U.S. state efforts advance to abolish death penalty

A UMNS Report

By Kathy L. Gilbert*

In 1985, Kirk Bloodsworth was convicted of rape and murder and sent to Maryland's death row. In 1993, DNA testing proved he was innocent.

He joined the 127 people in the United States who have been released from death rows after being found innocent of the capital crime for which they were convicted.

Beth Reilly

"Because innocent persons are sentenced to death and because there is documented racial and geographical bias, everyone should question the death penalty," said Beth Reilly, a United Methodist working to abolish capital punishment in Maryland.

Reilly's convictions come from Scripture and The United Methodist Church's Social Principles.

"For United Methodists, a death penalty is antithetical to the New Testament message," she said. "As our state seeks to punish perpetrators of heinous crimes and as it works to protect society from those who may do harm, we, as Christians, must consider a higher calling."

In the United Methodist law book, called the Book of Discipline, the denomination states that "the death penalty denies the power of Christ to redeem, restore and transform all human beings." It goes on to state opposition to the death penalty and to "urge its elimination from all criminal codes."

Delegates to the 1956 Methodist General Conference took the historic action of officially opposing the death penalty.

Each Methodist and United Methodist General Conference since that time has reaffirmed that position. Meeting every four years, these assemblies are the only bodies that can speak officially for the denomination. The 2008 General Conference will meet April 23-May 2 in Fort Worth, Texas.

Making strides
Tremendous strides were made in the past year against capital punishment, according to Bill Mefford, director of civil and human rights with the United Methodist Board of Church and Society, the church's social advocacy agency.

"New Jersey became the first state in 42 years to legislatively end the death penalty," he said. Abolitionist legislation also was filed in Colorado, Maryland, Montana, Nebraska and New Mexico.

The number of executions in the United States hit a 13-year low in 2007 with 42 people being executed, due in large part to a challenge from two Kentucky death row inmates. The U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear the challenge in September. The inmates allege lethal injection is cruel and unusual punishment.

Mefford noted three more exonerations: Curtis McCarty of Oklahoma after 21 years on death row; Michael Lee McCormick of Tennessee after 16 years; and Jonathan Hoffman of North Carolina after 10 years.

The United States reinstated the death penalty in 1976 and since that time 1,099 people have been executed. Lethal injection is used in 35 states and by the U.S. military and U.S. government. Nine states use electrocution, five states use the gas chamber, two states executive by hanging and two states use a firing squad. Lethal injection is allowed as an alternative in most states.

California, North Carolina and Tennessee are currently studying their death penalty process, according to the Death Penalty Information Center. Indiana is considering legislation that would exempt seriously mentally ill defendants.

Statehouse activity
In December, New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine signed legislation passed by state lawmakers to abolish the death penalty in that state. The law was the result of many years of hard work by abolitionists.

"I pray their commitment will encourage us to continue in our struggle for complete abolition through the United States and throughout the world," Mefford said. "We continue to pray for the other innocent death row inmates."

Death penalty opponents in Maryland had hoped to follow New Jersey in 2008 but settled on a compromise designed to keep the momentum going. When Maryland lawmakers met in a gridlock in March, the opponents rallied around the push to establish a commission to study the law. A task force study had preceded New Jersey's new law.

"With the 2008 repeal still one vote short of passage in the same committee, this legislation offers a constructive way forward," said Sara Klemm, with the Maryland Citizens Against State Executions.

Added Reilly: "(The study commission) empowers a broadly representative and distinguished state body to conduct the first comprehensive review our state's death penalty and, as important, to make recommendations about its future."

Another close vote
Nebraska lawmakers rejected an attempt to repeal the death penalty with a vote of 20-28 on March 25. The legislation needed 25 votes to pass.

Mark Weddleton, statewide organizer for Nebraskans Against the Death Penalty, said United Methodist pastors and lay leaders have been the "backbone" of the effort to eliminate the death penalty in that state.

"As I was thinking about the different cities where we have been, it was the United Methodist churches where local organizing meetings were held," he said. "It is some retired United Methodist pastors who have been outspoken and really adopted this as a key campaign."

Nebraska is the only state that only authorizes the electric chair as its form of capital punishment. This vote still leaves the state without a legal method of executions because the state Supreme Court declared the electric chair cruel and unusual punishment.

"The governor has declared his intention to push now to establish lethal injection as Nebraska's means of carrying out executions, so that will be our next focus," Weddleton said. "Until the state adopts a new method, it has no way to execute the people who receive death sentences. Based on the number of votes in the legislature (on March 25) we're more optimistic about our chances of being successful in holding that off."

Despite the disappointment of the Nebraska vote, Weddleton believes it is just a matter of time before the death penalty is ended in his state.

"And we can thank the United Methodists for that," he said.

*Gilbert is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in Nashville, Tenn.

A UMNS Commentary by John C. Goodwin: Death penalty law recaptures spirit of '56

John C. Goodwin (left) encourages fellow members of Demarest (N.J.) United Methodist Church to write letters to state legislators asking them to repeal the death penalty. A UMNS photo courtesy of John C. Goodwin.A UMNS Commentary By John C. Goodwin*

"You have women clergy in The United Methodist Church?" The question was posed to me several years ago by Sister Dorothy Briggs, a new friend in the movement to abolish the death penalty.

Acknowledging that she knew very little about the Protestant church, she was delighted to learn that most Protestant churches ordain women. She was especially pleased to learn that The United Methodist Church has female bishops.

I went on to tell her about the spirit of '56.

In 1956, the Methodist Church gave women full clergy rights. The 1956 General Conference also added opposition to the death penalty to the church's Book of Discipline. There had been church editorials against capital punishment going back at least to the trial and executions of Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti in the 1920s, but it wasn't until 1956 that opposition to the death penalty became church policy.

Movement in New Jersey
On Dec. 17, 2007, New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine signed a bill abolishing the death penalty, making New Jersey the first state to abolish the practice since capital punishment was reinstated in 1976 after a U.S. Supreme Court-ordered hiatus. According to the Death Penalty Information Center, 36 states now allow capital punishment, while 14 others, plus the District of Columbia, do not.

Why New Jersey? Corzine had stated that he has been against capital punishment for his entire political life. But governors can't change state laws without the support of a majority of the state's legislators. Legislators need to know the views of their constituents. An important role for the church is to educate people on moral issues and to encourage them to express their views, and the position of the church, to their legislators.

Many church members are unaware that The United Methodist Church opposes capital punishment, and certainly there are United Methodists on both sides of this issue.

In 1998, the New Jersey Council of Churches called together 10 Protestant leaders to discuss the death penalty and possible responses. Out of that meeting came a pastoral letter in which the denominational leaders explained that in their view the death penalty was incompatible with Christian teachings, and they pledged to educate their members.

Former United Methodist Bishop Alfred Johnson, a signer of the pastoral letter, established the New Jersey area Task Force to Abolish the Death Penalty. I became the co-convener of the task force, working first with the Rev. Bryan Bass-Riley and then with the Rev. William Greene.

