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Saturday, July 4, 2026
Independence Day Letter
Sacred Worth, Shared Freedom
A Pastoral Letter for the 250th Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men (sic) are created equal, that they are endowed
by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit
of Happiness. From the Declaration of Independence, July 4 th , 1776
Beloved People of God and Dear Fellow Americans,
As the United States marks the 250th anniversary of the founding document of our great nation,
we find ourselves standing at a sacred intersection of gratitude, memory, repentance and hope.
This significant occasion absolutely invites celebration, but not a shallow celebration that ignores
the wounds of history or the struggles of the present. It calls us to give thanks for the promise of
liberty while also asking whether that promise has been shared fully, protected faithfully, and
extended courageously to all citizens and those who desire to become US citizens.
As Reformed Catholics and US citizens, we approach this national milestone with both love and
honesty. We give thanks for the ideals that have inspired generations: equality, liberty,
democracy, freedom of conscience, and the conviction that government must be accountable to
the people. We give thanks for the countless persons who have crossed oceans, borders, deserts,
and generations of struggle to help build this nation. We give thanks for immigrants who chose
this country, workers who sustained it, veterans who served it, teachers who formed it,
organizers who challenged it, and ordinary people whose daily faithfulness has helped America
become more fully itself.
Yet mature love does not require denial. True patriotism is not the claim that one’s country is
“great” or perfect. True patriotism is caring enough to help a nation become its best self,
starting with our neighbors and the least among us. The American story contains courage and
contradiction, beauty and brutality, aspiration and exclusion. Our Declaration of Independence
spoke of equality while slavery remained protected. The nation praised liberty while Indigenous
peoples were displaced, Black people were enslaved and segregated, women were denied full
civic participation, immigrants were scapegoated and workers were exploited.
This anniversary therefore cannot be only a happy birthday party for our nation. It must
also be an examination of conscience.
The promise of America has always been larger than America’s practice. Throughout these past
250 years, abolitionists, suffragists, civil rights leaders, labor organizers, Indigenous people,
immigrants, disability rights advocates, LGBTQIA+ activists, clergy, faith communities and
various movements for justice have insisted that liberty must become more than a word spoken
by the powerful. It must become a lived reality for those most at risk.
Our faith compels us to say clearly: Every person is sacred. Every life has inherent worth and
dignity. Freedom is not truly freedom when it is selective. Democracy cannot survive if some
people are treated as disposable, dangerous, invisible or less worthy of protection.
In this moment, we are especially mindful of LGBTQIA+ persons, particularly transgender and
gender-expansive people, who are facing escalating rhetoric, public humiliation, legal attacks,
threats to health care, and spiritual violence disguised as religious conviction. We bishops and
religious leaders reject every effort to use faith as a weapon against God’s beloved, in the
United States and everywhere.
We are mindful of immigrants, migrants, refugees, asylum seekers, and undocumented neighbors
who have too often been unjustly targeted, detained, separated from families, denied due
process, or treated as threats rather than human beings. Many came to the USA seeking safety,
work, freedom, and/or a future for their children. Their dignity is not diminished by their
paperwork or lack thereof. Their humanity is not subject to political convenience. A nation built
by immigrants must never forget the sacred courage of those who journey in hope.
We are mindful of the unhoused and housing-insecure, who are often criminalized for poverty
rather than sheltered with compassion. No person or family should be treated as a public
nuisance because they lack a safe place to sleep. The measure of a society is not found in how
comfortably the powerful live, but in whether the vulnerable are protected, housed, fed and seen.
We are mindful of Black, Brown, Indigenous, Asian, Pacific Islander and other individuals or
communities harmed by racism and white supremacy. We are mindful of people with disabilities
whose freedom requires accessibility and inclusion. We are mindful of workers denied fair
wages, health care, safety and rest. We are mindful of women and all people whose bodily
autonomy and health care are threatened. We are mindful of religious minorities and people of
no religious affiliation who deserve freedom of conscience without coercion by Christian
nationalists or any other form of religious domination. We are mindful of those impacted by
addiction, incarceration, mental illness, violence, and social abandonment.
The Declaration of Independence’s promise must be measured not by how it sounds in
ceremonies or sound bites, but by how it protects the people who are most easily ignored.
The Gospel of Jesus Christ does not permit us and our fellow Christians to separate prayer from
public responsibility. Jesus did not proclaim good news as an abstraction. He touched bodies, fed
crowds, welcomed outcasts, confronted hypocrisy, and announced liberation to those held
captive by systems of exclusion and fear.
