HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

The DISCIPLES JUSTICE ACTION NETWORK wishes you, your families and your loved ones a very Merry Christmas, a Happy Kwanzaa, and a New Year full of God's goodness and blessings!

Please remember DJAN in your holiday giving.

DJAN
PO Box 35887
Tulsa, OK 74153-0887

- or -

CLICK HERE to make an ONLINE CONTRIBUTION.

CLICK HERE to make a special end-of-the-year contribution to the Harvey and May Lord Justice Action Fund.

CLICK HERE to download the Holiday edition of DJAN's newsletter, The Call to Justice.

BREAKING NEWS!

Today, December 24th, 2009, at 7.16 AM, the Senate passed its health care bill by a vote of 60-39. Negotiations will now begin to reconcile the Senate and House health care reform bills.

DJAN Supports Senate Health Care Bill--But with Strong Reservations

DJAN strongly supports the passage of health care reform: There are just too many people without coverage, too many people losing coverage, and too many people dying from lack of coverage.

At the same time, DJAN has serious concerns about the Senate health care bill. While it would expand coverage to 31 million Americans and would eliminate “pre-existing conditions” as a barrier to insurance, the Senate bill, as is, represents a massive public subsidy to a private insurance industry which retains as much as 40 per cent of its premiums for administration, executive salaries, marketing, and profits.

The Senate bill contains no public option (immediate or triggered), no Medicare buy-in for those under 65, no competition for for-profit plans, no meaningful cost-containment and no prohibition against insurance companies colluding on premiums and terms of coverage.

Furthermore, the Senate bill would deprive millions of women access to the full range of reproductive health care and impose onerous restrictions on millions more. The provision that requires women to write a separate check for abortion is designed to undermine the health, dignity, and well-being of women in order to impose a particular religious-theological view of reproductive health care on everyone, including millions of people of faith who, like DJAN, support reproductive choice.

DJAN will continue to work with the progressive community of faith and others to insure that the bill that emerges from the conference committee addresses these concerns.

Palestinian Christians Call for an End to the Occupation

A group of Palestinian Christians representing a variety of churches and church-related organizations have issued an animated and prayerful call for an end to occupation of Palestine by Israel.

The call, issued at a 11 December meeting in Bethlehem, comes at a time when many Palestinians believe they have reached a dead end. It raises questions to the international community, political leaders in the region, and the churches worldwide about their contribution to the Palestinian people's pursuit of freedom. Even in the midst of "our catastrophe" the call is described as a word of faith, hope and love.

Referred to as "The Kairos Palestine Document" the call echoes a similar summons issued by South African churches in the mid-1980s at the height of repression under the apartheid regime. That call served to galvanize churches and the wider public in a concerted effort that eventually brought the end of apartheid.

The authors of the Kairos Palestine Document, among them Patriarch Emeritus Michel Sabbah from the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, the Lutheran Bishop of Jerusalem Munib Younan, and Archbishop Theodosios Atallah Hanna of Sebastia from the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem, have raised the challenge of the urgency for peace with justice to religious and political leaders in Palestinian and the Israeli society, international community, and to "our Christian brothers and sisters in the churches" around the world. They believe that current efforts in the Middle East are confined to managing the crisis rather than finding pertinent and long term solutions to the crisis.

To read more about this meeting and document, PLEASE CLICK HERE.

To read the full text of the document, PLEASE CLICK HERE.

DJAN Supports Principles of House Immigration Bill

DJAN joins the Interfaith Immigration Coalition (IIC) in welcoming new immigration legislation by Representative Luis Gutierrez. The introduction of “Comprehensive Immigration Reform for America’s Security and Prosperity” (CIR A.S.A.P.) in the House of Representatives is a sign of progress and momentum for action on real, common sense immigration reform this Congress that reflects the best of our values.

We are pleased to see immigration reform legislation which reflects our priorities in the faith community. CIR A.S.A.P. seeks to provide a pathway to earned legal status that honors immigrants’ contributions to our society. It also protects workers, promotes family unity, ensures due process for all and offers educational opportunity to youth through an expansion of the DREAM Act.

