The Rev. Chuck Currie

Church Leaders Should Meet With President-elect; Offer Agenda

Mainline church leaders should develop an agenda and present it to the president-elect.

Government Conspires With Military Analysts For Positive Iraq Coverage

The Iraq War has been opposed since the start by the leadership of the United Church of Christ and religious bodies from the World Council of Churches to the Vatican. But how can our voices compete with this?

"We Can't Just Wish For Peace"

4000 Americans Now Dead In Iraq

Related Link:  What Should Christians Do?

Related Link: NCC laments a ‘disastrous’ war, now entering its sixth year

Video Credit:  Andrew Stelzer

Christian Principles in An Election Year

As the election season heats up the National Council of Churches USA has re-issued their Christian Principles in An Election Year.  Check this out before you vote.

"Veteran ecumenist Michael Kinnamon is installed as National Council of Churches General Secretary"

This week the General Assembly of the National Council of Churches USA voted to approve the nomination of The Rev. Dr. Michael Kinnamon to serve as NCC's new General Secretary:

Click here for the full post.

Institute on Religion and Democracy Attacks Michael Kinnamon Nomination

It didn’t take long.

Today the Institute on Religion and Democracy criticized the nomination of Michael Kinnamon to serve as the new General Secretary of the National Council of Churches.

In a statement, IRD president Jim Tonkowich (a minister in a Presbyterian schism group opposed to the ordination of women) called Dr. Kinnamon “outside of the mainstream.”

Why does IRD care who serves as the General Secretary of the National Council of Churches?

FULL POST

Michael Kinnamon Nominated As New General Secretary of the National Council of Churches

The Rev. Dr. Michael Kinnamon has been tapped to serve as the new General Secretary of the National Council of Churches. Official word came just moments ago from UCC-related Eden Theological Seminary, where Dr. Kinnamon has served as the Allen and Dottie Miller Professor of Mission and Peace, and from NCC.

FULL STORY

"Churches remain faithful to Gulf Coast rebuilding"

Reprinted from the National Council of Churches

New Orleans, August 29, 2007 – "If it had not been for the Church, we would be in even worse shape than we are now."

So said the Rev. Patrick Keen, pastor of Bethlehem Lutheran Church in New Orleans. He was addressing 50 volunteers from 14 Christian churches taking part in Ecumenical Work Week (Aug. 19-25) sponsored by the National Council of Churches (NCC) USA’s Special Commission for the Just Rebuilding of the Gulf Coast. Bethlehem Lutheran hosted volunteers for the week and provided dinner during the week.

"The people of God from all around the country have come to help," Pastor Keen said.

The work week was held last week in New Orleans and Biloxi, Miss. In addition to the six houses the workers helped to repair and rebuild, the week was intended to point out the ongoing need for volunteers and the work done by church volunteers and organizations in the areas devastated by Hurricane Katrina two years ago today.

In a survey conducted by the Special Commission of the NCC's 35 member communions it was estimated those churches sent more than 120,000 volunteers. They donated 3.6 million hours in helping victims put their lives back together. Those churches sent an estimated $250 million in financial aid to local churches and relief agencies. The survey was compiled by Tronn Moller, the Special Commission’s Gulf Coast consultant.

"The Road Home has been a bureaucratic nightmare," said Bishop Thomas Hoyt, co-chair of the Special Commission and past president of the NCC.

He said the money sent by government agencies has not been shared equitably among the victims nor has it been managed properly. The Rev. Michael Livingston, current NCC president, co-chairs the Special Commission with Bishop Hoyt.

"The task ahead is still a mammoth one," said Bishop Hoyt. "We need people to stay with us." More volunteers are needed to help people struggling all along the Gulf Coast, Hoyt said.

"We didn't come here to get noticed," said the Rev. Brenda Girton-Mitchell, NCC's associate general secretary for justice and advocacy. "We came here to give notice that we will be here until the work is done."

In Biloxi, the volunteers worked to repair two homes, including the home of Myrtle Davis. She was born in the house 81 years ago as was her brother who will be 85 next month.

During a lunch break the workers heard from representatives of two dozen different organizations. The message from each was please keep sending volunteers. They warned of a pending housing crisis if the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) begins to evict residents of FEMA-supplied trailers. The temporary housing was designed for only 18 months to 2 years.

