Texas Impact's Weekly Witness
Weekly Witness is your weekly update on the mainstream faith community’s perspective on everything Texas public policy. Hosted by Texas Impact's Scott Atnip, Weekly Witness is recorded in front of a live audience in downtown Austin. We host policy experts, faith leaders, and elected officials who provide in-depth information on relevant policy issues in the state. Weekly Witness is a product of Texas Impact, Texas’ oldest and largest interfaith advocacy group. Visit texasimpact.org for more information.
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Ep. 408 Thru-Lines: Continuity and Change in Texas Impact's Legislative Agenda
09/27/2024
Ep. 408 Thru-Lines: Continuity and Change in Texas Impact's Legislative Agenda
This week we are excited to introduce Texas Impact’s legislative agenda with our Executive Director, Bee Moorhead. Listeners will remember a few weeks ago we had three board members join the program at the conclusion of the three day board retreat to talk about their experience with the process creating the agenda. In the weeks that followed, all of the wordsmithing and voting took place to ensure there was consensus on the final product, and today, Bee joins us to talk about where the board landed, and what our listeners can do with it. We are not going to go through the entire document bullet by bullet, so I hope you will check out the on the website.
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Ep. 407 Not by the Hair of Our Chiny-Chin-Chins: Building Better for Climate Resilience
09/23/2024
Ep. 407 Not by the Hair of Our Chiny-Chin-Chins: Building Better for Climate Resilience
This week we are talking weather and climate from an interesting perspective as we welcome two former colleagues of our very own Dr. Becca Edwards. With us are Dr. Ian Giammanco who serves as Director of Standards and Data Analytics and Lead Research Meteorologist at the Institute for Building and Home Safety and Dr. Tanya Brown-Giammanco who serves as Director of Disaster and Failure Studies at the National Institute of Standards and Testing. We will discuss resilience and how changes in climate impact our homes and buildings, and what we can do about it from both a consumer and advocacy perspective. It is also a good reminder that Texas Impact has tools for you to learn more and get engaged on this and all of our other issue areas. Join one of our like our to connect folks interested in this issue–or find a team connected to another issue you care about. Find out more about the Federal Alliance for Safe Homes . If you live in an area that experiences wildfires, find out how you can get .
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Ep. 406 Vote Like a Vampire
09/13/2024
Ep. 406 Vote Like a Vampire
This week we are recording from Trinity Church of Austin following a three day Texas Impact Board Retreat. The Texas Impact Board of Directors represent a wide range of judicatories and faith traditions from across Texas. Every two years they come together to create a consensus set of legislative priorities to guide the organizations’ work throughout the biennium. Scott talks to three of our board members about the process as they reflect on where we are as a state and how this work intersects with their faith. We are joined by Rev. Jessica Cain Pastor of Living Word Lutheran in Buda, Rev. Dan DeLeon Sr. Pastor at Friends Congregational Church in College Station and Rev. Leslie Jackson, Sr. Pastor at St. Peter UCC in Houston. Find resources and ways to get involved this election season on our page.
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Ep. 405 Come to the Party: Celebrating Democracy
09/06/2024
Ep. 405 Come to the Party: Celebrating Democracy
This week we are having a timely conversation on voting and voting systems with Daniel Griffith, Senior Director of Policy with Secure Democracy USA. As the name implies, Secure Democracy USA works to protect voting rights and oppose efforts to suppress votes. It's important work, but the most important work right now is to reassure voters that their vote matters and that your vote will count. There is a lot of noise surrounding the election to discourage voters, and Texans of faith and Texas faith leaders can play a key role in cutting through the noise and encouraging our communities to take our civic responsibility seriously. Find out more about the work of Secure Democracy USA and the Secure Democracy Foundation and their resources at and - - - Texas Impact equips people of faith and conscience with information, opportunities, and outreach tools to educate their communities and engage with lawmakers on pressing public policy issues. Find out more at
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Ep. 404 Showing Up Faithfully: John Hill Reflects
08/30/2024
Ep. 404 Showing Up Faithfully: John Hill Reflects
We are especially excited for this week's episode as we welcome John Hill to the program. John is days away from completing his service as the Interim General Secretary of the United Methodist General Board of Church and Society, an agency charged with leading the denomination’s social witness around the world. It is a perfect time for this conversation as we move into a critical election season where the social witness of the church will be of the utmost importance–and faith leaders will be called to lead. But, also, because the United Methodist Church recently concluded an historic General Conference where they approved a complete revision of their Social Principles–their positions on community and policy issues and, after decades of strife, took historic votes to remove harmful LGBT policies from their Book of Discipline. Find out more about the work of the .
