Fall Trialogue on global migration

I am pleased to invite you to attend next month’s colloquy with representatives from the Union of Evangelical Churches in Germany and the Reformed Church of Honduras, who will travel to Wisconsin for four days of discussions to be held Sept. 26-29 at Daycholah Center. The talks will use a theological lens to examine global migration, its effects on the Church, and potential ways the faith community can address the crisis. The event will be hosted by the Wisconsin Conference UCC German Partnership Team.

You can attend for one day or all four days. Cost for meals and lodging for the full four days is $460 for double occupancy and $680 for a single room. Single day rates are also available.

Seven guests each will join us from Honduras and Germany, and we need host families for them from the afternoon of Sept. 29 through the afternoon of Oct. 1. These 14 visitors will be available to worship in your congregation, offer words of greeting from their home countries, and participate in your World Communion Sunday liturgy. Our seven German guests all speak English. Our Honduran guests need hosts who speak Spanish. If you are able to host one or more of our guests, or have other questions about the colloquy, e-mail Lisa Hart, associate conference minister for faith formation and justice ministries, or the Rev. David Gaeth, chair of the Wisconsin Conference German Partnership Team.

It’s appropriate for the Wisconsin Conference to host this important trialogue. The Dairy State depends heavily on migrant labor to sustain our agriculture, hospitality and service industries. Those migrants are among a worldwide surge: The United Nations’ International Organization for Migration reported that the number of international migrants grew to 281 million in 2020, meaning that 3.6% of the world’s population lived outside their country of origin. The causes of such massive migration vary, but they include crop failures and famine, political oppression, pollution, national disasters and climate change.

Click for more information and to register.