At a Tuesday night prayer service the Rev. Dr. Bob Hill, pastor of Community Christian Church in Kansas City, Mo., preached following a tour of the Lower Ninth Ward. In describing his emotions he said he felt angry but did not share that out loud until he realized, "anger is always an appropriate response when our values have been violated."

Bishop J.D. Wiley of Life Center Cathedral in New Orleans and the Rev. C. Dan Krutz, executive director of the Louisiana Interchurch Conference in Baton Rouge, La., also preached at nightly prayer services.

While much of the media attention leading up to today's anniversary has focused on the Lower Ninth Ward, volunteers also saw other neighborhoods where little seems to have been done in two years. Gentilly, Lakeview and New Orleans East, were also areas the workers saw that are still struggling to rebuild and virtually uninhabited.

In addition to the work of the 50 volunteers, visiting clergy spent two days on a listening tour about the environmental impact of the post-Katrina flooding of this city and what still needs to be done in the area. The tour was coordinated by Cassandra Carmichael, NCC's director of eco-justice programs.

In February of this year the Special Commission issued a report card on the status of recovery efforts. After more than a half a dozen post-Katrina trips to the Gulf Coast region and extensive on-the-ground analysis, the NCC's Special Commission on the Just Rebuilding of the Gulf Coast gave low marks across the board to local, state and federal governments. The report card reviewed response and rebuilding efforts in the city of New Orleans, the states of Louisiana, Mississippi, and the federal government in areas such as transportation, healthcare, housing, schools, insurance, and environmental justice.

The NCC's Special Commission was formed in September 2005 in response to the spiraling neglect present in the Gulf Region after hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Commissioners representing NCC member communions convened for the first time in Louisiana in November 2005, a few months after the storms ravaged the Gulf Coast, to analyze on-the-ground progress post-Katrina. The Special Commission has since toured the Mississippi coast, met with religious leaders and community activists and government officials in New Orleans and Mississippi, including Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour. In addition, the Special Commission has met with members of Congress and officials at FEMA about efforts to rebuild.

The ecumenical work week was organized for the Special Commission by Moller and the Rev. Leslie Tune, NCC's associate director for justice and advocacy. Work projects were coordinated through the United Church of Christ disaster relief, Episcopal Disaster Relief and Disciples of Christ Disaster Relief in New Orleans. In Mississippi the work was coordinated with Episcopal Disaster Relief.

"It was not a sacrifice for us to be there. It was an immense honor and privilege to be the hands and feet of God and to help people rebuild," said the Rev. Tune. "It was one of the most humbling experiences of my life that people allowed us in their homes and trusted us to help them get things back in order."

The volunteers and clergy came from NCC and other denominations: African Methodist Episcopal, African Methodist Episcopal Zion, American Baptist Churches USA, Armenian Orthodox, Christian Methodist Episcopal, Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), Episcopal Church, Evangelical Lutheran Church, International Council of Community Churches, Presbyterian Church USA, Progressive National Baptist Convention, Reformed Church in America, and the United Church of Christ; as well as members of Roman Catholic and Full Gospel Baptist churches plus FaithfulAmerica.org.

"NCC’s Edgar departs for Common Cause; Interim Named"

The Rev. Bob Edgar will be stepping down soon as the general secretary of the National Council of Churches In Christ USA (NCC).  The council has grown under his leadership and become a more effective voice for Christians in the United States.  As a United Methodist minister, former seminary president, and former U.S. Congressman he brought a unique set of skills to his job.  When he took the helm at NCC no one knew if the organization had the capacity to survive into the future.  Bob leaves the council with the budget deficit erased and on a stable footing.  More importantly:  NCC has been a prophetic voice on issues like the environment, the war in Iraq, and on a range of poverty issues.  It has been a pleasure for me to get to know Bob over the last several years.  He will be missed after two-terms of visionary leadership.

Related Link: Podcast Interview: The Rev. Bob Edgar On "Middle Church"   (Sept. 18, 2006)

Related Link: Podcast Interview With Bob Edgar: The National Council Of Churches Urges An Increase in The Minimum Wage (November 7, 2005)

Related Link: The Rev. Dr. Robert Edgar Talks About The National Council Of Churches, Iraq, and Voter Registration (June 30, 2004)

Press Release from the National Council of Churches

New York City, August 20, 2007 – The Rev. Bob Edgar, general secretary at the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA (NCC) since January 2000, departs at month's end for Common Cause.   He will then assume fulltime responsibilities as the nonpartisan advocacy group's president.

