Sierra Leone Bans Christmas, New Years’ Celebrations to Prevent Further Spread of Ebola

by | Dec 15, 2014 | Feature, Headline News |

RNS EBOLA CHRISTMAS

(RNS) The Rev. Pauline Njiru of Kenya displays a poster showing how Ebola can be transmitted. (Photo Credit: Fredrick Nzwili)

NAIROBI, Kenya (RNS) The government of Sierra Leone banned public Christmas and New Year’s celebrations because they may exacerbate efforts to eradicate the Ebola virus.

President Ernest Bai Koroma said that despite immense help from the international community, the number of people infected with the virus continues to rise.

Ebola infections in Sierra Leone recently surpassed those of Liberia and Guinea.

“The illness started at the border and now is in the cities and close to 2,000 people have died from the outbreak,” Koroma told reporters. He asked traditional leaders and tribal chiefs to quit performing rituals in hopes that will help curb Ebola.

The majority of Sierra Leone’s 6 million people are Muslim, but Christmas is widely celebrated among the 27 percent of people who are Christian.

Officials said soldiers will be deployed on the streets and people are advised to stay at home with their families.

Ebun James-Dekam, general secretary of Sierra Leone’s Council of Churches, said Christians should be allowed to pray in churches on Christmas and New Year’s Day, and then go back home.

“If we have a quiet Christmas, that does not make us less believers,” she said. “We must break the chain by avoiding body contacts.”

Meanwhile, Nigeria’s Roman Catholic Church lifted the ban on shaking hands and receiving the Communion wafer on the tongue. It also ordered the refilling water fonts at church entrances.

The practices were suspended in August over Ebola. The World Health Organization declared Nigeria Ebola-free in October.

Copyright 2014 Religion News Service. All rights reserved. No part of this transmission may be reproduced without written permission.

Remembering Ana: Sandy Hook, Two Years Later

by | Dec 13, 2014 | Headline News | 1 comment

My daughter Ana was born on a Tuesday morning in early April 2006. Her life was ended in her first grade classroom on a Friday morning in mid-December—six years, eight months, and ten days later. Despite the efforts of many to identify and debate the issues surrounding the Sandy Hook School shooting, an awful reality remains—there has been a proliferation of heinous, senseless acts of violence in America—acts that have ravaged my family and the families of so many others across our country. Much attention has been paid to the way in which my precious Ana died, but my album attempts to paint the picture of how she lived—lovingly, faithfully, and joyfully. In a way, my recording also represents a reaction. Not a reaction to the discourse sparked by the events of December 14, 2012, but rather the reaction of a father after having witnessed a miracle—the miracle of his daughter’s beautiful life.

The songs I chose for this recording are also particularly meaningful. Ana herself is heard singing, both on “Saludos”—Spanish for “greetings—, recorded during a 2011 Christmas family gathering in Puerto Rico—and on “Come Thou Almighty King,” accompanied by her older brother from his first-year piano lesson book. Ana loved the musical Annie and would sing “Maybe” a cappella, especially on car trips. In the care is where we often heard Natalie Grant’s acoustic version of “Your Great Name” over the radio. “Ana’s Way”, “When I Come Home”, and “Little Voices” speak about Ana’s life, a father’s hope through grief, and a humble suggestion as to where we can go from here as a society. The photo of my children that appears in this article inspired the compositions “Last Summer” and “Seventh Candle,” both written in the early spring of 2014 on what should have been Ana’s seventh birthday. “Prayer is my setting of the biblical text my mom taught me as a youngster and, in turn, I taught my children at bedtime. Jackie McLean showed me the melody of “Where is Love?” in 1990, on the first day we met at the Artists Collective. I was 15 years old and decided that day music would be my life’s work.

Within my album there is an assertion that, despite the seemingly unbearable weight of loss, there is still lots of beauty all around and much to be thankful for in this life. I’m grateful that my dad reminded me of this fact in the days after Ana was killed because from that moment, my focus gradually shifted from inward to outward, eventually resulting in the album. I’m thankful for the important work of my wife Nelba initiated in creating The Ana Grace Project of Klingberg Family Centers as well as the access to the arts the Artists Collective has provided for generations of children and families. And I’m thankful for the opportunity to share this music and a bit of Ana’s beautiful life with you.

Urban Faith is grateful to Jimmy Greene for his permission to reprint these beautiful words. You can find a copy of Jimmy Greene’s album, Beautiful Life, here.

Churches Form Alliance for “Black Lives Matter”

by | Dec 12, 2014 | Feature, Headline News |

It has been almost two weeks since the grand jury’s decision not to indict Daniel Pantaleo in the killing of Eric Garner was announced and nearly three weeks since the same announcement was made not to indict Darren Wilson in the killing of Mike Brown. For almost three weeks many in the nation have expressed their disagreement with the verdicts via protests, die-ins, and economic boycotts. The people who have gathered in protest are ethnically and racially diverse, young and old, and from a variety of religious traditions. But this Sunday, a large religious group will gather in their own space and way to draw attention to the tragedies that have beset the nation recently.

The African Methodist Episocopal church, in conjunction with the Church of God in Christ, will participate in “Black Lives Matter” via “National Black Solidarity Sunday.”  Bishop John Bryant, bishop of the fourth district of the AME church, is encouraging all members to dress in all black on Sunday morning in order to affirm the value of black lives. Bryant and other clergy are tasked with speaking to their congregations about the events of the last few weeks and reminding them that “right will win.” Finally, during worship service it is asked that those who will, approach the altar to pray that “God will intervene to end the demonic pattern of killing unarmed Blacks, and that God will give us faith and courage ‘for the facing of these days.'”

Like many organized demonstrations of this nature, this campaign is picking up viral steam with individual AME members and clergy forwarding it on social media, It is picking up so much steam that other denominations are joining the movement, most recently the Assemblies of God. Superintendent of the Assemblies of God, George O. Wood, is also encouraging AG churches to join with the Church of God in Christ for “Black Lives Matter.” In much the same way that Bishop Bryant has encouraged AME churches, Wood is encouraging AG churches. But Wood is not in denial about how the church may be split on the issues of the non-indictment of Darren Wilson and Daniel Panteleo. Demographically speaking, the Assemblies of God church is 59.2% White, 21.7% Hispanic, 9.8% Black, 4.3% Asian/Pacific Islander, and 1.4% Native American. Given that, a split of opinions seems inevitable, but Wood was diligent to state that differing opinions should not stop people from affirming the value of black lives. Of this he said,

“I recognize that some of you may find my request to observe Black Lives Matter Sunday controversial because of deep disagreement over the Michael Brown and Eric Garner cases. I do not wish to be controversial or to bring further division within the Church or within America. We have enough of that already.

Rather, I wish for us to find points of unity and cooperation across racial lines. We can take steps together in that direction by affirming the value of black lives and by praying for unity in our churches and our society this Sunday, December 14.”

And so on Sunday, the day known as the most segregated day of the week, an alliance will form between several historically black denominations and a predominantly white one to spread the message that “Black Lives Matter.” Their joining together will be a reminder that “Black Lives Matters” can’t just be the concern of the black community, but of the world. And if the church is not at the forefront of this movement, it is unclear what hope we have for change.