Immigration Reform and the PC(USA)

Yesterday, our moderator Bruce Reyes-Chow sent out an invitation to comment on the statement issued on behalf of the PC(USA) regarding the recent Arizona legislation known as SB1070. This was his status on facebook:

Bruce Reyes-Chow just had a wonderfully challenging conversation with a "younger than me" person about today's interactions about the PC(USA) immigration statement. So here you go, for those 30 and under only, what are YOUR thoughts on the statement, the interactions, etc. Over 30's try really hard to listen.

No matter how inundated I am with final papers and exams, there’s no way I could pass up such a delightful invitation to thank the church for their active role in speaking out against this legislation, and give a few reasons as to why I am against the law myself. Before I show my response to Bruce’s message, here’s a brief summary of the statement if you haven’t read it or don’t plan to read the whole thing (though I do encourage you to read it - it's a great statement!):


I. An immediate need exists in the country for immigration reform
a) SB1070 is characterized by bigotry, trauma and fear
b) We need action at the federal level

II. Churches see the pain the broken system causes; ripping families apart, children left behind
a) law puts Christian workers at risk who work with undocumented immigrants
b) we cannot stand by and allow this to happen

III. The law also jeopardizes the safety of immigrant communities, further pushing the invisible population of undocumented immigrants into the shadows which:
a) prevents people from reporting crimes
b) fosters a distrust of the law
c) hinders federal legislation dealing with immigration

IV. LEV 19: 33-34
a) IMMIGRATION REFORM PLEASE!

Here was my response, it’s not eloquent (facebook just isn’t as fancy as a blog and I was in a bit of an “in-the-moment-adrenaline-rush” after reading the statement) but it sums up a few points:

Bruce,
When I got my tattoo of the Presbyterian seal on my wrist my mom asked me "why couldn't you just have gotten a necklace?" and many people asked me "what if you don't always agree with your church?"

Well, there have been times since when I haven't exactly adored what the Presbyterian church has done, but there are times like these when the PC(USA) stands up and speaks out against injustices in the world that completely overwhelm any trivial disagreements I have with the church. This is EXACTLY where I see the living church in action in the world. The statement issued about SB1070 is a testament to the living church. I'm so glad my church took action and stated plain truths about the legislation.

My concentration, I hope, in the sociology PhD program I enter in the fall will be immigration and immigration reform. I've already studied the issue at length and legislation like this has all kinds of unintended consequences. The third paragraph in the statement, for example, discusses the distrust of law enforcement that already existed. This legislation will only augment the distrust and push the invisible population further into the shadows. This kind of legislation hinders federal investigations and further complicates our already broken system.

In practice, the legislation is a nightmare. If Javier (my husband – from Chile) and I want to go on a road trip to California, he'd have to bring his birth certificate? What papers would we need? How sensible is it for him to take all of his precious documents with him? Those documents need to be kept SAFELY at home in a fire-proof lock box, because they were hard enough to get in the first place. How full will the already inhumane detention centers be? How many more families will be split up?

In a perverse way, though, this legislation has brought to the forefront something this country desperately needs: immigration reform. There's no way congress can escape this issue now. Again, unintended consequences.

This was not a part of my original comment but I later pressed the point of how important it is that our church MADE such a statement. We are not the only denomination to issue a statement on immigration reform: the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America has issued a statement called “Toward Compassionate, Just and Wise Immigration Reform,” and the United Methodist Church is part of the Interfaith Immigration Coalition and works with groups to increase the religious diversity in the campaign toward immigration reform. What would we have the PC(USA) do – ignore the situation? Not stand up and make a statement? That’s just not our personality. We may not have a unified consensus – has that ever happened in our church? This is a time for action. I’m so proud of the PC(USA) for making this statement and joining the ranks of other denominations who have already become involved in the fight for comprehensive immigration reform.

What do you all think? We’ll take comments even if you are 30+ years old.

photo by: www.ryanrodrickbeiler.com, taken from Soujourners

Row, Row, Row (Your Boat)

Pro tip: listen to this song while you read this post.


