Wednesday, February 27, 2008

Environmental Toxics: Maine Council of Churches offers Education and Advocacy

Community Supported Agriculture: Your CSA Directory is in the Mail
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Environmental Toxics: Do you have toxics lurking in your home? You might be surprised.

Hundreds of items in your home, from plastic bottles and toys, to cookware and carpets, may be releasing toxic chemicals that can accumulate in your body. Some of these chemicals are known to disrupt hormones and other bodily
systems, and this poses a particular risk to children. The long-term risks for most of these chemicals are unknown, untested, and unregulated.

Maine Council of Churches is conducting presentations in churches across the state to help you make informed decisions about products you buy for yourself and your family. We're also helping you call for much needed
testing and regulation of these products.

Learn more about your environmental health and toxics!

* March 12 6:00 PM at the Pleasant Street United Methodist Church, 61 Pleasant Street in Waterville
* March 13 6:00 PM at the Good Shepherd United Methodist Church, 151 West Gray Road in Gray
* Watch for dates to be announced for events in Yarmouth, Bangor, Gorham, and Bridgeton

For even more information, join us for an all day conference: Toxics and Tomorrow's Children, March 14, 8:30 AM - 4:00 PM at the University of Southern Maine in Portland, sponsored by Maine Council of Churches, Learning Disabilities Association of Maine, Environmental Health Strategy Center, American Lung Association of Maine, Toxics Action Center, University of Southern Maine Department of Environmental Science, Maine Public Health Association and Physicians for Social Responsibility/Maine.

For more information about any of these programs contact Eric C. Smith, at esmith@mainecouncilofchurches.org

Community Supported Agriculture: look for the book!

If you have not already, you should very soon receive the Maine Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) Directory. It contains information about farms IN your community that grow food FOR your community.

Along with MCC's Food and Faith initiative and Be A Good Apple local foods pledge, this directory is a resource for locating farms your congregation can not only support financially and spiritually, but also receive multiple benefits in return: good, clean, fresh, healthy food; keeping farmland in production; preservation of rural traditions; reducing your 'carbon footprint'; boosting the local economy.

We urge you to pass this resource on to your congregation members. The information contained within can also be accessed via the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (MOFGA) website.

For questions about, or additional copies of the directory, please contact Melissa White Pillsbury, MOFGA's Organic Marketing Coordinator at melissa@mofga.org

For more information about Food and Faith or our Be a Good Apple local foods pledge, contact Andy Burt, MCC Environmental Justice Coordinator, at adburt@gwi.net.

Wednesday, January 16th:
Maine Campaign to Ban Cluster Bombs: a Letter to Maine's Congressional Delegation.

Maine Council of Churches invites clergy and other religious leaders to sign on to a letter to Maine Senators Snowe and Collins and Representatives Michaud and Allen regarding an important issue of global peace and justice - the prohibition of the use of cluster munitions in or near civilian populations and the sale of such weapons. The letter itself will give you more information, as will a background piece from the Friends Committee on National Legislation. The Society of Friends (Quakers) is a member of Maine Council of Churches.

The Maine Campaign to Ban Cluster Bombs is being coordinated by Mary Trotochaud, who lives in the midcoast area. With her husband, Rick McDowell, Mary, an FCNL consultant, spent two years living and working in Iraq outside of the Green Zone after the US invasion. She saw first-hand the devastation the cluster bombs cause among civilian populations, especially children who often mistake the many unexploded "bomblets" left behind by these weapons for toys.

Mary and MCC Executive Director Jill Job Saxby and other community leaders are attempting to set up a meeting with Senator Susan Collins on this issue. We would like to present the religious leaders letter of support for pending
legislation on this issue at that meeting. The Campaign will share this letter with all members of the Maine's congressional delegation in the near future.

The full text of the letter is here. A flyer on the campaign is here.

Please consider signing on by sending your name, title and any religious organization affiliation you would like to include directly to Mary Trotochaud at mtrotochaud@earthlink.net

Also, many upcoming events, including those over the upcoming Martin Luther King birthday weekend, have been added to MCC's Calendar page - please be sure to check out those key events.....