Coordinating closely with the conference board of church and society, we developed educational and worship materials, sponsored a public event with guest speakers, led workshops in churches and wrote resolutions which, after passage at each annual conference, were mailed by the conference secretary to all 120 state legislators and the governor.

The task force also aligned itself with a newly formed secular organization--New Jerseyans for a Death Penalty Moratorium--which later became New Jerseyans for Alternatives to the Death Penalty. I joined their executive committee as did the Rev. Karl Kraft, a United Methodist pastor, and our bishops have served on the advisory committee.

Laying the groundwork
Without this organization-and the faith and secular groups they enlisted in the cause of abolition-New Jersey would not have made death penalty history.

They visited legislators, organized public meetings and letter-writing campaigns, often in churches, and developed a database of more than 10,000 sympathetic individuals. They brought in innocent exonerated Death Row inmates to speak and to testify before governmental committees. Several surviving family members of violent crimes actively proved that survivors don't always demand executions to bring about "closure."

Sister Briggs, who died in 2006 at the age of 83, organized a program that encourages people to ring their church bells or put up banners on those days when someone, anywhere in the country, is executed. My church displays such a banner, which is often seen by our pro-death penalty state senator.

I am convinced that the United States will join Western Europe and most of the democracies of the world in giving up the death penalty. But here, for a time at least, the work must be done on a state-by-state basis. This is how The United Methodist Church can help to make a difference.

*Goodwin, a photojournalist, is a member of the United Methodist Church at Demarest, N.J.

Advocates fought for N.J. death penalty repeal

Gov. Jon Corzine signs a bill on Dec. 17, 2007, abolishing the death penalty in New Jersey. UMNS photos by John C. Goodwin.A UMNS Report By Linda Bloom*

When New Jersey repealed the death penalty at the end of 2007, United Methodists were among those who squeezed into a small room at the state capitol to watch Gov. Jon Corzine sign the bill.

As the governor noted on that Dec. 17th, grassroots advocacy groups had played a significant role in making New Jersey the first state since 1976 to repeal the death penalty through its legislature. Replacing capital punishment was life in prison without parole.

"Because New Jersey has not executed anyone in 44 years, there is little collective will or appetite for our community to enforce this law and therefore the (death penalty) law has little deterrence value," Corzine said in a statement.

Among the groups he acknowledged was New Jerseyans for Alternatives to the Death Penalty (NJADP), a group that had both direct and indirect United Methodist participation, according to John Goodwin, co-chairperson of the denomination's New Jersey Area Task Force on Abolishing the Death Penalty.

Goodwin of Demarest, N.J., a photojournalist retired from the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries, has been interested in death penalty issues since Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were executed for espionage in 1953.

Advocacy group formed
At the end of 1998, the New Jersey Council of Churches issued a pastoral letter saying the death penalty was wrong. United Methodist Bishop Alfred Johnson, who was one of the signers, formed the task force in 1999.

Soon after, Goodwin also became an executive committee member of NJADP, which at that point was pursuing a moratorium on the death penalty. "It was a secular group, but it had both Roman Catholic and Protestant origins," he explained.

Lorry Post, a Presbyterian, founded the group in 1999 in memory of his daughter, Lisa, who was murdered in Georgia in 1988. He now serves as executive director of Murder Victim Families for Reconciliation. Celeste Fitzgerald, a Catholic, is now the NJADP program director. The current United Methodist Bishop of New Jersey, Sudarshana Devadhar, is a member of the group's advisory committee.

The Rev. Karl Kraft, pastor of the United Methodist Church of Mantua, N.J., located in a county across the river from Philadelphia, had heard about the group and attended a meeting at Post's home.

Kraft said he was inspired by both Post and Fitzgerald. But his real motivation for joining the push against the death penalty was "rooted firmly in how I receive the teachings of Jesus, who came not only as our Lord, but also as our Redeemer," he told United Methodist News Service.

"Everyone deserves the opportunity for redemption, even the most hardened criminal. Executing that criminal effectively removes any possibility of redemption."

Kraft, who has been part of the NJADP executive committee for two years, also believes that Christians must see all human beings as children of God. "We certainly have the right to impose proper punishment on those who commit crimes, but the ultimate judgment must be left to God," he said.

Through the denomination's task force and NJADP, United Methodists often were asked to host meetings or join in letter-writing campaigns. Every year, for years, the task force sent a letter to all 120 state legislators "essentially saying that the UMC has been against the death penalty since 1956," Goodwin said. The annual letter came from the secretary of what is now the Greater New Jersey Annual (regional) Conference, with a resolution passed by the conference.

Letter-writing is key
The Rev. B.J. Kim, pastor of the Rutherford (N.J.) United Methodist Church in the northern part of the state, is a member of the conference task force. He hosted a public meeting for NJADP and organized letter writing.

"Their consistent work really got my attention," Kim said about the task force. "The process itself gave me a kind of lesson."

His church committee wrote letters to the local newspaper and state assembly members supporting the repeal of the death penalty. "We invited the state assemblyman who was against what we were doing," Kim added. "He became the one who voted for us."

The northern congregations were more active in the campaign than those in southern New Jersey, Kraft said. "It was pretty hard to convince people down here that the death penalty should be replaced by life without parole," he said.

For his own congregation, it was not a difficult decision because, he explained, "what we were doing was not anything outside the polity of The United Methodist Church. We're very clear in the Book of Discipline about the death penalty."

The statement in the United Methodist Social Principles opposing the death penalty says that all human life is sacred and that capital punishment "denies the power of Christ to redeem, restore and transform all human beings."

"We believe in the resurrection of Jesus Christ and that the possibility of reconciliation with Christ comes through repentance," the Social Principles states. "This gift of reconciliation is offered to all individuals without exception and gives all life new dignity and sacredness."

Study commission report
In January 2006, the New Jersey legislature placed a moratorium on executions and formed the New Jersey Death Penalty Study Commission. The chairman, appointed by the governor, was the Rev. M. William Howard Jr., a Baptist minister and former president of the National Council of Churches. United Methodists were among advocates attending the commission's hearings.

On Jan. 2, 2007, the study commission issued a report and recommendations, stating that ability to execute a small number of persons "is not sufficiently compelling to justify the risk of making an irreversible mistake"; that the death penalty is expensive to carry out; and that life imprisonment in a maximum-security institution would ensure public safety and address other interests, including those of the families of murder victims.

The New Jersey Senate approved an end to capital punishment by a 21-16 vote on Dec. 10. Goodwin was at the statehouse three days later as the assembly debated the bill, a debate that included emotional speeches about murder. After being "tense and upset" during the debate, he found himself to be "incredibly relieved" once the bill was approved by a 44-36 vote. "I almost passed out just thinking that we actually did it," he said.