We applaud the leadership of Rep. Gutierrez and look forward to working with him and other members of the House and Senate to pass fair and just comprehensive immigration reform. Like other organizations in the coalition, DJAN is deeply committed to the struggle for immigrants’ rights and is helping to mobilize support for immigration reform at the grassroots level.

In the months to come, DJAN will support IIC in its efforts to organize prayer vigils in hundreds of cities across the nation and we will urge Disciples to join other people of faith in Washington, DC, on March 22, 2010 to support just and fair immigration reform.

Ask the Attorney General to Release the OPR Report!

Please email Attorney General Holder today to ask him to release the Department of Justice Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR) report. The OPR report is believed to detail instances of professional misconduct by lawyers in the previous Administration's Office of Legal Counsel (OLC). Specifically, it is reported to demonstrate how lawyers in the OLC purposely misinterpreted the law in order to sanction torture and other abusive acts.

On Wednesday, Nov. 18th, Attorney General Holder told the Senate Judiciary Committee that a career prosecutor was going to review the report but that he expected that that review would be completed and the report released by Nov. 30. As of December 14, the OPR report has not been released.

Please email the Attorney General's office to ask him to release the OPR report. A model email can be found here.

Second Chance Act to receive $100 million in FY2010!

DJAN is pleased to announce that the House and Senate have passed an omnibus appropriations bill for fiscal year 2010 that provides $114 million for prisoner reentry programs in the Department of Justice, including $100 million for Second Chance Act grant programs!

That’s four times the amount that was available for Second Chance Act grant programs in FY2009, an unprecedented increase in funding that reflects both the high demand for these important programs and the ongoing advocacy efforts of DJAN and our ecumenical and interfaith partners.

Thank you to all of you who have worked so hard in support of the Second Chance Act in 2009! Your continued advocacy is crucial to the continued expansion of this important program: DJAN and its allies need your support to make even more progress on this next year.

President Obama Accepts Nobel Peace Prize; Peace Groups Respond

On Thursday, December 10, 2009, President Obama accepted the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo, Norway. The Nobel committee said that they chose the President of the United States because of his "extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples."

In his acceptance speech, the President acknowledged that there are many people in the world today who suffer for the cause of justice, peace, freedom, and human dignity who are "far more deserving of this prize than I." He also pointed out that "perhaps the most profound issue surrounding my receipt of this prize is the fact that I am the Commander-in-Chief of a nation in the midst of two wars."

He continued, "And so I come here with an acute sense of the cost of armed conflict – filled with difficult questions about the relationship between war and peace, and our effort to replace one with the other."

Prior to the President's speech, a coalition of peace groups wrote a letter to the Nobel committee saying, "it is regretful that [the President] could not be guided by the example of a previous Nobel Peace Laureate, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., who identified his peace prize as 'profound recognition that nonviolence is the answer to the crucial political and moral question of our time -- the need for man [sic] to overcome oppression and violence without resorting to violence and oppression.'"

To read a text of the President's speech, PLEASE CLICK HERE.

To read a response to the President's speech by United for Peace & Justice, PLEASE CLICK HERE.

DJAN mentioned during Senate debate by Senator Boxer

DJAN Sponsors Candlelight Vigil for the "Public Option"

Last night, as Senators negotiated about the future of a "public option" in a Senate health care bill, people of faith from diverse religious traditions gathered near the Senate to hold a candlelight vigil and rally. The purpose of the event was to demonstrate strong support for the "public option" by people of faith.

Participants in the vigil sang, prayed, and listened to speakers from the political, medical, and religious communities--including two senators and six members of congress. Two mothers also spoke about children who had been denied health insurance because of a preexisting condition: one child survived while the other tragically joined the 45,000 who die each year because of insufficient or no health care.

General Assembly Resolution 9915 called for a combination of "initiatives both private and public" to achieve affordable, quality health care for all. However, no General Assembly of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) has spoken specifically about the current issue of a "public option."

Disciples Justice Action Network was one of the sponsors of the event and, like a number of denominations and other faith-based organizations, is a strong supporter of a robust version of the "public option."