Some people decide to change the world after they have the financial means to do so. Others figure out a way to do it to raise money to change the world. Take 23-year-old Katie Spotz from Cleveland, Ohio, last month, she became the youngest person ever to row across the Atlantic Ocean. She rowed a boat. Across the Atlantic Ocean. Know why she did it? To raise awareness of, you guessed it, the need for clean drinking water.

Well crap. That hits home. I'm 23, and I don't think I could muster the passion, dedication, or pure physical endurance to row across an ocean. Katie's story is pretty incredible, you should check it out on rowforwater.com, Facebook, and Twitter.

People can do amazing things when they believe in something.



[Author note: Another reason she's totally awesome]

Water: National Georgraphic

Water: by National Geographic. Day Three.

Today we bring you excerpts and photos from Our Thirsty World, from Water: A Special Issue by National Geographic- April, 2010. You can find the article, pictures, and video here. Photographs by John Stanmeyer.

Our Thirsty World

"In wealthy parts of the world, people turn on a faucet and out pours abundant, clean water. Yet nearly 900 million people in the world have no access to clean water, and 2.5 billion people have no safe way to dispose of human waste—many defecate in open fields or near the same rivers they drink from. Dirty water and lack of a toilet and proper hygiene kill 3.3 million people around the world annually, most of them children under age five. Here in southern Ethiopia, and in northern Kenya, a lack of rain over the past few years has made even dirty water elusive." -Tina Rosenberg

"Where clean water is scarcest, fetching it is almost always women's work."

"When I first came to Foro, some 60 men were sitting in the shade of a metal-roofed building, drinking and talking. It was midmorning. Women, says Binayo, "never get five seconds to sit down and rest."

"In much of the developing world, lack of water is at the center of a vicious circle of inequality."

"When we are born, we know that we will have a hard life"-Binayo

We have passed the $3,800 mark of our water campaign! As a site, we are seeking to raise $5,000 to build a well for a community of 400, that will provide them with fresh, clean water for 20 years. If you can donate please do so here. Every dollar counts. Please tell you friends, family, Church's, youth groups, work, and school. Again, the link to donate is here.

Sacred Waters

Water: by National Geographic. Day Two.

Today we bring you excerpts and photos from the article Sacred Waters, from Water: A Special Issue by National Geographic- April, 2010. You can find the article, pictures, and video here. Photographs by John Stanmeyer.

Sacred Waters

"From the droplets in a baptismal font to the scattering of ashes on a holy river, water blesses our lives."- Cathy Newman

"From our worldly entrance in a burst of amniotic fluid to the ritual washing of the dead (taharah in Judaism; ghusl al0mayyit in Islam), water flows through our lives, scribing a line between sacred and profane, life and death. We are doused, dunked, dipped, sprinkled-- and blessings flow, deep and wide as the River Jordan of Scripture, wondrous as the spring at Lourdes, cathartic as tears." -Cathy Newman

"The world, Genesis says, was brought to life by a God who created a "firmament in the midst of the waters."-Cathy Newman

The body thirsts. So does the spirit. "I must live near a lake. Without water, I thought, nobody could live at all." -Swiss psychiatrist, Carl Jung.

"If I were called in/ To construct a religion/I should make use of water"
Philip Larkin-1954

"Symbol of creation, harbour of all seeds, water becomes the supreme magic and medicinal substance; it heals, it restores youth, it ensures eternal life."- Mircea Eliade 1907-1986
Patterns in Comparative Religion

"May the waters from the snowy mountains bring health and peace to all people. May the spring waters bring calm to you...and may the rains be a source of tranquility to all." -Atharva Veda, Circa 200 B.C.

If you can donate to the charity: water project, please do. Click here to donate.

Water: Brought to You by National Geographic

I wrote in my last blog post: "Water has consumed me for the past thirty one days. I have thought more about water than ever before." It has been a while since those words were written, but water continues to find me. In conversations, on television (Jimmy Bradley-Contestant, Top Chef Masters competed on behalf of charity: water), in articles, in other water movements, and in A Special Issue by National Geographic- April, 2010.

