ST. LOUIS (ELCA) -- Your organization says that women do make a difference, Myrlie Evers-Williams, past chair of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), told 4,000 participants of the Fourth Triennial Convention of Women of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA).
The convention is meeting here July 8-11 at the America's Center. The organization's three-year theme, "Live God's Justice," is unveiled at the convention amid Bible study, keynote addresses, workshops, business sessions and elections. The theme is based on the Bible verse Micah 6:8.
In her keynote presentation, Evers-Williams said "Live God's Justice" is a theme that all of us, regardless of race, creed or color, should embrace and use as a guideline in our lives for good living.
Evers-Williams spent her life pushing for civil rights and equality. In the late 1950s she and her husband, the late Medgar Evers, opened and managed the first Mississippi state office of the NAACP.
"America is at a crossroad today," she said. "Today we still deal with the same subject matter that we dealt with in the 1950s and 1960s. Yes, things are better. We have improved, but we still have a big job to do in that arena.
"It is time for those of who are brave enough, those who are strong enough ... to say there is still work to be done. We must look into our neighborhoods and realize that just around the corner, crosses are still being burned," she said.
Evers-Williams asked participants, "How committed are you to go beyond what you designate here? How willing are you to step into the den of racism and hatred and confront it right on, even if it occurs within your household?"
"It takes courage, determination ... and an unabated and unshakeable belief in God, for we cannot make it alone," she said. "In unity there is strength. It is time to rise above all the negatives, take them and turn them into positives by our action."
"Friends, the direction that this country moves depends on what each of you do, what I do. This will one day be a nation where we all stand together, to see all men and all women as one. And, I guarantee, in the doing we become stronger. In the doing, we will soar and we will be a credit to the God that we serve," Evers-Williams said.
For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or NEWS@ELCA.ORG
http://listserv.elca.org/archives/elcanews.html
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About the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America:
The ELCA is one of the largest Christian denominations in the United States, with 2.8 million members in more than 8,500 worshiping communities across the 50 states and in the Caribbean region. Known as the church of "God's work. Our hands.," the ELCA emphasizes the saving grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ, unity among Christians and service in the world. The ELCA's roots are in the writings of the German church reformer Martin Luther.
For information contact:
Candice Hill Buchbinder
Public Relations Manager
Candice.HillBuchbinder@ELCA.org