Anticipating Edgar's departure the NCC's executive committee has appointed Clare Chapman, NCC's deputy general secretary for finance and administration, to be Acting General Secretary.

"We are blessed to have the administrative gifts and talents in Clare Chapman to manage the day-to-day leadership of the NCC," said the Rev. Michael Livingston, president of the NCC.  "Clare will carry us through to the end of the year when we expect to have our next General Secretary in place."

A search committee has been considering candidates for the General Secretary position for several weeks.

"The NCC and its member communions continue to be in ministry together, striving for the unity to which Christ calls us," said Chapman.  "The Council has strong leadership in its Governing Board and Executive Committee and I look forward to working with them in a new way in this leadership transition.  While we all acknowledge the improvement in financial stability that has occurred in Bob's tenure, his strong leadership in advocating for peace, working for environmental justice and helping those living with poverty is his real legacy," Chapman said.

Edgar's nearly eight years of leadership at the NCC saw numerous events that called upon the churches to speak out and witness to the gospel.  A photo retrospective produced and written by Philip Jenks, NCC's director of interpretation, is available online http://www.ncccusa.org/bobedgar/.

Edgar is returning to Washington, D.C. to head up Common Cause, a grassroots, non-partisan advocacy group with 36 state organizations and nearly 300,000 members.  Edgar lived in the Washington area for 12 years while he served as a Member of Congress from Pennsylvania, 1975-1987.

The National Council of Churches USA is the ecumenical voice of 35 of America's Orthodox, Protestant, Anglican, historic African American and traditional peace churches.  These NCC member communions have 45 million faithful members in 100,000 congregations in all 50 states.

"Summer time, and the water is sacred"

Statement from the National Council of Churches

Washington, August 3, 2007 – During the hot and dry months of August and September, the National Council of Churches Eco-Justice Program is asking churches to use water wisely as part of their Adamah Congregations quarterly action program.

The NCC hopes to reach people in the pews through organizing bible studies on water across the nation. Churches can register to host a bible study at www.nccecojustice.org/adamahh2o.html.

“The sacredness of water in our faith tradition is stated clearly throughout the Bible," says Cassandra Carmichael, Eco-Justice Programs Director.

"The average American uses 80-100 gallons of water per day. We pray that as congregations study the scripture that they will be moved to protect this precious gift.”

The Adamah Congregations program started in January 2007 as a way to engage congregations in taking simple actions to “green” their church.

Previous actions include asking churches to switch to a fair trade coffee hour and replacing incandescent bulbs with energy efficient compact fluorescent light bulbs.

The Eco-Justice Programs office of the National Council of Churches works in cooperation with the NCC Eco-Justice Working Group to provide an opportunity for the national bodies of member Protestant and Orthodox denominations to work together to protect and restore God's Creation. 

The Rev. Dr. Paul Sherry Calls For Living Wage As Minimum Wage Gets Bumped Up

Last week low-income working Americans finally got a raise when the federal minimum wage was increased after years of growing poverty levels. Pehaps no one was more responsible for this than The Rev. Dr. Paul Sherry, the founder of Let Justice Roll, a project of the National Council of Churches, and the former general minister and president of the United Church of Christ.  At a press conference held this week with Congressional leaders he said: 

This is a good day, isn't it? After ten long years, America's low wage workers and families are getting a break. It's about time -- and Let Justice Roll is very glad to be part of it. Let Justice Roll is a nonpartisan coalition of over 90 faith-based, community-based, labor and business organizations united around one single goal -- working together to establish a living wage for all of our country's working people.

We have worked alongside many others to raise the minimum wage in a growing number of states -- Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia. We have worked in support of city and county-wide living wage ordinances. And we have worked in support of the federal legislation we celebrate today. All with one purpose: reaching a living wage for all of America's working people -- a fair day's pay for a fair day's work.

We believe that a job should keep you out of poverty, not keep you in it.

With Martin Luther King, we believe, "There is nothing but a lack of social vision to prevent us from paying an adequate wage to every American (worker) whether he (or she) is a hospital worker, laundry worker, maid, or day laborer."

And with the prophet Amos, we envision a renewed society wherein "justice rolls down like living waters and righteousness like an everflowing stream." That is the very definition of a good and decent society.

Yes, today is a good day. But, even as we celebrate, we know that we have a long way to go if justice is to be done for America's low wage working people.