Kraft, who was on the scene along with Goodwin when Corzine signed the bill the following Monday, found the "standing room only" event "quite overwhelming." He was even more impressed after realizing he had witnessed an event that "would have an influence around the world."

The legislative victory "became a kind of success story for our community," Kim said, and shows what can happen "when God plants a good seed in our heart."

*Bloom is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in New York.

Youth experience 'night walk' as homeless teen

Chicago youth participating in the Night Walk program head into the cold to experience what it is like to be homeless. UMNS photos by Jon Kaplan..

By Jon Kaplan*

CHICAGO (UMNS)--As he wanders Chicago's Lakeview neighborhood trying to stay warm on a bitterly cold night, 12-year-old Henry Nash seems relieved and grateful he only has to be homeless for an hour.

"I can go home and sleep and eat and what not; and someone out here can't, and they just have to spend the night and go hungry," Henry says. "It's really, really kind of sad when you think about it."

Henry wonders how real homeless youngsters survive. Chicago, like most major cities, has more than 10,000 children between the ages of 12 and 21 who have no place to live. They are generally runaways or at-risk youth who are pregnant, physically or sexually abused, drug addicts, alcoholics, mentally ill or destitute. Even more shocking, the average age of a homeless person in the United States is 9.

This cold dose of reality is the goal of Night Walk, an urban immersion experience that helps individuals encounter street life at night from a homeless youth's perspective. The experience is sponsored by The Night Ministry, a nondenominational, nonprofit organization that serves Chicago's most vulnerable people.

Night Walk only lasts about an hour, and young participants are always under adult supervision. But for most youngsters, it's a real eye-opener.

"Homeless people do illegal things to eat and live," says Ana Schcolnak, 13. "Desperate people do desperate things."

Shock factor
On this night, Ana and two others in her group find a spot in an alley behind a hospital where a homeless person uses a cardboard box for shelter and lives off scraps of food found in a nearby dumpster.

"I was thinking a lot about how scary it was," remembers Isabel Hale, 13. "I felt like, 'Wow, I can't believe people actually have to do this.'"

The shock factor of homelessness is an important part of the Night Walk program, according to Julie Delezenne, a counselor with The Night Ministry who leads the youngsters in a discussion when they return.

"It's hard to imagine; it shocks them." Delezenne says. "Sometimes they come back just dripping wet and cold. That's also part of the experience of being out on the streets."

Even though the Night Walk is brief, organizers say it can have a lasting impact on an individual--and on the community beyond.

"I think it's really important to get youth involved, like the Night Walk is trying to do, to educate folks. And once they go through the Night Walk, they're able to tell their parents, they're able to tell their communities, their congregations, about what they've experienced too," Delezenne says.

Getting involved
Often, Night Walk inspires youth participants to become involved in projects to help the homeless. Many wind up volunteering at The Night Ministry or through their church.

Thirteen-year-old Matthew Lipman already was sensitized to the needs of the homeless, even before going on his Night Walk.

"Every Christmas, our family goes around and helps the homeless we see on the street," Matthew says. "And I noticed they don't have the things you need--a toothbrush, a bar of soap, a washcloth--and then I went to The Night Ministry and got the idea to collect hygiene kits."

Matthew organized a drive at Chicago's First United Methodist Church, asking the congregation to donate toothpaste, toothbrushes, soap, shampoo, washcloths and pre-moistened towels.

His mother, Joan Brogdon, says Matthew's project became a family affair. "He came home after church, poured the stuff all over the floor like Halloween candy and started sorting it. His sister jumped in, as did my husband. It was fun and he had fun doing it," she says.

Matthew raised nearly $1,000 and enough goods to make several dozen hygiene kits. The efforts not only helped many homeless people but also taught Matthew a valuable lesson.

"First and foremost, I hope he feels really good about giving," Brogdon says. "I hope he learns that giving is a part of life and that you feel rich inside. I think the happy person is the generous person who gives willingly and I hope he carries this forward."

*Kaplan is a freelance producer in Chicago.

Memphis churches weep together over mass slayings

Rabbi Micah Greenstein (from left) and the Revs. Craig Strickland, Gregg Diaz, Steve Montgomery, Andy McBeth and Johnny Jeffords sing during a March 12 interfaith prayer service at Mississippi Boulevard Christian Church in Memphis. UMNS photos courtesy of Mississippi Boulevard Christian Church.

By Donna Thurmond*

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (UMNS)--"Tonight we weep. Tomorrow we work," said the Rev. Kenneth Robinson, at a community worship service sparked by the gruesome local slayings of four adults and two children.

More than 2,000 people attended the interfaith service, held March 12 at Mississippi Boulevard Christian Church. The murders are believed to have taken place about 10 days earlier in a small brick home on Lester Street, in the low-income community known as Binghamton.

In response, clergy leaders across all economic and racial strata of the city canceled regular Wednesday evening church events to bring their congregations together in an act of grief and prayer.

"A faith that will not fail will give meaning to this senseless loss of life," said Robinson, pastor of St. Andrew AME Church, in his message at the memorial.

Worshippers were asked to consider ways they could make a difference in their communities.

Lester Street killings
Police said the March 2 crime was the city's worst multiple murder in 15 years.

Shot and killed were Cecil Dotson, 30; Marissa Rene Williams, 27; Hollis Seals, 33; and Shindri Roberson, 22. Dotson's two sons, Cemario, 4, and Cecil II, 2, also were stabbed to death. Three other children, ranging in age from 2 months to 9 years old, were critically injured.

One of the surviving children later identified Cecil Dotson's brother as the killer. Jessie Dotson, 33, was charged March 8 with six counts of first-degree murder and three counts of attempted first-degree murder. Police believe an argument between the two brothers led to the killings.

At the interfaith memorial, offering plates were passed for the Lester Street Victims Fund, to help pay for the funerals of the dead and the futures of the surviving children. The religious community already had raised $20,000 for the fund.

The theme of the evening was "Deliver Us From Evil," and participants remembered Ecclesiastes 3 in noting that now is a "time to weep" and also to "love up on one another."

"We carry common convictions, and our destinies are intertwined," said Rabbi Micah Greenstein of Temple Israel. "We care about the safety of our children. Pray as if everything depends on God. God is in the response."

"Let us not forget how good 'good' is, and let us not underestimate the power of good," said the Rev. Frank Thomas, pastor of the host church. "The power of good in mentoring, teaching parenting skills and conflict resolution, becoming neighborly, and becoming better neighbors" is taking that step toward change, he said.

Richard Janikowski, a professor at the University of Memphis, shared crime statistics showing the city's homicide rate is down 18 percent from a year ago. He said the media often overlooks such positives.

Janikowski said the most effective tools to reduce violence are individuals and individual churches working together to address the roots of crime, which begin in early childhood. "We know what works. We just need the resolve to do something about it," he said.

'It gave me hope'
Libby Short, a member at Germantown United Methodist Church, came to the service at the urging of her pastor, the Rev. Rick Kirchoff.