Tuesday, December 18, 2007

Poverty and the Two Maines: Bates Panel broadcast on MPBN Radio

A panel discussion called "Poverty and the Two Maines" that took place at Bates College in late November 2007. This broadcast airs on the radio stations of MPBN on Tuesday, December 18, 2007 at 1:00 pm.This panel discussion was presented by the Harward Center for Community Partnerships at Bates College in Lewiston on November 28, 2007. The panelists discuss the issue from their perspective and share thoughts about how the problem of poverty in the state can be addressed. Panelists include (clockwise from upper left in composite photo at right): Hannah Pingree, House Majority Leader of the Maine State Legislature; Sarah Standiford, Executive Director of the Maine Women's Lobby; Naomi Schalit, Opinion Page Editor for the Kennebec Journal; and Eric C. Smith, Congregational Outreach Coordinator, Maine Council of Churches.

The broadcast of this discussion is available on the MPBN website at http://www.mpbn.net/radio/ondemand/speakinginmaine.html

Monday, December 10, 2007

Opportunities to Prepare the Way for Justice and Peace during Advent:

**** Clergy for Peace: Witnessing in the Public Square every Wednesday in Portland
**** Bread for the World: Call on Senators to support Farm Bill amendments
**** National Religious Coalition Against Torture: Require all US agencies to comply with the same restrictions
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Clergy for Peace continue to vigil, every Wednesday 12:00 noon - 1:00 PM in Monument Square in Portland

Called by the teachings of love and peace and justice embodied in their various faith traditions, clergy are gathering every week to publicly call for an end to the war and continued US military presence in Iraq. "We invite other clergy of any spiritual background to join us wearing the vestments of their tradition and expressing their faith. As the Buddhist
monks in Burma demonstrated in their witness, this is not limited to members of the clergy. Our witness invites lay people of any religious persuasion to join us witnessing to their own faith. Every Wednesday at noon, we will be there."

For more information, contact Rev. David E. Butler at 839-6751 or david@firstparishgorham.org

Bread for the World calls on the US Senate to increase Food Stamp provisions in Farm Bill

On Friday, Senate leadership brought the farm bill back to the Senate floor and announced that votes on key amendments would begin today, Tuesday, December 11.

For more information on this issue and how to contact Senators Snowe and Collins, visit www.bread.org/take-action/take-action-farm-bill.html

NRCAT calls for support of Legislation to End Torture by all US Agencies

A provision in the Iraq funding bill would have required all government agencies, including the CIA, to abide by the restrictions in the Army Field Manual when conducting interrogations. The Iraq funding bill was passed by the House of Representatives, but the bill (because it includes a provision on troop withdrawal from Iraq) has been stopped by a filibuster in the Senate.

"We believe that now is an excellent time to use the momentum gathered by the action in the House, as well as the recent national attention to torture that occurred with Judge Mukasey's nomination to be Attorney General, to encourage Congress to include the Army Field Manual provision in other pieces of legislation that may be enacted into law."

Click here to send an email to your Members of Congress. A sample email is provided that you can use as the basis for your own email.

Sunday, June 17

Home Owners Protection Act Becomes Law

Speaker of the House Glenn Cummings and other legislators, with representatives of a diverse coalition of businesses and non-profit organizations, including Maine Council of Churches Executive Director Rev. Jill Saxby (far left) and Coastal Enterprises Senior Program Officer Carla Dickstein (2d from left), look on as Governor John Baldacci signs the Home Owners Protection Act into law at his office at the State House in Augusta on Monday, June 11.

Both the Maine Council of Churches and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland testified in favor of the legislation earlier in the spring. The nine (Protestant, Roman Catholic and Unitarian Universalist) member denominations of the Maine Council of Churches share a commitment to economic justice and to public policy that embodies the commandment to "love our neighbors as ourselves."

In addition to offering testimony at the legislative hearing, the Council participated in a variety of ways in a broad-based coalition organized by Coastal Enterprises, a nonprofit community development corporation based in Wiscasset, Maine, to educate the public and legislators on the need for the protections against lending practices such as loan "flipping" and exorbitant fees that strip homeowners of the equity in their home. Those most affected by these practices tend to be the most economically vulnerable of our Maine neighbors. The new law will support sustainable homeownership and neighborhoods and still allow responsible Maine lenders to provide a needed "sub-prime" lending market.

With the new law, Maine joins a handful of other states in taking the lead on responding to the recent crisis of home foreclosures and the devastating impact this trend has on families and the economy.

April 23, 2007

On April 20 the Board of Directors of the Maine Council of Churches (MCC) approved a letter to the Governor, Department of Corrections, the Joint Standing Committee on Criminal Justice and Public Safety, and the Sheriff's Association to address issues related to the overcrowding of the state's jails and prisons. The MCC Board of Directors opposes a proposal that would transfer 125 inmates to out-of-state facilities in an effort to ease prison overcrowding. Go here to read the Board of Directors' concerns and their suggestions for alternative actions.