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Ep.403 North Texas Faith Votes: Faith Leader Panel
08/23/2024
Ep.403 North Texas Faith Votes: Faith Leader Panel
Last weekend the Texas Impact team had a chance to hang out with a hundred Texans of faith representing congregations from across North Texas, and y’all the vibes were real. People were excited to hear from faith leaders talking about what they are doing to engage people this election season. They heard from non-profits and voting officials giving tips, tools and resources to help engage their community. This week, we are bringing you the Faith Leader Panel from the North Texas Faith Votes event. Joining Scott on stage was Robyn Carafoil with Temple Shalom, a Past President of the Temple’s Sisterhood, and a current member of the Board of Trustees. Rev. Danielle Ayers, Pastor of Justice at Friendship West Baptist Church, a 12,000 member church in Dallas. Danielle is a devoted author, preacher, and teacher, and a Texas Impact Board Member. Finally, Rev. Cathy Sweeney, Associate Pastor of Adult Discipleship at Arapaho United Methodist Church. Cathy, a former real estate developer, now dedicates her life to non profit work supporting people experiencing homelessness and poverty and promoting racial reconciliation. and presentations from Dallas County Elections, ACLU and Ride2VoteAware on
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Ep.402 Opposing Christian Nationalism
08/16/2024
Ep.402 Opposing Christian Nationalism
This week we are joined by Amanda Tyler, Executive Director of the BJC, the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty, leading the organization as it upholds the historic Baptist principle of religious liberty: defending the free exercise of religion and protecting against its establishment by government. We are excited to talk about Amanda's work with Christians Against Christian Nationalism and the proposed curriculum for Texas public schools. Find more about the BJC and Christians Against Christian Nationalism here: Listen to Respecting Religion presented by the BJC: Read Amanda's book How to End Christian Nationalism here:
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Ep.401 Watching for the Sunrise
08/09/2024
Ep.401 Watching for the Sunrise
This week we are excited to launch our fourth season of Weekly Witness and who better to kick things off than Texas Impact’s esteemed Executive Director, Bee Moorhead. We thought this would be a timely conversation as we move out of the usually slower summer months and into a consequential fall election season which will lead into the 89th Texas Legislative session in January. Texans of faith are leading, and it is so inspiring to see. If you want to find out how you can get involved, check out and for sure check out the page for tools and resources.
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Ep.355 Sankofa: Heather Goes to Ghana
08/02/2024
Ep.355 Sankofa: Heather Goes to Ghana
This week we are once again joined by Texas Impact Policy Advocate, Heather Malkawi, who was recently invited to attend the 6th Pan African Conference, otherwise known as Sankofa 2024. This conference is hosted about every five years by the Circle of Concerned African Women Theologians. Heather shares highlights from her trip and about how these theologians are processing, leading and acting. Texans of faith are also leading, and it is so inspiring to see. If you want to find out how you can get involved, check out , and for sure check out the page for tools and resources. Learn more about Sankofa and the CCAWT here and in Heather's blog
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Ep. 354 Amazing Grace
07/26/2024
Ep. 354 Amazing Grace
This week is the final episode of our series introducing Texas Impact’s new staff members as we welcome Grace Bonilla to the program. Grace was formerly an intern with Texas Impact and was recently hired as our newest Public Witness Mobilizer. Grace is working on a number of projects. Among them, she is helping staff Texas Impact’s Public School Defenders team. I hope you enjoy the conversation with Grace and keep an eye on Texas Impact’s website for opportunities to come meet the new team members in person. Become a Public School Defender or join one of Texas Impact's other issue champion teams at
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Ep. 353 Gun Violence Prevention: Putting the Pieces Together
07/19/2024
Ep. 353 Gun Violence Prevention: Putting the Pieces Together
This week we are joined by Texas Impact Policy Advocate Bobby Watson for a conversation about his travels this summer related to his work with Texas Impact’s Ending Gun Violence team. In light of recent events, faith leaders have offered reflections condemning political violence and calling on us for peaceful conversations about important issues. Scott reads a statement issued by Texas United Methodist Bishop Rueben Saenz at the top of the program. Find out more about Texas Impact's Ending Gun Violence team and join at
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Ep.352 It's a Journey
07/12/2024
Ep.352 It's a Journey
The Texas Impact staff recently met in Austin and welcomed several new staff to new positions, so we thought we would use part of this summer break to introduce you to our new team members. We continue the series this week with Heather Malkawi. Heather is not new to Texas Impact though, if you have been to an event in the last few years, you have probably met Heather. You have an even higher likelihood of knowing Heather if you are a Unitarian Universalist since she just finished a stint as a UU Fellow with Texas Impact. But, now that she has finished her award-winning seminary education, Heather is joining us full time as a Policy Advocate, so we wanted to give everyone a chance to get to know Heather today. If you want to learn more about Heather or any Texas Impact’s projects or teams, head on over to . Check out our resources, the or join a team.
