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A UMNS Report
By Kathy L. Gilbert*
3:00 P.M. EDT July 19, 2011 |
Jim Winkler leads a prayer vigil for a “faithful budget” in front of The
United Methodist Building in Washington. A UMNS photo by Wayne Rhodes.
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Men and women dressed in corporate attire step outside of their
air-conditioned offices into the mid-day, midsummer heat. Crisp,
starched shirts and tailored suits quickly wilt while they join hands,
bow their heads and pray.
Why? Because:
- Every 32 seconds a child is born into poverty in the United States
- 14.1 million unemployed are looking for work; 6.3 million of them have not worked for the past 27 weeks
- 40 million depend for their daily bread on programs that fight hunger
- 1.4 billion live in extreme poverty around the globe
- Millions are dying of HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria
- And, Congress is trying to balance a federal budget that could seriously impact the lives of those already on the edge.
The Washington Interreligious Staff Community, an informal network of
faith-based workers who toil together on common issues of social
justice, are joining together daily on the front lawn of The United
Methodist Building on Capitol Hill to pray for a “faithful budget.”
“The vigils taking place are an interreligious effort to raise the voice
of people of faith on behalf of the poorest and most vulnerable among
us,” said Jim Winkler, top executive for The United Methodist Church’s
Board of Church and Society. “We are sending a visible signal to those
in power that we do not believe the negotiations over the debt ceiling
and budget can be resolved on the backs of poor people.”
The prayer vigils began July 11 and will continue each weekday at 12:30
p.m. through July 22, when a White House-Congressional agreement on the
budget and debt ceiling is expected.
The United Methodist Building faces the U.S. Capitol and is across the
street from the Supreme Court. The building houses the Washington
offices for the United Methodist Board of Church and Society, Commission
on Religion and Race, Committee on Relief, Women’s Division and Council
of Bishops. It also houses the Washington-based offices of the National
Council of Churches of Christ, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), Episcopal
Church, United Church of Christ, Catholic Relief Services, Mennonite
Central Committee, Church World Service, Muslim Public Affairs Council,
Faith and Politics Institute, Interreligious Coalition on Smoking and
Health, Churches for Middle East Peace and a number of other boards and
agencies.
Those gathered for the daily vigils often walk the same halls and lobby
in the same offices of Congress, advocating for many of the services
threatened by budget cuts.
The July 14 prayer vigil organized and lead by the United Methodist
social agency staff specifically lifted up the Supplemental Nutrition
Assistance Program (SNAP) and other programs to fight hunger that help
40 million people in the United States.
“We pray that our elected leaders will have courage to protect critical
health programs such as Medicaid from budget cuts and strengthen global
efforts to eradicate pandemic diseases such as HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis
and malaria,” were the words of their prayer.
Religious leaders representing the Christian, Jewish and Muslim faiths
talked about their concerns over the budget negotiations during a July 14 conference call.
The Rev. John McCullough, a United Methodist pastor and executive
director of Church World Service, agreed that the current budget debate
is “deeply disappointing and disturbing.”
The faith leaders also sent letters to President Obama; Senate Majority
Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev.; Speaker of the House John Boehner, R-Ohio;
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.; and Minority Leader Nancy
Pelosi, D-Calif. Bishop Larry M. Goodpaster, president of the United
Methodist Council of Bishops, was among the signers.
The schedule for the remaining prayer vigils on the lawn of The United Methodist Building are:
July 19: Columban Center for Advocacy and Outreach
July 20: National Council of Churches
July 21: Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
July 22: United Church of Christ
Previous vigils were lead by the Leadership Conference of Religious
Women, an association of leaders of Catholic sisters, and Maryknoll, a
Catholic mission organization; the Islamic Society of North America;
NETWORK, a Catholic social justice lobby; the United Methodist Board of
Church and Society, the Presbyterian Church (USA) Office of Public
Witness and Ecumenical Advocacy Days.
*Gilbert is a multimedia reporter for the young adult content team at United Methodist Communications, Nashville, Tenn.
News media contact: Kathy L. Gilbert, Nashville, Tenn., (615) 742-5470 or newsdesk@umcom.org.
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