Copy Desk Daily, July 2, 2019

Nothing. That's what it cost Immaculate Conception Catholic Church, a southeastern Virginia parish, to install the 440 panels of its new solar energy system. The system will generate 100% of the parish's energy use from the sun. Immaculate Conception is the first parish to complete a solar project with the Catholic Energies program of the Catholic Climate Covenant. The shift from fossil fuels carries weight in a coastal area that is highly vulnerable to tidal flooding worsened by climate change.

Churches wipe out millions in medical debt for others Medical debt drives two-thirds of bankruptcies. But churches of various Christian denominations across the country have found a way to apply donations in the thousands to clear debt in the millions. The nonprofit RIP Medical Debt uses donor money to buy debt portfolios for pennies on the dollar — and then forgives the debt.

The subject of medical care and staggering statistics continues in a commentary by Fran Quigley. Quigley illustrates the vital, enduring charity of Gennesaret Free Clinics amid the country's continued gaps (30 million Americans have no health insurance): This free clinic is a study in the US healthcare struggle

Pence dustup shows refreshing diversity of thought at evangelical school: An additional commentary by Ken Briggs suggests an anomaly, "an evangelical college that welcomes diverse points of view." The "strict conservative religious and political setting" of Taylor University in Upland, Indiana, "encourages an identity as stereotypical Donald Trump territory." But as Briggs writes, "Events of the past month suggest a refreshing exception."

Come for the illustration, stay for the sage spirituality. Or vice versa. Read Pat Marrin's Pencil Preaching for today: Sink or Swim.