40 Days of Prayer

Fr. Frederick Thelen, Retired Pastor, Cristo Rey Church, Lansing, MI, and former President, Gamaliel affiliate, Action of Greater Lansing   Harvest of Justice Growing up on the farm, we had a huge garden. But along with the good plants, quack grass kept reappearing from its deep roots every time we hoed it out, though fortunately…

Rev. B. De Neice Welch, Ph.D., Senior Pastor, Bidwell Presbyterian Church, Pittsburgh, PA; Chaplain, Western Psychiatric Hospital; Former Chair, Gamaliel Women’s Leadership Development Program, Ntosake   The Wellspring of Justice The expectation of injustice is so normal that we find it difficult to hope for anything different.  The greatest lesson on justice I have ever…

Rev. Dennis Jacobsen, member of Gamaliel affiliate MICAH, Milwaukee, WI, and author of Doing Justice: Congregations and Community Organizing    “We’ve come too far, we’ve made too much progress as a people, to stand still or to slip back.  When I was growing up there was a song that people would sing in the church: …

Sr. Anneliese Sinnott, OP (Dominican Sister of Adrian, MI), Retired Professor of Systematic Theology, Ecumenical Theological Seminary, Detroit, MI, and Member of Gamaliel affiliate MOSES   As a country we have experienced many internal struggles. We have disagreed with one another on religion, wealth, land, taxes, and certainly on issues involving human rights. From the…

Rev. Dr. Vincent Kolb, Pastor, Sixth Presbyterian Church, Pittsburgh, PA, and President, Gamaliel affiliates Pennsylvania Interfaith Impact Network (PIIN)   “Then God said to me, ‘Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, mortal, and say to the breath: Thus says the Lord God: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they…

Dr. Stacy L. Spencer, Senior Pastor, New Direction Christian Church, Memphis, TN, and President, Gamaliel affiliate MICAH-Memphis   Don’t let self-interest cause you to choose the wrong Jesus.   “So when the crowd had gathered, Pilate asked them, “Which one do you want me to release to you: Jesus Barabbas, or Jesus who is called…

Rev. Marilyn Miller, Pastor, Reformation Lutheran Church, Milwaukee, WI, and President of Gamaliel’s affiliate MICAH-Milwaukee   I Can Breathe with Hope   As I battle my weariness, the word that keeps appearing before me is “hope.”  I can go on fighting the powers and principalities with hope as my mantle.  This hope does not come from…

Fr. Rudolph (Rudy) Juarez, Pastor, St. Anthony’s Catholic Church, Davenport, IA, and Member of the Gamaliel Board of Directors romanos/Romans 13, 8-10 “No tengan con nadie otra deuda que la del amor mutuo . . . . “  Todos tenemos deuda de una forma u otra: A Dios le debo el don de mi vida,…

Rev. Susan Engh, author of Women’s Work: The Transformational Power of Faith-Based Community Organizing, and former consultant to the Gamaliel National Religious Leaders’ Caucus   Matthew 15:22-28 22[A] Canaanite woman from that region came out and started shouting [at Jesus], “Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David; my daughter is tormented by a demon.” 23But…

Rabbi David B. Cohen, Spiritual Leader, Congregation Sinai, Fox Point, WI What’s the most important verse in the Bible? Rabbi Akiva answered: it’s from Leviticus, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Rabbi Ben Azzai countered with a verse from Genesis: “God created the very first humans in the divine image.” (Talmud, Kedoshim 4:2)  From this idea, all…