RNS Morning Report: Ministers aid seafarers caught in Baltimore bridge crisis

Top Stories Ministers aid seafarers caught in Baltimore bridge crisis (RNS) — ‘Everyone’s still kind of rattled and trying to figure things out,’ said the Rev. Joshua Messick, who has Bibles ‘in every conceivable language’ to distribute upon request.   New ‘human flourishing’ survey links frequent religious practice to life satisfaction (RNS) — According to the research, attending a religious service frequently positively influences characteristics from happiness and ability to make social relationships to physical health.   Pope Francis visits female penitentiary on Holy Thursday (RNS) — For the first time, all 12 people who had their feet washed by the pope were women.   Missouri boarding school closes as state agency examines how it responded to abuse claims (AP) — The allegations are the latest against people associated with Christian boarding schools in Missouri. RNS Opinion Joe Lieberman’s religiously promiscuous campaign (RNS) — A missed opportunity for the first Jew on a major-party presidential ticket.   An annual pilgrimage during Holy Week brings thousands of believers to Santuario de Chimayó in New Mexico (The Conversation) — Hundreds of thousands of visitors come to the Santuario de Chimayó throughout the year, but the pilgrimage during the week before the celebration of Easter is the high point. ICYMI 17 LGBTQ-affirming ministers face church investigations for signing belief statement (RNS) — The investigation by Indiana Ministries — a jurisdiction within the Anderson, Indiana-based Church of God movement — could result in the withdrawal of the ministers’ credentials.   Right-wing media descends into theological row over Israel-Hamas war (RNS) — Over the weekend, right-wing pundits fiercely debated whether the phrase ‘Christ is King’ is antisemitic. In Other News Governors in West Virginia, Utah, Idaho sign religious freedom bills Martin Scorsese to headline a religious series for Fox Nation   Talk to Us We want your feedback on the RNS Morning Report — what you think we're doing right and what we should be doing differently. Send us an email at Comments@ReligionNews.com Subscribe to other RNS Newsletters. Forward this email to a friend. View the archive of past newsletters. RNS is free to read, but it's not free to produce. If you value our reporting, please consider making a donation today at religionnews.com/donate. If you prefer to mail a donation, please address to: Religion News Foundation, PO Box 1808, Columbia, MO 65205. Yes, I support the work you're doing! Forward this email to a friend

Weekly Outlook - The cross isn't just about guilt and shame ✝️

Dear Outlook readers,  When I was 24, I went through what I call my "mid-20s crisis." I was working a good job and lived in a fun city but I felt unsettled, like a dog that keeps getting up to turn in circles as they try to sleep.  Ultimately, I quit my job, moved home, and worked at a bakery for a year before the Holy Spirit directed me towards seminary. That year at my parents' house was a prolonged threshold, a lonely time of waiting and growing. Perhaps for that reason, I remember being floored by Henri Nouwen's interpretation of the passion in Finding My Way Home.   In this book, Nouwen tells the story of a sick friend who felt adrift. His whole sense of worth was built around doing things. But now, he couldn't do anything. He had no control. And so, he asked, “Who am I?”  In response, Nouwen and his friend look at Jesus' passion. When Christ was betrayed, the Greek says he was “handed over” (from the verb paradidomi). And it was in this handing over that God’s glory was revealed. My friends, this is the hope I offer you today. When we allow ourselves to fully feel our lack of control, we can learn something of God’s glory and come in touch with new life. We know that God will ultimately destroy oppressive forces like illness, death, greed and violence. We will acknowledge that on Sunday. But for now, we can take comfort that God is with us in the grief, pain and anger of feeling powerless.  There is glory in acting to bring about the kingdom of God — Jesus demonstrates this for the first part of his life. But there is glory to be found in being handed over too.  In Christ, Rose Schrott Taylor Outlook digital content editor

A call to celebrate the Trans Day of Visibility on Easter Sunday by Shea Watts The hospitality of yes by Colleen Earp and Clayton Rascoe Reflecting on Jesus’ last words and unspoken truths by Ron Byars The cross isn’t just about our guilt and shame by Elana Keppel Levy In case you missed it... Transformative hospitality: To be welcomed shapes us into a welcoming people. Teri McDowell Ott reflects on hospitality from the perspective of her local hospital's emergency waiting room. Building trust ‘for the sake of the Gospel’ Nassau Presbyterian Church and Witherspoon Street Presbyterian Church work to build trust that has been missing since 1840. — John Bolt Austin-area Presbyterian church calls for fasting in solidarity with famine victims in Gaza University Presbyterian Church (UPC) in Austin, Texas, is calling for a day of prayer and fasting on Good Friday, March 29th, in solidarity with victims of an impending famine in Gaza.   Holy Saturday prayer "Help me stay with the transformative tomb./ Help me trust it’s not over," writes Arianne Braithwaite Lehn. Perennial A poem for gardeners, for springtime lovers, for the hopeful by Andrew Taylor-Troutman. “Ode to Joy” and the harrowing of hell Katy Shevel contemplates Christ's descent into hell on Holy Saturday through the lens of Ludwig van Beethoven's "Ode to Joy." Hosts and guests: We and the Other Writer Alejandra Oliva meditates on preparing feasts for friends — and strangers. Acting Stated Clerk joins 140 other Christian leaders calling for a ceasefire in Gaza and a halt of arms sales to Israel The Rev. Bronwen Boswell and others say ‘the killing must stop.’ — Mike Ferguson

