Report of the Memorials Committee
ELCA Churchwide Assembly Action CA09.03.09
Passed by the 2009 Churchwide Assembly in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Resolved
To approve en bloc, with the exception of those memorials considered separately, the following responses to 2008 and 2009 synodical memorials printed in the Report of the Memorials Committee (2009 Pre-Assembly Report, Section VI, pages as listed):
Category B2: Race, Gender, and Immigration
Category B5: Social Statement on Justice for Women
Category B6: Environmental Stewardship
Category E1: Advocacy for Legal Protection and Fairness
Category B2: Race, Gender, and Immigration
1. Arkansas-Oklahoma Synod (4C) [2008 Memorial]
WHEREAS, national attention has been drawn to the interconnected issues of race, gender, and immigration by the debates, speeches, and persons involved in the 2008 presidential campaign; and
WHEREAS, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America’s full communion partner, the United Church of Christ, has initiated a sacred conversation on race and has invited all communities of faith to join it in this conversation; and
WHEREAS, the 2006 Arkansas-Oklahoma Synod Assembly adopted Resolution #5 “Ministry to the Stranger in the Name of Christ,” which resolved that the bishop, pastors, members, and congregations of the Arkansas-Oklahoma Synod provide care and hospitality for all people in the name of Christ, resist any policy or law that would limit the work of ministry, and support Bishop Floyd M. Schoenhals’ publicly speaking the concerns of this church and joining other church leaders in speaking the concerns of the Christian church and the freedom to care for the stranger in the name of Christ; and
WHEREAS, Bishop Schoenhals has boldly modeled witnessing on the issue of immigration, particularly in relation to Oklahoma HB 1804; and
WHEREAS, congregations in this church include persons of different races, genders, and political opinions but share a common identity in Christ; therefore, be it
Resolved
RESOLVED, that the Arkansas-Oklahoma Synod establish a forum for congregations to come together to participate in a sacred conversation on the issues of race, gender, and immigration; and be it further
RESOLVED, that congregations be urged to engage intentionally the issues of race, gender, and immigration in light of their common identity in Christ; and be it further
RESOLVED, that the Arkansas-Oklahoma Synod Assembly memorialize the 2009 Churchwide Assembly to develop resources and opportunities for this entire church to participate in a nationwide sacred conversation on race, gender, and immigration.
Category B5: Proposed Social Statement on Justice for Women
1. Southwest California Synod (2B) [2009 Memorial]
WHEREAS, sexism continues to exist in many forms in society and brings harm to all; and
WHEREAS, according to the International Labor Organization, in two-thirds of industrial countries the jobless rates for women are 50 percent to 100 percent higher than for men; women work longer hours and are paid an average of 25 percent less than their male counterparts; and the wage gap is not decreasing; and
WHEREAS, the U.S. Department of Justice states that women are ten times more likely than men to be victimized by an intimate partner; one in six women have been victims of an attempted or completed rape; 1.2 million women are forcibly raped by their current or former male partner; and every day four women die in this country as a result of domestic violence; and
WHEREAS, sexism continues to exist in many forms even within this church, harming all people. For example, according to the ELCA, there are nearly equal numbers of men and women enrolled in seminary programs; however, there are fewer women serving as “senior pastors”; there are fewer women than men serving as bishops; clergywomen wait longer than clergymen for calls; and nearly 11 percent of clergywomen are on leave from call, compared to less than 5 percent of clergymen. Additionally, the 3 million lay women of this church also experience sexism in a variety of forms, as evidenced by the fact that only 14 percent of congregational presidents are women, and only 24 percent of full professors on the faculties of the colleges of the ELCA are women; and
WHEREAS, we are all, male and female, created in the image of God and through baptism united as one in Christ; and
WHEREAS, through the life, death, and resurrection of Christ, and through Christ’s radical call, the members of this church are welcomed 2009 Pre-Assembly Report: Report of the Memorials Committee Section VI + Page 25 to live out and lift up a realized vision of the reign of God as a public church, addressing and confronting significant social issues that affect the common good and seeking to bring God’s justice not only to the world but to this church as well; and
WHEREAS, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) in its strategic plan, “Faithful Yet Changing: the Plan for Mission in the ELCA, states this church’s commitment to confront the “scandalous realities” by challenging and eradicating exclusionary forces like sexism in this church and in society; and
WHEREAS, by engaging in the creation of a social statement on justice for women, this church could further conversations with its ecumenical partners by helping to engage the wider church in theological dialogues that lift up a vision of the reign of God revealed through the life, death, and resurrection of Christ; and
WHEREAS, the Church Council of the ELCA already has approved a resolution from the Church in Society program unit of the churchwide organization to undertake a new study leading to the development of a social statement on justice for women; therefore, be it
Resolved
RESOLVED, that the Southwest California Synod of the ELCA, meeting in assembly, memorialize the 2009 Churchwide Assembly of the ELCA to undertake a new study leading to the development of a social statement on justice for women.
