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As the only statewide ecumenical agency in South
Carolina, SC Christian Action Council represents a
partnership of 16 denominations and 21 regional
judicatories, including 4,500 congregations.
The Council serves as a catalyst for:
- Social justice through public policy advocacy;
- Christian Unity and inter-religious dialogue through
relationships, collaborations and events;
- Racial and cultural healing by building bridges of
trust and understanding.
Read on . . .click
here
Legislative Update & Calls for Action |
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Immigration. Senate Bill 392
received a favorable review from the full Judiciary
Committee. Will go to the full Senate for a vote soon.
There is a provision that could affect churches and
others who aid undocumented immigrants:
SECTION 9. Article 5, Chapter 9, Title 16 of
the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
“Section 16‑9‑460. (A) It
shall be a
felony for any person to transport, move, or
attempt to transport within the State, or to
solicit or conspire to transport or move
within the State, any person knowingly or in
reckless disregard of the fact that the
person has come to, entered, or remained in
the U.S. in violation of law, in furtherance
of the person’s illegal presence in the
United States.
(B) It shall be a felony for any person
to conceal, harbor, or shelter from
detection, or to solicit or conspire to
conceal, harbor, or shelter from detection
any person in any place, including any
building or means of transportation,
knowingly or in reckless disregard of the
fact that the person has come to, entered, or
remained in the U.S. in violation of law, in
furtherance of the person’s illegal presence
in the United States.
(C) Any person who violates the
provisions of subsection (A) or (B) of this
section is guilty of a felony and, upon
conviction, shall be punished by a fine not
to exceed five thousand dollars or by
imprisonment for a term not to exceed five
years, or both.
(D) A person who is convicted of, pleads
guilty to, or enters into a plea of nolo
contendre to a violation of this section must
not be permitted to seek or obtain any
professional license offered by the State or
any agency or political subdivision of the
State.”
Christians--in response to the
teachings of Jesus--feed, clothe, shelter, and visit
WITHOUT regard to status. This provision puts our
freedom to act faithfully at risk. Contact your Senator
and ask that the bill be changed to protect those of any
faith who serve others in need without thought of proof
of documentation.
Time to raise Cigarette tax.
House Bill 3562. Healthy Communities Capacity
Act. Debate by the full House Ways & Means
Committee scheduled to start the week of
April 9. Raising the tax will result in
public health benefits (less teen smoking and
lower health care costs) and generate revenue
for health care in general and tobacco
prevention in particular. Contact your
local S.C. House District member before
April 9th and ask them to support raising the
cigarette tax. For more information and to
request speakers: contact
Dr. Dave Keely.
Payday Lending. SC Fair Share,
reports: The Senate Judiciary Subcommittee handling
S.398 reported out strong legislation which,
following an amendment offered by Sen. Joel
Lourie, would:
1. Limit borrowers to one outstanding loan at a
time;
2. Cap the number of loans at 5 per year;
3. Require a 7 day cooling off period between
loans;
4. Establish a statewide database, maintained
by a private contractor, to enforce that
legislation;
5. And require an industry-supported extended
payment plan option.
The vote to report the bill was unanimous by
senators John Hawkins, Vince Sheheen, Lourie
and Lewis Vaughn.
The bill now goes to Full Judiciary where
there will be intense effort to strip out
everything but the extended payment plan.
Contact your Senator and inform him/her as to your
desires concerning Payday Lending regulation.
CONTACT YOUR REPRESENTATIVE.
House members are at home the
first week of April.
CONTACT
YOUR SENATOR
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Denominational Gatherings: Visitors Welcome |
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April 19, CHRISTIAN METHODIST
EPISCOPAL CHURCH, Columbia
April 27-28, The Annual Meeting of the
UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST Georgia/South
Carolina Association, April 27-28, Charleston.
www.se
cucc.org/news/index.php
April 27-28, COOPERATIVE BAPTIST
FELLOWSHIP OF SC, First Baptist Church,
Clemson. www.cbfofsc.org
May 7-11, BAPTIST EDUCATIONAL AND MISSIONARY
CONVENTION OF SC, Mt. Moriah Baptist
Church, Charleston. www.bemsc.org
May 31-June 2, EVANGELICAL LUTHERAN
CHURCH
IN AMERICA, SC SYNOD ASSEMBLY, Newberry
College. www.sclutheran.org
June 3-7, UNITED METHODIST CHURCH SC
ANNUAL CONFERENCE, Florence Civic Center. www.umcsc.org
To email us the event/dates/location
of Judicatory events where visitors are welcome click
here.
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Support Your SC Christian Action Council |
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Advocating for social justice,
Bringing together persons of different
faiths and
holding differing positions on issues for
dialogue,
Worshipping ecumenically, sharing the faith
traditions we hold dear and learning others,
Providing--by example and voice--a model for
meaningful and full relationships across
social and
racial barriers.
Together we address these opportunities.
With your support, YOUR Council will continue to
serve our state as a witness to the oneness
for which
our Lord Jesus Christ prayer.
Click here to donate NOW!
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Community News and Events |
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April 20. Spring For Care to
Fight AIDS. Oscar's Restaurant, Spartanburg,
from 5:00 PM through Midnight. Owner will
donate 1% of food and beverage sales to
Piedmont Care, a non-profit organization
fighting AIDS in the Spartanburg community.
For more information about Spring for Care,
click
here.