"I am so thankful to have been a part of one of the most inspiring and hopeful events I have ever been privileged to attend," she said. "If you depend on the media for news of what is going on in the city, you mentally start drawing in and feel you should stay in your home with the doors bolted.

"The atmosphere during the service was so full of hope and love," she said. "Strangers hugged strangers and made you feel so welcome. It gave me hope that the faith-based community will join together to make a difference in Memphis."

Clergy participating in the service included Kirchoff; the Rev. Johnny Jeffords, Saint John's United Methodist Church; and the Rev. Scott Morris, a physician with the Church Health Center.

*Thurmond is communications director for Germantown (Tenn.) United Methodist Church.

Invention pours water on thirsty world

United Methodist Duvon McGuire demonstrates his water purification invention as villagers install a system in Ndola, Zambia. A UMNS photo by Scott Stockton

A UMNS Report

By Kathy L. Gilbert*

A family in southern Indiana is providing safe drinking water mixed with a generous portion of "living water" to parched people around the world.

New Life International, a nonprofit Christian ministry started in the 1970s by Byron and Yvonne McGuire in Underwood, Ind., is the birthplace of the McGuire water purifier, a system that turns unsafe water into safe drinking water using salt and a 12-volt battery.

Their eldest son, Duvon McGuire, invented the system which produces chlorinated water and destroys viruses and bacteria. The water purifiers have provided thousands of gallons of safe drinking water for people in more than 60 countries.

"What we are trying to do is not just bring safe water on a humanitarian level, but as Christians to also be the salt that makes people thirsty for living water," said Duvon McGuire, a member of New Chapel United Methodist Church, Jeffersonville, Ind.

Life experiences
Two major events gave McGuire a thirst to contribute to the world's water need.

As a young boy, he almost died by drinking contaminated water in Ecuador where his parents worked as missionaries. Later, as a student at Asbury College in Kentucky, he spent a summer working in a hospital in India and saw firsthand how unsafe water led to human suffering.

Armed with a chemistry degree, he went to work on an idea for a simple, cost-effective water purifier designed to withstand harsh environmental conditions.

Operated on a 12-volt power supply, the system can provide enough water for 10,000 people and can disinfect up to 50 gallons of water per minute--all using less electrical power than a normal street light. One purifier potentially can save an entire village for as little as a penny per person, per day.

McGuire's invention got its first real-life test in 1998 when Hurricane Mitch hit Honduras. A family member working as a missionary in Honduras told him that the hurricane had left behind a severe water crisis.

Packing up 30 of his purifiers, McGuire took them to Honduras for use in schools, churches and orphanages. Since that time, the Christian outreach ministry started by his parents has become one of the largest to provide safe water to the world.

Missionary roots
Byron and Yvonne McGuire served as United Methodist missionaries at the Navajo Methodist Mission School, Farmington, N.M., in 1961 and went on to work with an interdenominational radio ministry in Costa Rica and Ecuador, bringing with them their five children.

When they returned to the United States, they bought a farm in southern Indiana, intending to use their "scenic, peaceful" land as a place to nurture Christians and to teach non-Christians about God and Jesus Christ. The area was ideal for picnics, games, fishing and campfires.

"Byron used to do devotional hayrides where he would just stop and point out God's creation along the way," said Yvonne McGuire of her late husband, who died in 2007.

She and son Duvon have continued the ministry, which she called "a work of faith," particularly because of the years her son and his young family devoted to developing the purifier without paying employment.

"It has been a sacrifice for him but it has been well worth it," she said. "Countless lives have been saved because of it and will continue to be."

Evangelism tool
Many United Methodist churches, as well as other denominations, have become part of the ministry over the years.

Two brothers, Edsel and Dallas Richards, head up a volunteer team at Morton Memorial United Methodist Church, Clarksville, Ind., assembling the purifiers in the church basement. The purifiers go out as quickly as they are built due to earthquakes, mudslides, floods and manmade disasters such as wars that leave much of the world without potable water.

New Life International has become a center for hands-on training in water purification. Mission teams, medical staff and relief workers come to the Indiana hub to acquire water purifiers for the needy.

Crestwood (Ky.) United Methodist Church purchased two McGuire water purifiers. The church's mission team, led by Jim Pearson, have installed one system in the Dominican Republic and one in Appalachia, close to the United Methodist Red Bird Mission. Another mission team plans to install another at Centro Methodista in Costa Rica in early April.

"The source of pure water is a tool of evangelism," Pearson says.

Spiritual dimension
On March 22, the United Nations observes World Water Day to draw attention to the shortage of safe drinking water around the world.

"With approximately 25,000 people dying each day from waterborne diseases, this urgent humanitarian crisis is a challenging opportunity for New Life International and financial supporters to make a difference in bringing safe water to a thirsty world," said Duvon McGuire.

While some people think it is futile to try to change a world that will always have poor people, McGuire doesn't believe that is Christ's intent.

"I think God's people are the right ones for this job," he said of providing water to impoverished people. "The spiritual dimension cannot be left out."

*Gilbert is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in Nashville, Tenn.

Tap Project taps restaurant patrons for clean water

Restaurant patrons in 16 U.S. cities are invited during World Water Week to donate $1 for each glass of water to help UNICEF provide safe drinking water to people around the world. A UMNS photo illustration by Ronny Perry.

A UMNS Report

By Kathy L. Gilbert*

Pay $1 for a glass of tap water in some U.S. restaurants during World Water Week and provide clean, safe water for a child for 40 days.

Inadequate access to clean drinking water is the second largest killer of children under age 5, according to UNICEF, sponsor of the Tap Project, a campaign to raise money to confront the growing global water crisis.

Launched last year in New York City, nearly 300 restaurants invited diners to pay $1 for the tap water that they normally enjoy for free. The revenues were donated to UNICEF programs improving drinking water for children around the world.

During the week of March 15-22, the 2008 Tap Project is expanding to involve more than 1,000 restaurants in 16 cities: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Cincinnati, Dallas, Los Angeles, New Orleans, New York, Portland, Ore., Richmond, Va., San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle and, in South Carolina, Charleston, Columbia and Greenville.

The United Methodist Board of Church and Society, the church's social action agency, is collaborating with the U.S. Fund for UNICEF for the 2008 Tap Project. Currently, UNICEF provides access to safe water and sanitation facilities while promoting safe hygiene practices in more than 90 countries. By 2015, UNICEF's goal is to reduce the number of people without safe water and basic sanitation by 50 percent.

The U.N. General Assembly started World Water Day in 1992 to draw attention to the plight of people without access to safe drinking water. Approximately one in six people worldwide lack access to improved water supply, the United Nations reports.

This year's observance is scheduled for March 22 under the theme of the "Year of Sanitation." The goal is to accelerate progress for 2.6 billion people worldwide without proper sanitation facilities.

Clean water for all
While water is the most basic element on earth, more than 1.4 million children around the world die from diseases related to poor water quality or access to sanitation each year, according to UNICEF. The problem also affects developing nations.