Ending U.S.-Sponsored Torture Forever

DJAN joins with the National Religious Campaign Against Torture (NRCAT) in encouraging your congregation to show a new, revised version of the 20-minute video Ending U.S.-Sponsored Torture Forever and use a corresponding discussion guide between now and April 1, 2010.

NRCAT has set a goal of having 300 congregations in at least 30 states make a commitment to show the video and hold an adult discussion during this period.

Let's help them make this goal!

To learn more, PLEASE CLICK HERE.

NCC officers support Cuban church plea to Obama to review case and grant visas for the 'Cuban Five'

The President and General Secretary of the National Council of Churches have endorsed and forwarded to President Obama a message from 37 Cuban church leaders asking for a review of the case of the "Cuban Five," and for the granting of visas so the Cuban prisoners held in the U.S. can be visited by their families.

"The churches that make up the National Council of Churches have long supported a review of the judicial proceedings that led to the sentencing (we believe unjust) of the so-called 'Cuban Five,'" said the message signed by Archbishop Vicken Aykazian and the Rev. Dr. Michael Kinnamon. "And we have supported the granting of visas to their wives so that they may, at least, visit their imprisoned husbands. With this in mind, we forward to you the enclosed letter, signed by colleagues in Cuba, with a prayer that you will take their plea to heart."

The letter from the Cuban church leaders, addressed to both President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama, took note of the President's Nobel Peace Prize and praised his reputation as an advocate of human rights.

"We are asking that you help in having this case be re-examined, considering the hundreds of documents compiled by the defence, the decision of the three-judge panel of the Court of Appeals of 2005 and the frequent violations of human rights that have occurred in this process, which have been acknowledged by international institutions, parliaments, and international public opinion," the Cuban church leaders wrote.

To read more, PLEASE CLICK HERE.

100 Cities Protest Afghanistan Escalation

On December 1st and 2nd, 2009, one hundred cities protested the Afghanistan escalation.

The Peace, Justice & Environment Project produced an almost 5 minute piece that includes video and photo contributions from activists across the country.

To see the video, PLEASE CLICK HERE.

Say 'NO' to Escalation of War in Afghanistan!

Last night President Obama announced an increase of 30,000 troops to be deployed to Afghanistan. This escalation of troops means more war, conflict, death and injury for the people of Afghanistan as well as the American men and women in uniform and the families they leave at home. Today, the majority of Americans oppose the war in Afghanistan.

The decision also runs counter to the President’s own emphasis on diplomacy and negotiation as the basis for U.S. foreign policy. As the president remarked about U.S. occupation of Iraq: "there is no military solution" to the problems in Afghanistan.

The costs of the war and occupation of Afghanistan are great at home and abroad. At a time that the U.S. faces the worst economic crisis in eighty years and is attempting to reform healthcare for the benefit of the vast majority of the people, the massive cost of the ongoing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan is a barrier to solving our many domestic problems.

Nearly 1000 U.S. soldiers have died in Afghanistan, and this year is the bloodiest since the NATO invasion eight years ago. Countless Afghan civilians have suffered, caught in the crossfire between U.S. troops, the Taliban and corrupt militias.

Disciples Justice Action Network (DJAN) stands with those opposing the escalation and calling for the withdrawal of U.S. troops.

Today, Wednesday, Dec. 2, we encourage our members and activists to join with the people around the country who are gathering in town squares, parks and churches to protest the President’s decision and call for diplomatic and peaceful solutions to the problems in the region.

Afghanistan is very different from Iraq, but they have at least one fact in common: there is no military solution.

For a list of local "day-after" events in your area, visit United for Peace and Justice.

STOP STUPACK! 888-423-5983 (Wednesday)

THIS WEDNESDAY (December 2, 2009) . . .

Support both health care reform AND reproductive choice!

Stand up to right-wing Catholic Bishops and defend religious liberty!

Call toll-free at 888-423-5983 and tell your Senators you support health care reform that protects women's existing access to reproductive health care.

Prefer email? Please act now: send a message to your congressional representatives.

Make this message viral! Forward it to all your friends and colleagues! Repost it on your blogs and on facebook as YOUR status message.

CALL or EMAIL TOMORROW!
888-423-5983 (toll free).