Category B6: Environmental Stewardship
1. Sierra Pacific Synod (2A) [2009 Memorial]
WHEREAS, we in the industrialized world are consuming energy and the earth’s resources in a way that is both unsustainable in the future and unfair to those in the developing world; and
WHEREAS, we hear disturbing scientific reports of environmental pollution, global climate change, a record rate of species extinction, and a depletion of nonrenewable resources that should give us pause; and
WHEREAS, human activity, especially over-consumption of energy and resources in the pursuit of material wealth, appears to be a critical driver in this change in climate and environmental distress; and
WHEREAS, Genesis 2:15 directs us to be stewards of creation, and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), recognizing the gravity of these threats, has committed to addressing them in a constructive way, as evidenced by the 1993 social statement “Caring for Creation: Vision, Hope and Justice”; therefore, be it
Resolved
RESOLVED, that the Sierra Pacific Synod Assembly call on the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America at its 2009 Churchwide Assembly to adopt the Genesis Covenant (see below for more information) to reduce by a minimum of 50 percent the emission of greenhouse gases from all facilities, houses of worship, camps, offices, and conference centers of this church within 10 years; and be it further
RESOLVED, that the bishop and Synod Council appoint a Creation Care Task Force to develop a roadmap to sustainability, which gives congregations and other institutions an actionable plan on user-friendly terms for reducing their greenhouse gas emissions by maximizing energy efficiency, reducing unnecessary consumption of energy and resources, and witnessing to creation as God’s gift for which we are responsible as disciples of Christ; and be it further
RESOLVED, that this assembly calls on its congregations and the ELCA to work together with all religious institutions regionally, nationally, and globally and with leaders of science, government, and business to adopt the same goals of the Genesis Covenant.
Category B7: Human Rights in Colombia
1. Southwest California Synod (2B) [2009 Memorial]
WHEREAS, the United Nations, Lutheran World Relief, local Lutheran congregations, and many other aid organizations are working in very dangerous conditions to help house, feed, and protect the many civilian men, women, and children internally displaced by the armed conflict among the military, guerillas, paramilitaries, and drug cartels in Colombia: and
WHEREAS, the Gospel of Jesus Christ compels the people of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) to advocate for peace and justice and for the respect of human rights for all; therefore, be it
Resolved
RESOLVED, that the people of the Southwest California Synod of the ELCA give greater visibility to the crisis of Colombia and continue to uplift in individual and public prayer the suffering and hope of the churches and peoples of Colombia; and be it further
RESOLVED, that the Southwest California Synod publicly commend the courageous “frontline” work of Lutheran World Relief in Colombia (as elsewhere) and strongly encourage the use of their comprehensive congregational resources to address the armed and social conflicts in Colombia and the faithful responses of local Lutheran congregations by
- providing regular updates in synod publications;
- providing a list of Web sites and speakers to interested individuals and congregations; and
- encouraging and assisting all ELCA entities, especially youth and women’s organizations, to actively support Lutheran ministries in Colombia; and be it further
RESOLVED, that the Southwest California Synod Assembly direct the synodical Justice Mission Team to publicly advocate for a new Colombia policy that includes the following provisions:
- increase and improve humanitarian assistance and expand protection to displaced persons and refugees;
- insist upon the complete dismantlement of paramilitary forces and structures, within an effective legal framework for justice, truth, and reparations;
- encourage negotiations with the guerillas for a just and lasting peace;
- expand alternative development within a comprehensive rural development strategy and immediately end aerial spraying;
- reduce U.S. demand for drugs through evidence-based prevention strategies and improved access to high quality treatment;
- use U.S. leverage far more vigorously in support of human rights and the rule of law;
- support the recommendations of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights for Colombia;
- support a strong judiciary and an independent human rights sector;
- encourage the strengthening of civilian governance in rural areas; and
- make trade policy consistent with sustainable drug policy and human rights; and be it further
RESOLVED, that the synodical Justice Mission Team provide resources to congregations as requested so that the members of this synod are encouraged to write to their 2009 Pre-Assembly Report: Report of the Memorials Committee Section VI + Page 30 congressional representatives requesting that the U.S. foreign aid to Colombia include financial resources to re-establish a peace process within Colombia and provide more funding for social and economic assistance and less funding for military and police assistance; and be it further
RESOLVED, that the Southwest California Synod memorialize the 2009 Churchwide Assembly to address the foci of the above resolutions by the adoption of a churchwide statement requesting that the U.S. foreign aid to Colombia include more funding for social and economic assistance and less funding for military and police assistance.
Category E1: Advocacy for Legal Protection and Fairness
1. Minneapolis Area Synod (3G) [2009 Memorial]
WHEREAS, the Lutheran church has a tradition of opposing discrimination codified in law, even during times of social dislocation; and
WHEREAS, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) has written social statements to guide efforts to advocate for the protection of legal rights and has developed an advocacy arm to carry out the pragmatic efforts at legislative change; and
WHEREAS, the social statement on human sexuality notes that “laws have a direct impact on patterns of social trust within households and networks of kinship” and that “victims of sexual violation must be able to rely on public institutions for intervention”; and
WHEREAS, the proposed social statement on human sexuality notes that “certain laws and economic realities . . . may create extreme economic hardship for some, including older adults, who desire to be legally married” and asks that the ELCA advocate for “altering laws and the factors that create a significant impediment for such people to be married”; therefore, be it
Resolved
RESOLVED, that the Minneapolis Area Synod, meeting in assembly, memorialize the 2009 Churchwide Assembly to call on bishops, ministries, and members of this church to advocate for laws that prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity and for laws that define violence on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity as a hate crime; and be it further
RESOLVED, that the Minneapolis Area Synod, meeting in assembly, memorialize the 2009 Churchwide Assembly to direct appropriate churchwide units and to encourage synods, congregations, and members of this church to advocate for laws and regulations that permit widows and widowers to marry without losing retirement benefits.