Category: Faith

Former local priests named in new Catholic Church sexual abuse list

by Evelyn Andrews | Nov 7, 2018 | Brookhaven Reporter, Buckhead Reporter, Dunwoody Reporter, Faith, Public Safety, Top Stories | 0

Four former priests who served at local churches in the 1960s through 1990s have been named in a document listing sexual abuse allegations that was released by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta Nov. 6. One of the priests has already been the subject of a lawsuit over abuse that allegedly took place in Stone Mountain. Cases of child sexual abuse by Catholic priests and people in other church positions have been widespread across the globe and has led to many allegations. The new Atlanta list shows priests were “credibly” accused at many metro area churches, including Buckhead’s Cathedral of Christ the King, which is...

Brookhaven leaders ‘Pray for Pittsburgh’

by John Ruch | Oct 31, 2018 | Brookhaven Reporter, Faith, Top Stories | 0

Brookhaven Mayor John Ernst and Police Chief Gary Yandura were among those joining in a “Pray for Pittsburgh” memorial Oct. 30 at Chabad Israeli Center Atlanta and Congregation Beit Reuven on Chamblee-Dunwoody Road. It was one of at least 10 memorials and vigils that were scheduled in Reporter Newspapers communities as a response to the anti-Semitic massacre of 11 people Oct. 27 during a service at the Tree of Life Congregation in Pittsburgh, Pa. At the Brookhaven service, candles were lit for those killed in Pittsburgh, and Ernst unveiled a plaque that added their names to a “Memorial Board.”...

‘Stronger Than Hate’: Pittsburgh shooting victims honored at synagogue service

by John Ruch | Oct 30, 2018 | Brookhaven Reporter, Buckhead Reporter, Dunwoody Reporter, Faith, Sandy Springs Reporter, Slideshow, Top Stories | 0

“Stronger Than Hate” was the theme of an Oct. 29 memorial service, held at Congregation Or Hadash in Sandy Springs, for the victims of the Pittsburgh synagogue mass murder. Rabbis Dr. Analia Bortz and Mario Karpuj led a packed house of attendees in prayer, a candle-lighting and thoughts on the meaning of a holy community. It was one of at least 10 memorials and vigils that were scheduled in Reporter Newspapers communities as a response to the anti-Semitic massacre of 11 people Oct. 27 during a service at the Tree of Life Congregation in Pittsburgh, Pa. A service at...

Local leaders decry hatred after Pittsburgh synagogue mass murder

by John Ruch | Oct 27, 2018 | Brookhaven Reporter, Buckhead Reporter, Dunwoody Reporter, Faith, Public Safety, Sandy Springs Reporter, Slideshow, Top Stories | 0

Local leaders are decrying hatred and calling for “respect” and “civility” in the wake of a mass murder at a Pittsburgh, Pa., synagogue Oct. 27. Vigils and memorial services are being organized by various local synagogues and organizations. A gunman shouting anti-Semitic slurs killed at least 11 people, and wounded more, during a service at Pittsburgh’s Tree of Life Congregation and was arrested by police, according to media reports. Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, in a written statement, denounced anti-Semitism and hatred and said her city stands with Pittsburgh and “our Jewish brothers and sisters around the nation.” “As...

Dunwoody’s Kingswood United Methodist Church celebrates 50 years

by Dyana Bagby | Sep 17, 2018 | Dunwoody Reporter, Faith | 0

Kingswood United Methodist Church celebrated 50 years of ministry on Sunday, Sept. 9, with a special worship service, including former pastors and charter members. Bishop Sue Haupert-Johnson, leader of the North Georgia Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church, officiated and preached during the service. The church held its first worship service on Sept. 8, 1968, in a classroom in what was then Peachtree High School. The congregation was chartered with 76 members, eight of whom attended the Sept. 9 service. Before moving to its current location at the corner of Tilly Mill Road and North Peachtree Road in...

Archdiocese to honor first responders at Buckhead church

by Evelyn Andrews | Sep 9, 2018 | Buckhead Reporter, Faith | 0

The Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta will celebrate its annual “Blue Mass,” a service that honors all public safety officials and first responders, at a Buckhead church on Sept. 11. The service will be held at 10 a.m. at The Cathedral of Christ the King, which serves as the mother church for the Atlanta Archdiocese. The church is located at 2699 Peachtree Road. The Mass has been held in Atlanta each year since 2015 to honor the service of public safety officials and first responders and to remember those who died in the September 11, 2001 attacks, the release said....