April 2, 2007: National Declaration By Religious And Spiritual Leaders To Address Violence Against Women

On April 5, 2006, forty-two national religious leaders from around the country declared violence against women as intolerable and pledged their commitment to its eradication. When people of faith join with other community leaders to address domestic violence, we will see ancient roadblocks turn into resources that save lives and bring healing. Please join other people of faith in signing the Declaration.

National Declaration By Religious And Spiritual Leaders To Address Violence Against Women

We proclaim with one voice as national spiritual and religious leaders that violence against women exists in all communities, including our own, and is morally, spiritually and universally intolerable. We acknowledge that our sacred texts, traditions and values have too often been misused to perpetuate and condone abuse. We commit ourselves to working toward the day when all women will be safe and abuse will be no more. We draw upon our healing texts and practices to help make our families and societies whole. Our religious and spiritual traditions compel us to work for justice and the eradication of violence against women. We call upon people of all religious and spiritual traditions to join us.

To sign the declaration, please visit Faith Trust Institute website at: http://www.faithtrustinstitute.org/petition/petition.php For more information about domestic violence in Maine, please visit MCEDV's website: http://www.mcedv.org

March 14, 2007 - Tengo Voz (I Have Voice) and Cesar Chavez Recognition Celebration

Tengo Voz (I Have Voice), is a grassroots, non-profit organization that supports and empowers Spanish-speaking women and their families in southern Maine. Serving in an Episcopal church in Portland, the Rev. Virginia Marie Rincon recognized that the Spanish-speaking women in the church were experiencing a great deal of frustration and anxiety. Because of the language barrier, they were finding it difficult to access services, jobs, housing, and medical attention. Virginia Marie turned to the Maine Council of Churches for help in setting up and organizing this important ministry. The Council has provided administrative guidance, and accounting support to Tengo Voz for four years. Since its inception, Tengo Voz has been an effective voice on behalf of Spanish-speaking residents of Portland; has assisted dozens of women in dealing with life crises related to poverty, housing, domestic violence, and immigration status; and has provided support to Latino families who face the intrusion of immigration officials in their private lives. Tengo Voz has been recognized as a partner with other service organizations in developing programs that educate, inspire, and empower the Latino community. Most recently, Tengo Voz has encouraged women and their families to speak out in the current immigration debate. Contact The Rev. Virginia Marie Rincon for more information at 553-2252 or at tengovoz@hotmail.com.

February 5, 2007: Community for the Sick and Dying...

This week's news is about an organization that provides a way for your congregation to do meaningful outreach to the sick and dying in your community. Please read on and contact them directly for more information...

Dreamers dream about things being different. Visionaries envision themselves making a difference.

eHope is a Maine-based non-profit whose mission is:

To form caregiving communities which provide non-medical physical, social, and emotional support, for a loved one who faces a life-threatening illness.

Specifically, eHope networks families, friends, co-workers, neighbors and churches in a way where individuals can provide meaningful care to seriously ill people in their community, while enabling them to maintain a healthy balance in their own lives.

eHope communities consist of face-to-face networks of caring individuals, held together by an organized web-based system of communication. Each caregiver community web site provides an ongoing list of daily needs, along with a means for building relationship and staying connected.

In the past 2 years, eHope has successfully collaborated with families, neighborhoods, workplaces and churches to form 30 caregiver communities throughout the State of Maine. Specifically, we partner with churches in 2 different ways:

1. By connecting area churches with seriously ill people in their communities who are isolated from family and friends, facing their mortality alone.

2. By helping area churches to expand care for seriously ill members of their congregations. eHope provides an effective collaboration model for extending care beyond the church into neighborhoods, and workplaces within the community.

eHope's unique model of interpersonal, web-based care has garnered noteworthy praise from State and local agencies, along with recent feature articles in the Portland Press Herald newspaper and MaineBiz Magazine. eHope provides all of their services free-of-charge and they provide a trained volunteer Facilitator for the lifespan of each caregiver community.

For more information, please visit eHope's public web site at:<http://www.ehope.nu/ > www.eHope.nu
or contact Jeffrey Wood - <mailto:jeffrey@eHope.nu> jeffrey@eHope.nu, (207) 856-7340.