Social Issues

Social Concerns
People pick up battery-operated votive candles and write their prayers during a Jan. 9 prayer vigil hosted by Minneapolis’ Park Avenue United Methodist Church. The church is just two blocks from where a federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent fatally shot 37-year-old Renee Good. At Sunday services, worshippers at Park Avenue and other United Methodist congregations remembered Good, mourned the week’s violence by federal officials and took comfort in God’s presence. Photo courtesy of Park Avenue United Methodist Church.

Countering federal violence with neighborly love

United Methodists across the U.S. led prayer vigils and joined protests in solidarity with their neighbors after federal immigration enforcement agents killed Renee Good in Minneapolis and shot two people in Portland, Oregon.
Human Rights
The Rev. John Wagner. Photo courtesy of the author.

A plea for ‘costly solidarity’ in Middle East

How is God calling us to respond to the ongoing violence in the Middle East? A pastor shares insights from the West Bank.
Immigration
Bishop Minerva Carcaño (left), chair of the United Methodist Immigration Task Force, listens as the Rev. Giovanni Arroyo, top staff executive of the United Methodist Commission on Religion and Race, speaks during the United Methodist Immigration Task Force meeting, held Nov. 18-20 in Los Angeles. The gathering brought together church agencies, migrant ministries, bishops and ecumenical partners to strengthen coordinated advocacy. Photo by the Rev. Gustavo Vasquez, UM News.

Task force responds to growing needs facing immigrants

The United Methodist Immigration Task Force has reorganized and issued an Advent call to the church to welcome and support migrants.
Social Concerns
Sarah Metroff (left), marketing manager of investment for Wespath Benefits and Investments, speaks with M. Theresa Basile (middle), co-founder of United Methodists for Kairos Response, and Andy Hendren (right), top executive of Wespath, during September meetings at Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary in Evanston, Illinois. Wespath organized the summit to foster dialogue about its investments. Photo courtesy of Wespath Benefits and Investments.

Investment debates underway for 2028

After the clock ran out on the discussion at the 2024 General Conference, debate is already underway regarding how Wespath Benefits and Investments can invest more ethically.

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