earth Day service on their property. They planted a bald cypress tree with soil from the land of each of the participating faith groups and shared refreshments with their guests.
MCC of Greater St. Louis (Missouri) participated in the St. Louis Cardinals & Out N About "For a Greener Game" initiative and helped collect recyclable materials from fans at Busch Stadium.
They are developing a plan to recycle paper, cardboard, and other materials used at MCC of the Rockies (Denver, Colorado).
MCC United (Tulsa, Oklahoma) has been recycling aluminum cans.
Would Jesus Discriminate? The Metroplex (Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas) MCCs have their own website to promote their campaign. www.whywouldwe.org
New Life MCC of Hampton Roads (Virginia) is doing a study on WJD at their pastor's home.
Ecumenical and Interfaith Activities On 5 June MCC San Francisco (California) and New Spirit Community Church MCC/UCC/DOC (Berkley, California) are going to join the Sisters of Mercy Center on the Peninsula for their beautiful Taizé service.
Promise MCC (Oak Cliff, Texas) and Living Faith Covenant Church cohosted the 2nd Annual Resurrection Praise Festival with five area LGBT churches participating.
Rev. Elder John Gill was the guest preacher at South Mountain Community Church in Phoenix, Arizona.
Volunteers from MCC in the Valley (North Hollywood, California) transported food after the US Postal Food Drive to the North Hollywood Interfaith Food Pantry for distribution.
Rev. Amin Sandewa, an ordained minister in the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Tanzania and the national coordinator of the Tanzanian Network of Religious Leaders Living with or Personally Affected by HIV and AIDS, joined Preben Bakbo Sloth, the HIV-Coordinator at Markens Liljer MCC (Copenhagen, Denmark) to lecture and lead workshops at a seminar in Trondheim, Norway, for 60 pastors, deacons and youth leaders.
MCC Manchester (England) supported their host church's appeal for Mary's Meals, which provides school meals for small children in deprived countries of the world. In a plate next to Mary's statue everyone was invited to put at least 20p in the plate this month. That tiny amount feeds a child for a week.
HIV and AIDS Ministries The HIV/AIDS ministry of Joy MCC (Orlando, Florida) hosts a weekly support group breakfast, which is free and open to anyone who is HIV+ or affected by HIV/AIDS. They also sponsored free confidential testing in their courtyard on a Sunday earlier this month.
Rob Hadley will be riding again in the Ride for AIDS Chicago event next month. http://www.events.org/rideforaids/sponsorship.aspx?id=11378
Proclaiming that "AIDS cannot be something that we do only on World AIDS Day", the service on 3 May at Pikes Peak MCC (Colorado Springs, Colorado) focused on keeping the promise to serve and advocate year round for people who are HIV+.
Every month Trinity MCC (Arlington, Texas) collects food for the AIDS Outreach Center's Nutrition Center.
St. John's MCC (Raleigh, North Carolina) participated in the 2009 North Carolina AIDS Walk and Ride earlier this month. Some rode 30, 60, or 101 miles on their bikes; others did the 1 or 3 mile walks; and some even participated virtually by collecting donations without doing the physical activity!
Karl Vidt wrote a reflection on testing positive 20 years ago and his journey with AIDS. http://mccsj.org/?p=513
MCC Charleston (South Carolina) will join hundreds of others in hosting a party for Dining with Friends, the annual fundraising event benefiting Lowcountry AIDS Services.
MCC Omaha partners with Nebraska AIDS Project to prepare and serve a monthly lunch to their 45 clients.
HIV - 25 Years Later will be a brown bag lunch discussion at MCC Toronto (Canada). This span of time represents an entire generation of people who have been or continue to be touched by this condition. This will be a time to share and hear about personal experiences and struggles.
The Ezekiel Project Ministry Team of MCC of Greater St. Louis (Missouri) and The Hope and Help Center for Living Pozitively sponsored a retreat for HIV+ men last weekend featuring Joshua Love.
Last month the DUO (Do Unto Others) Fund collection was split evenly between the team members from All God's Children MCC (Minneapolis, Minnesota), who have to raise a minimum of $1500 (USD) each to participate in the Minnesota Red Ribbon Ride.
