Tuesday, October 27, 2009

We hope you have all seen this already...

Just in case you have missed this video, something that has become almost as viral than "Numa Numa," take a look.

Friday, October 23, 2009

Faithful Voices Conference – We’ll be there…will you?

The Faithful Voices Statewide Conference on Marriage Equality is fast approaching. We want to make sure that everyone knows to register and register early.

Some of you faithful (pun intended) readers may think that you have nothing to gain from this conference. Perhaps your congregation has already become an open, affirming, and welcoming congregation. Maybe you are already involved as an advocate. Possibly, you just think you are beyond the need for further knowledge or skills relating to Marriage Equality.

To you we say: what makes you think that should stop you from coming to the conference? Has your entire community, town or city become open and affirming? Are you the most effective advocate you possibly could be? Have you already heard Harry Knox from the Human Rights Campaign, Rev. Dr. Weldon C. Gaddy, president of the Interfaith Alliance and Anita Bradshaw, Ph.D. from the Institute of Welcoming Resources all speak on the very same day? No? Well then we think you definitely still have something to gain from coming to the conference.

If nothing else, come to meet some new faces and make connections with other progressive people of faith from all over Iowa.

The most important thing is that you register. We need to know how many lunches to order, how many nametags to make, how many workshops to have! Follow the link below, sign yourself up, and while you are at it, recruit two or three friends to come along. We’ll see you in November.

What: Faithful Voices Conference on Marriage Equality
Where: First Christian Church, Des Moines, Iowa
When: November 19th 2009
How: Faithful Voices Registration
Why: To bring people of faith and goodwill together to create marriage equality in Iowa

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Meet the new Program Coordinator for Faithful Voices


Friends,
I am overjoyed to be joining Interfaith Alliance of Iowa and I am so looking forward to moving the Faithful Voices program forward. I wanted to take this opportunity to introduce myself to you.
I grew up just outside of Minneapolis, Minnesota in a little town called Excelsior. My mother is a UCC minister and my father is a retired actor. If I wasn’t in school I was always in a theatre or a church! After high school I attended Cottey College, a small liberal arts college for women in Southern Missouri. After my mother accepted a call to a church in Kansas City, I decided to remain in the Show-Me State and transferred to Mizzou (Go Tigers!). After my graduation I stayed in Columbia, where I have worked on a U.S. Congressional race, a gubernatorial campaign, a Union election and a Climate Change initiative. My faith has always been my core motivation for being involved in politics and the labor movement. I was raised in a denomination that puts an enormous emphasis on Peace and Justice, and that background has led me to dedicate my life to public service.
I believe strongly in the transformative power of community and in the importance of created family. Through the church, the Minneapolis theatre community, and other groups, my parents formed an extended family for my sister and I that made us the women we are today. That family has always included LGBT people, people who are like aunts and uncles to me, people who I never saw as “other.” As an adult, I feel that it is my moral responsibility to help ensure that more children in this world are raised in an atmosphere of love and acceptance, as I was. Being an ally is a role that I cherish, and it is an important part of who I am.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, I value the freedom of religion that we enjoy in this country. I am grateful that I live in a place where I can worship and serve God in a way of my own choosing. Protecting this right is of the utmost importance, and the way to do it is to separate our civil and our religious lives.
My fiancé and I are delighted to be joining the Des Moines community and I hope we get to know many of you as we settle in.
Blessings,
Melisabeth Wright
Faithful Voices
Project Coordinator

“Acting on the faith that we are born with a meaning and purpose; a vocation and ministry that serves to strengthen and extend God’s realm of love.” – The Phoenix Affirmations