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Photo: Paul Jeffrey/ACT Alliance
"Christ's love must move us"4/13/2023 World Council of Churches and ACT Alliance visit TürkiyeA delegation from the World Council of Churches and ACT Alliance visited Türkiye last week at the invitation of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, expressing solidarity and support for churches on the ground responding to grave needs in the wake of the February 6 earthquake. “The WCC and ACT Alliance’s presence in these particular places indicate that we care, we are concerned about what has taken place, and we want to find out how we can best continue to be of assistance,” said WCC General Secretary, Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay. “It was important for us to do this together.” The timing was especially significant as the delegation visited during the western Christian church’s Holy Week. Week of Compassion, through ACT Alliance partnerships, is part of the relief and response in Türkiye and Syria. Mobile Health Clinics in Yemen4/11/2023 championing emergency health assistanceDriving through Yemen’s desert under a blazing sun, Dr. Muhammad thinks about whether he’s brought all the right supplies to treat his patients: antibiotics, anti-diarrheals, medicine for high blood pressure. He’s going where other groups can’t reach: a camp for Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs). In a country crushed by civil war and poverty, “Health is a dire need,” says Dr. Muhammad. The people in the camps have next to nothing. “Food is not available all the time,” says Amal Mohammed, who coordinates health services at the camps. “There are a lot of infectious diseases and bad hygiene at IDP sites. They are living in a desert.” With support from Week of Compassion, global partner IMA World Health has established a mobile health clinic project in Yemen ... Holy Week Prayers 20233/30/2023 Beginning Sunday April 2, followers of Christ will mark the holiest of seasons, with Palm Sunday and Easter celebrations at each end, days of penitence and sorrow in between.
For generations, believers have explored the meaning of this week with reflection, worship, ritual, and song. Week of Compassion offers these prayers for each day, that we might arrive at deeper faithfulness in a truly Holy Week. We will share each prayer daily via our social media and invite you to include these in worship, email, newsletters, and whatever ways best meet the prayerful connection of your congregation. Grace and peace, Disciples. May we be renewed and transformed, for the sake of the world God so loves, as we approach this Holy Week together. WELCOME3/14/2023 stories of refugee & immigrant response (part 4)What a Difference A Year MakesWELCOME: stories from Week of Compassion’s Refugee and Immigrant Response In this four-part series, over the course of a year, we have been in conversation with California Disciples and their ecumenical collaborators as they welcome an Afghan family into their community, offering radical hospitality and welcome to new neighbors. We also share notes from other Disciples doing this work in their own communities. Over the last year, we have shared stories of Disciples involved in refugee resettlement. Start at the beginning: How It All Started Learn how things moved From Idea to Action See communities find More Than They Imagined In this final segment, leaders reflect on the experience and impact on the congregations that have been involved in this powerful ministry. WHAT A DIFFERENCE A YEAR MAKES
When the church started this response, they had no idea where this journey would take them. That is what it is like when you answer the call to follow Christ in this world. You take a step without knowing where the path will lead you, but you step anyway because you have faith in the direction of the Holy Spirit. Special Offering 20233/1/2023 As Disciples, we gather weekly at the table, to remember Christ’s own life poured out lavishly, for everyone, without exception. Abundance and blessing is not only what we receive - it is who we are and who God calls us to be. Week of Compassion is where Disciples respond to the challenges and the blessings they see in the world. Week of Compassion is a response from the whole body of Christ. Thank you, Disciples, for sharing in the ministry of Week of Compassion. SPECIAL UPDATE : Partnership Report2/24/2023 responding in Ukraine, one year laterOne year ago, on February 24 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine, unleashing a humanitarian crisis that continues to impact the citizens of Ukraine, and the neighboring nations that have provided shelter, aid, and resources. Alongside our ecumenical partners through ACT Alliance, Week of Compassion has been engaged in the response from the start and will remain in partnership for the long-term support and recovery to come. Forty is a number used throughout scripture, a number matched with many sacred journeys. Forty days and forty nights, Noah is at sea, his family wondering what’s going on, and two of every creature getting restless in the cargo hold. Forty years, Moses wanders the desert, leading people who don’t want to be led, listening to them tell him how he ought to be doing his job and how they were happier where they used to be. Forty days, Jesus draws away from the crowds, preparing for his ministry to begin. Forty days he endures temptation: to display his power; to take advantage of his unique and divine nature; to give in to an easy path instead of doing the hard work of God’s realm. In the early church, around the 4th century, Christians began to mark a season of forty days, too. |
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