A team from Christ Covenant MCC (Santa Ana, California) participated in the Orange County AIDS Walk. The theme was Step Up to the Plate and it was held at the Angel Stadium in Anaheim.
SunCoast Cathedral MCC (Venice, Florida) unloaded, sorted, inventoried, and stocked the items from the US Postal Service Food Drive which were donated to CHAPS, a food pantry for HIV/AIDS folks in Port Charlotte.
Asian and Pacific Islander HIV/AIDS Awareness Day was 19 May in the US, where the number of APIs living with AIDS has climbed by more than 10% in each of the last five years. In 2005 67% of HIV+ men were men who had sex with other men, while 80% of the positive API women were infected through heterosexual contact. http://www.hhs.gov/aidsawarenessdays/factsheets/may19.html
Caribbean American HIV/AIDS Awareness Day is planned for 8 June. The pandemic has devastated the Caribbean, which ranks second only to sub-Saharan Africa for AIDS prevalence. In 2006, the United Nations estimated that 19,000 Caribbeans died of AIDS, and that an additional 250,000 were living with the virus. http://www.hhs.gov/aidsawarenessdays/days/caribbeanamerican/index.html
US National HIV Testing Day is 27 June. Get your church involved! For information, posters, etc., go to p://www.hhs.gov/aidsawarenessdays/days/testing/index.html. Reports from the Moderator's Teams The Ecumenical and Inter-Religious Team Stan Kimer, Chair
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MCC teamed with the Colorado Council of Churches to oppose the death penalty. As the Region 7 Elder, Rev. Elder Lillie Brock signed a statement with other Christian leaders in Colorado to oppose the death penalty. The letter was sent to state Senators. Click here to read the letter.
Team members will be offering Dwelling Together in Unity: MCC's Ecumenical and Inter-Religious Ministries at the Regions 3 and 5 Conference in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 16-19 July. This workshop will highlight why this ministry is important to MCC, connection to the Global Justice and Theologies Teams' work, MCC's rich history in ecumenical and inter-religious activities, and practical suggestions on evaluating and investigating ministry opportunities.
A new resource is now available on MCC's relationship with the Fellowship. It is a comprehensive document detailing our history of involvement, the nature of our relationship, a Q&A section, and other news. http://www.mccchurch.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Resources . There is also information about the MCC credentialing of Rev. Dr. Yvette Flunder on the MCC Ecumenical and Inter-religious News webpage, click here to check it out. Conferences, Classes and Retreats Gospel of Jesus Christ MCC (Midland, Michigan) is studying and discussing the book Bulletproof Faith.
There will be an MCC Church Growth Retreat 31 July - 2 August in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. To register, email
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.
Earlier this month What's Real Family? was the lecture title at MCC of the Lehigh Valley (Allentown, Pennsylvania). They explored various forms of family in the Bible, focusing on Jesus' definition of family.
Mastering Your Mind is the sermon series at Jesus MCC (Indianapolis, Indiana) where they are exploring such things as low self-esteem, passing the buck, addictions and other bad habits, impulse control, egocentrism, being judgmental, and reflective fighting.
The series at MCC Richmond (Virginia) is The Real L Word and covers Look, Learn, Love, Listen, Lead, Lift, and Live.
At Divine Peace MCC (Pontiac, Michigan) they are engaged in a study about the Bible, from where it came and how it was made.
As part of their Bible 360 Studies, the folks at Good Hope MCC (Cape Town, South Africa) studied the book of Esther with the theme of Queens and Eunuchs All Around. The number refers to the degrees in a complete circle because in looking at something with a 360 degree perspective, one strives to see it from as many angles as possible.
For five evenings next month at Holy Covenant MCC (Brookfield, Illinois) there will be a seminar to introduce participants to Ayurveda, the 5,000 year old tradition for natural healing, embracing archetypes, and to discover how to live your dream life.
Spirit of Hope MCC (Kansas City, Missouri) began servant leadership training this month. The course is being taught by Rev. Kurt Krieger and Lisa Park.