May 17. "So What's Restorative
about Justice?" SCCAC Annual meeting, 9
am-1:15 PM, First Christian Church-Disciples
of Christ, Columbia. See final article of this e-
newsletter.
May 17. The Community Mediation
Center Silent Auction. 5:30-8:30 PM,
State Museum, in conjunction with annual
McKay Brabham Building Bridges Award
dinner.
To donate items and purchase a ticket to the
dinner ($25 each) contact the
Community Mediation Center.
__________________________________________
Have other South Carolina community news?
Let us know via
email.
We include information on community events as
space and time allow; and, only in accordance
with
the mission and policies of SC Christian Action
Council. We do not accept unsolicited
articles.
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Comings and Goings |
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Here is a sampling of Council staff
engagements this
month.
- April 1-8: Holy Week activities
- April 10: Screening: "Divided We Fall" at
USC
- April 18. First Baptist Aiken
- April 19-20: Non-profit Leadership
institute, Francis Marion University
- April 23: Evangelical Lutheran Church in
America, SC Synod Council
- April 26: SCEMD/FEMA Emergency Response
training
- April 27-28: Cooperative Baptist Fellowship,
First Baptist Clemson // United Church of Christ,
Circular Church, Charleston
- April 30: Furman University: Children of
Abraham CLC Panel
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SCCAC ANNUAL MEETING 2007 |
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May 17, 2007
Host congregation: First Christian Church
2062 Beltline Boulevard
Columbia, SC
(803) 787-9777 (directions only)
Daily the bad news gets worse. Teenagers and
children continue making choices which
damage the lives of others and threaten their
own lives. Victims are hurt and scarred or
worse. Communities are destroyed. Parents,
school officials, and community leaders look
for interventions to stop the downward
spirals of criminal activity in which many
are caught.
The Victim.
The Community.
The Offender.
Each touched by a criminal act.
Each in need of wholeness.
Each deserving of justice.
Several years ago The SC Department of
Juvenile Justice (DJJ) embarked on an effort
to implement a movement of restorative
justice. Through restorative justice the
victim's pain and harm are acknowledged and
addressed. Through restorative justice the
community's needs are defined and addressed.
Through restorative justice the offenders
deeds are claimed and addressed.
Join us on May 17. We'll be exploring
restorative justice, its application in our
communities, and how people of faith can
further its implementation across South Carolina.
Proclaimer: The Reverend Mark
Cerniglia, Vice President for Partnership
Initiatives, LFS (Lutheran Family Services; and Chair,
Interfaith Restorative Justice Network of SC.
Keynoter: Ms. Virginia "Ginny" Barr,
Restorative Justice Coordinator, SC Department of
Juvenile Justice. Followed by responders from the
community, concluding with Q&A.
Schedule
- 9:00 Registration and Exhibits
- 9:30 Welcome
- 9:40 Ecumenical Worship
- 10:30 Business Session
- 10:45 Break
- 11:00 Keynote Presentation & Response
- 12:30 Fellowship Meal and Exhibits
- 1:15 Adjourn
Pre-registration fee: $30 (materials & lunch.
Registration at the door: $35 (materials nor
lunch
guaranteed).
Pre-registration without lunch: $25 (includes
materials).
Click here for registration form. Print,
complete,
add specifics re: lunch or not, mail with
check to
SCCAC, PO Box 3248, Columbia, SC 29209.
Contact Brenda
Kneece
for more details.
Pre-registration due on or before May 10.
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Across my desk . . . |
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Seventy-three years and counting! The South Carolina
Christian Action Council continues to live and work
together as the visible Body of Christ, a witness for
which our Lord prayed.
Our logo, a boat with
the cross, expresses Lord Jesus Christ's sacrifice
and the ecumenical life to which he invites all
Christians.
The Gospel writer Mark tells us that after a day of
teaching, Jesus got into a boat and said to his
disciples: “Let us cross over to the other side” (Mark
4:35, NIV).
The Council's vision of the "other side?" We envision
South Carolina as a community where people of faith
unite to glorify God through worship, social justice,
peace, and mercy.
The “other side” is the place where everyone eats,
where everyone is sheltered, where everyone received
the medical treatment needed for health where neither
the poor nor the rich are victimized by the divides
between them, where the ill are tended, where justice
reigns, where peace thrives.
The "other side” is the place where every human
being recognizes the image of God in every other
human being; where followers of Jesus emulate
among the marginalized of our world his loving
acceptance for and empowerment
of those on the margins of his world.
The "other side" is where Christians--all of us--claim
and know the reunion ground of the Body of
Christ.
The "other side" is where people of all faiths
claim and know the reunion ground of the Household
of God.
As those first disciples knew, we too know the journey
to “the other side” is often stormy and uncertain.
As a voice for the powerless, we accept the turmoil
and upheaval which the Prophetic Call often brings.
We accept the derision shown often to those who
speak truth to power.
Abolitionist Fredrick Douglass said, "Those who favor
freedom yet deprecate agitation are people who want
crops without plowing the ground... rain without
thunder and lightning. Power concedes nothing
without demand and struggle. It never has and it never
will."
So we plow--and sail--on, advocating for justice,
working for peace, calling for Christian unity and inter-
religious respect and tolerance.
Get on board, there's always room for more in THIS
boat.
For a report of SCCAC activities in 2006 click here.
... that's the view from across my
desk.
Brenda Kneece, Executive
Minister
Contact
Brenda
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