News Archives

Church communicator to direct FaithfulAmerica.org

 


Church communicator to direct FaithfulAmerica.org

Sept. 30, 2004

NEW YORK (UMNS) - A former United Methodist communicator has been selected as the director of FaithfulAmerica.org, an online advocacy service sponsored by the National Council of Churches.

Vince Isner of Fairfax, Va., will begin his work Oct. 18 in the NCC’s Washington office. Isner has worked as a writer, director and producer for United Methodist Communications and the United Methodist Publishing House, and he was communications director for the United Methodist Board of Church and Society.

He also has worked as an independent producer, most recently responsible for developing two DVD/Web-based study projects for Wesley Ministry Network, a program of Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington. He is a graduate of Centenary College, Shreveport, La., and United Theological Seminary in Dayton, Ohio.

FaithfulAmerica, found at www.FaithfulAmerica.org, was launched in May as an effort to build an online community for people of faith. "We are a new voice that rejects both the fundamentalism of the right and the view on the left that faith has no place in public discourse," stated the program’s brochure. "We believe in the separation of church and state, but not the separation of moral principles from the political process."

The online community wants to promote dignity and equality for all people, work to end human suffering and act as "stewards of God’s creation." It is not aligned with any political party but is "dedicated to respectful, political and religious debate that looks for truth on all sides without compromising a commitment to justice."

Members receive e-mail alerts about letter-writing campaigns, petitions and various causes; can network with one another online to organize community events; and have access to sermons and commentaries about the moral and spiritual challenges of the day.

Financially, the online community depends on its members for support. The Rev. Robert Edgar, the NCC’s chief executive and a United Methodist pastor, told the agency’s executive committee that such membership also allows for better communication and outreach. "It’s a way in which we now can speak to more than 120,000 people on a regular basis," he explained.

Edgar said the hope is to grow FaithfulAmerica.org’s membership to several million people.

The community’s first major project was to place an ad of U.S. faith leaders apologizing for torture in Iraqi prisons on television in Arab countries. More recently, the site hosted a "real-time" news conference on the atrocities taking place in Sudan. FaithfulAmerica members sent some 52,000 letters to the U.S. Congress, calling upon it to name Sudan as a place of genocide.

News media contact: Linda Bloom, New York, (646) 369-3759 or newsdesk@umcom.org.

Ask Now

This will not reach a local church, district or conference office. InfoServ* staff will answer your question, or direct it to someone who can provide information and/or resources.

First Name:*
Last Name:*
Email:*
ZIP/Postal Code:*
Question:*

*InfoServ ( about ) is a service of United Methodist Communications located in Nashville, Tennessee, USA. 1-800-251-8140

Not receiving a reply?
Your Spam Blocker might not recognize our email address. Add this address to your list of approved senders.

Would you like to ask any questions about this story?ASK US NOW


Contact Us

This will not reach a local church, district or conference office. InfoServ* staff will answer your question, or direct it to someone who can provide information and/or resources.

Phone
(optional)

*InfoServ ( about ) is a ministry of United Methodist Communications located in Nashville, Tennessee, USA. 1-800-251-8140

Not receiving a reply?
Your Spam Blocker might not recognize our email address. Add InfoServ@umcom.org to your list of approved senders.