Going Deeper is the theme of the retreat next month for MCC Newcastle (England). They will discover new ways of opening themselves to God.
A bible study concentrating on the theological implications of Scripture, the context in which it was written, and the motivations behind passages that seem difficult and obscure is being featured at the Big Easy MCC (New Orleans, Louisiana). They began with discipleship and the concept of Theophilus (God lover) akin to Abdul-Aziz in Islam (slave of God).
Earlier this month MCC Albuquerque (New Mexico) joined with funeral home directors and grief counselors for a seminar on making final arrangements and planning your funeral to alleviate the stress on your loved ones when you pass.
Homosexuality & the Bible: Celebrating Sexualities and Spirituality will begin on 3 June at MCC Illiana (Lake Station, Indiana). The entire community has been invited.
Creating a Life that Matters will be taught beginning next month at Water of Life MCC (Tucson, Arizona).
MCC of the Lehigh Valley (Allentown, Pennsylvania) is hosting a seminar for singles on 11 June where they will discuss spiritual strategies for those who are single and want to be partnered, as well as focusing on the joys of being single in a world that favors pairs.
Church and Pastoral Anniversaries Vision of Hope MCC (Mountville, Pennsylvania) will celebrate Rev. Deb Coggins' 9th anniversary as pastor on 7 June.
Rev. Tania Guzman and 30 members of MCC Santo Domingo (Dominican Republic) celebrated their 3rd anniversary last month.
Rev. Delores Berry will be the special guest for Living Out Loud, the 31st anniversary celebration at MCC Richmond (Virginia) 13-14 June.
MCC of the Lehigh Valley (Allentown, Pennsylvania) is already planning their 25th anniversary banquet for 10 October with guest of honor Rev. Elder Troy D. Perry.
MCC Baltimore (Maryland) just celebrated Rev. David Smith and his 15 years of ministry with them.
Promise MCC (Dallas, Texas) was 12 years old on the 18th.
Resources Sunshine Cathedral MCC (Ft. Lauderdale, Florida) is posting at least two new videos each month on their YouTube site. http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=SunshineCathedral&view=videos Most are discussions between Rev. Durrell Watkins and Rev. Robert Griffin; however, others feature a special guest such as Rev. Elder Nancy Wilson, Rev. Elder Don Eastman, Rev. Pat Bumgardner, Rev. Michael Diaz, or Rev. Dr. Brent Hawkes. Topics range from gay marriage to racism, prayer to integration of spirituality and sexuality, the labyrinth to transphobia. Other titles include How Do We Know there is a God? Does the Bible Condemn Homosexuality? and Is the Bible the Word of God? Share these with your friends who need to hear these messages.
Uncommon Hope, a DVD enhanced curriculum for local churches, agencies and individuals living with or affected by HIV/AIDS, was released this month and is available through www.MCCChurch.org or www.Amazon.com . The six-unit curriculum was written by Joshua Love and partially funded by the Rainbow Endowment founded by Martina Navratilova. It addresses advocacy, public action and social support of people living with and affected by HIV/AIDS.
Hungry For Justice: A Guide for Praying Daily, Building Community, and Changing the World is the current series for the Sunday Morning Bible Study group at MCC Austin at Freedom Oaks (Texas). It is available through Sojourners http://www.sojo.net/events/items/JR_DevotionalBooklet.pdf . There are study guides and other justice series available, too. http://store.sojo.net/ Justice Focused
ICM Santo Domingo is a very young church, not just in the time it's been in existence, but in the age of its members with most being in their early 20s and 30s, but also very active in human rights marches and protests, even appearing before the senate to ask for changes in the constitution of the Dominican Republic to protect the rights of LGBT people, the poor, the disabled, and the elderly.
Recently there were four visitors from Puerto Rico who are members of an open and affirming church. They had seen ICM Santo Domingo's website, learned of the mission work being done, and wanted to assist them in working with some of the poorest communities in the Dominican Republic. In July a large group from that church will travel there to help the ICMers provide food, clothing, and medical assistance to two communities.
ICM Santo Domingo is one of several churches from different denominations working together to form a network to provide assistance to those infected or affected by HIV/AIDS in both Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
What justice work is your church doing?
