Lebanon church co-hosts Pride events

The First Congregational Church of Lebanon is now an official endorser of the June 16 Pride Picnic and Silent Disco events being organized by the Lebanon Opera House. Also starting this June (Pride Month), the church will display a prominent rainbow-themed banner that reads, “All are invited into the full life of our church. Join us as we grow together in God’s love!”

This welcome message is consistent with our status as an Open and Affirming congregation of the United Church of Christ. For us, this means that we joyfully offer the rite of Christian marriage to any couples seeking the blessing of holy matrimony within our sanctuary, and that our welcome also encompasses all of the sacraments and rites of our church, including communion and baptism.

Our church is also an active arts presenting organization here in the Upper Valley. We have joined with Lebanon Opera House, the Upper Valley Music Center and many other arts neighbors in an ongoing collaboration aimed at strengthening our understanding of and commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging. Our new banner and endorsement of the June 16 events are important reflections of our commitments and progress in this direction.

We invite others to join us.

Jonathan A. Scott, Church Council

The Rev. Stephen R. Silver, Pastor

First Congregational Church of Lebanon

Thank you for
coverage of homelessness

Just offering my appreciation and gratitude to the Valley News for keeping the topic of growing homelessness and lack of affordable housing in the Upper Valley especially, but throughout Vermont and New Hampshire, on the front page. How our communities and our local and state governments respond to this deepening crisis is a litmus test about our character and values.

The issue is a complicated one, involving not just a lack of housing, but growing economic inequality, mental health issues, fraying families and ripening policy failures in many corners. The Valley News has done a good job keeping readers informed about the all-too-often faceless suffering of the homeless on the one hand and, on the other, the challenges posed to any quick or even long-term solution.

But even the best reporting and journalism can only do so much. In the end, it is up to individuals and communities to demand not only more from their governments, but more from themselves.

John Waite

Ascutney

Bankers now run the show

A financial scam, a Ponzi debt scheme: this is the foundation of our America, Version 2.0, the America we were all born into and have lived our lives in. It’s a house of cards, built enormously bigger and higher over the course of this last century, the Federal Reserve century. Trillions of “dollars” created in an instant, from nothingness; fake money and fake reality. The US was overthrown long ago. It was a coup d’etat by banking interests. The monopoly over money and credit is the source of most of our problems.

These days we hear much about climate sustainability. Our actual crisis of sustainability is this Washington and Wall Street fantasy world of empire, endless war and corporate raiding. Abolishing the debt ceiling doesn’t really make us rich, of course — just unbelievably foolish, naive and deluded. The sky is the limit! No, it’s not, not really. All houses built of cards or sticks or straw will collapse when the big, bad wolf of reality comes huffing and puffing and blows the joint down. It’s just a matter of time now.

Neil Meliment

Hartland