Even at $7.25 an hour in 2009, the minimum wage, in inflation adjusted dollars, will be more than $2 below what it was in the year 1968 -- four decades ago. We do have a long way to go.

In the meantime, low wage working families will continue to struggle mightily with the ever increasing costs of health care, housing, education, and so much else.

When the Fair Labor Standards Act was established, way back in 1938, the Act was designed "to eliminate labor conditions detrimental to the maintenance of the minimum standard of living necessary for the health, efficiency and general well-being of workers." The 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, at which Dr. King delivered his famous "I Have a Dream" speech, called for a national minimum wage act that will give all Americans a decent standard of living. How far we are from those noble and visionary goals. We do have a long way to go.

A just minimum wage is not only ethically right; it is also economically right. A just minimum wage is good for workers. A just minimum wage is good for business and the economy. Speaking of business, nearly 800 business owners and executives representing every state in the nation have signed a statement endorsing a minimum wage increase at www.businessforafairminimumwage.org.

A just minimum wage is good for our common future. So, we dare not and we will not cease our efforts until all working people receive a living wage.

Let Justice Roll will work, along with many others, in support of future federal legislation to raise the minimum wage to a living wage. We will work in support of minimum wage legislation at the state level and for living wage ordinances at the local and state level -- places like Georgia, Kansas, Oklahoma and Cuyahoga County, Ohio.

We will continue to make the case that raising the minimum wage is a central moral and economic issue of our time. Morality demands that a job should keep you out of poverty, not keep you in it.

Yes this is a good day, a day to celebrate. On this day, even as we celebrate, let us look forward to an even better day. A day when all working people will receive a truly living wage -- a wage that will give all of America's families a decent standard of living. On that day, justice will roll down like living waters and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream. Let's do it!

Congratulations to all who worked hard for this victory.  Now let's all get back to work.  My friend Rev. Sherry is right that we still have along way to go. 

"NCC joins faith leaders' call for child health plan"

Statement from the National Council of Churches

Washington, D.C., June 12, 2007 – The National Council of Churches USA (NCC) is among more than 20 faith groups pressing for health insurance coverage for many of the nine million uninsured children in America.

Catholic, Jewish, Protestant, Episcopal, Evangelical and Orthodox leaders sent a letter to Senator Max Baucus, Chair of the Senate Finance Committee, and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, urging them to produce the $50 billion needed in legislation to expand the successful State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP).

"The faith community worked hard to win $50 billion in new funding in the budget resolution. We expect Congressional leaders to use these funds to reach millions of uninsured children in our nation," said the Rev. John Bauman, S.J., executive director of PICO National Network.

The letter, signed by the religious leaders, asks Baucus and Reid to keep their commitment to spend $50 billion over five years to cover as many as six million uninsured children. The letter from faith groups representing 50 million Americans comes during intense closed door negotiations over SCHIP in the Senate. National clergy leaders are making personal appeals to key senators during a week of intense advocacy for children.

PICO National Network and the NCC have generated 9,000 letters to key senators over the past week and organized SCHIP clergy coalitions in key states such Indiana, Kansas and Missouri.

"We want Congressional leaders to understand that people of faith see covering children as our highest legislative priority this year," said the Rev. Bob Edgar, general secretary of the NCC. "In our Christian tradition we follow a Jesus who said, 'Let the little children come to me...'(Luke 18:16). The most vulnerable were priorities for Jesus. Today, our uninsured children are among the most vulnerable."

In addition to Edgar, leaders in ten NCC member communions signed on to the letter. They are: Rev. Michael Livingston, executive director of the International Council of Community Churches (and NCC President); Archbishop Vicken Aykazian, Diocese of the Armenian Church of America (and NCC President-elect); Rev. John H. Thomas, general minister and president, United Church of Christ; Most Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori, presiding bishop, The Episcopal Church.

Also, Rev. Clifton Kirkpatrick, stated clerk of the General Assembly, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.); Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America; James Winkler, general secretary, General Board of Church and Society of the United Methodist Church; Rev. A. Roy Medley, general secretary, American Baptist Churches in the U.S.A..

Also Rev. Dr. William J. Shaw, national president, National Baptist Convention, U.S.A.; Bishop John Richard Bryant, presiding bishop, 5th Episcopal District, African Methodist Episcopal Church; the Rev. O.C. Edwards, Jr. (Episcopal Church), executive committee and co-chair, NCC's Faith and Order Commission; M. Garlinda Burton, general secretary, General Commission on the Status and Role of Women, United Methodist Church; and Virginia R. Holmstrom, executive director, American Baptist Women's Ministries.

