Posted on Sep 18, 2020 by Ann Gerard Flynn, MASS Live

In an email this week to Episcopalians in his diocese, the Right Rev. Douglas Fisher, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Western Massachusetts, urged eligible voters to “ensure that they are registered and, if possible, to vote early (in person or by mail), thereby avoiding long lines at polling places.”

“The November election gives Americans a precious opportunity to support candidates and policies that will build up communities, protect public health, encourage racial and social justice, and restore the web of life,” said Fisher in an appeal that was signed by other diocesan leaders about the Nov. 3 presidential election. Read more here

 

Posted on Sep 14, 2020 by Rev. Katie Sexton, Rabbi Mari Chernow, Imraan Siddiqi, Arizona Republic

“As faith leaders from a variety of traditions, we join together to speak with one voice in these challenging times. Arizona is dealing with the convergence of multiple public health crises, including a record-breaking heatwave, an on-going pandemic, and the persistent and growing threat of air pollution from human activities like the production and burning of fossil fuels.

These concurrent and often related threats are affecting our communities in ways we have not seen before. It has made one thing agonizingly clear- We all need to act with more care, compassion, and urgency.

As leaders of local Christian, Jewish, and Muslim congregations in Arizona, we join together to affirm an absolute moral summons to love and care for our neighbors, especially those in communities who have been systemically marginalized, and who often bear the brunt of public health emergencies. Read more here.

Bisjak told the dozen people gathered around the tree that there’s a place for an ax, such as in the overgrown forests in California, where the abundance of trees became a fire hazard.

“So there’s a place for an ax, but there’s a place to plant and grow trees,” he said. Read more here