Our Mission and Purpose: "Advocating for Peace and Justice."
At our last General Conference, the mission statement of the United
Methodist Church was changed. In addition to "making disciples of
Jesus Christ," the following words were added: "for the transformation
of the world!" This is what the board of Church & Society is all about!
We are "change agents" for the transformation of the world!" In order
to accomplish this, members of the board are called to define this
role for the congregation by providing the Biblical foundation for
social change, tools to the congregation to implement these changes,
and empowering the congregation to act in ways that promote peace and
justice for all. Above all, Church & Society will always insist that
the church is more than changing individuals. It is about changing
society; and in so doing, helping to realize fully the Kingdom of God
on this earth that Jesus came to bring.
The Church & Society's newly formed ministry team's mission is "To encourage a culture of
social awareness and responsibility at Dayspring" through "prayerfully considering Biblical and
Wesleyan precepts." Jesus' main focus in the Sermon on the Mount was the Kingdom of
God. He used parables to illustrate what that Kingdom would be like. Several of these parables
involved finding and caring for the "lost" in our society. This involves looking out for the disadvantaged
and the disenfranchised in our society and prodding our government to pass and
enforce laws that promote justice and equality for all.
Our founder, John Wesley, a devoted student of the scriptures, was on the forefront of ministering
to the poor in England. His preaching on the streets to the coal miners got him into
trouble with his own church. United Methodists have always been known for their social concern
and activism. So, from time to time, you will see your local Church & Society team raising
issues that prick your social conscience and encourage discussion on some of society's most
controversial issues. We see this as mandated by scripture as well as United Methodist history
and tradition.
Jane Baker, Chair, Church & Society
Immigration Reform
Immigration Reform is one of the top priorities of our Conference
for the next quadrennium. Jim Perdue has been sent to this conference
to focus on this issue and has produced several studies that are
available on the Conference website desertsw.org.
If you type in "Immigration" on the website (or simply click on the links
below), you will find the following studies available:
-
Immigration Reform 101: a series of one-page background articles
each dealing with a specific issue relating to immigration.
Here's a link to the articles.
- Biblical Musings: a series of one-page devotionals focusing
on the biblical basis for immigration reform.
Here's a link to the devotionals.
- A new web-based study which involves reading texts, completing
assignments and projects and participation in forum discussions.
Assignments can be completed at the student's convenience.
Enrollment in the first one of these courses is limited. The book,
Christians at the Border, by Daniel Carroll, will be the
main text. There is no charge for this course. You can enroll on
moodle.umcom.org/moodle.
Log in as "guest" and choose "Enroll me in this course."
If you have any questions about any of these studies/papers, contact
Jim at jimperdue@desertsw.org.
Jane Baker, Chair
Church & Society
What Can I Do?
Make Dayspring a welcoming place for ALL people
. . . Join us in making Dayspring more welcoming and inclusive. How can we
remove the barriers which people perceive as blocking them from becoming
part of the Dayspring family? For example, Church and Society has
presented educational forums on homosexuality, and from these forums, a
group of concerned individuals have come together to provide support and
advocacy for Gay/Lesbian persons, their families and friends.
Write a powerful letter
. . . to influence legislation in Congress, the Arizona
Legislature and city government. For example, through the "Bread for the
World" national letter-writing campaign, members of Dayspring uses their
citizens' rights to advocate with their Congressional representatives
for legislation that will benefit hungry people around the world. Each
year, we participate in an Offering of Letters about a piece of legislation to address the root causes of hunger in our nation and around the world. Church and Society now maintains an e-mail newsletter to communicate with the congregation on critical issues and calls for action.
Walk to Fight Hunger
. . . in Arizona and around the world, we walk with others from
Dayspring in the "CROP Walk" and help raise $50,000+ to support
international hunger and relief work. This annual interfaith event is
sponsored by the Church World Service and brings together people from
hundreds of churches and synagogues across the Valley. One quarter of
the monies raised stay here in Arizona to support hunger ministries and food banks.
Improve our neighborhoods
. . . in partnership with other people of faith, East Valley
Interfaith, as part of Arizona Interfaith Network, we join with other
churches and similar organizations to effect change through political
but non-partisan actions. The organization is built on concepts that
families are the building blocks of community, along with congregations
and schools, to be the institutions capable of defending families. Let your voice be heard! Participate in a "house meeting" to talk about your concerns for our community, and listen to your neighbors' concerns. Help EVI grow, so we can have power to impact the major statewide issues that affect us all.
Connections
Dayspring's "Connections" team is a sub-group of the Church and
Society ministry. Connec-tions offers support to and education
about gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered (GLBT) persons
and their families. It also advocates for the intrinsic worth
and equal treatment of all persons.
The first Friday of each month, the team hosts as many as 50
persons who come to give and receive support at the monthly
Tempe PFLAG meeting. PFLAG (Parents, Families and Friends of
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Persons) provides a safe
environment for people from teens to grandparents to ask questions,
listen to stories, share tears and laughter, and find resources.
This ministry has grown into one of the largest PFLAG meetings
in the valley.
One issue of particular concern is the bullying directed
at many young people regarding their sexual orientation.
Connections members are researching materials and planning
a seminar or series of meetings on this subject. Watch for details.
Church and Society
In the past several months, I have written some short articles trying
to explain the mission of the newly formed Church & Society Team at
Dayspring. In addition to these articles, the team has had tables on
the patio on two different occasions: one dealing with the proposed tax
increase, which Arizona voters passed in a special election, and the
other on comprehensive immigration reform.
It is my understanding that several members of the congregation have
wondered why the church is getting involved in these political and
societal issues! Many of you feel that the church should stick to
the spiritual and faith realm and not address controversial issues
such as these. Some may have even wondered if this is a violation
of separation of church and state.
Several months ago Pastor Tews wrote an article in the Koinonikos
stating why it is important for the church, and more specifically
the United Methodist Church, to speak out on issues such as these.
She pointed out that our founder, John Wesley, was involved in
social movements to improve the lives of those in England whom he
believed were being discriminated against or treated unjustly.
The United Methodist Church has always been concerned about the
outcasts of society and about helping the Kingdom of God that was
central in Jesus' message to be realized in our world today. "Thy
Kingdom Come!" "Thy Will be done...on Earth..." This is our
heritage and this is what we are called to do as the church in
today's world!
If you would like to know more about what our church is doing
nationally on social justice issues, you can access the General
Board of Church & Society by clicking on this link:
www.umc-gbcs.org.
You can also find out what our Desert Southwest Annual Conference Board
is doing by clicking on the
Desert Southwest Annual Conference Board of Church & Society.
I welcome any questions you may have about Church & Society and our mission at Dayspring.
Jane Baker, Chair
