Marching Donations Till End of Year
As we are seeking to reach our ministry goals here at the end of 2024, we are excited to share that all donations to Renewed Heart Ministries for the remainder of year will be matched! Every dollar you give will have twice the impact, helping us further expand the work of Renewed Heart Ministries in 2025. Join us in making a difference—together, we can maximize our collective impact!
We want to take this moment to express our heartfelt gratitude to all of our supporters for your invaluable role in the Renewed Heart Ministry community and for your dedication to our mission of fostering love, justice, compassion, and healing. Your support is the bedrock of our work. Your support empowers us to do what we do. At a time when ministries like ours are being asked to achieve more with fewer resources, your support is incredibly important, and we want to simply say thank you. Whether in our larger society or within our local faith communities, Renewed Heart Ministries remains committed to advocating for change, working towards a world that is inclusive, just, and safe for everyone, and being a source of love in our world. From all of us here at Renewed Heart Ministries, thank you for your generous support. We deeply appreciate each and every one of our supporters.
If you’d like to join them in supporting our work, please go to renewedheartministries.com and click on “Donate.”
We are excited to announce the return of our annual Shared Table event!
This year, we invite you to become one of our monthly sustaining partners for 2025. By selecting the “Check this box to make it a monthly recurring donation” option when you donate online, you’ll receive a special thank-you gift: a handmade Renewed Heart Ministries Shared Table Pottery Bowl crafted by Crystal and Herb.
Becoming a monthly sustaining partner helps RHM plan and budget for our ministry projects throughout the year. To sign up, simply visit renewedheartministries.com/donate and choose an automated recurring monthly donation of any amount. If you prefer using PayPal, you can also select the “Make this a monthly donation” option. As a token of our appreciation, we’ll be sending out these beautiful pottery bowls to our all of monthly partners at the start of the new year. Our hope is that these bowls, whether displayed or used, will serve as a reminder of Jesus’ message of love, care, and shared table fellowship. They also make wonderful gifts or conversation starters! If you’re already a sustaining partner for 2024 and you would like to continue your support for 2025, we deeply appreciate your ongoing support and you will also receive one of our Shared Table Pottery Bowls as a thank-you gift, as well.
Regardless of how you choose to support Renewed Heart Ministries at the end of this year, we are profoundly grateful for your partnership in furthering Jesus’ vision of a world rooted in compassion, love, and mutual care. Together, we strive to create a safer, more compassionate, and just world for today and for eternity.
The First Christmas: What the Gospels Really Teach About Jesus’s Birth
by Marcus J. Borg and John Dominic Crossan 
“Who could argue with the message the authors draw from the Bible’s Christmas stories? Light in the darkest time of the year, hope in a period of creeping despair—these are powerful and universal themes that can give everyone a stake in Christmas.” —USA
Today In The First Christmas Marcus J. Borg and John Dominic Crossan—top Jesus scholars and authors of The Last Week—help us see the real Christmas story buried in the familiar Bible accounts. Basing their interpretations on the two nativity narratives in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, Borg and Crossan focus on the literal story—the inner truth rather than the historical facts—to offer a clear and uplifting message of hope and peace. With The First Christmas readers get a fresh, deep, and new understanding of the nativity story, enabling us to better appreciate the powerful message of the Gospels.
Last Week’s Social Jesus Posts
Articles posted each week at https://www.patheos.com/blogs/socialjesus/
Mary’s Magnificat, Faith and Social Justice, Part 1
Few stories in the gospels’ narratives of Jesus’ birth demonstrate the intersection of faith and social justice as much as Mary’s Magnificat does.
Social Locations In The Christmas Narratives
(Part Two of Mary’s Magnificat and the Intersection of Faith and Social Justice)
“The social locations of the characters in these Christmas stories matter. Pay attention to who is doing what.”
https://www.patheos.com/blogs/socialjesus/2024/12/social-locations-christmas-narratives/
Reversing Injustice, Violence and Oppression
(Part Three of Mary’s Magnificat and the Intersection of Faith and Social Justice)
These stores are about the hope of change being born into our world, reversing injustice, violence and oppression here and now.
https://www.patheos.com/blogs/socialjesus/2024/12/reversing-injustice-violence-oppression/
New Episode of “Just Talking
Season 2, Episode 41: Luke 1.39-55. Lectionary C, Advent 4
Each week, we’ll be talking about the gospel lectionary reading for the upcoming weekend in the context of love, inclusion, and social justice. Our hope is that our talking will be “just” talking (as in justice) and that during our brief conversations each week we’ll be inspired to do more than just talking. If you teach from the lectionary each week, or if you’re just looking for some thoughts on the Jesus story from a more progressive perspective within the context of social justice, check it out.
Watch at:
The Social Jesus Podcast from RHM!
A podcast where we talk about the intersection of faith and social justice and what a first century, prophet of the poor from Galilee might have to offer us today in our work of love, compassion and justice.
Last week:
Season 1 Episode 36: Mary’s Magnificat and the Intersection of Faith and Social Justice
Luke 1:39-55
“Few stories in the gospels’ narratives of Jesus’ birth demonstrate the intersection of faith and social justice as much as Mary’s Magnificat does. The social locations mentioned here matter. Pay attention to who is doing what. These stories aren’t about those whose character or personality exhibits humility. It is about those who are living in more humble situations and stations of life. They will be lifted up. This is a precursor to such phrases as mountains being brought low, and valleys being raised, the first being made last and the last being made first. And all of this is in accordance not with the hope of escaping one day to another world or retreating into inner peace. It answers the promise made to the ancestors. At the time of Jesus, the Jewish prophetic hope was not to one day become a disembodied soul in some far distant heaven, but that one day all injustice, violence and oppression in our world would be put right, here and now. For those with the awareness to notice these themes, where liberation and social salvation is emerging in these stories is inspiring for our context today.”
Available on all major podcast carriers and at:
Upcoming Events
January 18, 2025
Good News Fellowship
(via Zoom)
Toronto, Ontario Canada
For info: 304.520.0030
Weekly Zoom HeartGroup on Wednesday Nights
Each Wednesday evening, Glendale City Church will be hosting a Zoom-HeartGroup led by Herb Montgomery. Our discussion each week will focus on the content in Renewed Heart Ministries’ weekly eSight articles, The Social Jesus podcast, and RHM’s Just Talking YouTube show. The time of each Zoom session will be on Wednesdays at 7:00 p.m. Pacific/10:00 p.m. Eastern.
For more information and for the link to participate each week, contact RHM here.
Finding Jesus: A Fundamentalist Preacher Discovers the Socio-Political & Economic Teachings of the Gospels
by Herb Montgomery
Available now on Amazon!
In Finding Jesus, author Herb Montgomery delves into the profound and often overlooked political dimensions of the gospels. Through meticulous analysis of biblical texts, historical context, and social discourse, this thought-provoking book unveils the gospels’ socio-political, economic teachings as rooted in a profound concern for justice, compassion, and the well-being of the marginalized. The book navigates the intersections between faith and societal justice, presenting a compelling argument for a more socially engaged and transformative Christianity.
Finding Jesus is not just a scholarly exploration; it is a call to action. It challenges readers to reevaluate their understanding of Christianity’s role in public life and to consider how the radical teachings of the gospels can inspire a renewed commitment to justice, equality, and compassion. This book is a must-read for those seeking a deeper understanding of the social implications of Christian faith and a blueprint for building a more just and inclusive society.
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