MC News

The Palestinian experience in the political state of Israel mirrors, in many ways, the African American experience in the United States — that’s the core message of a discussion tonight between Dr. Mitri Raheb, a Lutheran minister from Bethlehem, and Madison’s Dr. Everett Mitchell to be held at 7 pm tonight at Christ the Solid Rock Baptist Church, where Mitchell is senior pastor.

I barely knew him except for a chance encounter at the Alliant Energy Center earlier this year. But I am learning from Dominic and his family.  I am learning that each day is to be celebrated and consecrated as a blessing from God.  I am seeing how family and friends and complete strangers are capable of circling the wagons and loving the life that Dominic provided, which in turns inspires us all to try to love more.  I am seeing forgiveness and reconciliation and healing—all in the name of Dominic.

There’s no shortage of advice these days about aging—though in our culture, most of that advice seems to be about how to deny that it’s happening. Dye your hair, bleach your teeth, learn about Snapchat. Eat more antioxidants. Parker Palmer’s new book, On the Brink of Everything: Grace, Gravity, and Getting Old, isn’t like that. The Quaker writer and activist focuses instead on the spiritual gifts of aging that our youth-obsessed culture has largely ignored.

Cincinnati Reds second baseman Scooter Gennett is fresh off making his first appearance in MLB’s Midsummer Classic, and he credits God for getting him to where he is right now. Gennett began his Major League career with the Milwaukee Brewers back in 2013. Gennett posted a batting line of .279/.318/.420 over the course of four seasons with the Brewers, per Baseball Reference. An article in Sports Spectrum on Tuesday details many of the times Gennett has spoken openly about his faith and devotion to God.

Their journeys from the trauma of youth, through criminal pasts and prison, to personal transformation make them uniquely positioned to help others returning to the community from incarceration. Madison-area Urban Ministry has offered an array of services to individuals and families affected by the criminal justice system, including prison re-entry programming, since 1999. At the time, the concept of peer support didn’t really exist, but the nonprofit has long tried to connect those returning from incarceration to others who have been on that journey.

La Salle, Minn. — For 100 years, Lutherans in this farming community on the Minnesota prairie have come to one church to share life’s milestones. They have been baptized, confirmed and married at La Salle Lutheran. Their grandparents, parents and siblings lie in the church cemetery next door. But the old friends who gathered here early one recent Sunday never imagined that they would one day be marking the death of their own church. When La Salle Lutheran locks its doors in August, it will become the latest casualty among fragile Minnesota churches either closing, merging or praying for a…

Brewers first baseman Jesús Aguilar hit his National-League-leading 23rd home run Monday night and is very much in the early conversations for MVP. But he’s not on the NL’s All Star Roster. Not yet, at least. And you can help change it. Read more of this story.  

Nearly 15,000 children in Dane County live in poverty, one in six Dane County children face hunger and about 800 Madison Metropolitan School District students are homeless. In the face of those statistics, local nonprofit Selfless Ambition announced today that it will partner with Second Harvest Food Bank and the Madison Metropolitan School District to place food pantries in schools with the highest levels of poverty, beginning with Glendale Elementary this fall.

A church that has operated out of Chavez Elementary School since 2013 could soon have a home of its own – and a chance to share it. Redeemer City Church pastor Casey Johnson told the Star the church is set to take over the former Steven’s Design building, 5356 King James Way, though it still needs some approvals from the City of Fitchburg’s Plan Commission and Common Council. Johnson said the church has been looking for building space in the Fitchburg area for about a year, and “wanted to be in an area that lacked resources,” like building space on…

Dane County will begin working with Madison-area Urban Ministry (MUM), Nehemiah Center for Urban Leadership Development, Anesis Center for Marriage and Family Therapy and the Jessie Crawford Recovery Center to help inmates who are transitioning into the community from the Dane County Jail, Dane County Executive Director Joe Parisi announced today.