Testimony from The Rev. Chuck Currie Before Portland City Council In Support Of Returning American Veterans

This afternoon the Portland City Council will consider a resolution (put forward by all five members of the Council) welcoming home veterans from the Iraq War and offering support for all those having difficulty reintegrating after deployments. I have been asked to give testimony at the hearing. Below are my prepared remarks:

Testimony from The Rev. Chuck Currie

Before Portland City Council In Support Of Returning American Veterans

Wednesday, June 6, 2007

Members of the Council:

My name is Rev. Chuck Currie. I currently serve as the interim minister of Parkrose Community United Church of Christ and live in Portland’s Grant Park neighborhood.

Today I am here to offer support for the resolution before council welcoming back returning veterans from the Iraq War.

Twenty-one years I began working at a shelter in Portland called Baloney Joe’s. Each day we served hundreds of individuals suffering from acute mental illness, people who had lost their jobs because of the declining timber industry, those battling alcohol and drug addictions, and veterans who severed our nation in the Armed Forces only to be abandoned to the streets.

The National Coalition for Homeless Veterans reports:

In addition to the complex set of factors affecting all homelessness -- extreme shortage of affordable housing, livable income, and access to health care -- a large number of displaced and at-risk veterans live with lingering effects of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and substance abuse, compounded by a lack of family and social support networks.

No one should be homeless in the richest nation on earth. But Americans have a special burden to ensure that those who have served the nation are not left without services and support. Tragically, after the Vietnam War our veterans were simply cut loose and many ended up in shelters like Baloney Joe’s. Our shelter, which received only limited government support, operated counseling programs, a medical center, a jobs program, and SRO housing centers in Old Town. We were so unpopular in serving this population that Mayor Frank Ivancie once famously said in the early 80s he’d rather wed his garden then visit Baloney Joe’s. As many as one-third of the people we served were Vietnam veterans.

You would have thought a lesson had been learned by the way Vietnam veterans had been treated but already veterans from Iraq are ending up in shelters and we have seen the shameful way veterans in medical facilities like Walter Reed have been treated. “While an estimated 500,000 veterans were homeless at some time during 2004, the VA had the resources to tend to only 100,000 of them,” reported The Christian Science Monitor in a 2005 article chronicling the increase of veterans from Iraq seeking emergency shelter.

The General Assembly of the National Council of Churches adopted a statement last year that read it part:

We urge our government to give meaningful support to U.S. troops. This meaningful support includes: bringing active and reserve forces home from this war; providing soldiers still in harm's way with adequate armor to protect them from gunfire and explosive devices; giving earned benefits to veterans, especially injured veterans, of this war in which they have valiantly served; and honoring the sacrifice made by those who have died in this war by making adequate provision for surviving family members and creating a withdrawal plan that brings such sacrifices to an end.

War is contrary to the will of God and we are called to be peacemakers. We are also called to be a compassionate people concerned with the “least of these” in society. I urge all Portlanders to do everything in our power to avoid the mistakes of the Vietnam era and to welcome home our veterans with open arms.

Church World Service "urging action on immigration reform with "Take 5" campaign"

Action Alert from Church World Service

NEW YORK -- Humanitarian agency Church World Service is calling on its constituents to advocate for humane, equitable immigration reform with its June 5 - 8 "Take 5 for Immigrants" campaign.

Participants will take five minutes on each of those days to call their senators about key amendments being voted on that very day. "Action alerts" will be available by 11 a.m. (Eastern) each day at www.cwsspeakout.com

"The week of June 4 could be crucial in determining what kind of immigration reform the U.S. Senate will pass," said Joe Roberson, Director of the CWS Immigration and Refugee Program. "If all goes according to plan, senators will be voting on different parts of the bill (S. 1348) each day, aiming toward final action as early as June 7."

The goal of the "Take 5 for Immigrants" campaign is to proactively bring to the immigration reform debate the values of the U.S. ecumenical community to promote family unity, a workable immigration system, and the humane treatment of all individuals.

"There is so much at stake in every section of the bill that it would be irresponsible for us not to educate and advocate about each part as it comes before the senate for action," Roberson said. "Members of Congress need to bring their common sense, human empathy, realism, and fairness to the immigration policy debate."