Unitarian Universalist church proposes expansion as interest grows

by Evelyn Andrews | Aug 19, 2018 | Faith, Sandy Springs Reporter | 0

The expansion of a Unitarian Universalist church in Sandy Springs is just part of the faith’s metro Atlanta growth at a time when some other religious congregations are struggling or shutting down. The Northwest Unitarian Universalist Congregation, located at 1025 Mount Vernon Highway N.W., is part of a Boston-headquartered religion that teaches from all major world religions and allows members to read any religious text. The city Planning Commission recently recommended approval of the church’s request to expand its footprint by 2,400 square feet to expand the sanctuary and build a fellowship hall. “One of our huge strengths is...

Prayer vigil at Plaza Fiesta brings awareness to families, children detained at border

by Dyana Bagby | Jul 19, 2018 | Brookhaven Reporter, Faith, Slideshow, Top Stories | 0

A small group of people gathered July 19 near the children’s play area at Plaza Fiesta on Buford Highway for an interfaith prayer vigil for the families and children of those detained at the border by federal authorities and for those who have been deported. Pastors from several metro Atlanta churches led more than a dozen people in prayer for the families being separated and detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The names of dozens of people recently deported were also read aloud. “This is affecting us all,” Rev. Fabio Sotelo of St. Bede’s Episcopal Church said...

Robin’s Nest: Love reveals itself in tender mercies

by Robin Conte | Jun 25, 2018 | Brookhaven Reporter, Buckhead Reporter, Commentary, Dunwoody Reporter, Faith, Sandy Springs Reporter | 0

I saw a movie many years ago called “Tender Mercies.” I don’t remember much about it except that Robert Duvall was in it and it took place somewhere in the Southwest. I recently googled it out of curiosity and learned that Duvall played a has-been country music star in the film and won an Academy Award for his performance. But what stuck with me for all these decades was the title. It haunted me because I think it speaks to what we yearn for so often in our human condition…tender mercies. We want to be loved, we want to...

Church ‘adopts’ police officers to show support for service

by Dyana Bagby | Jun 10, 2018 | Brookhaven Reporter, Faith, Public Safety, Slideshow, Top Stories | 0

Sgt. Jake Kissel did not think many officers of the Brookhaven Police Department would be willing to participate in the Adopt-A-Cop ministry started last year by Our Lady of the Assumption Catholic Church. Those in law enforcement tend to be private individuals, he said, and he predicted not many would want to be “adopted” by a local family that would promise to pray for them every day, send them letters of encouragement, write them emails or invite them to their home. “Now to see the connection between the officers and the parishioners … it is really blowing my mind,”...

Church seeks to preserve its 150-year African-American history

by Evelyn Andrews | Jun 8, 2018 | Buckhead Reporter, Faith, Slideshow, Top Stories | 0

A small church founded by former slaves in the late 1800s is preparing to save its unique history as part of Buckhead’s African-American life during a renovation of the sanctuary building and cemetery. New Hope African Methodist Episcopal Church was first established in 1869 and has been in its current building since 1936. It’s preparing to celebrate its 150th anniversary next year. The Buckhead Heritage Society is partnering with the project due to the church’s significance as one of the last remaining buildings that marks the African-American history of the area. “It really is all that is left of...

Local faith leaders join in Atlanta unity prayer

by John Ruch | May 22, 2018 | Buckhead Reporter, Faith, Politics, Top Stories | 0

A group of Buckhead faith leaders, inspired by former Mayor Sam Massell, convinced 15 congregations to join in a common prayer for “Atlanta Together” unity on the May 19-20 weekend. A total of 30 faith leaders from those 15 houses of worship signed onto the call for the prayer. The congregations were mostly in Buckhead, but included two historic Civil Rights bastions: The Temple, a Midtown synagogue, and Ebenezer Baptist Church, Martin Luther King Jr.’s congregation in Sweet Auburn. While Massell said he hoped more congregations would sign on, he called the event “tremendously successful” in terms of thousands...

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