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The dogged refusal of traditional religions to give up Bronze Age magical thinking and doctrines will continue to make religion increasingly irrelevant in the 21st century. If the church has a future it will be because we are willing to undergo a radical transformation, being more passionate about what is true than what we have read in ancient documents. We need to be connected to one another in order to be effective in changing the world and we need meaningful connection to others to correct our own excesses. We can become better people through working together for justice, peace and mercy.

Young adults are already a part of a re-visioning of Christianity that is translating what it means to follow Jesus in today’s world – so help them Dream, Think, Be, and Do with all their heart, soul, strength, and mind!

One of the major challenges for Progressive Christians in the years to come is paying more attention to “equipping the saints.” The dictionary meaning for “equipping” is “to supply with intellectual, emotional, or spiritual essentials.” It is derived from an old French term which means “to put to sea, to embark.” The Center for Progressive Christianity has picked up this challenge and provided congregations and parents with two years of relevant and imaginative curriculums for the 21st century. They have taken the lead in reframing Sunday school teachings and made them into invaluable resources for “equipping the saints” as they head out on the sea of our culture. Whether you are a parent, a Sunday School teacher, a preacher, a spiritual seeker, or just someone who likes to look at ideas from a child’s point of view, this one’s for you.

You might be surprised to learn that we are a small non-profit with a small budget and only four part-time staff members. You might be surprised to learn that our President/Director works full time as a volunteer. You might be surprised to learn that we funnel most of our donations right back into the meaningful projects that we have taken on to help evolve and support faith communities. You might be surprised to learn…

The Supreme Court of the US is now considering a case from Greece, NY, in which
the town board started its meetings with sectarian Christian prayers.
 Lower courts disallowed them as violations of the clause in the Constitution …

Religions, like puppy owners, often don’t do a good job of scooping up the messes they leave behind. But that’s not a compelling enough reason to give up on either your God or your dog.

A dramatic feature film based on the book by Eckhart Tolle and Robert S. Friedman. Milton’s Secretis a coming of age story about an 11-year-old boy growing up in an economically depressed suburb, and the elderquest of his grandfather. Milton’s troubles seem to be coming from every direction. His mother and father are workaholics with marital and financial problems, and he is being bullied at school. Fear and dread are everywhere. When his unconventional grandfather visits, Milton learns that rehashing bad experiences and worrying about the future are preventing him from finding true happiness in the Now.

Food Peace and Justice is important to progressive Christians because it pertains to how we treat the gifts of our bodies, how we treat other human beings, and how we treat our earth home. This months eBulletin is all about achieving the highest level of integrity and kindness in regards to our food and the agriculture system we support.

We find ourselves in a food economy that sickens us. Health is divided along race and class lines: the food economy particularly sickens those whose wages do not allow them to buy the foods that can cure us of the diseases industrial “foods” cause. Corporations, who do not speak the language of human love and health, wrangle to profit from the stream of ill Americans falling from the industrial foods conveyor belt. But we know that type 2 diabetes, heart disease, obesity, and some cancers are fully preventable by replacing part of what we eat with fruits and vegetables. Why, in a wealthy, fertile country are we wrecking the environment to produce foods that kill us?

This is a list of resources of organizations and articles regarding food peace and justice. We will continue adding to this list.

When it comes to faith in our democracy, this year has raised some eyebrows. In the case of food and agriculture policy, a disturbing fact emerges: Our democracy is increasingly a façade. Agribusinesses have been subverting the democratic process from Washington D.C. to state legislatures across the country to ensure that people know less and less about how their food is produced and distributed. Moreover, they have engaged in a determined effort to obstruct opportunities for citizens and legislators to engage in the democratic process. Consider the following to illustrate the point.

All across the world, people are transforming the food system. As we gain more insight into the industrial food complex, people are turning away from industrial agriculture toward sustainable and local alternatives. Why is this an issue that matters to progressive Christians? There are many reasons.

What does a new kingdom look like when your family becomes disconnected from the patterns of the sea and must function within a more “efficient” system? Would the new kingdom Jesus talked about lead you back to a balance between humankind and the fishing patterns you once knew? Is something lost when we begin to place layer upon layer of human ingenuity between us and the sustaining power of earth and sea?

The de facto how-to manual of the international Food Not Bombs movement, which provides free food to the homeless and hungry and has branches in countries on every continent except Antarctica, this book describes at length how to set up and operate a Food Not Bombs chapter. The guide considers every aspect of the operation, from food collection and distribution to fund-raising, consensus decision making, and what to do when the police arrive. It contains detailed information on setting up a kitchen and cooking for large groups as well as a variety of delicious recipes. Accompanying numerous photographs is a lengthy section on the history of Food Not Bombs, with stories of the jailing and murder of activists, as well as premade handbills and flyers ready for photocopying.

Relating Kindred Spirits: A Collection, spirituality and songwriting, Newcomer writes “I am one of a growing number of people who don’t want to put the sacred in such a small container. I am disturbed that one very narrowly focused and extremely political brand of Christianity being called the ‘religious voice.’ There are wide communities of spiritual people who believe that walking this world in love and compassion is about feeding the hungry, providing for the poor or sick, caring for our elders, making sure that the table of love includes and welcomes everyone, educating our children and young people, honoring our beautiful and interconnected planet. These communities believe that women are equal spiritual beings, and that the highest and most honorable work is creating a less violent, more just and kind world. Isn’t a life of compassion bigger than a catch phrase or sound byte? Isn’t love wider and deeper than fear?” Speaking more to this point, she shares, “If a spiritual leader is teaching hate, it is not spiritual message, it is political message.”

Carrie Newcomer with special guests, Indian peformers Amjad Ali Khan, Aaman Ali Khan and Ayaan Ali Khan, in concert Saturday, October 15, 2011 at 2nd Presbyterian Church in Indianapolis. This special performance promotes the release of Newcomer’s latest album, “Everything is Everywhere”. Proceeds from the album benefits the Interfaith Hunger Initiative, a multi-faith effort dedicated to elevating hunger and the roots of poverty in the USA and abroad.

Carrie Newcomer explores the intersection of the spiritual and the daily, the sacred and the ordinary. Over the course of her career she has become a prominent voice for progressive spirituality, social justice and interfaith dialogue. She has been described as “a soaring songstress” by Billboard, a “prairie mystic” by the Boston Globe and Rolling Stone has declared that Newcomer “asks all the right questions.” Author Barbara Kingsolver wrote, “She’s a poet, storyteller, snake-charmer, good neighbor, friend and lover, minister of the wide-eyed gospel of hope and grace.”

Fourteen artists have joined Bread for the World Institute and Women of Faith for the 1,000 Days Movement to educate communities and advocate for policy change in the United States to end hunger at home and abroad and give every child the chance to thrive.