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NCC offers guidelines for avoiding H1N1 influenza
The National Council of Churches Health Task Force has issued flu prevention guidelines for congregations that includes both standard hygiene activities and unusual worship practices. Members of congregations are urged to use hand sanitizers, clean door knobs and hand rails, and fill candy dishes with individually wrapped candies. But during the flu season, they are also encouraged to stop shaking hands and hugging one another during the traditional "passing of the peace." Instead, the guidelines suggest substituting "a simple nod of acknowledgement." Congregations who use disposable plastic cups for communion are well situated for evading the H1N1 and other influenza viruses. Other congregations are urged to suspend use of the common cup and the practice of "intinction" -- dipping the bread into the wine -- because of their germ-carrying potential. More.

NATO leaders get church support on nuke disarmament
Four global, regional and national ecumenical organizations have told NATO leaders that the time to continue the trend toward nuclear disarmament is now. "The present opportunity must be transformed into conclusive actions," said ecumenical leaders including NCC General Secretary Michael Kinnamon. "The new striving to abolish nuclear weapons" is a sign able to "raise hope in the world." More.

Ecumenical leaders urge action against Honduras junta
An international ecumenical delegation has met with the Organization of American States and the U.S. State Department to urge action against human rights abuses in Honduras. "My concern is that the U.S. churches have not paid enough attention to the situation in Honduras, when, in fact, the coup against a democratically elected government is a threat to the stability of Latin America as a whole," said NCC General Secretary Michael Kinnamon. More.

NCC introduces a 'Healthy Spa' tool kit for personal care
To recognize Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the NCC Eco-Justice Program is releasing a new guide to educate people of faith about chemicals in personal care products. Some chemicals are linked to breast cancer, early puberty in girls, and other health conditions. Made in the Image of God: Healthy Spa Workshop Guide and Toolkit for People of Faith examines why ensuring the safety of personal care products is a matter of faith. More.

NCC prepares study guide for new Mitch Albom book
The National Council of Churches has partnered with Mitch Albom to produce a discussion guide for his latest bestseller. Have a Little Faith, Albom�s first nonfiction venture since the phenomenal success of Tuesday�s with Morrie more than a decade ago, was released last month. The book is an interfaith story, intertwined with elements familiar in Albom�s books�love and friendship life and death. More.

Religious leaders urge Obama to make Gulf a priority
The National Council of Churches General Secretary, the Rev. Dr. Michael Kinnamon, joined more than 50 leading Christian, Jewish, and Muslim leaders in urging President Barack Obama to make poverty, climate and coastal restoration a priority in Gulf Coast communities still struggling to come back from Hurricane Katrina. The letter coincided with Mr. Obama�s first visit to New Orleans since he took office. More.

Emilio Castro honored for his opposition to Pinochet
The Rev. Dr. Emilio Castro, WCC General Secretary from 1985 to 1992, was decorated Wednesday by the government of Chile for his defense of human rights in Chile during the brutal dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet. The Orden de Bernardo O'Higgins, is Chile's commendation for non-Chilean citizens. It was bestowed on Castro by the Chilean representative to the international organizations in Geneva, Ambassador Carlos Portales. More.

Faith groups advocate green jobs for persons in poverty
Citing a shared tradition of justice and compassion, the faith community, is organizing across the country to call on government officials to create new, sustainable and green job opportunities for persons living in poverty. Thirty-four national faith organizations representing the Jewish, Christian, Muslim and Hindu communities will hold public events across the country to encourage government officials to act. More.

Presbyterian mission innovator Margaret Flory dies
Margaret Flory, 95, who created a number of seminal programs that connected Christians around the world with each other, died Oct. 1 in Asheville, N.C. "Margaret Flory is one of the most outstanding leaders of the ecumenical movement of the 20th Century,� Rubem Alves, Brazilian theologian and poet, wrote, �because her eyes had the power to see trees when they were only seeds.� More.

NCC Communicators immerse themselves in media
The NCC Communication Commission, consisting of the communications and media staff leaders of member communions and other church organizations, met in New York City September 28-30. The meeting, which was the best attended and -- according to initial evaluations, the highest rated -- commission gathering in several years -- included visits with key media brokers, including CBS, PBS, New York Times and AP. More.

Kinnamon addresses 27th Everett C. Parker Lecture
The Rev. Dr. Michael Kinnamon, NCC General Secretary, addressing the 27th annual Everett C. Parker Ethics in Telecommunications Lecture at Riverside Church, said this week that ecumenical and media leaders share a "common cause" to "promote a genuine sense of community" in today's fragmented society. The 96 year old Parker (pictured) was in the audience -- as usual. More.

NCC Governing Board renews its opposition to nukes
The National Council of Churches, which has been relatively silent about nuclear disarmament since the end of the Cold War, has firmly renewed its opposition to proliferation with a ringing resolution. The NCC Governing Board, meeting here September 21 and 22, unanimously adopted a statement developed by its Justice and Advocacy Commission called, "Nuclear Disarmament: The Time is Now." More.

NCC Women's Ministries offer fistula education program
Women�s Ministries at the National Council of Churches has announced a pilot program for young women exploring the connections between faith and action, through the lens of obstetric fistula, a birth injury affecting more than 2 million women worldwide. Sponsored by the UN Foundation, this project seeks to bring faith communities into the campaign to end fistula in this generation. Read more.

Religious leaders: health care reform an urgent priority
Religious leaders from across the religious spectrum have joined in a strongly worded declaration that current economic conditions have made health care reform an urgent priority. Signers of the declaration, which was drafted with the assistance of the National Council of Churches Health Task Force, gathered at the White House Tuesday in a "Faith Leader Summit on Health Care." More.

► Kinnamon statement on health care

Eck to address Religion Communication Congress 2010
Diana Eck, chair of the Interfaith Relations Commission of the National Council of Churches and founder and director of The Pluralism Project at Harvard University, will be plenary speaker at Religion Communication Congress 2010. Eck is the internationally known professor of Comparative Religion and Indian Studies and Frederic Wertham Professor of Law and Psychiatry in Society at Harvard University. More.

Ecumenical conference on trafficking: final report
The Ecumenical Conference on Human Trafficking began at 12:30 pm on Monday, September 29, 2008 at the Church Center for the United Nations, 777 United nations Plaza, New York, NY, 10017 and finished at 12:30 pm on Wednesday, October 1, 2008. There were 72 participants representing 15 different denominations or faith communities, 3 interfaith organizations and 7 secular organizations. The final report is here.

NCC issues brochure on dangers of Christian Zionism
"Christian Zionism" is a dangerous movement that distorts the teachings of the Church, fosters fear and hatred of Muslims and non-Western Christians, and has negative consequences for Middle East Peace. A new brochure, Why We Should Be Concerned About Christian Zionism, by the NCC (in English and Spanish) is now available as an educational tool for groups who want to share these warnings with their members. More.