  
 Christian Unity
Justice Ministries
Local Ecumenism
Disaster
Recovery Program
Rural
Life
Peacemaking
& Racism
MEMBER
CHURCHES
African Methodist Episcopal Church
13th Episcopal District
Kentucky Conference
West Kentucky Conference
African Methodist Episcopal Zion
Church
Mid-West
Episcopal District
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
Kentucky Region
Christian Methodist Episcopal Church
2nd Episcopal District
Cumberland Presbyterian Church
Episcopal Church
Diocese
of Kentucky
Diocese
of Lexington
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
Indiana/Kentucky Synod
Presbyterian Church U.S.A.
Synod of Living Waters
Mid-Kentucky
Presbytery
Transylvania
Presbytery
Western Kentucky Presbytery
Roman Catholic Church
Diocese of Covington
Diocese of Lexington
Archdiocese of Louisville
Diocese of Owensboro
United Church of Christ
Indiana/Kentucky Conference
Ohio Conference
United Methodist Church
Kentucky Annual Conference
Memphis Conference
Red Bird Missionary Conference
CONGREGATIONAL
MEMBERS
Central Baptist Church, Lexington
Immanuel Baptist Church, Frankfort
Reformed Church in America
Union Church in Berea Kentucky
OBSERVER PARTICIPANTS
Berea Friends
Meeting
Lexington Friends Meeting
The Kentucky
Baptist Fellowship
Church World Service
The Salvation Army
ECUMENICAL PARTNERS
Church Women United
Church World Service
Kentuckiana Interfaith Community
Northern Kentucky Interfaith Commission
Oikocredit USA
Paducah Cooperative Ministry
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 To continue to serve
as a reasoned voice of Christian compassion, justice, and peace--
we need your support. We must generate 50% of our income from
individuals like you, (or as special gifts from groups within
local congregations that have their own budgets—women’s
fellowship groups, men’s fellowships, or youth groups).
Would you consider taking up a special collection in a group,
carving out a regular donation as a part of the budget of a group
in your church, or making a personal donation to the work of Council?
Click
here to make a secure
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Win $1000.00 to help you become a better steward
of God's creation
 Click
here to learn how. The contest begins
April 22, 2008 and ends January 1, 2009. The winners will be
announced by the Kentucky Council of Churches' Program Unit on
Local Economies and the Environment on April 22, 2009. Only one
grand prize of $1,000.00 will be awarded, but each entry will
receive a small prize.
Give
Greenly This Year
Consider some of these options for upcoming holidays:
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2006/12/green_gift_guid_1.php
http://www.environmentaldefense.org/article.cfm?contentID=5616
http://www.nrdc.org/cities/living/ggift.asp
http://www.greengiftguide.com/
Or make a donation in someone's honor or in someone's memory to
further the work of the Kentucky Council of Churches.
Councils Offer Justice Action Networks
If your congregation, diocese, presbytery, conference, association,
synod, or region is a member of the Kentucky Council of Churches,
you can link to this website with graphics that are available
at www.kycouncilofchurches.org/Graphics.html. You may also put a "Helping
to Make Our Voices Heard" box (like the one at the top of
this page) on your site, or a smaller link to our KY Justice
Action Alert System by going to capwiz.com/kychurches/remotecontent/. If you are also a member of
the National Council of Churches, you can "Give an Inch"
on your website to post a websticker like the one above by going
to www.faithfulamerica.org/inch/.
Recycle Your Cell Phone
 Donated cell phones are sold to a company
that recycles them. The money that they get for the phones is
used to purchase calling cards that they send to soldiers outside
the US. Learn more at http://www.cellphonesforsoldiers.com/
Other Sources of Very Useful Information
 Click
here to find additional sources of
important information.
2007 Annual Assembly Sermon Is Online
You may now read the full text of Rev. Michael Livingston's Sermon
from the most recent Kentucky Council of Churches' Annual Assembly.
Don't Forget That You Can Check the KCC Calendar
 Visit
the KCC Calendar to check meeting times, locations and dates
by clicking here. You may even subscribe to this calendar by
clicking here.
