Melanie Lynn Griffin is a faith-based environmental writer, speaker, and community organizer. As a Sierra Club lobbyist on Capitol Hill, she directed lands and wildlife programs and created a nationwide outreach program to equip faith communities to act on behalf of God’s creation. After thirty years at Sierra Club, she earned a Masters in Creative Nonfiction from Johns Hopkins University and a Certificate in Spiritual Direction from the National Cathedral. Melanie served for three years as the Pastor of Prayer and Healing at Cedar Ridge Community Church in Spencerville, Maryland.
Aging quietly did not suit her, especially with the planet being on fire and all, so she joined Third Act, where she organizes older Americans to protect our climate and our democracy. When not out protesting in the streets, Melanie enjoys leading contemplative retreats and writing workshops and working on her spiritual memoir, The Soul of a Lobbyist. She splits her time between Maryland and New Hampshire.
Blogging at Writing with Spirit
Lurking on Bluesky
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EXPERIENCES
Show Date
Fri 4 Sep 2026 4:00 PM to 4:50 PM
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| Title Short | Bound Books/Unbound Conversations: How We Learn to Be Brave |
| Venue | Convo Table 08 |
| Experience Description | Do you sometimes feel isolated and helpless in the face of fascism, violence, and oppression? That’s part of the autocrat’s playbook! Connection and community are the antidote. Book groups can help us understand these times and find our unique role in the fight for justice.
We are holding several book group conversations this week. Reading the books is a plus, but not necessary. Just come and hear and share stories of bravery and courage and hopefully walk away feeling empowered!
In this conversation, we’ll discuss "How We Learn to Be Brave: Decisive Moments in Life and Faith,” by Mariann Budde, the Episcopal Bishop of Washington D.C. Remember her sermon on Inauguration Day 2025, when she implored Trump to have mercy on vulnerable and frightened populations like LGBTQ+ children and undocumented immigrants?
Bishop Budde shares stories of courage and sacrifice from her life and the lives of civil rights and faith icons. She prompts us to reflect on how we might be called to be brave in these precarious times. “Heroic possibilities lie within each of us. The inexplicable, unmerited experience of God's power working through us is real . . . we matter in the realization of all that is good and noble and true."
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