A word of encouragement
God is with you
By Bill Mefford, Director of Civil & Human Rights, General Board of Church & Society
There are days when I feel like all that I work for is hopeless, that I am not really making a difference. And, I even feel alone in my passion for justice for the poor and oppressed.
There are days when I feel like all that I work for is hopeless.
I took a few days off recently to do some reading and relaxing. I needed to recharge my batteries, so to speak.
One of the things I read was a powerful quote by Bobby Kennedy:
Each time [someone] stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice [they] send forth a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring, those ripples build a current which can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance.
Do you ever feel that way? If you do, then I pray that Bobby Kennedy's quote will remind you, as it did me, of the tremendous importance of our work. You might want to read it again, and reflect on it.
Ripples of hope
Each call we make to our elected leaders, each e-mail we send, each conversation we have with our friends, family and fellow church members about the need to reform the immigration system or the criminal justice system in the United States starts a ripple of hope.
Those ripples are creating a current for justice and righteousness. And oh, how we need a current of justice to wash us from unrighteousness!
Let me encourage you to continue your work for justice. Please continue to work for justice for those denied it.
God really is with us. And there is so much for us to do.
Some actions to consider
Here are some suggestions about actions to take if you have not done so already:
Host a screening of the film “Made in LA" at your church or Wesley Foundation. It is an eloquent movie about the need for just, humane comprehensive immigration reform. There is an excellent “Made in LA” study guide available that you can use to help educate and organize in your community for reform. I would learn to learn about your screening, by the way. You can contact me via e-mail at Bill Mefford.
August and September have been designated as months of action by the Interfaith Immigration coalition. It's not too late to organize a prayer vigil, a Neighbor to Neighbor in-district meeting with your member of Congress, or a “Breaking Bread & Barriers” event. Your representatives need to know where you stand in support of reforming the U.S.’s broken immigration system. And, let me know what you organize.
Urge your elected representatives in Congress to co-sponsor H.R. 3245. Let's finally bring fairness to the unjust sentencing disparity between crack and powder cocaine.
Urge your elected leaders to reunite immigrant families.
Urge your elected leaders to prevent gun violence and close the gun show loophole that allows illegal gun trafficking.
Each of these actions will start ripples of justice carrying hope to thousands of other ripples throughout the world.
Your work matters a great deal and can help "justice roll down like water and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream" (Amos 5:24).
So, let's not give up. Your work is too important!
Let us remember how we have been blessed with the opportunity to work with God's Kingdom dream of peace and justice on earth.
Civil and Human Rights Advocacy
The General Board of Church & Society (GBCS) advocates for the preservation of civil and human rights for all people throughout the world. The civil and human rights of all people are upheld by The United Methodist Church according to its 2008 Book of Discipline (¶164A).
GBCS has a web page dedicated to “Civil & Human Rights.”
Action Network
Bill Mefford supervises an “Action Network” that provides legislative updates, educational resources and identifies opportunities to act on issues involving immigration reform, refugees, criminal justice reform, abolition of torture, religious freedom and racial justice. He issues “Action Alerts” periodically through e-mail.
Joining the Civil and Human Rights Action Network is free: go to umpower.org or click on My GBCS on the General Board of Church & Society website, www.umc-gbcs.org. You can also contact Donna Brandyberry, (202) 488-5641.
Bill Mefford can be reached at (202) 488-5657. Date: 8/14/2009
©2005-2009
| 
MDG Wallet Cards - 100 per packHandy listing of the Millennium Development Goals in a business-card size