“It is marvelous to have thousands of congregations praying for peace, but peace with justice will only come about when millions of the committed people in those congregations demand it from their lawmakers, their pastors, their bishops... when their prayers take the form and shape of a prophetic call to the world.”
 
These words from a former New York State Council of Churches Work Party keynoter, now pastor of an English speaking congregation in Jerusalem gives us a challenge –– not only in our work for peace but for all the other issues we claim as social justice priorities.

To re-energize and equip its partners, the New York State Council of Churches 2006 Public Policy Planning Event gives us the opportunity to come together and plan how to meet the challenge of working for peace and justice in today’s world –– and to commit ourselves and our resources to doing so.

Anne Erickson, President and CEO of the Empire Justice Center, will be the keynote speaker. She has a background both in working with vulnerable people and in speaking truth to power. George Hanssen, who has facilitated past planning events, will again be with us in that role.

The Public Policy Planning Event will take place from 1:00 p.m. September 22 to noon on September 23, 2006 in Albany. This should reduce gas mileage and make public transportation an option. A block of rooms has been reserved at the Days Inn on Wolf Road (free breakfast included) at very reasonable rates. Sessions will be held at nearby Pine Grove United Methodist Church.

To Register, contact the New York State Council of Churches by telephone (518-436-9319 extension 100) or e-mail (nyscoc@nycap.rr.com).

 

The New York State Council of Churches has developed a new resource in our struggle for justice in children’s education. It is a power point presentation and includes a script booklet so that anyone can lead a discussion. The resource is appropriate for any gathering of concerned adults: Sunday worship, adult study groups, or clergy clusters to name a few. The Council of Churches also has speakers ready to make presentations.

The state constitution and a court order have imposed upon the New York Legislature and Governor a mandate to provide funding for an equitable education for all New York children.  To date they have not taken sufficient action to do so.  The Council has been providing a leadership role for the Interfaith Working Group for Quality Education.  Working from an agreed upon list of principles, the groups primary task is to coordinate the work of the various faith groups.

 As the Working Group letterhead logo suggests, the group believes that all God's children have potential and that it is a moral imperative for the state to provide the opportunity for them to achieve that potential.  As its research has suggested, funding inequities are directly related to student performance.  

The New York State Council of Churches considers an adequate education for all New York children a deeply moral issue and invites you to join us in our effort. Please contact the New York State Council of Churches at 518-436-9319 or e-mail nyscoc@nycap.rr.com.

 

Welcome Bishop Susan W. Hassinger

The New York State Council of Churches offers a warm welcome to Bishop Susan W. Hassinger, who became the interim resident bishop of the Albany Episcopal Area, United Methodist Church on September 1st.

She was ordained an elder in the United Methodist Church in 1968, and served in the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference until her election as bishop in 1996. In 1983, she was appointed the first female district superintendent in the Eastern Pennsylvania Annual (regional) Conference of the United Methodist Church, and in 1988 she served on the conference staff with Bishop Susan Morrison, then the resident bishop of the Philadelphia Episcopal Area.  Since 2004, she has served as bishop-in-residence and adjunct professor at Boston University School of Theology and as a spiritual director for Carter Memorial United Methodist Church in Needham, Mass.