Since the beginning of the debate, Church World Service has been calling for reforms that would:

• Improve our family-based immigration system to significantly reduce waiting times for separated families who currently wait many years to be reunited.

• Create legal avenues for immigrants to safely and legally work in the United States, with their employee rights fully protected.

• Provide an opportunity for earned legalization for all persons who already contribute to our economy as a necessary way to keep families together and remedy the abuse of undocumented workers.

• Implement smart, targeted enforcement, not fences.

• Safeguard asylum seekers by ensuring a fair legal process without penalizing them with increased, unnecessary bureaucracy.

Church World Service is the relief, development and immigration and refugee resettlement agency supported by 35 Protestant, Orthodox and Anglican denominations in the United States.

Rev. Bob Edgar To Head Common Cause

The Rev. Bob Edgar, out-going general secretary of the National Council of Churches USA, will become the new president of Common Cause:

Robert William (Bob) Edgar, the general secretary of The National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA (NCC), and a former congressman who represented eastern Pennsylvania from 1975 to 1987, was elected president and chief executive officer of Common Cause by the organization's National Governing Board. Edgar succeeds Chellie Pingree, who stepped down in February.

"With devastating consequences, powerful special interests distort and disrupt the democratic process in ways that shift political power away from the American people," Edgar said. "I look forward to carrying on (Common Cause founder) John Gardner's vision of Common Cause as a people's lobby both in Washington, DC and in the states."

"Bob Edgar brings to Common Cause an outstanding record of leadership and service," said Martha Tierney, interim chairwoman of Common Cause's National Governing Board. "He has a demonstrated ability to inspire people to think and work creatively. We are thrilled he will be focusing his efforts on issues such as campaign finance reform, government ethics and election and media reform that mean so much to Common Cause."

Edgar, 63, comes to Common Cause with a rich and long history of public service and leadership. In 2000, he took office as general secretary for the National Council of Churches USA, a 50-year-old organization representing 35 member communions and their 45 million members who work to promote unity and justice. 

Under Edgar's leadership, the Council focused on major initiatives that included overcoming poverty, protecting the environment, fostering interfaith understanding and working for peace worldwide. He came to the Council from the Claremont School of Theology in Claremont, Calif., where he was president from 1990 to 2000.

Edgar was elected to the US House in 1974, the first Democrat since before the Civil War to represent the heavily Republican 7th Congressional District of Pennsylvania, an area outside of Philadelphia. Part of the Watergate class in Congress that helped pass sweeping ethics and campaign finance reforms, he led efforts to improve public transportation, fought wasteful water projects and authored the community Right to Know provision of Super Fund legislation. He also served on the House Select Committee on Assassinations that investigated the deaths of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and President John F. Kennedy.

Edgar ran for the US Senate in 1986, losing to Republican Sen. Arlen Specter. He grew frustrated in that race with the undue influence of money in politics and became an active supporter of clean elections and campaign finance reform, issues that have been Common Cause's hallmark.

Edgar has served on Common Cause's National Governing Board since 2005. He also serves on the boards of Independent Sector, another organization founded by Common Cause founder Gardner, the National Religious Partnership for the Environment and the Environmental and Energy Study Institute, an independent non-profit organization Congress uses as a resource for environmental and energy issues.

Edgar has a Bachelor of Arts degree from Lycoming College in Williamsport, Pa., and a master of divinity degree from the Theological School of Drew University in Madison, NJ. He also holds four honorary doctoral degrees.

He has received awards for his work from a number of national organizations, including the American Legion, Vietnam Veterans of America and the National Taxpayers Union.

As president and chief executive officer, Edgar will oversee all program activities, finances and communications for Common Cause, a non-partisan citizen lobby with more than 300,000 members and supporters. Common Cause has a 35-year history of helping citizens to effectively engage in the political process through reform advocacy on issues such as campaign finance reform, government ethics, election reform and media reform.

Common Cause will be well served by Bob's leadership. It has been a pleasure for me to work with NCC while Rev. Edgar has been the general secretary and I've enjoyed the times he has agreed to be interviewed for this blog.

Mission Accomplished In Iraq? Wishful Thinking.

Today marks the 4th anniversary of President George W. Bush’s declaration that major combat operations had ended in Iraq under a banner that read “Mission Accomplished.” A more realistic slogan for the president’s banner would have been “Wishful Thinking.”

Today The Washington Post reported:

The deaths of more than 100 American troops in April made it the deadliest month so far this year for U.S. forces in Iraq, underscoring the growing exposure of Americans as thousands of reinforcements arrive for an 11-week-old offensive to tame sectarian violence.

