Episcopal leaders are amplifying widespread calls for the Trump administration to de-escalate its deployment of federal immigration authorities to American cities and for Congress to block new Homeland Security spending after those authorities on Jan. 24 killed a second U.S. citizen in three weeks in Minnesota.
Amateur video of the latest killing shows 37-year-old Alex Pretti using his cellphone camera to record federal agents patrolling a Minneapolis street. Those agents can be seen roughing up residents at the side of the street and attacking them and Pretti with pepper spray, then tackling Pretti to the ground and, seconds later, opening fire on him.
Also See: From Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe: Death and despair do not have the last wordKristi Noem is a liar
Kristi Noem is a liar, but so is everyone else who keeps propping up the Liar in Chief.
I have written extensively for years about the corrosive effects of Donald Trump’s lies and how they are infecting entire populations of people and now the world order. And I have warned there are deadly consequences to these lies.
I am not alone. Many others — journalists and politicians and pastors — have issued similar warnings that have gone unheeded.
Murdoch paper tears into ICE Barbie and Miller after nurse killing
The Rupert Murdoch-owned Wall Street Journal blasted Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Deputy White House Chief of Staff Stephen Miller for trying to paint a Veterans Affairs nurse killed by ICE agents as a “domestic terrorist.”
The administration’s massive deployment of ICE agents to Minnesota has become “a moral and political debacle” for President Donald Trump after a second U.S. citizen, 37-year-old Alex Pretti, was shot and killed while trying to help a woman who had been pepper-sprayed by federal agents, the Journal’s editorial board wrote.
Trump’s favorite newspaper tears into his handling of nurse shooting
A typically sympathetic Murdoch‑owned outlet, the New York Post, broke from its usual stance to sharply criticize the Trump administration’s handling of the fatal shooting of ICU nurse Alex Pretti by federal agents in Minneapolis.
The day after the public execution of Alex Pretti
This is the world we’re living in now: The government puts out propaganda and attempts to destroy evidence to maintain its lies.
Alex Pretti tributes: colleagues, friends call death "cold-blooded murder"
Friends and colleagues have paid tribute to Alex Jeffrey Pretti after the 37-year-old was shot dead by federal immigration agents in Minneapolis.
Pretti, an ICU nurse and U.S. citizen, was shot and killed while attending a protest event on Saturday, January 24. His death has intensified tensions as ICE and other law enforcement agents carry out President Donald Trump‘s deportation operations in Minnesota. Now friends, colleagues and organizations associated with Pretti have taken to social media to pay tribute while also criticizing the Trump administration.
Maine Episcopalians respond to surge in immigration enforcement operations in the state
Episcopalians in the Portland-based Diocese of Maine joined thousands of faith leaders and pro-immigration advocates at rallies in Portland and Lewiston over the weekend to protest the recent surge in federal immigration authorities in the New England state.
Human warehouses should spark ‘fires of injustice’
U.S. society will be “consumed” by the “fires of injustice” if Americans remain silent about federal plans to hold huge numbers of immigrants in warehouses across the country, Rabbi Kimberly Herzog Cohen said during a clergy press conference in Dallas last Friday.
The Clergy League for Emergency Action and Response in Dallas-Fort Worth, or CLEARDFW, and Faith Commons held the livestreamed briefing Jan. 23 to decry the Trump administration’s increasingly violent immigration enforcement tactics and to generate opposition to its plans to store 9,500 human beings in a 1 million-square-foot warehouse located south of Dallas in Hutchins, Texas.
Be Willing to Learn from Gen-Z
Leslie Schumucker explains why 18,000 Gen Zers caused her to rethink her attitude toward them.
What Can Women’s Ministry Do to Address Young Adults Leaving the Church?
Both the young women who leave and those who stay voice similar needs that should anchor your women’s ministry activities.
Female Pastors: 7 Men You Should Watch Out For
Women in pastoral ministry navigate a complex landscape. They face questions about their authority, assumptions about their availability, and sometimes encounter men who confuse pastoral warmth with personal invitation. The challenges don’t always mirror what male pastors experience. They’re often different, sometimes more subtle, and occasionally more dangerous precisely because they’re unexpected.
Right Gear, Right Time
Buying tech gear for your church can be overwhelming, and with the new year upon us, you might have some hard decisions to make if you’re on a tight budget. Take heart, because any pastor worth their salt has been where you are.
The Biggest Tech Mistakes Churches Make with Volunteers
Helping someone run sound, slides, or livestreams can feel like trying to teach someone to swim by tossing them in the deep end. Church technology has amazing potential to strengthen community and extend your reach, but only when the people who serve are equipped, valued, and supported. If your volunteer experience mostly consists of crossed cables, confused faces, and quiet exits after service, you’re probably making some predictable missteps with your church tech volunteers. Let’s walk through the biggest ones and practical ways to fix them.
Ten Nonnegotiable Rules for Student Safety in Churches
Student ministry is often where rules about minors break down in the church. Student ministries don’t need fewer rules than children’s ministries. They need different rules. Though rebellion seems to be a rite of passage for many teenagers, they are far more receptive to guidance than you might think. Young people need leaders to shoot straight with them. About life. With biblical depth. We don’t need to wade in the shallows and soft peddle the Christian faith. Instead, we must shepherd our youth through the depths of Scripture and the valleys of life. Be clear and honest with them.
One sure way to confuse the younger generation is to set expectations and then not hold anyone accountable. A lack of transparency from adults is frustrating to teenagers. The younger generation tends to follow leaders who are transparent rather than distant or detached. And they want to know they’re not alone in their struggles. Consider the following best practices for building better student safety systems in our churches.
Could stained glass still have a role in modern-day mission?
When the Bible Society’s Quiet Revival report was published last year, the headlines rightly focussed on the numbers of young people being drawn to church.
But, within the report’s pages was another, perhaps surprising, finding. It was that one of the top three places for people with no religion, or non-practising Christians to encounter the Bible was while sightseeing in a cathedral or church.
This underlines the importance of churches making available good printed material and displays explaining the Christian gospel.
Yet it also may show the importance of a form of Christian communication that many modern-day evangelists may have ignored. The enduring appeal of stained glass.
Evangelism for Introverts: A Relational Approach That Doesn’t Feel Fake
If the phrase evangelism for introverts makes your stomach tighten, you are in good company. Many faithful believers love Jesus deeply but freeze at the idea of cold conversations, scripted pitches, or awkward door-to-door encounters. They want to share their faith, but they do not want to become someone they are not.
The good news is that the Bible never requires extroversion. It calls for faithfulness, love, and honest witness. Evangelism does not have to feel loud to be effective. It can be quiet, relational, and deeply authentic.
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