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These quotations from Martin Luther King, Jr. (and lots of others, too) are gathered on the ProgressiveValues website of Phyllis Stenerson, of Minneapolis, MN  Many thanks, Phyllis!

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"We must move forward in the days ahead with audacious faith. The moral arc of the universe is long but it bends toward justice."

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"A time comes when silence is betrayal. Even when pressed by the demands of inner truth, men do not easily assume the task of opposing their government's policy, especially in time of war. Nor does the human spirit move without great difficulty against all the apathy of conformist thought within one's own bosom and in the surrounding world....

We must move past indecision to action. If we do not act, we shall surely be dragged down the long, dark, and shameful corridors of time reserved for those who possess power without compassion, might without morality, and strength without sight. Now let us begin. Now let us rededicate ourselves in the long and bitter, but beautiful struggle for a new world...."

from "Beyond Vietnam" - an address delivered to the Clergy and Laymen Concerned about Vietnam, at Riverside Church, New York City on April 4, 1967

by Berry Craig

We'll have to wait until next year to find out if a Tim Tebow Super Bowl win will inspire some evangelical Christians to torch Muslim houses of worship and make other mischief in the name of the Prince of Peace.

Tebow, a hero – and martyr – to a multitude of Christian conservatives, quarterbacked the Denver Broncos to a 45-10 playoff loss to the New England Patriots Saturday night.

To be sure, Tebow and the Broncos had beaten the Pittsburgh Steelers in the "Mile High Miracle" to advance to the game against the Patriots. But Tebow also grabbed headlines all season for frequently kneeling in prayer on the football field. Somebody dubbed it "tebowing."

Christian conservatives love it. But a lot of people, including this lifelong Kentuckian whose Presbyterian roots go back to Scotland of old, are uncomfortable with ostentatious public piety, which, after all, gets bad press in the Good Book. In Matthew 6:5, Christ admonishes: "And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are; for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and at the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Verily I say unto you, they have their reward."

Consultation on Criminal Justice
Stony Point Center
February 17 – 19, 2012

·  Over 2,300,000 adults are incarcerated in U.S. prisons and jails
·  Approximately 15 – 20% of inmates suffer from chronic mental illness
·  From 1990 to 2009, the private prison population grew by 1600
·  Companies and government agencies are replacing workers with contract prison labor
·  Persons of color are more likely to be arrested, convicted, sent to prison and receive the death penalty but less likely to receive pardons or commutations.
·  363,000 non-violent, undocumented immigrants are incarcerated every year

Is this what the Lord requires of us?

As people of faith and conscience, we know the answer.
We know that we are commanded to “do justice and love mercy.”

Be part of the solution. Join us at Stony Point Conference Center, February 17 – 19, 2012, for a time of strategic visioning. Participants representing every aspect and area of criminal justice are coming together to share their experience and best practices in order to create a Criminal Justice Network with the capacity to educate, organize, and mobilize faith communities and persons of faith to do the work of justice and mercy.

Confirmed presenters include:

Register online today:  http://www.stonypointcenter.org or by phone: 845-786-5674 ext. 101

For more information contact Rev. Trina Zelle at 602-796-7477 or trinazelle6@gmail.com

Download this brochure in easy-to-print PDF format >>

In a note to their friends dated December 30^th, Lisa Largess and the Board of That All May Freely Serve have informed us that they have decided to “consolidate our movement for equality and welcome in the Presbyterian Church and, therefore, to draw to a close the work of TAMFS in 2012.” This is partly in recognition of the great step forward the was taken by the ratification of presbyteries of the action of the 2010 General Assembly, allowing the ordination of LGBT Presbyterians.

As part of this transition, they are planning:

Lisa Larges adds this update on her own situation:

At the end of April, the General Assembly Permanent Judicial Council will hear the case involving my ordination. It will be the third time that this case has been before them. Even though Amendment 10-A has passed, the complainants are arguing that the church should deny ordination to LGBT folks based on Scripture and the Confessions. A clear ruling from the PJC, acknowledging that faithful Presbyterians can disagree about the interpretation of Scripture and the Confessions, will go a long way toward cutting off other challenges to the ordination of other LGBT Presbyterians.
 

A little note from your WebWeaver:

On behalf of Presbyterian Voices for Justice, I want to acknowledge with deep gratitude the powerful and often costly witness that TAMFS has given within the PC(USA) over the years of struggle for ordination, and more broadly for justice and inclusion within our church. We trust they will continue to bear witness through whatever news channels they discern as most appropriate and effective.