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Ep. 351 Opportunity + Inspiration
06/28/2024
Ep. 351 Opportunity + Inspiration
The Texas Impact staff recently met in Austin and welcomed several new staff to new positions, we thought we would use part of this summer break to introduce you to our new team members. We continue that series today with a conversation with Rebecca McIlwain, Project Manager of Houston Faith Votes. For over a decade, Rebecca served in parish ministry in the Ft. Worth and San Angelo Dioceses, focusing on social justice initiatives, adult and youth religious education, and campus ministry. Then, she turned to community organizing where she worked with congregations and schools across West Texas and later Austin to engage members in nonpartisan civic engagement. Between the primary elections and the consequential general elections, there is important civic engagement work going on and now is the perfect time to use the Texas Faith Votes resources to figure out what you and your congregation plan on doing this fall. Find out more at
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Ep. 350 Pulling the Thread
06/14/2024
Ep. 350 Pulling the Thread
Texas Impact staff recently met in Austin and welcomed several new staff and new people to new positions, so we thought we would use part of this summer break to introduce you to our new team members. And, we are starting that series today with a conversation with Kaitlin Dunn, our new Houston Faith Community Mobilizer working with the Houston Faith Votes team. I know you will be excited to hear from her today and get to know her in the months to come. We are in the heat of the summer in between the primary elections and the consequential general elections. There is important civic engagement work going on. Now is the perfect time to use the Texas Faith Votes resources to figure out what you and your congregation plan on doing this fall. Visit to find out more!
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Ep. 349 Vidas Robadas/Stolen Lives
06/07/2024
Ep. 349 Vidas Robadas/Stolen Lives
This week marks the beginning of Gun Violence Awareness Month and many of us will still remember where we were when we received the news about the tragic school shooting at Robb Elementary in Uvalde just two years ago. Joining us this week is Texas Impact's Policy Advocate, Bobby Watson, to discuss his work with our gun violence prevention issue team and their visibility project, Vidas Robadas, an installation of t-shirts bearing the names of victims of gun violence. Find out more about the project and join Texas Impact's issue team at
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Ep. 348 Ready or Not
05/31/2024
Ep. 348 Ready or Not
We talk weather this week with Dr. Becca Edwards, Texas Impact’s Climate Action Fellow. Originally because we wanted to talk about Hurricane Season, which begins this weekend and runs through November, but seems like most of Texas has already endured at least one climate disaster in the last month. North Texas has had floods, tornadoes and wind events. Houston had a wind event that knocked out most of downtown and had people without power for the better part of a week.. and we haven’t even made it to hurricane season yet! Join Texas Impact's Climate Action Team at
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Ep.347 Joyful Engagement
05/24/2024
Ep.347 Joyful Engagement
The runoff elections are next Tuesday, May 28th, and interim hearings are underway to help shape public policy recommendations going into the next legislative session. What does it all mean? Here with us to discuss is friend of the program and Texas Impact’s outside legislative counsel, Beaman Floyd. Spoiler Alert: he is going to remind us about the importance of these elections and how your vote is extra valuable and he will talk about ways you can get involved in public policy during the interim. Fear not, Texas Impact has tools for you. This is a perfect time to visit Texas Impact’s election center and our Texas Faith Votes campaign resources at
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Ep. 346 Waiting Forever for Healthcare
05/17/2024
Ep. 346 Waiting Forever for Healthcare
This week we are excited to welcome Diana Forester, Director of Health Policy with Texans Care for Children. This is an important conversation this week because legislative leaders recently released their interim charges for the biennium, and it provides some opportunities to speak to the unacceptable state of health coverage in the state of Texas. Diana joins us to talk about that, the interim charges, and what Texans can do. Find out more about the work of Texan Care for Children at To receive updates about Medicaid eligibility email