WCRC eNews: March 2024: Easter, Justice

eNews: March 2024 Easter Message: God’s agents of transformation Easter 2024 is here with us. Thanks be to God. Yes, it is time to celebrate the victory over death and the forces of death as the Lord Jesus Christ broke free from the bonds of death and the grave. Yes, we are called to celebrate joyously and proclaim that death and evil do not have the last word—Christ is risen.   As Christians this celebration necessarily is embodied in the time, space, and contexts in which we live in our broken world. Good Friday still comes between now and the glorious Easter morning. We reflect on Easter this year mindful of the Good Friday mood because of all the pain and suffering that surrounds us. Read more: Arabic, Bahasa Indonesia, Chinese, Deutsch, English, Español, Français, Korean ZacTax panel brings faith-based lens to tax and gender justice A panel discussion, “Zacchaeus Tax: Transforming the Global Economic System and Advancing Gender Justice,” on 19 March explored the intersections between tax justice and gender justice—and why this is a matter of faith. “How can tax justice contribute to climate and ecological reparations?” Dora Arce Valentin asked. “Caring for ecosystems, and thus the relationships between individuals, societies, and the rest of creation, is a fundamental aspect of our humanity as economos (stewards).” Read more: Deutsch, English, Español, Français

New videos on NIFEA and #ZacTax Campaign highlight economic justice work. Facebook Twitter Website Email Nyomi calls for action on climate justice: Deutsch, English, Español, Français

Copyright © 2024 World Communion of Reformed Churches, All rights reserved.

RNS Morning Report: Right-wing media descends into theological row over Israel-Hamas war

Top Stories Right-wing media descends into theological row over Israel-Hamas war (RNS) — Over the weekend, right-wing pundits fiercely debated whether the phrase ‘Christ is King’ is antisemitic.   17 LGBTQ-affirming ministers face church investigations for signing belief statement (RNS) — The investigation by Indiana Ministries — a jurisdiction within the Anderson, Indiana-based Church of God movement — could result in the withdrawal of the ministers’ credentials.   Study: Unaffiliated Americans are the only growing religious group (RNS) — The Catholic Church saw the largest decline in religious affiliation of any religious group in 2023.   Kenya starts to hand over to relatives the bodies of 429 members of a doomsday cult NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Exhumed bodies from a vast rural area in coastal Kenya have shown signs of starvation and strangulation. RNS Opinion Wokeness might set you free. No one said it would make you happy. (RNS) — Those who work for social justice aren’t unhappy by nature. They are affected by the problems they’re trying to fix.   The Trump Bible is the Bible America deserves (RNS) — A $60 ‘God Bless the USA’ Bible to help pay off Trump’s legal fees is evangelicalism’s inevitable culmination. ICYMI Trump is selling ‘God Bless the USA’ Bibles for $59.99 as he faces mounting legal bills NEW YORK (AP) — The Bible's website states the product “is not political and has nothing to do with any political campaign."   More than 140 global Christian leaders call for Gaza cease-fire in Holy Week letter (RNS) — ‘We repent of the ways we have not stood alongside our Palestinian siblings in faithful witness in the midst of their grief, agony, and sorrow,’ the leaders wrote. In Other News Prosecutors say new video, documents show ‘religious extremism’ motivated parent blogger Ruby Franke’s abuse of children Americans who’ve given up religion often point to anti-LGBTQ+ teachings   Talk to Us We want your feedback on the RNS Morning Report — what you think we're doing right and what we should be doing differently. Send us an email at Comments@ReligionNews.com Subscribe to other RNS Newsletters. Forward this email to a friend. View the archive of past newsletters. RNS is free to read, but it's not free to produce. If you value our reporting, please consider making a donation today at religionnews.com/donate. If you prefer to mail a donation, please address to: Religion News Foundation, PO Box 1808, Columbia, MO 65205. Yes, I support the work you're doing! Forward this email to a friend