Preaching God’s Narrative: Solidarity with Migrants and the Detained
In honor of the Jubilee Year, Discerning Deacons is offering a formation series equipping preachers and Ministers of the Word as they walk together and with all God’s children as Pilgrims of Hope.
There are three sessions in the series. We begin on April 9 with the theme:
“The God Who Was Condemned and Refused to Condemn: Deepening Paths for Solidarity with Migrants and the Detained.”
We are pleased to announce Deborah Organ, Isaac Villegas, and Catalina Morales Bahena as our featured speakers. They will guide us in an afternoon centered on preaching, reflection, and our human family.
Simultaneous Spanish interpretation will be available.
Deborah Organ holds a Doctorate of Ministry in Homiletics from Aquinas Institute of Theology in St Louis, Missouri. She taught homiletics at St. Paul’s Seminary from 2000-2008 and continued to do diaconal preaching instruction at the seminary and at institutions in other parts of the country, in English and Spanish, until 2023. Deb currently teaches Theology and is the Director of the Spanish Lay Ministry Program at the University of St. Thomas.
In addition to her theological expertise, Deb is a licensed mental health clinician at Raíces Sagradas Community Mental Health in South Minneapolis, the nonprofit she founded 17 years ago.
Deb is grateful to be an ally with Latine immigrants and one her greatest joys is learning from and working with Spanish speaking communities from many Latin American countries.
Catalina Morales Bahena is Director of Learning for Faith in Action. Catalina leads the design and management of the professional development programs within the Faith in Action Network. As an immigrant herself and current DACA recipient, she strives to build the leadership and potential of organizers.
During her organizing career in Minnesota, Catalina organized for drivers licenses for undocumented communities, a legal defense fund in the largest county, stopped private prisons from opening in the state and passing sentencing reform.
Catalina received the Immigrant of Distinction Award from AILA for her work in Sanctuary and Defense of immigrants after the 2016 election. She was selected by TEDxUMN to bring a deeper understanding on the issue of immigration in 2018, you can watch the TED talk here.
As a child of Latin American immigrants, Isaac grew up in the U.S.-Mexico borderlands, in the southwest corner of this country. Sixteen years ago he moved from California to North Carolina, where he served as the pastor of Chapel Hill Mennonite Fellowship for sixteen years. He was elected to the executive board of Mennonite Church USA, from 2013-2015, and is currently a member of the governing board of the NC Council of Churches.
Isaac’s writing has led to his appointment as a contributing editor at The Christian Century magazine and to the editorial committee for The Anabaptist Witness journal. He writes regularly as a columnist for The Christian Century and Anabaptist World magazines, and publishes from time to time in Ruminate Magazine, Scalawag, Commonweal, Sojourners, Faith & Leadership, and Conrad Grebel Review.
His most recent writing endeavors have led to the publishing of his book Migrant God: A Christian Vision for Immigrant Justice which is available for purchase here.
If you are called to care for God’s people as a Preacher or Minister of the Word, don’t miss this opportunity! Find out how you can promote solidarity within and among your communities by joining us for this first session on April 9 at 3 p.m. ET / 12 p.m. PT.
Save the date for future events in the series!
- July 14 (Feast of St. Kateri Tekakwitha): Caring for Creation and Becoming Pilgrims of Hope
- November 13 (Feast of St. Frances Cabrini): Healing Our Images of God and Practicing Responsible Preaching on Themes Related to Domestic Violence