‘Faith Leader Summit on Health Care’

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Nearly 30 religious leaders, comprising Christian, Jewish and Muslim faith traditions, will meet in the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday, July 7 at a “Faith Leader Summit on Health Care.” They will meet with officials in the Obama administration and Congress to voice their concern for the status of health-care reform.

The summit is sponsored by the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism and the United Methodist General Board of Church & Society (GBCS), in collaboration with Families USA and the National Coalition on Health Care.

Participants intend to speak in a unified moral voice in support of comprehensive reform.

The summit will explore best practices, identify common ground and share hopes and expectations for health-care reform legislation. Participants intend to speak in a unified moral voice in support of comprehensive reform.

Elected officials meeting with summit participants throughout the day will include Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich.; Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill.; and Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich.

Also meeting with the faith leaders will be Joshua DuBois, special assistant to the president and executive director of the White House Office of Faith-Based & Neighborhood Partnerships.

Special addresses will be made by Rabbi David Saperstein, director, Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, and Jim Winkler, GBCS chief executive.

Faith statement of concern

A number of summit participants have signed on to a faith statement of support for comprehensive health-care reform that will be shared with members of the administration and Congress.

Our diverse communities of faith … are each shaped and guided by our respective sacred texts which compel us to speak out.

The statement declares that health-care reform has become an urgent priority, with many persons fearful about the health care they now hold and more than 45 million lacking coverage altogether.

“Our diverse communities of faith — Jewish, Christian and Muslim — are each shaped and guided by our respective sacred texts which compel us to speak out on behalf of the most vulnerable members of our society,” says the statement, “A Matter of Health — A Matter of Wholeness.” “Today that means making comprehensive and compassionate health-care reform an urgent priority so that all of our neighbors, especially the people living in poverty, children, and the aged, can be assured of the fullness of life that is central to the holy vision of a beloved and peaceable community.”

The entire statement can be downloaded from GBCS’s website: “A Matter of Health — A Matter of Wholeness.”

Participants

Other participants in the summit include: Anju Bhargava, founder, Asian Indian Women of America; the Rev. Dr. Miriam J. Burnett, medical director, Health Commission, African Methodist Episcopal Church; Sister Simone Campbell, executive director, NETWORK — A National Catholic Social Justice Lobby; John Carr, executive director, Dept. of Justice, Peace & Human Development, U.S. Catholic Bishops' Conference; and Dr. Arturo Chavez, president and CEO, Mexican American Catholic College.

Other participants include the Rev. Peg Chemberlin, president-elect, National Council of Churches; the Rev. Jessica Crist, bishop of the Montana Synod, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America; Nathan Diament, director of public policy, Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America; Rabbi Steve Gutow, executive director, Jewish Council for Public Affairs; and the Rev. Linda Jaramillo, executive minister, United Church of Christ Justice & Witness Ministries.

Also taking part are Dr. Michael Kinnamon, general secretary, National Council of Churches; the Rev. Gradye Parsons, general assembly stated clerk, Presbyterian Church (USA); the Rev. Dr. Tyrone Pitts, general secretary, Progressive National Baptist Convention; Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, founder and CEO, American Society for Muslim Advancement; and Nancy Ratzan, president, National Council of Jewish Women.

Other participants are Melissa Rogers, director, Wake Forest School of Divinity Center for Religion & Public Affairs; the Rev. William Shaw, president, National Baptist Convention USA; Dr. Sayyid Syeed, national director, Office of Interfaith & Community Alliances, Islamic Society of North America; the Rev. Jim Wallis, president and executive director, Sojourners; Dr. Sharon Watkins, general minister and president, Christian Church (Disciples of Christ); and Rabbi Jeffrey Wohlberg, president, Rabbinical Assembly.