Faith Archives - Reporter Newspapers

Sandy Springs’ Temple Emanu-El to host discussion on treatment of asylum-seekers

by Dyana Bagby | Jan 15, 2020 | Brookhaven Reporter, Buckhead Reporter, Dunwoody Reporter, Faith, Politics, Sandy Springs Reporter | 0

A Jan. 26 community event in Sandy Springs featuring many nonprofit groups and places of worship aims to raise awareness about the treatment of asylum-seekers in Georgia and at the U.S.-Mexico border. Three immigration experts will speak at the nonpartisan event, called “Bearing Witness: A Humanitarian Crisis,” from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. at Temple Emanu-El, 1580 Spalding Drive. There will also be a “resource fair” of nonprofit organizations. The public is invited and there is no cost to attend, but registration is required by clicking here. “The goal of the day is two-fold: to shine a light on and...

Shuttering Sandy Springs church could see other religious uses; sale is ‘worst-case scenario’

by John Ruch | Jan 8, 2020 | Faith, Sandy Springs Reporter, Top Stories | 0

As Sandy Springs’ Highpoint Episcopal Community Church heads toward its final Sunday service Jan. 12, its vicar says the building could return to religious use – possibly as another church — and that the property would be sold only as a “worst-case scenario.” “I know there’s a lot of interest internally in this property,” said Rev. Lang Lowrey, who is vicar of the shuttering Highpoint congregation and a top advisor to the Atlanta bishop and the national Episcopal Church on real estate developments. “…Probably by summer we’ll have decided the direction we want to go, but we’re hopeful we...

Sandy Springs’ Highpoint Episcopal church to close; property’s future unclear

by John Ruch | Jan 7, 2020 | Faith, Sandy Springs Reporter, Top Stories | 0

Highpoint Episcopal Community Church is closing after serving more than a half-century as a place of worship and a community center for Sandy Springs’ High Point neighborhood. In the wake of failed, four-year effort to rebrand and resurrect the former Church of the Atonement amid a dwindling congregation, the church will hold its final Sunday service on Jan. 12. The future of the 7.5-acre property at 4945 High Point Road is said to be unclear beyond that. Officials with the church and the Buckhead-based Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta did not immediately respond to comment requests about the closure, which...

More than 1,000 stand together against anti-Semitism at Sandy Springs event

by Hannah Greco | Jan 7, 2020 | Brookhaven Reporter, Buckhead Reporter, Dunwoody Reporter, Faith, Sandy Springs Reporter, Top Stories | 0

More than 1,000 people gathered at City Springs in Sandy Springs on Jan. 6 to stand together against anti-Semitism. The Jewish Atlanta Solidarity event was held by the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta in collaboration with the Anti-Defamation League, the American Jewish Committee, the Atlanta Rabbinical Association and the Jewish Community Relations Council. “How glorious is it when brothers and sisters gather together as one?” said Rabbi Adam Starr of the Congregation Ohr HaTorah, a synagogue in Atlanta. “This is the Atlanta Jewish community at its very best.” The event was held in the wake of a Dec. 28...

Jewish Federation to hold ‘solidarity event’ in wake of New York attack

by Hannah Greco | Dec 31, 2019 | Brookhaven Reporter, Buckhead Reporter, Dunwoody Reporter, Faith, Sandy Springs Reporter, Top Stories | 0

The Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta will hold a “community-wide solidarity event” on Jan. 6 in the wake of a Dec. 28 stabbing attack at a rabbi’s home in Monsey, N.Y. during a Hanukkah celebration. The event will be held at 7:30 p.m. the Byers Theatre in the Sandy Springs Performing Arts Center, 1 Galambos Way, Sandy Springs. The event encourages the Atlanta Jewish community to come together in solidarity following the attack, according to a press release. “We will stand together in hope and unity, across denominations, organizations, geographic neighborhoods and all else that can divide us, because...

Around Town: An activist and grandmother writes her memoir

by Joe Earle | Dec 3, 2019 | Brookhaven Reporter, Buckhead Reporter, Commentary, Dunwoody Reporter, Faith, People & Places, Sandy Springs Reporter | 0

Sherry Frank wears a small gold necklace. The unobtrusive chain displays a single word: bubbe. It means grandmother, or, more specifically, a Jewish grandmother. “I wear it every day,” Frank said, smiling when the word draws notice. “Bubbe fits me.” Others may see the 77-year-old Sandy Springs grandmother as an energetic activist who has lived a very public life. But her jewelry proudly proclaims she’s also the kind of woman who likes to bake cookies for her grandkids. Still, she’s no homebody. She served 26 years as executive director of the Atlanta chapter of the American Jewish Committee. She...