Close Guantanamo Now! (Sign the Petitition to Congress)

Dear Members of Congress,

As people of faith, we are very aware of the importance of symbols in one's spiritual life. So, too, are symbols important in the spiritual life of a country.

Guantanamo is the symbol of our country's violation of our deepest values. Regardless of how it is operated now compared to how it was operated in earlier years, it stands in the minds of hundreds of millions of people in our nation and around the globe as a place where America broke faith with itself and used torture as an interrogation technique. Torture is immoral, illegal, and never justifiable -- without exception.

Our government must close the detention center at Guantanamo Bay now to help us heal spiritually and to put an end to this dark and errant chapter in our history. For those detainees that must continue to be incarcerated, we believe that appropriate alternative sites can be identified.

We ask that you do everything in your power to help close Guantanamo--now!

In faith,

PLEASE CLICK HERE TO SIGN THE PETITION

Preserve Religious Freedom and Reproductive Choice

While we strongly support health care reform, we are disturbed that the cost of passage of this legislation in the House of Representatives is greater limitations on women's full access to reproductive health care.

Just as appalling as the exemption of this area of health care is the role of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops in making it happen. The Bishops made clear, through intense lobbying, that they would oppose health care reform that did not specifically correspond to their theological views about reproductive health care.

This denies the support of major religions and millions of Americans for women's reproductive rights. In keeping with our nation's constitutional guarantee of freedom of religion, we oppose civil laws that impose specific theological views about reproductive health care on all Americans. As Congresswoman Barbara Lee noted in floor debate on the health care legislation, "we're a democracy not a theocracy."

Please take ACTION NOW and tell your Senators and Representative to stand up for religious freedom--and protect reproductive choice!

CALL TODAY: 202-224-3121

Don't Let Teabaggers Speak for You!

Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) fights progressive causes at every turn, and now she's rallying her right-wing teabaggers to fight health care reform.

On FOX's Sean Hannity show Rep. Bachmann urged viewers to call their U.S. Representative this Thursday to oppose the House health care reform bill with a public option. She kicks off her Thursday call-in day with a press conference rally for all her tea-bagger troups at the U.S. Capitol.

This summer we saw the damage a crowd of hollering tea baggers can do. EXPRESS YOUR SUPPORT FOR HEALTH CARE REFORM: Call your Representative TODAY:

1-888-797-8717 (toll free)

We need to make our voices heard. We need to match -- or better yet, exceed -- Rep. Bachmann and her army's phone calls. Please call your representative today and ask him or her to support the House health care bill.

1-888-797-8717 (toll free)

We already know that the majority of Americans support health care reform with a public option. Now, we need to make sure that we do not cede the struggle to health care opponents. Please call your US House representative today:

1-888-797-8717 (toll free)

CALL TODAY!

EDWARD M. KENNEDY 1932 - 2009

Statement by President Barack Obama: "For five decades, virtually every major piece of legislation to advance the civil rights, health and economic well being of the American people bore his name and resulted from his efforts. . . . An important chapter in our history has come to an end. Our country has lost a great leader, who picked up the torch of his fallen brothers and became the greatest United States Senator of our time."

Statement by The Reverend Jim Wallis: "On the occasion of his death, I pray that God may now move us as a nation to address the greatest commitment of Senator Kennedy’s life–the need for a comprehensive reform of the health care system in America–as a deeply moral issue and one that calls forth the very best that is within us."

Disciples Join President Obama and 140,000 People of Faith on a Health Care Conference Call Hosted by Religious Organizations

An estimated 140,000 people of faith (including at least 1000 Disciples) gathered on a historic national conference call with President Barack Obama and the American faith community. Sponsored by Faithful Reform in Health Care, the Disciples Justice Action Network, the Disciples Center for Public Witness, and more than thirty other denominational, ecumenical, and interfaith organizations, the conference call included prayer and moments of silence, stories from people struggling with and suffering from the current health care system, suggestions from local religious leaders about ways to engage people in dialogue and action, answers to questions about health care reform from a White House domestic policy advisor, and comments by the President of the United States about the moral imperative for health insurance reform and the important role of people of faith in making it happen.