US: Don't Ask, Don't Tell Aubrey Sarvis, the executive director of Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN), and Rev. Elder Nancy Wilson have urged their constituents and allies to continue to pressure the US government to repeal Don't Ask, Don't Tell. President Obama needs to be reminded of his promise. Call the White House switchboard at 202-456-1414 or click here to visit their website. Women's Building
Ten women from MCC Toronto (Canada) participated in Toronto's first Ten Day All Women Build Blitz the first part of this month. Their goal was to "offer a hand up not a hand out" to the families who will move into the 16 houses they built. On the second day Rev. Jo Bell offered the morning's inspirational moment to the 200 women gathered to work. Crew leaders Mary Doughterty and Patricia Elfer were joined by Rev. Jo, Amy D'Aprix, Linda Fairley, Flo Gibbons, Julie Hacking, Jennifer Jamieson, Cheryl Meyer, Rachel Meyer, and Karen Stanworth. They each raised at least $500 (CD) to participate in this historic Habitat for Humanity event.
(back to top) Equality Rally
MCC's Global Justice Ministry, Imago Dei MCC (Glen Mills, Pennsylvania), MCC of the Lehigh Valley (Allentown, Pennsylvania), MCC New York (New York), and MCC Philadelphia (Pennsylvania) were all co-organizers of the US National Equality Rally at Independence Hall.
IDAHO
The International Day against Homophobia and Transphobia was founded by Louis Georges Tin in 2005. Campaigns and initiatives take place on or around 17 May every year to combat prejudice against LGBT people. On that day in 1990 the World Health Organization removed homosexuality from its list of mental diseases. Yet there are still 86 countries in which same sex relationships are criminalized. In seven of those nations, the death penalty can be enforced. In six others imprisonment is mandated.
The specific focus for 2009 was an international appeal to End Transphobia: Respect Gender Identity. MCC was one of the first organizations to sign the document which was sent to the United Nations, the World Health Organization, and the nations of the world. Every day, people who live at variance to expected gender norms (transgender, transsexual, transvestites, etc.) face violence, abuse, rape, torture and hate crimes all over the world. Although most cases of violence never get documented, in the first weeks of 2009 alone, transwomen have been murdered in Honduras, Serbia and the USA. Transmen are equally victims of hate crimes, prejudice and discrimination despite their frequent social and cultural invisibility.
In the centre of Newcastle (England) is a tall monument erected to Earl Grey (yes, of tea fame). Members of MCC Newcastle and hundreds of others gathered there to make a big noise. First was the drum band the Bangshees, then a speech by Rev. Elder Cecilia Eggleston, and finally a minute's noise with whistles, bells, drums, and other noisemakers as a demand to end homophobia and transphobia. The church had a stall there to share information about their ministry. Afterwards, a local cinema showed two films. Stand Up to Hatred was made in Northeast England for Holocaust Memorial Day and features images from LGBT events, including many MCCers. Against A Trans Narrative was internationally previewed at the London Lesbian and Gay Film Festival last month.
Justin J Bear performed at the event in Sydney, Australia, where they also held a public debate on same-sex adoption.
MCC Seattle (Washington) observed IDAHO this year.
Living Springs MCC (Bath, England) had a special worship service to observe IDAHO, as did MCC Quezon City (Philippines).
Rev. Michael Kimindu of Neema (Grace) MCC (Nairobi, Kenya) spoke about Religion's Contribution to Homophobia during the observance led by the Gay and Lesbian Coalition of Kenya. Many expressed gratitude that, at last, MCC has come to Kenya. Other speakers represented Kenya Human Rights Commission, Ford Foundation, Kenya AIDS Vaccine Initiative, and National AIDS Consortium.
House of Rainbow MCC (Lagos, Nigeria) issued a statement to the press which began, "We are here today as citizens of Nigeria to add our voice against homophobia and transphobia and to remind our government, religious bodies, media, people and society that they may run us out of their churches, mosques, homes, jobs and neighbourhood, but they cannot run us out of this nation nor reduce the love of God that includes us." Editor Judy Dale, Metropolitan Community Churches
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