Elizabeth Sholes, director of Public Policy for California Council of Churches and California Church IMPACT and a long-time advocate for social justice, will speak Sunday, August 5, at The Experience, a Sacramento interfaith organization that seeks to build bridges between people of diverse beliefs. The event will be held at 4:04 p.m. at St. Paul’s, 1430 J Street, in Sacramento.

The title of Sholes’ presentation is “How Do We Love Justice: Faith Voices in the Public Square.”                                                                   

Dr. David Thompson, executive director of The Experience, describes Sholes as “a firebrand for social justice.”

“She has been enormously courageous over the years for the stands she has taken,” Thompson says. “She has feared for her life on many occasions—yet she has gone on advocating for what the World Council of Churches and the California Council of Churches have always argued for: a cooperative relationship world model rather than a competitive one.”

Sholes has been with the California Council of Churches and California Church IMPACT since early 2002, working to educate members on major issues and advocating for them in the state legislature.

She has worked for over 25 years in both community organizing and in policy analysis and advocacy focusing on issues of social justice and community well-being linked to faith related principles and concerns.

California Council of Churches and California Church IMPACT, which represent 1.5 million members in 21 Protestant denominations, are sister organizations doing education and advocacy around key public policy matters.

Sholes has an M.A in American Studies from California State University, Los Angeles, and is ABD in Sociology from University of California, Santa Cruz.

Founded in 2009, The Experience is a non-profit  religious organization dedicated to building bridges between faith communities and meets weekly on Sundays at 4:04 p.m. at St. Paul’s for interfaith worship. Each service incorporates elements of at least three faith traditions, as well as a wide variety of musical performances, ranging from show tunes to Christian hymns to Sufi folk music. The Experience features frequent guest presentations representing a broad range of beliefs, both religious and non-religious. For more information about The Experience, visit experiencesacramento.org.