May God’s peace and power continue to be with them and work through them all!

Doug King 

Greetings to all of you at this time of Christ's birth --

as we remember and celebration the human manifestation of God's love among us, may we remember that it was (and is) an event for all people.

And so may it transform our lives and our world, bringing peace and justice to reality for the millions who lives are now shadowed by conflict and poverty and powerlessness.

We wish for you and the whole world experiences of Advent and Christmas that inspire the gifts of hope, joy and peace. As you explore the mystery of Advent and the wonder of Christmas:

Take a quiet moment during this busy season...
Light a candle,
say a prayer,
see beauty.

We are on
a spiritual journey.

Remember the sacred
underlying the mundane
in this season of lights.

Something Holy
is about to be born
in us.

In the dark lay possibilities:
the seed in the ground,
the seed in the womb,
the seed in our souls.

The deepest desires
of our heart and soul
lead us toward God,
toward ourselves,
toward the world...

A way is being prepared
in the wilderness of our lives.

Vision.
Strength.
Encouragement.

Hope starts small
and overtakes us,
stretching the borders
of what we have known.

Merry Christmas from More Light Presbyterians

Note: Special thanks to Rev. Jan L. Richardson, Night Visions: Searching the Shadows of Advent and Christmas and Rev. Nanette Sawyer and Wicker Park Grace, Chicago for the inspiration and source of the poetry for this Advent and Christmas prayer.

Two reflections:

A poem by your WebWeaver's brother, Jack King, entitled "The Gravy Train."  It includes the lines:

in dining cars, lounge cars,
cars of luxury suites,
gravy train passengers know little
of scenes outside.
in window glass
they see nothing but themselves.

these rolling revelries have gone on for decades,
but tonight’s may be the last.

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Desmond Tutu urges Trinity Church to allow Occupy protester camp

Berry Craig reflects on Newt Gingrich as an interesting example of the strange connections between right-wing conservatives and evangelical Christianity, along with extra-marital adventurism and fierce defenses of "traditional marriage."  And their strong support of military adventurism is combined in many cases with a certain reluctance to take part themselves in military service.  He begins:

Double-divorced draft evader Newt Gingrich tossed a big chunk of red meat to Christian conservatives at the “Thanksgiving Family Forum” GOP presidential candidate debate in Iowa.

The former House speaker is still the leading anti-Romney candidate in the polls. Feeling feisty among friends, he dissed the Occupy Wall Street movement, claiming it shows “how the left has collapsed as a moral system.” Gingrich followed up with a sound bite old Spiro Agnew would have loved, admonishing the protestors to “go get a job right after you take a bath.”   More >>

Vicki Moss, who has been named by the PVJ coordinating team as our new Communications Coordinator and Webweaver, is in the first stages of setting up a new website, which you’ll find at www.pv4j.org. She will be replacing Doug King, who is slowly retiring from his role as creator and manager of our old site, at www.presbyvoicesforjustice.org. (That site will be left intact for a while, at least, and you may be able to jump to it through various links on the new site.)

We (including Doug King) believe this new site will reflect a more casual and interactive style than our older one, and we hope you will join in on it – contributing your own news and views, and stopping by often to see what’s there.

Vicki hopes you’ll be patient while she continues to learn the software she’s using, and to build a variety of links.

To introduce Vicki -- many of you know her from her role as our booth coordinator at every GA, where she provides not only a warm welcome, but those wonderful and often funny buttons. She will continue to serve as booth coordinator at GA.

She adds that “In my other life I am pastor of the Ridgewood Presbyterian Church in NYC and also starring on Broadway as Director of Children's Ministry @ Broadway United Church of Christ.”

‘Unbound’ seeks to appeal to social justice academics and advocates

by Bethany Furkin, Presbyterian News Service

LOUISVILLE – Nov. 28, 2011 – The new social justice journal from the Advisory Committee on Social Witness Policy is aiming to be more than just that. http://gamc.pcusa.org/ministries/acswp/

Unbound: An Interactive Journal of Christian Social Justice launched last month as an online source of information for academics and advocates alike. http://justiceunbound.org/

“We are doing something potentially unprecedented in trying to be both journal and community organizer,” said Patrick David Heery, managing editor.

Unbound has two target audiences: people who loved ACSWP’s former print journal, Church & Society, and who are active in social justice ministries; and people of all backgrounds who are interested in the connection between justice and Jesus.