Therefore, on this 250th anniversary of the founding document of democracy in the USA
and elsewhere, we call the Reformed Catholic Church and all Catholic/Christian churches
to renewed public witness.
We call our parishes, missions, clergy, lay leaders, and communities to create visibly safe and
affirming spaces where all people can bring their whole authentic selves before God. “Welcome”
must be more than a word on a sign; It must be embodied in language, leadership, pastoral care,
worship, education, accessibility and courageous advocacy.
We call our faith communities to practice trauma-informed ministry. Many who come to the
Church carry wounds from domestic violence, racism, poverty, family separation, homo- or
transphobia, religious condemnation and/or social abandonment. Trauma-informed care is not
an optional skill for pastors. It is a moral and spiritual imperative.
We call all people of faith in the USA to resist the aberration of Christian nationalism and every
ideology that confuses domination with discipleship. No nation or political party “owns” the
Gospel. Our loyalty to Christ requires us to seek the common good, defend the vulnerable, tell the
truth, and refuse the temptation to turn the Gospel or our faith into a tool of exclusion.
We call all people of conscience to defend democracy by defending human dignity. Voting rights,
free expression, public education, access to health care, immigrant justice, housing justice, racial
justice, labor rights, reproductive health, LGBTQIA+ and marriage equality, and freedom of
conscience are not isolated concerns. They are woven together in the fabric of a society that
either honors its citizens’ sacred worth or betrays it.
We call our communities to embrace joy as resistance. Movements for justice cannot survive on
outrage alone. Pride, music, worship, friendship, shared meals, storytelling, recreation and
celebration are not distractions from liberation. They are signs that fear has not won. Joy declares
that the people whom hatred has tried to erase are still here, still beloved, and still building a
hopeful future.
We also call for rest, nourishment, and healing. The work before us is great, but urgency must not
consume the bodies and spirits of those who labor for justice. Rest is resistance. Healing is holy.
Community care is part of the work of freedom.
As we remember 250 years of the American story, we do so with gratitude for what has been
noble, repentance for what has been harmful, and hope for what remains possible. The American
experiment is unfinished, but it is still worth believing in when we are willing to tell the truth,
repair what has been broken, and widen the circle of belonging.
The next chapter of this nation will not be written by nostalgia; it will be written by the choices
we make now. It will be written in how we treat the immigrant at the border, the transgender
child in the classroom, the unhoused neighbor on the street, the worker without a living wage,
the impoverished family seeking health care, the vulnerable elder person living alone, the person
being released from prison, those who have been impacted by gun violence, and every person
whose dignity may be debated by others but is already known to God.
This is our charge. This is our sacred work. This is the freedom we are called to share.
May God bless the citizens of these United States of America with truth, humility, courage and
compassion. May God strengthen us to love our country honestly, serve our neighbors faithfully,
and build a future where liberty is not the privilege of some but the birthright of all.
Given by the Bishops and Board of Directors of the Reformed Catholic Church
July 4 th , 2026
Link to classroom
Hello all. This post is for us to have an easier way to go to classroom to login with the account I made for you.
Hint: GodisLove
Sunday, June 28, 2026
Saturday, June 20, 2026
Ordination weekend
Friday, June 19, 2026
Know the Voice of the Holy Spirit
I was asked a question that I could not fully answer by putting into words. I find that when this happens I say a prayer in my heart asking to be led. I was asked this question on Monday and I am writing down my revelation today, which is Wednesday. My sharing of this detail, my actions right now in writing this first paragraph, is also part of the answer.
The question in question was;
“How do I know the Holy Spirit is talking to me and not my own thoughts I am coming up with?”
My best answer at the time was; “it is a feeling that helps me to know and I am aware that is a shallow unsatisfying answer to give you.”
It was at that time that my soul sent my spirit on a quest to find a way for the answer to come to me. The answer was not a new discovery for me but something I had acquired during my formation studies. It was also something I had felt most of my life but had not known how to put into words, instead it was during formation that I learned how to. It has become such a part of me that I needed to review my formation studies to find the words again.
I can distinguish that the Holy Spirit is speaking to me or if it is my own thoughts by my pleasure energy. When the Holy Spirit is talking to me I get very excited and happy and want to share it with the world. When it is my own thoughts my pleasure energy is, to be blunt, more selfish or private. I may share it but only with a person or two. It is the same if the Holy Spirit is calling me to action, I feel it like a river current that I can not fight against. It is a sacrifice, a sacred act, that I am happy (although sometimes a bit intrepid) to do. My own personal decisions of action are more self serving. That does not mean that my personal thoughts or actions are negative or badly selfish, it is just how I can tell when the Holy Spirit is calling to me.