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Voices from the Field: Listening and Lobbying on the Farm Bill
05/10/2024
Voices from the Field: Listening and Lobbying on the Farm Bill
Texas Impact is proud to be a part of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America’s ELCA Advocacy family as a State Public Policy Office for Texas. Joining us this week is Christine Moffett, ELCA Program Director for Environment and Energy Policy, to discuss the Farm Bill. She will talk about whether Congress can pass anything during an election year, what’s in the bill and why it matters. Find out more about the work of ELCA Advocacy at
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Ep. 344 Why DEI?: The Chilling Effect of SB17
05/03/2024
Ep. 344 Why DEI?: The Chilling Effect of SB17
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion programs in Texas colleges came under fire in the last legislative session. The passage of SB17 has been controversial with many students and faculty over the elimination of these programs. This week we are joined by Dr. Karma Chávez, the Bobby and Sherri Patton Professor of Mexican American and Latina/o Studies and Chair of Mexican American and Latina/o Studies at the University of Texas at Austin. Dr. Chávez will talk to us about what is driving this movement, why it matters and how you can help.
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Ep. 343 Modern Plagues
04/26/2024
Ep. 343 Modern Plagues
This week we are joined by Emily Bourgeois, Community Organizer of RAC-Texas, the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism—one of Texas Impact’s member institutions. We always enjoy working with Emily across a range of policy issues, including public education and religious freedom. Over the last month, we have had several episodes about the holy seasons many of our traditions have been observing. Emily will join us today to talk about Passover and the intersection with advocacy. Learn more about the work of RAC-Texas at
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Ep. 342 No Shade to the Polar Bears
04/19/2024
Ep. 342 No Shade to the Polar Bears
This week we are joined by Texas Impact's Climate Action Fellow, Becca Edwards, to help prepare for Earth Day on April 22. Becca has been meeting with many congregations talking about climate change, liberation theology, how communities of faith can engage in climate issues during this election season and so much more. So we thought we would bring those conversations to you as you think about what you and your congregation can do this Earth Day and beyond. One of the ways you can continue to engage this work is by joining the !
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Ep. 341 All the Feels
04/12/2024
Ep. 341 All the Feels
This week we say goodbye to maybe our closest friend of the show, who has been on the program more than any other guest. Texas Impact announced last week that Advocacy Director Joshua Houston would be leaving soon to take a new position with Caritas of Austin. So we thought we needed to say goodbye (for now) with one last episode reminiscing on some of his proudest, and most hilarious, moments in his 14 years with Texas Impact. Keep the tissue box close by for this very special episode because we finally talk about feelings! Find out ore about Caritas of Austin at caritasofaustin.org
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Ep. 340 Spiritual Nourishment: Ramadan and Justice Work
04/05/2024
Ep. 340 Spiritual Nourishment: Ramadan and Justice Work
Many Christians just finished Holy Week, Passover is coming and we are in the midst of Ramadan. All of those seasons can and should inspire people of faith to love our neighbor and have some intersection with advocating on behalf of our neighbors and communities at large. This week, we have a friend of the program Usama Malik, Program Coordinator for Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary and Texas Impact Board Member, to talk with us about Ramadan and its intersection with advocacy work. Our hope is that during these holy seasons, listeners will find meaning and peace and the strength and courage to do the work necessary to create a better and more just society during what promises to be a challenging year with plenty of opportunities for advocacy and civic engagement. Find out more about the work of Muslim Space here:
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Ep.339 Not Good Enough Yet: A Status Check on Abortion Ban Rulemaking
03/29/2024
Ep.339 Not Good Enough Yet: A Status Check on Abortion Ban Rulemaking