An Unforgettable Annual Assembly
 The 60th Annual Assembly of the
Kentucky Council of Churches was held October 18 2007. We give
thanks to God that no one was hurt and that we evacuated the
sanctuary safely before the bell tower fell through the roof
and ceiling, tearing down the beautiful golden oak balcony surrounding
the worship space. Click here
for more information.
Get Your Childrens' Sabbath Materials Here
 Click
here
to get your National Observance of Children’s Sabbaths® Manual. In its 16th year, this resource is a proven
asset to any faith community working for peace and justice. In
addition to providing worship and educational materials, direct
service activities, and social justice initiatives for your congregation’s
National
Observance of Children’s Sabbaths® Celebration to be held October 19-21, 2007,
the manual offers assistance year round.
Fear
and Intimidation in KY
Media in Western Kentucky this week have contacted Kentucky Commission
on Human Rights (KCHR) Executive Director John Johnson about
alleged recent activity of the Ku Klux Klan in Morgantown, Owensboro
and Bowling Green.
According to a Western
Kentucky Public Radio reporter, the KKK in the last few weeks
has been leaving business-type cards in front of residents’
properties near their mailboxes saying, “I was watching
over your neighborhood last night while you slept.”
Yesterday, a recipient
of one of the cards called the KCHR to report that on one street
block, residents believed only individuals recognized as supporting
civil rights work and black families received the cards. The
caller expressed feelings of fear and intimidation.
In response to these
incidents, KCHR Executive Director John Johnson states: “The
KKK has historically promoted hatred and divisiveness, and this
type of organization is a dying breed. The overwhelming majority
of Kentucky’s people are striving for understanding, tolerance
and unity, and our state’s young people deserve better than
the legacy a group like the Ku Klux Klan would attempt to force
upon them.”
Executive Director Johnson
urges anyone who feels he or she is a victim of fear and intimidation
to contact local law authorities immediately for protection.
He further advises that if residents receive this type material
inside their mailboxes or directly on their properties, to contact
the FBI to report possible violations of federal law.
“If you believe
you may be a victim of illegal discrimination because of your
race, color, gender, age, disability, national origin or religion,”
Mr. Johnson continues, “please contact the Kentucky Commission
on Human Rights at 800.292.5566 or your local human rights commission
partners in your area to file a complaint.”
Health Minitries
A new report funded by The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation shows
that 70% of churches count health ministries as a priority. To
read the entire report, click on www.councilofchurches.org/healthsurvey/.
Daily Yonder
Rural America has a sharp
new e-magazine, called Daily Yonder. Dee Davis of Whitesburg,
Ky., and his staff at Center for Rural Strategies, hopes this
will heighten the visibility of rural issues and needs, as well
as provide a platform for journalists who live in and love the
small towns and open spaces of America. Maybe some of our communions'
stories and initiatives could find an outlet in Daily Yonder.
And maybe it could be a prototype for how to showcase rural constituencies
in our communions? Take a look.
National Religious Campaign Against Torture
The National Council of
Churches is encouraging congregations to support the work of
the National Religious Campaign Against Torture. Click here for
more information.
Parish Nursing Kits Available
 You may obtain Start-Up Kits for your
congregation if you either have a health ministry/parish nurse
program or if you are interested in beginning such a ministry!
The kit includes a number of items including a resource manual,
a drug book, a stethoscope, three sizes of blood pressure cuffs
and, recently added, a Healthometer scale. For additional information
or for an appointment, e-mail beatrice.keller@nortonhealthcare.org.
Check out this website
Click here to access some nice research from Hartford Seminary.
Prison Ministry Newsletter Online
 Following
the very successful Conference on Prison and Jail Ministries
on Sept. 30, 2006 an on-line newsletter has been started where
people and congregations interested in doing prison ministries
may share information and learn from others.
Go to: http://prisonministrykentucky.blogspot.com/
Register to Vote
 Don't forget that you can do
many things at http://capwiz.com/kychurches like contact you
local officials, write to your local media outlets, and register to vote.