Over 3,300 Americans have now been killed in Iraq and as many as 600,000 civilians have lost their lives.

National Public Radio reports today that the armed forces have to accept higher numbers of high school drop outs and ex-cons to meet recruiting goals.

Terrorism is on the rise.

The United States Congress will present legislation today to the president that requires the U.S. to start a withdrawal from Iraq by October 1. The president (whose popularity has fallen to as low as 28% in recent polls) has promised to veto the legislation.

Religious leaders across the globe have been calling on the U.S. to leave Iraq.

The Rev. Bob Edgar, general secretary of the National Council of Churches USA, said this spring:

Leaders from Christian churches and other faith traditions sought peaceful solutions before the March 19, 2003 invasion. A delegation went to Iraq in December 2002. They met with government officials and prayed with Iraqi Christians.

At the same time 46 religious leaders, many from the member communions of the National Council of Churches USA (NCC), representing millions of faithful Americans, sought a meeting with President Bush to discuss the threat of war. Exactly two weeks before the invasion a letter from the White House stated the president's schedule would not permit such a meeting.

The leaders of nearly every major religious body in the U.S. had spoken out against the Iraq war. The NCC delegation called such a preemptive war, immoral, illegal and theologically illegitimate.

It is the life and ministry of Jesus Christ that prompted our stand then and compels us now to reiterate the continued prosecution of this war is immoral. It should be ended as quickly as possible. Our troops should be brought home and cared for in decent military hospitals to repair their broken bodies and damaged minds.

Our churches will offer our returned soldiers safe places to soothe their souls. Our churches will offer millions of dollars to relief agencies to help rebuild Iraq and comfort the innocent victims of a war they did not ask for. Our churches will continue to pray for peace. And we will pray for forgiveness and seek repentance for our nation for the unnecessary deaths and destruction caused to God’s family.

Pray for our country to have the wisdom to end the occupation of Iraq and pray for the world to have the wisdom to seek peace in the wake of so much destruction and death that has been caused by terrorists and nation-states alike. Lord have mercy.

"Virginia Tech tragedy demands gun control"

Statement from the National Council of Churches USA

"My pastor's heart breaks for the families of those who died today," said NCC General Secretary, the Rev. Bob Edgar following today's fatal shooting at Virginia Tech University. Edgar also renewed the NCC's call for meaningful legislation to prevent such gun violence. "Faith leaders have spoken up continually about the epidemic of gun violence in our country," Edgar said. "Despite repeated calls from faith and community leaders to Congress and presidents nothing ever seems to get done to stem the tide."  Edgar, himself a former Member of Congress, lamented that the issue of gun violence seems to get such little attention from those who have the power to do something about it. "How many more will have to die before we say enough is enough?  How many more senseless deaths will have to be counted before we enact meaningful firearms control in this country?  How many more of our pastors, rabbis and imams will have to preside over caskets of innocent victims of gun violence because a nation refused to stop the proliferation of these small weapons of mass destruction?," said Edgar. More.

Note:  Toby Harnden from The Daily Telegraph (UK) is linking to this post today in his on-line column,  Welcome to all our UK visitors.

UPDATE:  After Virginia Tech Churches Need To Jump Start Gun Control Debate  

CBS set to air interfaith special on the arts

From the National Council of Churches USA

The Arts Within Religion,' a CBS interfaith religion special, will be  released Sunday, April 22 to television affiliates across the nation as part of the network's quarterly Religion and Culture series. The program is produced by CBS in cooperation with Interfaith Broadcasting Commission, whose members  include the National Council of Churches USA, The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, The Islamic Society of North America, Union for Reform Judaism and the New York Board of Rabbis. Included in the special is a profile of an Islamic Hip-Hop group called Native Deen, who use rap music to promote a message of tolerance and understanding while maintaining their religious and cultural identity. The members, Joshua Salaam, Naeem Muhammad and Abdul-Malik Ahmad call themselves "Native Deen" drawing from the Arabic word "deen" meaning "religion."  Their music and lyrics are meant to inspire peace among Muslims and non-Muslims alike. More.

5 AM On Easter Morning On Portland's KATU

Press Release from the National Council of Churches USA

Cleveland, Ohio, March 21, 2007 – "Joy Dawned Again," an Easter TV special, will air on many ABC-TV stations on or near Easter Sunday, April 8.

