Sunday, Nov. 10 - Friday, Nov. 15, Ghost Ranch Education & Retreat Center, Abiquiu, New Mexico
Rev. Dr. Jim Antal

Use code CLIMATEANTAL at checkout BEFORE November 1 and receive $250 off!

The climate crisis provides people of faith with opportunities to embrace new vocations rooted in hope expressed in action. We will move from despair and feeling overwhelmed to joyful engagement as we understand and experience our call to make a difference on a local, national and global level. Climate activist and denominational leader Rev. Dr. Jim Antal will examine the most recent science as well as our grief over the loss of our home as we identify and commit to grounded, resilient strategies to thwart the impending crises, amidst the poignant locale of Ghost Ranch.

Several speakers, workshop leaders, and facilitators from Mental Health Weekend on November 1 and 2 will be guest preaching at various churches in Arizona on Sunday, November 3.

• Desert Heritage Church, Mesa: Rev. Lisa LeSueur

• Desert Palm UCC, Tempe: Rev. Alan Johnson

• Foothills Christian Church, Glendale: Rev. Amy Hill

• Saguaro CC, Tucson: Rev. Dr. Rachael Keefe

• Scottsdale Congregational UCC: Rev. Megan Snell

• United Church of Sun City: Rev. Sarah Lund

The Good Shepherd UCC and Church of the Red Rocks are both planning trips to Guatemala. The Good Shepherd’s trip will focus on Spanish immersion with historic and cultural sightseeing; travelers on Church of the Red Rocks’ trip will build homes for people living in extreme poverty.

I am here to tell Congress the Southwest Conference of the United Church of Christ has zero tolerance for political policies that violate human dignity and dehumanize our neighbors – migrating people, federal agents, and residents of America’s militarized southern border communities alike. With the righteous anger of Jesus overturning tables in the Temple I am here to say, “Pass a moral budget! Defund the hate.”

Location: Church of the Beatitudes, Phoenix

November 1: Mental Health First Aid – a training program that teaches members of the public how to help a person developing a mental health problem (including a substance use problem), experiencing a worsening of an existing mental health problem, or in a mental health crisis.

November 2: W.I.S.E. Conference – includes a keynote by Rev. Dr. Sarah Lund, workshops, basics of starting a mental health ministry, opening and closing worship, and more.

Participants are encouraged to attend both events.

January 16-18, 2020
The Good Shepherd United Church of Christ, Sahuarita, Arizona

The Borderlands is the perfect place to explore the arts, touch the culture and have deeper conversations about the complicated issues that collide here.

Join in the climate strikes and demand action to protect the sanctity of creation. Urge Congress to promote a just and equitable transition to a 100% clean energy economy in order to build a more sustainable future for all. We need moral leadership to help protect our public health and environment, strengthen our economy through clean energy, and mitigate the worst impacts of climate change.

Justice and Witness Ministries is excited to welcome Conference Ministers from across the United Church of Christ for days of advocacy and action in Washington DC. They will be hosting 22 Conference Ministers from September 24 - 26 to join in advocating around the topic of immigration. Conference Ministers will meet with legislators and ask them to cease funding for detention, deportation, and border militarization. 

Wednesday, October 16, 7:30 p.m. via Google

Join other Valley of the Sun UCC churches as they launch the multi-church PRIDE Team. They meet the 3rd Wednesday of every month to plan for upcoming festivals, parades, advocacy events, and just all around meet-n-greets!

A list of Climate Strike events and how our conference churches are participating!

From Meredith Owen, Deputy Director of Policy and Advocacy, Immigration and Refugee Program, Church World Service:

Last week, the administration held a meeting to discuss plans for the refugee admissions goal for Fiscal Year 2020, with some administration officials previously proposing resettling zero refugees next year. This would decimate the bipartisan refugee resettlement program and follows FY 2019’s historically low goal of 30,000. 

The film How Are the Children? forms the centerpiece of an education curriculum designed by the UCC Palestine Israel Network for members of the United Church of Christ.

Now is a critical time to join with partners in Colombia in responding to the call of the Days of Prayer and Action for Colombia: “Let’s Make a Pact for Peace - Pactemos La Paz!” Take action today by writing to your member of Congress and ask them to support the peace accords. Also, lift up Colombia in your worship service and sign the “Pact for Peace” and share on social media. 

Take action today by writing to your member of Congress and ask them to support the peace accords.

The Hospitality Coalition is regularly taking items to the shelters in Ciudad Juárez in order to support migrants, shelters, the city, and volunteers in Juárez as much as possible. If you're interested in delivering items to the shelters, please contact HospitalityNM@gmail.com to schedule a time (departing Thursdays at 10am or Saturdays at 12pm).

As a part of a collaborative effort, First Christian Church, Las Cruces is helping to collect items to provide to a network of shelters in Ciudad Juárez, where families are currently staying.

The climate crisis is an emergency, and the world's youth are calling on all of us to start acting like it. On Friday, Sept. 20, three days before the United Nations convenes Climate Action Summit 2019 in New York, the UCC will be following the lead of young people leading strikes for the love of creation in cities and towns across the planet.

Since the General Synod pronounced the UCC to be a Just Peace Church in 1985 and encouraged local churches to do the same, at least 178 UCC Congregations have done so. A newly organized national UCC Just Peace Steering Committee is encouraging all those congregations to dig out and review the covenants they once voted and renew their identity as Just Peace Churches, or, if they have not yet become a Just Peace congregation, to consider this important journey in justice and peace work.

11 a.m. on Tuesday, September 17th at ICE Headquarters, 2035 N. Central Avenue in Phoenix

The prayer and mission statement are led by the clergy from Shadow Rock UCC, and are most meaningful, with immigrant families sitting near the prayer circle. It is a short service, lasting about 10 minutes, with a variety of churches represented. Other churches are welcome to participate.

Southwest Conference Minister, Rev. Dr. Bill Lyons, will attend the Council of Conference Ministers Advocacy Event to advocate for no more funding for detention, deportation, and border militarization. Bill is one of three speakers for the press conference that will include foot washing ceremony.

The Tucson Area UCC congregations are joining together to show our support for the LGBT Community during Tucson Pride on September 28th. Join us as we march in the Pride Parade and then visit the booth we will have on the Festival grounds.

Just Peace Sunday, Climate Strikes, and more. This month the Rev. Michael Neuroth, UCC International Policy Advocate, helps us prepare for Just Peace Sunday.