"Forty-four states in the U.S. have issued advisories warning residents to reduce or avoid consumption of fish caught in lakes and streams because of high levels of toxic mercury," said John Hill, director of economic and environmental justice for the Board of Church and Society.

The United Methodist Church, in its Book of Resolutions and Social Principles, affirms that "water is a basic human right to be shared and enjoyed by all God's people."

"Water is an integral part of God's radical expression of God's love to all humanity," states Resolution 13. "Water cannot be monopolized or privatized. It is to be shared like air, light and earth. It is God's elemental provision for survival for all God's children together on this planet."

*Gilbert is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in Nashville, Tenn. Information for this report was provided by Joe Kim, program associate, United Nations Office, United Methodist Board of Church and Society.

Faith leaders call for living wage, honor King

The Rev. Bryan Field McFarland leads singing at an interfaith "living wages" event at Centenary United Methodist Church in Memphis, Tenn. UMNS photos by the Rev. Rebekah Jordan.

By the Rev. Rebekah Jordan*

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (UMNS)--Forty years after the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. came to Memphis to support striking sanitation workers making poverty wages, faith leaders say King would be shocked to see millions of Americans continuing to be paid poverty wages.

About 150 leaders from across the United States gathered March 13 in Memphis for an interfaith celebration to continue King's work for living wages.

The event was held at historic Centenary United Methodist Church, where the Rev. James Lawson was pastor in 1968 and organized major religious support for striking sanitation workers living with poverty wages, racial discrimination and dangerous working conditions.

In large part because of faith and community support, workers won a union contract after being on strike for 65 days, a few days after King was assassinated on April 4, 1968.

"We got tired," sanitation striker Taylor Rogers told the gathering. "And so we stood up and said 'I am a man.' Without Dr. King and the ministers who helped us, we never would have won that strike."

The interfaith worship service was cosponsored by the Let Justice Roll Living Wage Campaign and the Mid-South Interfaith Network for Economic Justice. The event kicked off a 24-hour fast for Memphis workers who do not earn a living wage, and pressed the Memphis City Council to expand its living wage ordinance to include more workers.

Speakers also urged national leaders to make the minimum wage a living wage, so that all workers can earn enough to meet their families' basic needs.

Faith groups represented at the event included Baptist, United Methodist, Christian Methodist Episcopal, African Methodist Episcopal, Episcopalian, United Church of Christ, Presbyterian U.S.A., Disciples of Christ, Reform Jewish, Conservative Jewish, Roman Catholic, Quaker and Unitarian churches.

Losing ground
The Rev. Jennifer Kottler, director of Let Justice Roll, preached on the parable of the rich man and Lazarus. "All God's children have worth, Jesus would say. All work is valued. All work is important. All work is worthy of fair compensation," said Kottler.

Kottler said the minimum wage, when adjusted for inflation, has actually lost significant ground during the last 40 years.

In 1968, sanitation workers were making just above the federal minimum wage of $1.60, which is worth $9.70 today when adjusted for inflation. Today's minimum wage is $5.85 after Congress voted to increase it by 70 cents an hour last summer.

"Workers should not have to choose between paying the rent and buying food for their children," Kottler said. "A job should keep you out of poverty, not keep you in it."

Memphians at the worship service celebrated their city council's passage of a living wage ordinance in 2006 which requires most workers performing work for the city to be paid $10-$12 an hour. But in undertaking a 24-hour period of fasting, prayer and action, they vowed to press the council to include workers at the city's public utility in the ordinance.

Speakers included Simon Greer, president of the Jewish Funds for Justice; Adam Taylor, director of policy and organizing for Sojourners; and Joyce Miller, assistant general secretary for justice and human rights at the American Friends Service Committee.

Taylor hailed the action of Congress last year to raise the minimum wage for the first time in 10 years. "It was a bleak year on Capitol Hill for those who care about the poor, but this was one bright spot," he said.

He went on to urge worshippers to breathe life into the "dry bones" of the United States by continuing King's work in pressing Congress to make the minimum wage a living wage.

The service closed with the congregation repeating the words of King to the sanitation workers in 1968: "Now is the time to make an adequate income a reality for all of God's children. … Now is the time for justice to roll down like water, and righteousness like a mighty stream. Now is the time."

*Jordan is a United Methodist deacon and director of the Mid-South Interfaith Network for Economic Justice.

Religious activists attend advocacy 'boot camp'

The Rev. Clayton Childers processes with photos of Iraqi children during a worship service at the Ecumenical Advocacy Days in Washington, D.C. UMNS photos by Kathy L. Gilbert.

By Kathy L. Gilbert*

WASHINGTON (UMNS)--More than 700 people participated in a four-day "boot camp" for religious activism culminating with a day on Capitol Hill to advocate for "true security" around the world.

The sixth annual Ecumenical Advocacy Days, held March 7-10, provided hands-on training for speaking with U.S. lawmakers on justice issues ranging from the war in Iraq to rebuilding the Gulf Coast in the United States.

A movement of the ecumenical Christian community, Ecumenical Advocacy Days is designed to mobilize and strengthen Christian voices to advocate on U.S. domestic and international policy issues.

The Rev. Mark Lomax, pastor at First Presbyterian Church, Atlanta, opened the event by challenging participants to stand up and put their faith on the line.

Reading from the Book of Daniel, Lomax retold the story of the "three Hebrew boys" who stood up to King Nebuchadnezzar and refused to worship his golden statue. They were thrown into the "fiery furnace" for their stance.

"Where has that kind of faith gone?" Lomax asked. "In 2 Timothy 1:7, God gives us a spirit of power. We have the power to make a choice in someone else's favor--to get in the way of a bullet."

In the first plenary session, Lisa Schirch gave a lesson on using "Aikido," a Japanese martial art, on members of Congress. Schirch, professor of peace building at Eastern Mennonite University, explained that Aikido focuses on using the opponent's energy instead of kicking and punching to gain control.

"Using military power is like taking a hammer to a beehive," she said. "It is a fantasy that you can get security through firepower."

Schirch told participants about the 3D Security Initiative that promotes conflict prevention and peace building in U.S. security policymaking. She urged activists to support the $249 million Civilian Stabilization Initiative, including funding of civilian experts who specialize in training police, running hospitals and schools, improving farm production and other civic and humanitarian services.

Building networks
More than 70 United Methodists attended the gathering which allowed participants to choose tracks that focus on conflict prevention and increased diplomacy and development assistance in the United States, Middle East, Asia-Pacific, Africa and Latin America.

Crickett Nicovich, a mission intern with the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries, was especially interested in issues concerning Africa. She said the people she met were "spirited, passionate and knowledgeable."

"These are people who work on missions, work on policies in their own communities; and this is a chance to come every year to work with a whole group of faith-based people," she said.

Nicovich planned to meet with members of Congress from her home state of Mississippi to address security, Africa and domestic issues that affect Mississippians.

