Wings of the Morning art
MacKenzie Kuhn created this art to illustrate Wings of the Morning Transportation ministry in DR Congo, one of the mission giving opportunities highlighted in a newsletter from the West Ohio Annual Conference.
A United Methodist Insight Column
The holiday season brings with it a wealth of pleas for donations to many worthy ministries. While no one can support them all, we give props this week to the West Ohio Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church for its creative and colorful newsletter, "Give Love This Christmas."
The concept is simple: highlight local, national and international United Methodist ministries with vivid artwork and brief synopses of the good each ministry does. The artwork by MacKenzie Kuhn focuses on three categories: the Gift of Family for children's homes Kamina Home in DR Congo and House of Hope in Nuevo Progreso, Mexico; the Gift of Life, for Wings of the Morning Transportation Ministry in DR Congo; and the Gift of Home for U.S. and international disaster response. We especially like MacKenzie's artwork for Wings of the Morning, juxtaposing an airplane with a cross and flame on its tail with a familiar image of the Magi riding their camels across the desert.
Clearly the newsletter was the product of some creative thinking on the part of mission and communications folks. Well done, West Ohio!
Elementary school shootings trauma lingers
The holiday season also brings tough times of missing loved ones who've died. The season can be especially fraught for the survivors of elementary school shootings, The Washington Post has found in its feature: Before and after Sandy Hook: 40 years of elementary school shooting survivors by John Woodrow Cox. He writes:
"Gun violence at elementary schools remains rare, but thousands of American kids have experienced it. To capture what that’s done to them in the days, years and decades afterward, The Washington Post interviewed four survivors who endured shootings before any of them reached fifth grade."
The interviewees are Cam Miller of Cleveland Elementary in San Diego; Shannon Hill from Oakland Elementary in Greenwood, SC; Jordan Gomes of Sandy Hook Elmentary in Newtown, CT; and Jaydien Canizales. All of their accounts are heart-rending, but the one that affected us most, perhaps because it's so fresh, was that of Jaydien Canizales, who survived the massacre at Robb Elementary in Uvalde, Texas. Here's an excerpt from Jaydien's interview:
"I heard the cops kill the shooter, and then they came into our classroom. I heard the cops when they came in [say], 'Oh my God.' There was a lot of dead bodies and blood.
"One of my cousins — the cops dragged him in the hallway when they were taking us out. I saw the bullet in his head.
"I lost some of my closest friends. All my best friends. It was Uziyah Garcia and Xavier Lopez and Jose Flores and Jayce Luevanos and Rojelio Torres. ... Uziyah was into football, drawing and 'Fortnite.; We would always play 'Fortnite.' ... I don’t play 'Fortnite' no more since the shooter played 'Fortnite.'”
How much longer are we going to let gun violence rob our precious children of their childhoods?
Parents struggle to afford food, housing
The Pew Research Center reports: One-in-four U.S. parents say they’ve struggled to afford food or housing in the past year . The synopsis: "A quarter of U.S. parents say there have been times in the past year when they could not afford to buy food their family needed or to pay their rent or mortgage. Among low-income parents, these shares rise to 52%. Also, 19% of parents who work at least part time say they would be extremely or very worried about losing pay if they needed to take a day or two off because of child care issues. "
With the end of COVID aid for families, the poverty will only get worse. Our churches should brace for more calls on food pantries and pastors' emergency funds, but we should also be advocating for compassionate economic measures that will aid families who need assistance. A lot of that money could be obtained by shrinking a bloated federal military budget.
Notes from the climate crisis
The U.N. biodiversity conference, COP15, goes on this week in Montreal, Canada. In The Guardian's Down to Earth climate newsletter, Daisy Dunne and Dr. Giuliana Viglione focus on the gathering's central question: "how much of the planet should we take up – and how much should we leave for the rest of the living world" and its 8.7 million species on Earth.? They write:
"There is a proposal – backed by 114 countries – to set aside 30% of the world’s land and sea for nature by 2030. ... But the proposal, commonly referred to as “30x30”, has proved a fiercely contentious issue among delegates here at Cop15. Indeed, the target that addresses 30x30 in the latest draft of the global biodiversity framework is one of the sections of the text where delegates currently disagree the most.