Among the speakers on the call were two prominent Disciples: Dr. Sharon E. Watkins, General Minister and President of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), and Dr. Cynthia Hale, Senior Pastor of Ray of Hope Christian Church in Decatur, GA. Also on the call was Dr. Joel Hunter, Senior Pastor of Northland, A Church Disributed, in Northland, FL. (Joel attended seminary at a Disciples institution of higher learning, the Christian Theological Seminary in Indianapolis, IN).

This highly successful conference call was linked with two efforts that are currently underway: the "40 Days for Health Reform" campaign to mobilize people of faith to pressure Congress to pass health insurance reform; and the "Let Our Light Shine" campaign to organize health care reform prayer vigils, worship services and other events throughout the month of August. (The health care vigil and rally at the recent General Assembly, organized by Faithful Reform in Health Care and the Disciples Justice Action Network, was the kick-off event for this campaign).

Yesterday's call lifted up the inspiring efforts of tens of thousands of people of faith across the United States to promote a civil dialogue and ensure that Congress passes legislation in 2009 that will make quality health care accessible and affordable for all Americans.

A recording of the call is available at www.blogtalkradio.com/40mins4health, which live-streamed the call.

More information about the call and about ongoing campaigns is available at www.faithfulreform.org and www.faithforhealth.org.

CONFERENCE CALL with PRESIDENT OBAMA

RSVP HERE to join a conference call with President Obama on health care: Wednesday, August 19, 2009, at 5 PM Eastern. The conference is being hosted by religious organizations--including DJAN--and will include thousands of people of faith. Religious leaders speaking on the call include GMP Sharon Watkins and Ray of Hope Senior Pastor Cynthia Hale. The organizers of the conference call invited the President of the United States to join the call. He accepted. Won't you? Please RSVP TODAY.

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Call your members of Congress today and urge them to support

health insurance reform: 1-888-797-8717 (toll-free).

END TORTURE: SIGN a statement of conscience HERE.

Call for a Commission of Inquiry by clicking HERE.

DJAN Hosts Vigil in Support of Health Care Reform

Disciples Justice Action Network (DJAN) hosted a prayer vigil and rally for health care reform on Saturday evening in a ballroom of the Indiana Convention Center.

"We are gathered in this place to raise our voices against the injustice of a health-care system that costs too much, covers too little, and excludes too many," said Linda Hanna Walling, a Disciples minister who serves as executive director of Faithful Reform in Health Care and a Senior Advisor on Health Care Reform to the Disciples Center for Public Witness.

The vigil was originally scheduled to be held on the grounds of the Indiana state capitol, but concerns about the weather moved the event indoors. Instead of lighting candles, [close to 600] attendees filled the darkened room with the lights from their cell phones.

Several speakers from both the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and the local church community were featured, including Sharon Watkins, general minister and president of the Disciples of Christ; her seminary classmate, Angelique Walker-Smith, executive director and minister of the Church Federation of Greater Indianapolis; Rabbi Lewis Weiss; and John Thomas, general minister and president of the United Church of Christ.

Bishop T. Garrott Benjamin, Jr., senior pastor of Light of the World Christian Church in Indianapolis, gave the keynote address.

To read the entire article from DisciplesWorld, PLEASE CLICK HERE.

To read an article about the vigil from the Indianapolis Star, PLEASE CLICK HERE.

Disciples Turn Down "Call For Action"

In the 2009 General Assembly’s final business session, delegates rejected Resolution 0925, "A Call for Action."

Speaking on behalf of the Standing Committee on Renewal and Structural Reform, Barbara Jones, regional minister of the Great River Region, addressed concerns from yesterday’s debate: "Public witness is now and becoming more and more a grassroots movement. 'Call for Action' is part of that movement."

Jones continued, "The difference between this document and what we had in past is ownership. Ownership now comes from the General Board, which is made up of congregational members now as well, so now there will be an interlinking of congregations, the regions, and the general church.

"Once items are selected, information will go out and there will be ample time for education prior to and at the Assembly for whatever is selected. That’s why we have fewer items. Many perspectives can be included.

