Mission Moment
"To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good." — 1 Corinthians 13:7, NRSV
Next Sunday, we will be celebrating Peace with Justice Sunday. This is one of our six Special Sundays, when we take up a special offering across The United Methodist Church to support work being done locally and globally through the Peace with Justice Ministries.
We recognize that talking about peace is not enough. We also recognize that praying for peace must be accompanied by our actions. Mother Teresa said, "If we have not peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other."
The work of Peace with Justice Ministries occurs because we know that unless we all are at peace; there will not be true peace for any of us.
Our Peace with Justice gifts have supported programs that work toward ending human trafficking, assisting refugees and immigrants, and helping communities address poverty and violence. These works of peace are done in the spirit of Shalom, or the completeness that we were created for in our individual relationships, with our communities and in the world that God has created.
Our gifts on Peace with Justice Sunday will be used locally within annual conferences, as well as globally in the U.S. and abroad for social action, public policy education and advocacy projects that promote peace and justice.
Offertory Prayer
Merciful God, may we give generously to the work of peace in the world by our gifts, our actions, and even our words. Help us to seek the Shalom that you have created us for, by being people that seek justice and live in peace. Amen.
From Discipleship Resources: Day of Pentecost - Holy God, thank you for sending your Spirit, the Spirit of the risen Christ, from heaven. Help us to be like the early disciples, praying patiently as we wait for your guidance and power. Fill our hearts and minds with your gifts of faith, hope, and love. May our conversations with people of every language and culture around us witness to your grace and mercy. We dedicate ourselves and our offerings to your good purposes in the world through our church's mission by the power of your Spirit. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen. (Acts 2:1-21)
Newsletter Nugget
Each year, on the Sunday after Pentecost, The United Methodist Church observes Peace with Justice Sunday, one of our churchwide special offerings. We celebrate Peace with Justice Sunday because we recognize that true peace cannot be possible without the presence of justice.
The gifts collected on Peace with Justice Sunday are distributed between local and global Peace with Justice ministries. Fifty percent of the offerings stay for use on projects within the local annual conference, while the other half goes toward Peace with Justice Grants administered by the General Board of Church and Society.
Those ministries that apply for grants must meet at least one of four main objectives: helping United Methodists understand and respond to violence and militarism, being involved in efforts to end conflict and violent aggression around the world, promoting policies locally and globally that restore communities in the midst of racial and ethnic injustice and inequality, and promoting systematic economic justice and self-development of people.