"... One of the biggest issues surrounding the 30x30 target is what it means for the rights of Indigenous peoples, who are the stewards of about 80% of the world’s biodiversity – but just 20% of its land. Historically, conservation has forced Indigenous peoples from their lands and caused countless human-rights violations.
"... And while 30x30 grabs headlines and sucks up the air in the negotiating rooms, it is just one of more than 20 targets on the table at Cop15. What’s clear to observers on the ground here in Montreal is that progress – on all of these targets – needs to happen, and fast."
Daisy Dunne is a special correspondent at Carbon Brief; Dr Giuliana Viglione is its food, land and nature editor. Sign up here for Cropped, Carbon Brief’s fortnightly newsletter on the intersection between climate change, food systems, land-use and nature.
The real cost of free shipping
Tis the season for next-day shipping, say our friends at Faith in Place. But that free shipping comes with a cost that we don't always recognize. Faith in Place invites faith-based climate advocates and other interested participants to join its December Monthly Call to learn how to advocate for healthier communities at the federal level and in your state. The call will happen at; 6:30 p.m. CT | 7:30 p.m. ET Thursday, December 15. Register.
Check out new climate resource for everyday folks
Our favorite Christian climate scientists, Katharine Hayhoe, recommends a new source for climate news:
"Climate change hit home for Anna Robertson when she was forced to evacuate her home in southern California due to wildfires. 'Why isn’t there a more mainstream source of climate information written in plain English?' she told the Deseret News."This prompted her to leave her high-level job in Los Angeles at ABC, move to Utah, ad refocus her career on climate change. This past July, she co-founded and launched a climate news website, The Cool Down that she hopes becomes 'America’s first mainstream climate brand.'”
"The site features climate news, eco-friendly product recommendations, and climate solutions, all in easily digestible bites. The website reached 1 million readers in its third month of operation, Adweek reported. One of my favorite of their posts is this one that lists easy ways to bring up climate change with your family at the holidays. The Cool Down also has a weekly newsletter showcasing good news, useful advice, and easy hacks."
We plan to check out The Cool Down and recommend you do, too.
Media Mentions as of Dec. 13, 2022
United Methodist split: 198 churches leave North Alabama Conference - al.com
Superb Woman: Rev. Dr. Ouida Lee - Texas Metro News
New signs, new directions for small congregations leaving the United Methodist Church - NOLA.com
State of Texas: Division leads hundreds of TX congregations to leave Methodist church - FOX 44
Dallas Methodists have evolved on LGBTQ issues – Dallas Morning News
After split, Methodists go in different directions - AL.com
Methodist churches in Arkansas negotiate after split attempts – The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette*
WATCH NOW: SNAPSHOT: Grace Cajiuat lives a life of music, ministry and praise in Kenosha – Kenosha News
The United Methodist Church Is Fracturing. According to History, That's a Very Bad Sign. – Politico
Methodist church apologizes for controversial Durham church - Charlotte Observer
COB announces recipients of ecumenical grants and scholarships - Council of Bishops
Congregations sue to leave United Methodist Church over LGBTQ disputes – The Washington Post
Drew Theological Student Captures Stories of United Methodist Deaconesses and Home Missioners – Drew University
Cranford Methodist Church Welcomes Its First Woman Of Color Pastor - Patch
Cynthia B. Astle serves as Editor of United Methodist Insight, which she founded in 2011. This column is part of Insight's participation in Covering Climate Now, a worldwide collaboration of some 500 news outlets committed to enhanced coverage of the global climate crisis. To reproduce this content else, please email Insight for permission.