"Let’s try it," she concluded. "We have an opportunity for change."

. . . [But] Charles Bayer, a retired minister from Claremont, CA . . . described the resolution as "basically anti-democratic." Congregations may exert considerable effort to draft impassioned, thoughtful, spirit-led resolutions that will never make it to the floor of the General Assembly, he said, "because the General Board and Office of the General Minister and President decide what gets to floor and who gets to debate."

Finally, argued Bayer, "Our resolutions (under this resolution) can’t speak to the world or the National Council (of Churches in the USA) where we stand on issues."

The standing vote failed to receive the required two-thirds majority, so Resolution 0925 was rejected. . . . Rejection of Resolution 0925 means the procedure for handling resolutions will continue as is.

To read the entire article from DisciplesWorld, PLEASE CLICK HERE.

Floor Fight Likely Over Handling of Social Justice Issues

A floor fight is shaping up over proposed changes in how the General Assembly handles social justice issues.

Almost 70 people met after the conclusion of Wednesday evening’s worship service at 9:45 p.m. for a meeting billed, “Justice Advocacy: the Future of Prophetic Witness in Our Church.”

Members of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)’s two major social justice organizations – the Disciples Peace Fellowship and the Disciples Justice Action Network (DJAN) – led the talk, which focused on General Assembly Resolution 0925, “A Call for Action.”

The proposal, scheduled to be taken up Friday, would eliminate the sometimes-controversial Sense of the Assembly resolutions, which may be offered by local congregations, and replace them with four main issues screened by the General Board. The changes would go into effect provisionally with the 2011 General Assembly.

DJAN’s Charles Bayer proposed that when the issue comes up Friday, a procedural motion will be offered to refer Resolution 0925 back to the General Board. Such a move would bypass the Committee on Reference and Counsel, where resolutions are typically sent for revision while the General Assembly is still under way. . . .

Kathy Coggins, program director for Disciples Peace Fellowship, said a vote against the resolution does not equate to an endorsement of the current way of handling social justice issues. "But we don’t want to take one broken system and replace it with another broken system," she said.

To read the entire article from DisciplesWorld, PLEASE CLICK HERE.

DJAN EVENTS at GENERAL ASSEMBLY

WEDNESDAY, July 29, 2009

Justice Advocacy After Session:
'The Future of Prophetic Witness in Our Church'
A Discussion of Resolutions
Co-Sponsored by DJAN and DPF
9 p.m. – 10:30 p.m.
Indiana Convention Center: Room 102

THURSDAY, July 30, 2009

DJAN Meeting and Discussion of Resolutions
Noon - 1.30 PM
Indiana Convention Center: Room 115

FRIDAY, July 31, 2009

RESOURCE GROUPS

Moral and Ethical Issues in Health Care Provision
Steven Baines
Westin Senate II
2 - 3.30 PM
View Details

Faithful Security: An Ecumenical Approach to War and Peace
Michael Kinnamon
Convention Center 201
3:45 - 5 PM
View Details

AFTERSESSION with DISCIPLES CENTER for PUBLIC WITNESS
Convention Center 115
9 - 10.30 PM

Note: This aftersession will be canceled so that all members of the CENTER, DJAN, DPF, and other advocacy groups can attend the 'UNITY - Celebrating Our Own Diversity' Reception in Convention Center 120-121. Please join us there.

SATURDAY, August 1, 2009

RESOURCE GROUPS

Can I Get A Witness? Looking for the Prophetic Church
Eric Brown, Noeme Mena, Charles Bayer, and Rita Brock
Convention Center 202
2 - 3.30 PM
View Details

Controversy and Community: Looking for Resolutions
Dick Hamm, Chris Hobgood, Michael Kinnamon, Jack Sullivan
Convention Center 109
3:45 - 5 PM
View Details

AFTERSESSION

EVENT for DISCIPLES and the INDIANAPOLIS COMMUNITY:

"Music and Prayer for Better Health Care--for Everybody"

9:15 PM (Music) - 9:30 PM (Program)

Location: State House Lawn

Confirmed Speakers include
Dr. Sharon Watkins
Bishop T. Garrott Benjamin
Dr. John Thomas