This week, we follow up on the conversation from two weeks ago in advance of the Texas Medical Board meeting. More than 2,000 Texans of faith signed Texas Impact’s petition calling for a rulemaking process to define the abortion exception in Texas state law relating to the life and health of the mother. We spoke about Steve and Amy Bresnen, two Austin attorneys and lobbyists from the aptly named BresnenAssociates who submitted that official petition to the Texas Medical Board. The Board did in fact begin the rulemaking process and introduced a draft rule for public comment. This week, we are fortunate to have the two petitioners, Amy and Steve Bresnen, for a conversation about that rule, the rulemaking process, and what YOU can do to help protect the lives and health of Texas women. Find the form to submit public comments to the Texas Medical Board . Sign Texas Impact's sign-on letter at
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Ep. 338 Texas and Climate: One Step Forward, One Step Back
03/22/2024
Ep. 338 Texas and Climate: One Step Forward, One Step Back
This week we are talking about all things environment with friend of the program Luke Metzger, Executive Director of Environment Texas. Luke joins us to share the good news from the November elections related to the Centennial Parks Conservation Fund AND the EPA’s new rules related to methane emissions. Spoiler: Texas is not handling the rules well, but Luke gives us an update on those rules, solar policy, the TCEQ’s recently released “Priority Action Plan and more. Later in the program, Texas Impact’s Climate Action Fellow, Becca Edwards, joins to give her reaction and share her Lenten project related to methane. Find the Methane Meditations Lenten Series here:
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Ep. 337 Point of Clarification: Rule-making on Texas' Abortion Ban
03/15/2024
Ep. 337 Point of Clarification: Rule-making on Texas' Abortion Ban
This week, we welcome Texas Impact’s Executive Director, Bee Moorhead, for an important and timely conversation about reproductive health. The Texas Medical Board is meeting Thursday, March 21st, and Texas Impact is promoting a sign on letter to ask them to undertake rulemaking to define the exception to the abortion ban related to the life and health of the mother. In the very short time since we recorded this episode, we’ve learned that the Board WILL be initiating rulemaking–this is great news and affirms the value of public engagement with our state agencies. It also makes it more important than ever that folks sign the petition, which lays out the key elements of what would make a strong rule that would really help doctors and patients. The Board needs to know that Texans support the agency to make a strong, clear rule. Add your name to the sign on letter at
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Ep.336 2024 Texas Primary Election Wrap-Up
03/08/2024
Ep.336 2024 Texas Primary Election Wrap-Up
This week we are wrapping up the primary elections with Texas Impact’s Advocacy Director Joshua Houston. We want to thank everyone who voted, organized your friends and congregations, volunteered for a campaign, or helped work the election. After this election, there is still a lot of work to do and Texas Impact has tools and resources for you, so make sure to check out the Texas Faith Votes page at to learn more.
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Ep. 335 Share the Community, Share Your Values
03/01/2024
Ep. 335 Share the Community, Share Your Values
This week, we want to share another round of audio from the recent Houston Faith Votes event. We were honored to have Rep. Ann Johnson and Rep. Jon Rosenthal, two Texas State Representatives from the Houston area, for a conversation on the importance of primary elections, how Texans can best connect with their representatives and talk about how Texans of faith specifically can be effective advocates for issues you care about.
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Ep. 334 The Antidote to Powerlessness: Houston Faith Leaders on Voting and Civic Engagement
02/23/2024
Ep. 334 The Antidote to Powerlessness: Houston Faith Leaders on Voting and Civic Engagement
The Texas Impact team has toured the state, talked with, and resourced thousands of Texans of faith in the last two months. This week, we are going to bring you some of the content from our Houston Faith Votes event earlier this week. We thought you might enjoy the Faith Leader panel featuring Rev. Dr. Colin Bossen, Senior Minister, First Unitarian Universalist Church, Rabbi Josh Fixler, Associate Rabbi, Congregation Emanu El and President of the Faith Leader’s Coalition of Greater Houston, Rev. Leslie Jackson, Texas Impact Board Member and Senior Pastor St. Peter's United Church of Christ, Kim Mabry, Texas Impact Board Member, and Rev. Dr. Angela Ravin-Anderson, leader with the Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church Social Justice Ministry.
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