Over the next three days, The Church Is Alive Team will bring you photos, videos, and story excerpts from the issue. Specifically, we will focus on three stories from the magazine: The Burden of Thirst, Sacred Waters, and Water Thirsty World. It is our hope, that the images you will see will not just be pictures on a screen, but rather the stories of our brothers and sisters in Christ.

I will say it again, I continue to be inspired by the words that people pour out on this site. I have been moved by the photographs and videos. I have been awed by generosity of the donations that have flowed in to help provide water for a community of 400 for 20 years. I am thankful. Friends the statistics are mind blowing, the images heart hurting, the reality for so many in the world is grim, but there is great hope in Christ. Let us be a a community that responds in prayer, action, and our lives- always helping those in need.

Today's images and captions come from The Burden of Thirst, an article by Tina Rosenberg. Photograph's by Lynn Johnson. You can find all articles, images, and video here.

The Burden of Thirst

If the millions of women who haul water long distances had a faucet by their door, whole societies could be transformed. -Tina Rosenberg

Read The Burden of Thirst in its entirety here.

Wade in the Water

(Image from nicoleseitz.com)
Wade in the water.
Wade in the water, children.
Wade in the water.
God's gonna trouble the water.

Well, who are these children all dressed in red?
God's a-gonna trouble the water
Must be the children that Moses led
God's a-gonna trouble the water.

Who's that young girl dressed in white
Wade in the Water
Must be the Children of Israelites
God's gonna trouble the Water.

Jordan's water is chilly and cold.
God's gonna trouble the water.
It chills the body, but not the soul.
God's gonna trouble the water.

If you get there before I do.
God's gonna trouble the water.
Tell all of my friends I'm coming too.
God's gonna trouble the water.

Water is so many things. It is a path to escape and a landmark to follow back home. It is a source of life through its consumption as well as a source of laughter and fun through rock-hopping and sprinkler time.

When was the last time we viewed water as something God "troubled"? What exactly is troubled water? The intentional images that flash through my head look like tidal waves and tsunamis, but that doesn't sound like the type of water the singers of this spiritual were wanting their children to be wading in.

I think the kind of trouble God is creating for these waters is the trouble that comes with radical movements or change. In my opinion, this is good trouble. The best kind of trouble there can be. Trouble that creates change through destruction.

I have personally witnessed this kind of water-made trouble. A couple of years ago when I was on a school trip to the US/Mexico border. We were walking along in the desert (with our water bottles close at hand) and we came to a part of the fence that was being rebuilt. We of course asked why and our guide pointed down the path where the strewn pieces of the old part of the wall were.

The path we had been walking on and the fence had been in the way of was a riverbed. During the rainy season, the river seems to come out of no where and become such a force that cement and wood and hundreds of hours of labor can just be washed away. It seems to me that God troubled that water.

Stand in the water. Play in the water. Drink the water. Share the water. Wade in the water. God's gonna trouble that water.

(Image from lindalesperance.com)

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Beth is graduating from Presbyterian College in May with a BS in Early Childhood Education and a BA in Christian Education. In August, she will be moving to Nashville, TN to work with the Young Adult Volunteer Program.

Look at it this way: confidently

Leslie's post is part of our Lenten Water Project. Throughout this Lenten season our writers will be focusing on the subject of water and what that means to them. Please donate to our well-building efforts, and if you have something YOU would like to say about water, let us know and we'll post it here!

Something that really gets to me are conversations that attribute the diagnosis for the ills ofthe earth to Christianity. There is an endless list of faults and problems with the church in these conversations that would depress even the most optimistic person. It makes me sad to watch people fall into that kind of cynicism, living life looking at the worst of everything. To offer an alternative, I find that it helps to think of the church as alive and well in a world that is better because of it. For example:

Since the start of 2010, countries all over the world have suffered from major natural disasters. Starting with the earthquake in Haiti on January 12, then in Chile on February 27, again in Mexico on April 4 and finally Indonesia on April 6, these disasters have devastated populations and left cities in ruin. In the aftermath of these earthquakes, thousands of households across the United States have donated to relief efforts. While hundreds of organizations and events contributed to raising these relief funds, the role of the church stood out to me. Churches do more than collect money - they send teams of people who want to help (including our moderator Bruce Reyes-Chow and a delegation from the PCUSA, who just informed us about 5 minutes ago via facebook that he arrived safely in Haiti this morning), they pray for the victims, they help people understand the tragedy and devastation, they remind people that this is not God’s wrath but a natural disaster; churches don’t donate and leave, they engage in healing.