Dunwoody approves policy that bans all religious symbols from City Hall

by Dyana Bagby | Nov 19, 2019 | Dunwoody Reporter, Faith, Top Stories | 0

Dunwoody City Hall will not be decorated with any religious symbols this holiday season as part of a new policy approved Nov. 18 by the City Council. But a list defining which religious symbols were to be banned was scrapped after some residents said including menorahs on the list could be discriminatory. The council began discussing in October a policy to ban religious symbols in common areas of city buildings after a resident wanted to put up a Nativity scene in City Hall. The city’s legal staff suggested banning all Christian, Jewish and Muslim symbols including crosses, the menorah...

TV documentary to feature Sandy Springs Latter-day Saints temple

by John Ruch | Nov 14, 2019 | Arts & Entertainment, Faith, Sandy Springs Reporter | 0

A TV documentary series about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in north Georgia, debuting Nov. 15, will feature a temple and church in Sandy Springs. The documentary is part of a series about various faiths produced and aired by AIB Network, an Atlanta-based interfaith religious and educational programming channel. Previous series have looked at such religious traditions as Buddhism and Wicca. According to AIB Network president-elect, Audrey Daniels, the AIB Network is dedicated to creating original content that “educates the mind, strengthens the body, and inspires the spirit of viewers.” “We believe it is important to...

Proposal to ban menorahs in Dunwoody city buildings draws criticism

by Dyana Bagby | Nov 4, 2019 | Dunwoody Reporter, Faith, Politics, Top Stories | 0

A policy that would ban Hanukkah menorahs from being displayed in city buildings is getting pushback from at least one resident who says doing so is discriminatory. But the city attorney says all religious symbols need to be banned to ensure the city does not violate the Constitution. Religious symbols on government property have been debated for decades and the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled in several cases on the issues. The city was hoping to avoid controversy by proposing a ban on all religious symbols from most areas in city buildings after a resident called for a Nativity...

Dunwoody may ban religious symbols from city buildings

by Dyana Bagby | Oct 16, 2019 | Dunwoody Reporter, Faith, Top Stories | 0

Requests to set up a Nativity scene at Dunwoody City Hall resulted in a new policy that would ban all religious symbols from most areas of city buildings. Doing so would ensure the city is not accused of endorsing one religion over another and possibly violating the Constitution, according to the city attorney. “This is still a hotly contested issue,” City Attorney Bill Riley told the mayor and City Council at its Oct. 14 meeting. “I drafted a policy that steers us away from all that … from the endorsement of religion debate. I don’t want us to get...

Buckhead church to present requiem, host AIDS Memorial Quilt panel

by John Ruch | Oct 7, 2019 | Arts & Entertainment, Buckhead Reporter, Faith, Making a Difference | 0

Buckhead’s Covenant Presbyterian Church choir and a chamber orchestra will present a requiem on Oct. 27 and collect donations to host a Dec. 1 display of a panel from the AIDS Memorial Quilt. The requiem “For Us the Living” was written by a music minister at a church in Albany, N.Y., and first performed in 2007. The free performance at Covenant is scheduled for 4 p.m. at the church, 2461 Peachtree Road. Donations will be accepted after the performance to help sponsor the World AIDS Day display at the church of a panel from the quilt. Overseen by the...

Worth Knowing: In a leap of faith, a new church is born

by Carol Niemi | Sep 1, 2019 | Brookhaven Reporter, Buckhead Reporter, Commentary, Dunwoody Reporter, Faith, People & Places, Sandy Springs Reporter | 0

In the last 20 years, attendance at American houses of worship has dropped 20 percent, according to Gallup. Last year, the percentage of Americans reporting church or synagogue membership reached an all-time low of 50 percent. So, why would anyone want to start another church? That’s what I asked a group of Dunwoodians who five months ago started a Bible study in a private home that is now preparing for its official launch as an independent church in a 70-year-old stone chapel in Sandy Springs. Miracle? You decide. It all started last March when a popular worship leader left...