[Excerpts from an Op-Ed by Rev. Deacon Martha Seaman, VIP Leader, originally published in Chandler News & the Daily Independent]

Valley Interfaith Project is a broad-based, non-partisan organization of churches, unions and non-profit associations committed to building power for sustainable social and economic development.

As leaders of these faith communities in Maricopa County, we write to express our strong support for Proposition 409. 

[Excerpts]

As Maricopa County ballots are mailed out on Wednesday, voters will soon decide on the future of a large behavioral and emergency health system upgrade that could increase property taxes.

The bond measure is called Proposition 409 and would benefit Valleywise’s inpatient, outpatient, and behavioral health services.

…Reverend Sandy Johnson with Red Mountain United Methodist Church said Prop 409 will “save lives.”

She’s working as a leader with the Valley Interfaith Project, to advocate for greater mental health resources across our area.

Valley Interfaith Project, a broad-based, non-partisan organization of churches, unions and non-profit associations committed to building power for sustainable, social, and economic development change has endorsed and supports passage of Proposition 409.

If approved, Proposition 409 authorizes the Maricopa County Special Health Care District to issue bonds to fund critical improvements for Valleywise Health in Maricopa County.

[excerpts below]

As the first-ever American pope takes to the throne of St. Peter on Sunday, immigration advocates in the Valley hope his past can bring change to the future.

“As we’re beginning to learn more about Pope Leo, we have someone who understands the American context and the Latin American context,” said Joe Rubio, the director at Arizona Interfaith Network.

Rabbi John Linder, who wrote this article, displays the Hebrew Bible he gifted to Pope Francis during a 2022 meeting at the Vatican.

[Originally published by azcentral]

I’ll never forget my encounter with Pope Francis.

At the end of a nearly 90-minute meeting, I presented him with a gift — a leather-bound, gold-leaf Hebrew Bible — and told him what everyone in our delegation was feeling: “Your Holiness, I have never been more certain that we stand on common ground.”