New Life UMC at Drexel Hill celebrated its 6th annual Prayer and Praise Celebration on July 13 welcoming all commuters for prayer, praise and worship at SEPTA’s 69th Street Terminal Transportation Center Station in Philadelphia. The celebration was a hands-on …

Jurisdictional Conference Repents of Systemic Racism
Delegates explore history of structural racism in the Methodist Church In the space where episcopal elections would have taken place, delegates gathered for a holy conversation about race and the way that structural and systemic racism colors both our past …

Ministry that Transcends Hatred and Discrimination
The United Methodist Church’s General Conference voted May 1 to approve a resolution condemning racial-ethnic discrimination and gender-based violence against Asian Americans. Submitted by the New Federation of Asian American United Methodists, the resolution condemns increasing discrimination against racial-ethnic minorities, especially …

CoNAM shares Loss of Turtle Island history with Widener students
Students preparing to be educators gathered in a classroom at Widener University Center for Education in Chester February 12 to learn the tragic history of The Loss of Turtle Island. They engaged in an interactive, visual exercise that demonstrates the …

CoNAM helps college students, faculty feel the Loss of Turtle Island
During National Native American Heritage Month in November, students and faculty at Lebanon Valley College (LVC), in Annville, PA, participated in a unique, interactive learning experience that taught them the history of a tragic loss. That loss resulted from “the …

Learning poignant lessons of Native American culture, history
Drew seminary student connects with Native American Ministries In the summer of 2022, Drew Theological School led students on a trip to the Blackfeet Nation in Browning, Montana. I had just completed my first year as a Masters of Divinity …

Color of Compromise book study to explore church’s ‘complicity in racism’
Some Eastern PA Conference members and others, perhaps from Greater New Jersey and elsewhere, will embark this month on a challenging literary expedition through Jemar Tisby’s acclaimed 2019 book The Color of Compromise: The Truth About American Church’s Complicity in …

Learn to prepare for a Congregational Racism Audit
For churches seeking a path toward ending the sin of racism, looking inward may be a good first step. Eastern PA’s Healing the Wounds of Racism core team will help churches prepare to take that step with a workshop titled …

Sharing the Journey to end the sin of racism
EPA&GNJ staff leaders met April 27 at EPA’s Carson Simpson Farm Camp & Retreat Center to learn about each conference’s work to end the sin of racism and to explore how they might work together in affiliation. “We saw significant …

Moving Forward on Two Journeys to End the Sin of Racism
Published in NEWSpirit newspaper, Summer 2023 issue. The United Methodists of Eastern Pennsylvania and Greater New Jersey are committed to “Ending the Sin of Racism,” a clarion call answered in both conferences by some promising initiatives. They include coaching, giving …