FāVS Religion News Roundup: Aug. 24, 2023

FāVS Religion News Roundup: Aug. 24, 2023

Helping Gray Fire Victims, Mayor Woodward on Stage with Christian Nationalists, Whitworth Professor Named a Young Scholar in American Religion and Jehovah’s Witness Regional Convention in Russian

Contributions from FāVS from readers like you make this news story possible. Thank you.

News Story by Tracy Simmons | FāVS News

How You Can Help Gray Fire Victims

Evacuation zones have now been lifted in Medical Lake after the Gray Fire tore through killing two and burning nearly 200 structures. As of Wednesday the fire was 25% contained and although progress is being made, victims have a long road ahead of them.

Fox 28 has a list of verified GoFundMe links on how you can help local families impacted by the families.

Mixing Church with State?

Other big news this week has been surrounding Mayor Nadine Woodward who attended a “Let us Worship” event this weekend, organized by self-proclaimed Christian nationalist Sean Feucht. While there, she was called on stage and prayed for by Matt Shea. Spokane City Council District 3 candidate Earl Moore and Spokane Valley city council candidate Jessica Yaeger joined Shea on stage at the Podium, along with Natalie Poulsen, a former candidate in the 2022 race for Washington State legislature. FāVS wrote a story about how faith leaders are responding, here.

New Young Scholar in American Religion

Kudos to Elise Leal, Whitworth assistant professor of history, who has been recognized as a 2023 Young Scholar in American Religion. She was one of 10 selected for the fellowship by the Center for the Study of Religion & American Culture at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis.

Leal came to Whitworth in 2018 and teaches courses on early America, women and gender and religious history. Her research focuses on historical intersections between cultural formation and religious belief and practice, particularly in relation to gender, childhood/youth and social reform in the late 18th and early 19th century United States.

Russian-Language Jehovah’s Witness Regional Convention

Finally, many Jehovah’s Witnesses from Spokane are traveling to Oregon this week for a Russian-language “Exercise Patience”! Regional Convention. The three-day convention program being held at the Woodburn Assembly Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses is expected to bring together over 700 Russian-speaking attendees from across Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Alaska, including some 115 families who have immigrated from Russia or Ukraine within the past two years.