Chad Boling, a United Methodist student in New Jersey, said he was leaving the event with a lot of stories and resources to take back to seminary.

"I have always thought you could look at a church or a nation's budget and see what their priorities are," said Boling, who attended a workshop on the U.S. budget. "We are spending so much on military. Only about 4 percent is going to nonviolent ways of communicating with other people."

Elizabeth Katn-Narbell, a member of the Presbyterian Church U.S.A., said a highlight of the conference was meeting 86-year-old Lois Baker who is still out there "fighting the good fight."

"She told us about her run-in with the law last Friday when she was protesting the war in Iraq," Katn-Narbell said of a March 7 protest rally in Washington. "It is really exciting to see a woman who you would see on the street and just think she is an innocent grandmother, but she's got a lot going on."

Do your homework
During the final plenary session, experienced activists offered practical tips and tools for lobbying causes on "the Hill."

Jean Sammon and Jos Lin, two social justice lobbyists, led the gathering through a role-playing exercise to give participants an idea of what to expect in their meetings with members of Congress. Organizers made more than 200 appointments for conference activists to visit lawmakers.

"Practice, practice, practice," said Linn. "Know what you are talking about and know who you are talking to."

Participants were anointed with oil at the closing worship service.

"We pray that by this anointing, our hands and hearts may be strengthened for the work that lies ahead, that we may be compassionate to human need, courageous in the face of injustice and faithful to our commitment to peace," the participants prayed as they anointed each other.

Virginia Farrell, a young Presbyterian from Princeton, N.J., was moved to see many denominations represented at the event.

"The preacher this morning was Greek Orthodox, and I'm not used to seeing that," Farrell said. "Presbyterians usually don't interact with Greek Orthodox or Catholics, but seeing everyone coming together for this common goal gives you hope for the future."

*Gilbert is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in Nashville, Tenn.

Consider justice over charity, mission leader says
By Linda Bloom*

Bishop Felton May addresses members of the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries during the March 10-13 meeting in Stamford, Conn. UMNS photos by Cassandra Heller.

STAMFORD, Conn. (UMNS)-The United Methodist Church needs to think less about charity and more about justice, according to the leader of the denomination's mission agency.

Becoming a partner in establishing free health clinics across the United States may be one way to do that, Bishop Felton May said.

He spoke during the March 10-13 spring meeting of the Board of Global Ministries, where directors also elected a new chief executive - Bishop Edward Paup - who will succeed May, the interim leader, on Sept. 1. (See "Bishop Paup to lead Board of Global Ministries," 3/11/08)

May noted that 2008 marks the 40th anniversary of a number of events, ranging from the founding of The United Methodist Church by its predecessor bodies to the assassination of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. to the unveiling of the Kerner Report, which stated that "Our nation is moving toward two societies, one black, one white - separate and unequal."

The Kerner Report's information on poverty "reminds us of the unfinished agenda in the United States and the world," May added.

The bishop declared that "people are poor because we keep them that way" and suggested that the denomination needs to attack poverty with the type of one-two punch made famous by the boxer Joe Louis.

Volunteer clinics
Pointing to the link between poverty and health problems, May spoke of his conversations with Jack McConnell, a retired physician and son of a Methodist minister, who is promoting the concept of retired medical personnel serving as volunteers to staff free medical clinics.

McConnell started Volunteers in Medicine in Hilton Head, S.C., after noticing that one out of three people who lived there had no access to health care. He also knew of other retired medical professionals who wanted to provide assistance and access to such people. In 1993, the Volunteers in Medicine Clinic was formed.

"Presently in the U.S., there are 160,000 retired physicians, 350,000 nurses, and 40,000 dentists," the Volunteers in Medicine Web site states. "Most are looking for a meaningful way to spend their retirement. Not only do many retired medical professionals still want to practice, they need to practice. Serving those in need is as therapeutic for the caregiver as it is for the care recipient."

The clinic has a "culture of caring" based on the idea that "how people are treated during a visit to the clinic is as important as the medical care they receive." An alliance of such clinics already has been formed across the country, and AARP is a partner.

May spoke about the possibility of the board working with the alliance through its Health and Welfare and Volunteers in Mission programs. "I think we can have a winner," he said.

In other business, Global Ministries directors reviewed the board's accomplishments over the past four years; discussed legislation and other business related to the upcoming 2008 General Conference, the denomination's top legislative body; and were briefed on the board's 2009-2012 quadrennial budget and strategic visioning process for the future.

Seminary report
Directors received a final report and recommendations from the board's Seminary Task Force on Mission and voted to have staff from Global Ministries and the denomination's Board of Higher Education and Ministry work on implementation.

The task force was convened in 2005 out of a concern that the theology and practice of mission was no longer part of the core curriculum at United Methodist seminaries. The group issued a "call to conversation" about rebuilding the teaching of mission studies and the Rev. Maxie Dunnam, the task force chairman, said he hopes it will be answered. "If we give it our attention in the future, that conversation can go on," he told directors.

According to the report, "core competencies" for mission education include creating a passion for mission among pastoral leaders; equipping them with basic building blocks for mission theology; encouraging pastoral leaders to equip laity for mission; stressing the need for cross-cultural awareness and sensitivity to religious and ethnic diversity; and providing a framework for a special vocational call to cross-cultural mission.

A request to establish three regional offices for the United Methodist Committee on Relief was approved by directors of the board's health and relief unit. A $1.1 million grant will be used to set up offices in Mobile, Ala., San Diego and the Philippines and to fund staff for monitoring, evaluation and case management

Directors also approved several allocations for continuing long-term recovery efforts related to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. A total of $6.8 million was granted to the denomination's Louisiana Annual (regional) Conference; $4.3 million to the Mississippi Annual Conference; and nearly $2 million to the Texas Annual Conference.

Another $878,363 was approved for GRACE Community Services in Houston for long-term recovery work with Katrina survivors and disaster preparedness. The Florida Annual Conference will receive $488,256 for continuing long-term recovery from the 2004 and 20005 hurricane seasons and tornadoes in 2006 and 2007.

An allocation of $2.5 million will be used to expand the board's health programs over the next three years "in response to the denomination's declared focus on global health."

Directors learned from a report by the board's mission personnel program area that a total of 184 mission personnel were commissioned over the past four years. Two new categories - home missioners and missionaries for global health: sub-Saharan Africa - were established, and the 10-week summer intern program for young adults has been revived.

*Bloom is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in New York.

It Takes a Village: The Story of the ‘Sons of Lwala’
by Ciona Rouse

NASHVILLE, Tenn., March 10, 2008 /GBOD/ -- This documentary film by Barry Simmons, “Sons of Lwala,” which premieres on Thursday, March 27, 2008 at 7:30 p.m. in TPAC’s Andrew Jackson Hall, portrays the real truth of Christ’s command to love one another.