Naturally we must take time to recognize when the devil is trying to influence us. I then go back to that selfish feeling. I find that when I have to go to extremes to justify my own desire or way to myself, then I examine my conscience. If it is from the devil, then the feeling does not last. If it is from the Holy Spirit, then the feeling does not go away. It stays and many times it grows. The feeling from the devil may come and go or be momentarily intense but burn out quickly. A message from the Holy Spirit withstands the test of time because God is patient and is on a different time scale. The devil is like a scam call or phishing message trying to push you into a quick decision or action (which many times is followed by quick regret).
I do not know that this explanation will work for everyone, but I hope it can help anyone.
Father's Day Letter
Letter from RCC
June 21st, 2026 Dear Siblings—and Fathers--in Christ, As we celebrate Father's Day in the USA and several other countries, we give thanks for the many fathers, grandfathers and father figures who have helped shape our lives. Some taught us through their words, but many taught us through their example—through ordinary acts of love, sacrifice, perseverance and care that became lasting lessons. For many, a father or grandfather was the one who taught practical skills and important values: honesty, responsibility, kindness, and perseverance. The lessons that remain with us longest are often not those we were told, but those we witnessed. Scripture reminds us that God is loving, compassionate, patient, and faithful. The psalmist writes, "As a father has compassion for his children, so the Lord has compassion for those who fear him" (Psalm 103:13). While no human parent can perfectly reflect God's love, fathers and grandfathers are given the sacred opportunity to help others experience something of that divine care. Children often form their earliest understanding of God through the people who love them. When fathers model patience, children learn patience. When they demonstrate integrity, humility, forgiveness and compassion, they teach lessons that can guide a lifetime. The mystery of the Most Holy Trinity offers an important vision for family life. God is not isolation but communion—Father/Creator, Son/Redeemer, and Holy Spirit/Sanctifier united in perfect love. Families are called to reflect that same spirit of relationship, mutual respect, and self-giving love. Authentic fatherhood is not rooted in domination or control but in service, presence, and shared life. Because of this, fathers are called to be spiritual leaders—along with their spouses or co-parents-- within their homes. Through prayer, participation in the life of the Church, conversations about faith and daily witness, they help nurture the spiritual growth of their families. Children need more than material support; they need examples of faith, hope, and love. When fathers are present and engaged they help create homes where faith can flourish. The Gospel presents us with the model of Jesus, who welcomed children, listened to the overlooked, welcomed the outcast and taught that true greatness is found in service. Fathers who seek to follow Christ are called to embody those same values. The measure of fatherhood is not status or authority but the willingness to love generously, listen attentively, forgive readily and serve faithfully. Saint Paul encourages us: "Do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up with the training and instruction of God" (Ephesians 6:4). In a world that can often be harsh and divided, fathers have the opportunity to create spaces of safety, encouragement, and hope. Children may forget many words, but they rarely forget who was present for them during life's important moments. Similarly, grandfathers convey the stories and wisdom of previous generations to their grandchildren. That being said, we recognize that Father's Day can be difficult for some. Not every experience of fatherhood has been marked by love, acceptance and support. Some carry wounds caused by absence, abuse, neglect or broken relationships. Others grieve fathers, grandfathers and father figures who have died. To all who carry such burdens, the Reformed Catholic Church extends compassion and prayer. The Gospel assures us that God's love is greater than every human failure. As the psalmist declares: "Though my father and mother forsake me, God will receive me" (Psalm 27:10). God's love remains constant, and healing always remains possible. We also wish to honor those who live the vocation of fatherhood beyond biology or even gender: adoptive and foster fathers, stepfathers, godfathers, uncles, mentors, teachers, coaches, clergy and countless other “fathers” whose guidance and care have changed lives. They remind us that fatherhood is ultimately determined not by genetics but by love. As fathers, grandfathers and father figures seek to live their vocation, may they draw strength from the divine love of God. May Saint Joseph--faithful guardian of the Holy Family--intercede for them, and may God bless them abundantly. With gratitude for all those who nurture, guide and love their children, we offer our prayers and blessing. Happy Father’s Day! The Bishops and Board of Directors of the Reformed Catholic Church reformedcatholic.org
Thursday, June 18, 2026
Sunday, June 14, 2026
Friday, June 12, 2026
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