It
Is Now Easier to Support the Work of the KCC
 Would you rather support the
work of the Kentucky Council of Churches by giving $12.50 a month
instead of $150.00 per year in a one-lump sum? Would it be easier
for you to give $25 a month instead of $300.00 all at once? Click
here to learn how easy it is to make automatic, recurring
contributions using your credit card. One quick phone call is
all it takes. You may also use our secure online form if you wish.
Compassion Sunday
 National
leaders of religious communions came to Kentucky to call for
unity in our response to the victims of hurricane Katrina. THE
INTERNET WEBCAST OF THIS EVENT IS NOW AVAILABLE HERE. Please schedule a viewing of these clips from
these speakers with your congregation. This event was featured
on a national broadcast of the PBS show Religion and Ethics Newsweekly.
What Religious Groups Are Largest in Kentucky?
 The Glenmary Research Center
publishes information about Religious Congregations &
Membership in the United States. See what this data reveals
about Kentucky in this pdf
file.
Read The Statements About Full Communion by His
Holiness Benedict XVI
 "I would like to thank the
Lord who has blessed us with his mercy and instilled in us sincere
willingness to make his prayer our own: ut unum sint.
He has thus made us increasingly aware of the importance of moving
forward towards full communion.... Duc in altum! Let us
go forward with hope.... I feel strongly the need to reassert
the irreversible commitment taken by the Second Vatican Council
and pursued in recent years, also thanks to the activity of the
Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity. The path to
the full communion desired by Jesus for his disciples entails,
with true docility to what the Spirit says to the Churches, courage,
gentleness, firmness and hope, in order to reach our goal. Above
all, it requires persistent prayer and with one heart, in order
to obtain from the Good Shepherd the gift of unity for his flock....
I ask you all to join with me in setting an example of that spiritual
ecumenism which, through prayer, can bring about our communion
without obstacles." Read the Pope's first statement to Delegates
of the Orthodox Churches, of the Oriental Orthodox Churches and
of the Ecclesial Communities of the West here.
You may read his second statement, in Cologne,Germany, Aug. 19,
2005 here.
Intercom Blog
 The
Executive Director of the Kentucky Council of Churches has launched
a "blog."
We want our former Intercom readers to be informed about church
life and to continue to receive news and editorials about our
life together. It will include Dr. Kemper's insights on religion,
politics, theology, and ecumenical life. Nancy Jo would welcome
you as a reader of her blog, and hopes that it will be helpful
to you in your life as a faithful citizen. The URL of her blog
is www.kycouncilofchurches.org/intercom.html. Click here
to check it out, then visit here to learn how to subscribe for an RSS feed!
Join
With Others to Make A Difference
 Learn how you can be a part of
groups that are working to fight racism, attempting to be peacemakers,
striving for environmental justice, and are concerned about rural
life issues. Click here
to follow your passion and make a difference in Kentucky.
As Service Women and Men Are Away and As They
Come Home...
 Kimberly Hoare of Yale Divinity
School has prepared a new annotated bibliography of resources
that will help our churches provide pastoral care to families
of persons serving in the military. She has agreed to make this
information available for our use. Please click here for an html
version of this resource, or click here for an MS
Word version
of this useful bibliography.
Worship and Ministry Resources for this Time
of War
The KCC is able to offer worship
resources for this time of war and its devastating aftermath.
Please click here
for access to these resources and to learn more about how Churches
in KY can respond to this war. As perhaps never before in our
lifetimes, our churches and our communities are going to need
moral guidance and spiritual support.
Christian
Unity Curricular Materials are Available
Representatives from ten Christian denominations
have come together to launch a new ministry project. Forty-four
ecumenical leaders from Kentucky have now completed work on curriculum
materials about Christian unity. These materials were designed
for use as a four-hour workshop and include a written Leader's
Guide with interactive video segments. This curriculum, entitled
One in the Bond of Love, is now available to every Christian
congregation and parish in the Commonwealth.
We've Moved
The offices of the Kentucky Council
of Churches are now located at 1500 Leestown Road, Suite 108 Lexington, KY 40511.
Our telephone and fax numbers will remain the same as before.
Our office hours are 8:00am-3:00pm Monday through Friday.
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