A five-year-old heard about the Ochieng’ brothers, emptied his piggy bank, and gave his money to Lwala. A nine-year-old heard the story and asked his friends not to give him birthday presents, but to donate money to Lwala. When news reporter Barry Simmons heard about these two young men from Lwala, he left his job so that he could tell their story. “I felt like this is what the Lord wanted me to do. . . . It was a complete leap of faith,” Barry said. “I believed that this was the Lord’s story.”

Nothing but Huge Hearts
The story begins in Lwala, Kenya (http://www.lwalacommunityalliance.org/), where there is no plumbing, sanitation, clean water, or electricity. But the villagers have big hearts.

When Milton Ochieng’, a native of Lwala, received a scholarship to Dartmouth College, his parents, Margaret and Erastus, could not afford his plane ticket to the United States. So the people of Lwala sold all they owned—cows, goats, chickens—to send Milton and his brother Fred to college. They asked nothing in return except that the Ochieng’ brothers never forget them.

“In such a tight-knit community, the business of my coming to the U. S. to learn was really everybody’s business,” says Milton.

Years later, the brothers have not forgotten their village.

The Dream
In Lwala, people died of infectious diseases—often preventable or treatable—because the nearest hospital was a 25-mile walk. “I remember one situation in which a woman who was pregnant bled to death while she was being transported to the hospital. Her relatives put her in a wheelbarrow and pushed her for 45 minutes on a dilapidated road. She passed away before they got to the main road,” Milton recalls.

Though he was trained as a chemistry teacher, not as a doctor, Erastus read medical books so that he could treat some preventable illnesses. And he dreamed of building a clinic for Lwala. Before his death, he and his sons began to make plans for the clinic.

“It quickly changed from just a dream to something I actually felt could be accomplished,” says Milton.

Up and Running
Now medical students at Vanderbilt University, Milton and Fred have worked with the people of Lwala to build the clinic.

Lwala patients wait for medical services

“It was a lot of physical work, but it was also great to see the whole village coming together, sharing the vision and the hope of getting the clinic established,” Milton said.

Barry has traveled with Fred and Milton since early 2006, capturing the story in a documentary film called Sons of Lwala, which shows how young people, in particular, have rallied around the Ochieng’ brothers to raise money to build the clinic. Lwala has received money and support from all over the United States. However, in the documentary, Barry is clear that the village of Lwala has built the clinic. “It shows a picture of Africa you might not see,” Barry said. “It’s a story of a village who designed their own clinic. . . . It allows them to maintain their dignity.”

The villagers run and staff the clinic, and Fred and Milton go back as often as they can to see patients. When they are home, people walk for miles to get to the clinic and often wait for hours to see them.

During their last trip, Fred and Milton helped a woman who was having a breech birth delivery. Because the procedure often requires an operation and anesthesia, which the clinic cannot yet afford, the brothers worked with what they had. Unlike the woman who had died on the long journey to a hospital, this mother and child survived.

“With all the list of things that could have possibly gone wrong, her delivery went perfectly fine,” Milton says. “I remember thinking, God does work in mysterious ways.”

“I think a lot of things that have happened—including the fact that we’ve now been open for months and are continuing to provide essential services to a group of people who otherwise would be suffering—are a true manifestation of God’s goodness. When God is on your side, God will prevail.”

To learn more about the Ochieng’ brothers, the movie, and ways to get involved, visit http://www.sonsoflwala.com/. Information about the clinic is available at http://www.mc.vanderbilt.edu/root/vumc.php?site=lwala. To make a donation, visit: http://www.lwalacommunityalliance.org/.

Ciona Rouse is a freelance writer who lives in Milton and Fred’s Nashville neighborhood. The full article will appear in the July/August 2008 issue of devozine, one of 6 magazines published by GBOD’s Upper Room Ministries. Copyright © 2008 by The Upper Room®. All rights reserved. To learn more about devozine, visit http://www.devozine.org/ or http://www.devozine.info/.

D.C. Foundry church will honor same-sex unions

After three years of study, Foundry United Methodist Church in Washington has changed its policy to recognize same-sex unions in special ceremonies. A UMNS photo by Phil Carney, Foundry United Methodist Church.

A UMNS Report

By Robin Russell*

Foundry United Methodist Church in Washington, D.C., has changed its policy to recognize same-sex unions in special ceremonies that fall just short of an official wedding.

Though it is among a handful of United Methodist churches that do so, the action, which became effective Feb. 1, has made headlines in The Washington Post and other newspapers. Foundry was the church attended by President Bill Clinton and his wife, now-U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.), when he was in office.

In a pastoral letter to the congregation last November, the Rev. Dean Snyder, senior pastor, announced his plan to begin leading services that "recognize and honor lesbian and gay committed relationships."

These church services, however, will not be "ceremonies that celebrate homosexual unions," he wrote, citing the denomination's Book of Discipline sanction against United Methodist clergy performing such ceremonies. Snyder said that his action reflects "an attempt to be ecclesiastically obedient while at the same time offering pastoral care to our members."

According to the church's February newsletter, Foundry has a "large gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender membership," and the decision came after the church community studied the options for three years.

Guidelines for the new services at Foundry require that same-sex "marriage" ceremonies, where couples actually exchange vows, are to be held off-site and not be led by a church minister. The church will, however, host worship services that recognize and honor commitments that already have been made. Only couples that are members and have attended a "Pre-Cana" marriage preparation weekend can participate.

Questions of obedience
Critics say Foundry's action crosses the line, undermining Scriptural authority and violating United Methodist laws outlined in the Book of Discipline.

The 1996 General Conference adopted the statement: "Ceremonies that celebrate homosexual unions shall not be conducted by our ministers and shall not be conducted in our churches" (Par. 341.6). General Conference has continued to uphold a ban on church-sanctioned homosexual unions and also maintains that the practice of homosexuality is "incompatible with Christian teaching" (Par. 161G).

The Rev. Dean Snyder is senior pastor of Foundry, which includes a large gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender membership. A UMNS photo by Phil Carney, Foundry United Methodist Church

Delegates will consider several resolutions seeking to overturn that policy at the 2008 General Conference, which begins April 23 in Fort Worth, Texas.

In his pastoral letter, Snyder urged members of Foundry to work for changes to the Discipline because, he said, it "discriminates against people because of their sexual orientation." He said the Discipline is clear that homosexual persons "are individuals of sacred worth" and that United Methodists should be committed to "be in ministry for and with all persons."


'Difficult question'
Bishop John R. Schol of the Baltimore-Washington Conference, which includes Foundry, said Snyder did not seek his permission or advice on the matter. Schol noted that Foundry's congregation is "diverse and reflective of its community, including a significant presence of gay and lesbian Christians."

Patricia Miller, executive director of the Confessing Movement Within The United Methodist Church, said Foundry is violating church law. Her group describes itself as "confessing Jesus Christ as Son, savior and Lord" and working to uphold United Methodist doctrine and the Wesleyan tradition.