Living in Nashville is a special religious experience, because when disasters like the Haiti and Chile earthquakes happen, churches from all over the city get together with musicians and other artists to really show the world just what Christians can do to help the world heal. Back in February and March, I participated in two fundraising events sponsored by two local churches, Woodmont Christian Church and Second Presbyterian Church. Woodmont Christian Church actually had a group of youth on a mission trip in Haiti when the earthquake happened - so they had a very special place in their hearts for the people of Haiti. They raised $12,000 in a one night concert benefit - one night! The congregation at Second Presbyterian Church got together with a group of Chileans in Nashville after the earthquake in Chile to throw a similar concert benefit which raised another $7,000! Two churches in two nights. The Church is ALIVE charity:water project is another example. Thanks to the 71 donations and other promotional help the project has received so far from people who have posted the project on their statuses and e-mailed friends and family, we have raised $3,732! Don’t tell me the church isn’t alive, thank you very much. So next time you hear someone dragging the church down, remind them of the churches you know of who are actively participating in healing wounds all over the world. The living church does make a positive difference every single day - that’s what it means to be alive!

(pictured below: images from the Chile Aid Event at Second Presbyterian Church)

Danny Salazar

two classical guitar players from Spanish Serenatta

(the dry erase board puts the total a little short of what we wound up with in the end - these were the volunteers from the community and the church congregation)

The Church is Alive & Charity: Water

good easter...what now?

He is risen!  (He is risen, indeed)

Easter is over, the plastic eggs are brought back up to the attic, the kids are crashing after their sugar highs, the Easter Sunday hats are put back in the closets.  What's the next holiday...Mothers' Day?

Ever get that uneasy feeling that something isn't quite finished?  We've been celebrating Christ's resurrection for YEARS, yet nothing seems to have changed.  We just move on after Easter, as if it never happened.  The world is still in utter chaos.  We are still needlessly killing one another.  Millions of people still go without clean drinking water.  

The story of Christ's resurrection MUST go beyond the event we are all familiar with.  Conquering death and sin is very central to the Christian message, yet it is something that should compel us to move forward. Authors and theologians have spent years and years of research into the specifics of the death and resurrection, into whether it actually happened or not.  We could join these conversations, try to defend our faith based on physical facts and evidence.  OR we can acknowledge the further calling to carry Christ's message of hope forth into a world in need.

In the Gospel of John, we find one of the few reported appearances of Christ AFTER resurrection.  One of these appearances is to Peter, the man who had recently denied any connection to Jesus.  Jesus gives a simple question, "Do you love me?" The following imperative is to "feed my sheep." Christ is pretty insistent in this interaction, catching Peter off guard.  Perhaps Peter figured all was well now that Christ had risen.  However, the calling has just begun.  "Follow me," Jesus says.

Friends, we must live into the resurrection story.  We must feed one another.

Many churches celebrate Pentecost, the beginning of the church, on May 23rd this year.  This is in a little over 40 days.  We have 43 days left on our charity:water fundraiser.  Help us live into the resurrection story this year by helping donate money to build a WELL for a community in need of Christ's message of hope.  Help the church live into its calling.

He is risen indeed.

Appreciating Tap Water

Heather's post is part of our Lenten Water Project. Throughout this Lenten season our writers will be focusing on the subject of water and what that means to them. Please donate to our well-building efforts, and if you have something YOU would like to say about water, let us know and we'll post it here!