“We want to witness to this other side of Christianity that often doesn’t get a lot of traction in the media,” Heery said.

The online journal is interactive, inviting users to comment on posts; submit articles, photos, art and poetry; and participate in forums and polls. The site also provides action alerts and information on ways to get involved in justice campaigns. More >>

And click here for our earlier introduction of this exciting new social-justice publication from the PC(USA).

All of our posts from October and November are on their own archive page, but some of the most important ones are still shown below..

Posts from all of
September, 2011
August, 2011
July, 2011
June, 2011
May, 2011
April, 2011
March, 2011
February, 2011
January, 2011

For links to earlier archive pages, click here.

For an index to our posts from the 219th General Assembly

The first issue of Network News to be published since the Winter issue, published in March 2011, will soon be in the mail to our members (except for those of you who have indicated that you'll save trees and money by getting your copy in PDF format online).

For the high-resolution version, which takes longer to download but looks better, click here.

For the everyday version, a faster download, click here.

Book Review: Marcus Borg’s Putting Away Childish Things, by Doug King  (24 - 25)

PVJ plans for the 2012 General Assembly (26)

So ... what's our response to the Occupy Wall Street movement?   [10-16-11]

Two of the overtures -- 005 from the presbytery of Stockton and 006 from Central Florida -- would restore the "chastity and fidelity" requirement, in one form or another, to the ordination standards.

Overture 007, from the Presbytery of Mid-Kentucky, would call on MRTI (Mission Responsibility Through Investment) to review the practices of a number of major health insurance companies, in light of previous GA actions relating to fair health care for all.

Deadline Is Feb. 15 for awards to be celebrated at GA 220 in Pittsburgh

Presbyterian News Service, by Jerry L. Van Marter

The Presbyterian Health, Education and Welfare Association (PHEWA) is seeking nominations for seven ministry awards that will be celebrated during the 220th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) in Pittsburgh next July.

Seven awards will be presented by PHEWA, part of the Compassion, Peace & Justice Ministry of the General Assembly Mission Council. PHEWA is a voluntary membership organization dedicated to social welfare and justice ministries.

Ten networks are currently part of PHEWA, organized for grassroots implementation of General Assembly policies in the areas of community ministries and faith-based community organizing, addictions, domestic violence, HIV and AIDS, reproductive options, specialized pastoral ministries, child advocacy, disabilities, health and wholeness, and serious mental illness.

A little note: PVJ encourages you to think of people who might be worthy of consideration for any of these important awards, and then to nominate them.

A statement from Presbyterian Voices for Justice

For over thirty years, Presbyterians have debated the will of God and refused to allow lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender persons to serve God in all ordained capacities in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). Whenever injustice is perpetuated, it feels like a recurrence of the captivity of the Israelites in Egypt. Like them, LGBT persons and their allies have cried to God for justice, and our prayers have been answered. The Holy Spirit has been praying with us in sighs too deep for words, and that Spirit has touched human hearts in a massive movement for change.

Praise be to God that the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) has taken a giant leap of freedom and removed a major barrier to equality among us. There is yet much to do to make the PC(USA) a fully just and egalitarian community for all of its members. But today, we give thanks that a major form of injustice has been righted in our church.

The Coordinating Team of Presbyterian Voices for Justice
May 11, 2011

Can't find what you want? 
Try a Google search using the box at the top of each page. 

GA actions ratified (or not) by  the presbyteries   

A number of the most important actions of the 219^th General Assembly have now been acted upon by the presbyteries, confirming most of them as amendments to the PC(USA) Book of Order.

We provided resources to help inform the reflection and debate, along with updates on the voting.

Our three areas of primary interest have been:

If you like what you find here,
we hope you'll help us keep Voices for Justice going ... and growing!

Please consider making a special contribution -- large or small -- to help us continue and improve this service.

Click here to send a gift online, using your credit card, through PayPal.

Or send your check, made out to "Presbyterian Voices for Justice" and marked "web site," to our PVJ Treasurer:

PVJ's Facebook page

Mitch Trigger, PVJ's Secretary/Communicator, has created a Facebook page where Witherspoon members and others can gather to exchange news and views. Mitch and a few others have posted bits of news, both personal and organizational. But there’s room for more!

Voices of Sophia blog

Heather Reichgott, who has created this new blog for Voices of Sophia, introduces it:

John Harris’ Summit to Shore blogspot

John Shuck’s Shuck and Jive

Got more blogs to recommend?