"I certainly support ministries to and with the gay/lesbian community but, having said that, I believe this is a violation of church law as outlined in the Discipline," Miller told United Methodist News Service. "The Discipline is very clear and very specific."

Miller said Snyder is "word-smithing" in his description of Foundry's new policy and its intent. "I think what this does is break covenant with the rest of The United Methodist Church and further causes divide and conflict within the church," she said.

Bishop John R. Schol affirms an ongoing conversation to understand Christian teaching related to homosexuality. A UMNS file photo by Mike DuBose.


'Difficult question'

Bishop John R. Schol of the Baltimore-Washington Conference, which includes Foundry, said Snyder did not seek his permission or advice on the matter. Schol noted that Foundry's congregation is "diverse and reflective of its community, including a significant presence of gay and lesbian Christians."

"So far as I can tell, they did not seek publicity about this and have not attempted to make it an issue for our denomination," Schol told UMNS. "I have recognized that they face a difficult question of how in the name of Jesus Christ to minister to all of their members given our denominational policies about homosexuality, and I have no question about the sincerity of their desire to honor their covenant with the larger church. I also have sympathy for those who worry that our unity may be weakened as a result of the disagreements we have. --

"Here in our conference, small groups of people with differing opinions have been meeting to discuss homosexuality," he said. "I hope these conversations continue and that we can seek to know and care for each other even when our views and convictions differ."

In a March 7 interview with UMNS, Snyder said he had not conducted any such ceremonies since the policy change, nor has he received requests for such. However, several same-sex couples have participated in the "Pre-Cana" marriage retreats.

While Snyder made the final decision to change the policy, Foundry's church council unanimously passed a resolution on Jan. 15 endorsing the change.

Here is Bishop Schol's full statement to UMNS regarding Foundry United Methodist Church:

"Foundry Church is a congregation that enthusiastically and faithfully supports the mission and ministry of The United Methodist Church. It is a congregation involved in many ministries serving the homeless, the poor, and the vulnerable both locally and globally. Located in the Dupont Circle community of Washington D.C., it is a congregation which is diverse and reflective of its community, including a significant presence of gay and lesbian Christians. It is a church that is doing an unusually good job of reaching young adults with many new members who are under 35 and many families with young children.

Neither the church nor Rev. Snyder asked my permission or advice about the worship services that they are offering their gay members. So far as I can tell, they did not seek publicity about this and have not attempted to make it an issue for our denomination. I have recognized that they face a difficult question of how in the name of Jesus Christ to minister to all of their members given our denominational policies about homosexuality, and I have no question about the sincerity of their desire to honor their covenant with the larger church. I also have sympathy for those who worry that our unity may be weakened as a result of the disagreements we have. I believe they are also sincere in their concerns.

Here in our conference, small groups of people with differing opinions have been meeting to discuss homosexuality. I hope these conversations continue and that we can seek to know and care for each other even when our views and convictions differ. Our primary focus as a conference, and my greatest passion as a bishop, is making disciples for Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world and growing Acts 2 congregations. I would like us to discuss all the controversial issues in our denomination in light of our calling to make disciples and grow Acts 2 churches." -Bishop John R. Schol

*Russell is managing editor of United Methodist Reporter, an independent weekly newspaper for United Methodists and others, produced by UMR Communications in Dallas. A similar version of this story originally appeared in that publication. Contributing to this report was Marta Aldrich, news editor of United Methodist News Service.

Religious organizations ask Bush to stop U.S. torture
By United Methodist News Service*

WASHINGTON (UMNS)--Faith leaders are urging U.S. President George W. Bush to stop U.S.-sponsored torture by signing the Intelligence Authorization Act to prohibit using torture as an interrogation tool.

Letters have been sent to Bush from the National Religious Campaign Against Torture and the National Council of Churches. The United Methodist Church is a member of both organizations.

The United Methodist Board of Church and Society, the church's social action agency, launched a campaign on Feb. 20 called "United Methodists Do Not Torture," and more than 1,000 people have signed its petition calling for Bush to sign the legislation.

H.R. 2082 contains a provision that would ban the use of harsh interrogation techniques including waterboarding, a simulated drowning technique, and other forms of cruel and inhumane treatment. The bill was passed by the U.S. House of Representatives last May and by the Senate last October.

Bush has threatened to veto the bill, stating that the CIA needs "broad latitude" in techniques for questioning suspected terrorists. However, church leaders condemn the mistreatment or torture of all people by governments.

"As people of faith, we call upon you to sign H.R. 2082, the Intelligence Authorization Conference Report, which contains an anti-torture provision that would require all members of the U.S. intelligence community to abide by the restrictions laid out in the Army Field Manual on Human Intelligence Collector Operations while conducting interrogations," states a Feb. 27 letter from the National Religious Campaign Against Torture.

While torture is used in many places in the world, the ability to speak out against such practices is limited unless the United States abolishes its use, said Bill Mefford, staff member of the Board of Church and Society.

"Abolishing torture throughout the world is an essential part of our Christian calling because it violates the timeless truth that all persons are created in the image of God and therefore have basic inalienable rights," Mefford said. "We have a unique opportunity before us to ensure this year that the U.S. halts its use of torture as a form of interrogation."

Other faith leaders have sent their own letter asking to meet with President Bush before he makes his decision. They include the Rev. Michael Kinnamon, general secretary of the National Council of Churches; Ingrid Mattson, president of the Islamic Society of North America; the Rev. Richard J. Mouw, president of Fuller Theological Seminary; and Rabbi David Saperstein, director and counsel of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism.

"Our Scriptures couldn't be clearer in their condemnation of cruelty and abuse," Kinnamon said. "The letter we have sent sums it up very succinctly: torture is an intrinsic evil."

By signing the bill, the letter said, Bush would "put an end to our national nightmare over torture. Let America assume a position on the right side of history, morality and faith."

U.S. values
The National Religion Campaign Against Torture states it its letter that "America is great not just because of our wealth and our power, but also because of our values." By signing H.R. 2082, the president "will be able to return our country to the paths of goodness and justice and to help restore America's greatness," it says.

"It is crucial for people of faith to remind the President that the United Methodist Book of Discipline clearly states 'that the mistreatment or torture of persons by governments for any purpose violates Christian teaching and must be condemned and/or opposed by Christians and churches wherever and whenever it occurs,'" Mefford said.

Section 327 of the bill requires all members of the intelligence community to abide by the restrictions of the Army Field Manual while conducting interrogations. The manual prohibits torture and many of the "enhanced interrogation techniques" currently available for use by the CIA. Those practices were banned by the military in 2006.

To learn more about the petition, visit http://www.umc-gbcs.org/site/apps/ka/ct/contactus.asp?c=frLJK2PKLqF&b=3908825&en=iiILLVNDKeJMJUNHIlJOL2PTJkLRL8PPIlLTLaMUJwE.

*Information for this report came from news releases from the National Religious Campaign Against Torture, National Council on Churches and the United Methodist Board of Church and Society.