Well, I'm finishing up two weeks of only drinking water. I had read about the Lenten water project. At first I thought, "there is no way that I could ever do that." So I just put it out of my mind, forgot about it and started Lent without adding a spiritual practice or giving something up. Then this year for spring break I got to take my first trip out of the country to Santiago Atitlan, Guatemala. During the week that I spent there, one thing that was a huge change for us was not being able to drink from the faucet. Here we can just grab a glass in the kitchen and fill it up with tap water and be totally fine after we drink it. If I had done that there, the next few days would not have been very fun. So, after having to be very careful with the water I drank and even the food I ate that could have been washed with the unclean water I began to really think about the world's water crisis. So on World Water Day, March 22, I decided to jump in on this challenge.

I applaud any one who started this journey at the beginning of lent. After day 2 of only drinking water I wanted to quit. It is much harder than I expected to give up everything else. I am glad to say that I have stayed strong in these two weeks but it hasn't been easy. I am so looking forward to something with flavour. But more importantly these last two weeks has given me the opportunity to talk to people about the water crisis and hopefully got people thinking about how they use water and what they can do to help.

So for everyone who is on this journey and are doing what they can to help end the world water crisis, The 40 days is almost up but that doesn't mean that we can stop raising awareness.

Stay strong and keep being the rock stars that you are.
-Heather

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Heather Scott is a senior in Audio Engineering and Music Business at Belmont University, an active participant with the Presbyterian Student Fellowship in Nashville, and resident Audio/Visual Queen at Montreat.

The Long Lenten Journey is Nearly Over...

Kim's post is part of our Lenten Water Project. Throughout this Lenten season our writers will be focusing on the subject of water and what that means to them. Please donate to our well-building efforts, and if you have something YOU would like to say about water, let us know and we'll post it here!

It is Holy Week, and the long Lenten journey is nearly over. We began that journey in the desert, where water is scarce and the wilderness is harsh. Still dripping from the waters of his baptism, Jesus was sent out into the desert, propelled by the same Spirit who had just come upon him in the form of a dove. He had no food, no drink, and only the devil for company. For forty days he was tempted by Evil incarnate, who did everything in his power to get Jesus to deny his identity as the beloved son of God.

Because Jesus defeated evil – not only in the desert, but on the cross – we are safe from the worst that Evil can do. During the Lenten journey, however, we come face to face with our vulnerability, beginning with an ashy cross that reminds us that we are dust. Yet God makes that journey with us, never abandoning us to hopelessness, never allowing us to be claimed by the sin that clings so closely.

Even in the desert, there are signs of hope. On the final Sunday of Lent, we heard the faint sound of water trickling. It started with the prophet Isaiah:

Do not remember the former things, or consider the things of old.
I am about to do a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?
I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.
The wild animals will honor me, the jackals and the ostriches;
for I give water in the wilderness, rivers in the desert,
to give drink to my chosen people,
the people whom I formed for myself so that they might declare my praise.
(Is 43:18-21)

Then the psalmist replied with a song of hope:

When the LORD restored the fortunes of Zion, we were like those who dream.
Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with shouts of joy;
then it was said among the nations, "The LORD has done great things for them."
The LORD has done great things for us, and we rejoiced.
Restore our fortunes, O LORD, like the watercourses in the Negeb.
May those who sow in tears reap with shouts of joy.
Those who go out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing,
shall come home with shouts of joy, carrying their sheaves.
(Ps. 126:1-6)

The journey is not quite over; we still must walk the path Jesus walked, to the upper room, the foot of the cross, and – thanks be to God – the empty tomb. Throughout the long journey, though, the God who causes water to spring forth in the desert is with us, reminding us that in the waters of baptism we are claimed once and for all, never to be abandoned, until we are raised on the last day and our joy will be complete.

Charles Wesley captured this whole journey in a single stanza of his hymn, “Jesus Lover of My Soul:”

Plenteous grace with Thee is found,
Grace to cover all my sin;
Let the healing streams abound;
Make and keep me pure within.
Thou of life the fountain art,
Freely let me take of Thee;
Spring Thou up within my heart;
Rise to all eternity.

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Kim Long is the Assistant Professor of Worship and Coordinator of Worship Resources for Congregations, at Columbia Theological Seminary, in Decatur, GA.