The Lead

July 8th has been designated Millennium Development Goals Sunday in the Episcopal Church celebrating the mid-point of the UNs MDG goal to reduce extreme poverty in the world by 2015.Materials to celebrate a special Millennium Development Goals Sunday include a complete worship service with sermon and prayers of the people, bulletin inserts and background information. Curriculum for children and youth are also included with PowerPoint presentations of MDGs and another with an MDG atlas from the World Bank. Gods Mission in the World, a study guide provided by the Episcopal Church Office of Government Relations was used for adult curriculum.

These materials are available for your use on July 8 or at any other time. They were prepared by the Diocese of Texas and are available here [PDF].

[Episcopal News Service] Episcopal Migration Ministries (EMM), on behalf of the Episcopal Church, carries out the ministry it began more than 60 years ago to relieve the burden of the world’s suffering through refugee resettlement and advocacy. World Refugee Day was established by the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees to commemorate the spirit and courage of refugees each year on June 20. EMM asks parishes and communities within the Episcopal Church to join in remembering the millions of refugees around the world who have fled persecution, war and violence to seek better lives. In an interview, EMM director Richard Parkins speaks about the significance of World Refugee Day and the work of EMM, which has a network of 33 affiliate offices in 27 dioceses, along with ecumenical and interfaith partners, many congregations, and countless volunteers. A video stream of Parkins’ interview is available at http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81231_ENG_HTM.htm Visit http://www.episcopalchurch.org/emm to learn more about EMM.