(Note: The program will air here in Portland on KATU at 5 am - for other listings around the country click here.)

The hour-long special, produced for the National Council of Churches USA (NCC) by the United Church of Christ (UCC), was filmed on March 3 at Dover Congregational UCC in Westlake, Ohio. It included a diverse congregation comprised of Dover UCC members and others from across the UCC's Western Reserve Association.

About 200 people, including a 35-member choir, took part in the filming, an experience described by many as transforming.

"Everyone just belted out the singing and the responses," said Jean Robinson, UCC video producer. "I've never had the experience of being in a church where everyone did that."

Religious documentaries and specials air on the three major TV networks under an arrangement with the Interfaith Broadcasting Commission (IBC) of which the NCC is a founding member.

"The whole experience actually worked as worship, and we did it all in one take," said the Rev. Cliff Aerie, the UCC's minister for special events, creativity and the arts. "People really did have a worshipful experience."

The UCC's worship special focuses on a picturesque UCC congregation as it gathers on Easter Sunday morning. Before long, the worshipers experience the power of the resurrection in unexpected ways as current reality intersects with the ancient narrative.

Seven years ago, the UCC produced a similar Easter morning special that aired on about 90 percent of ABC-TV stations, says the Rev. Robert Chase, the UCC's communications director and chair of the NCC's communication commission.

Click here for the full press release.

Waging War on Minimum Wage

There is politicking going on in Congress of the worst kind:

The General Secretary of the National Council of Churches USA (NCC) today called on Congress to account for linking federal minimum wage legislation with the bill to fund the Iraq war.

"It is reprehensible for Congress to attach the federal minimum wage to a funding request for what most religious leaders in America have called an immoral war," said the Rev. Bob Edgar in a message to the more than 105,000 members of FaithfulAmerica.org, NCC's online advocacy community. Edgar urged the online members to email their Congressional representatives.

"Whatever the political maneuvers that led to this situation, it is clear Congressional leadership has lost sight of the value of working men and women in our nation who have gone too long without a raise," said Edgar.

Edgar also reiterated his opposition to linking a minimum wage increase to tax breaks or other incentives to businesses who may hire minimum wage workers.

Send Congress a message today demanding that they “restore a clean bill, a just bill, a moral bill on increasing the federal minimum wage, without amendments or add-ons or tax incentives for anyone. We need a measure that is fair, just, and moral. Most importantly, our nation's poorest must never be used as bargaining chips for military spending.”

"Let Justice Roll coalition thanks Senate for vote to raise the minimum wage"

Press Release from the National Council of Churches USA

Washington, February 1, 2007 – The Let Justice Roll Living Wage Campaign, a national coalition of 91 religious, labor, and community organizations, thanks the Senate for voting to raise the minimum wage. This is a long-overdue step forward for millions of American workers and their families. We are grateful the Senate heard the voices of millions of working people and their allies in faith, labor and community groups such as ours.

While Let Justice Roll is very pleased with the vote, we are aware that harmful and extraneous items were also included in the bill. We are concerned that these provisions will hurt many of the workers the bill aims to help such as leased employees. The bill also includes unnecessary business tax breaks. We look forward to working with Senate and House leaders on a clean, final bill that will swiftly land on President Bush's desk and be signed into law.

Raising the minimum wage is good for workers, businesses, and our communities. Executives from businesses large and small worked with Let Justice Roll on the campaign to raise the minimum wage. But the minimum wage is a moral issue as well as an economic one. In a recent Let Justice Roll statement to Congress, over 1,000 faith leaders noted the unconscionable and immoral reality that our nation's wealth is built on the backs of those who are working and poor.

The Rev. Dr. Paul H. Sherry, Let Justice Roll national coordinator, calls the Senate vote, "a significant step toward the day when all American workers earn a living wage, the day when a job will keep you out of poverty, not in it. But we still have a long way to go."

The Let Justice Roll Living Wage Campaign is a fast-growing coalition of 91 faith-based, community, and labor organizations working to support legislation to raise the minimum wage at the federal level and in selected states.

National Council Of Churches: No More Troops

The Rev. Bob Edgar, general secretary of the National Council of Churches USA, made remarks today about the president’s call for more troops in Iraq. Ekklesia reports:

"This escalation of troop presence only promises to guarantee an escalation in American and Iraqi deaths", says the Rev Dr Bob Edgar of NCCUSA today. The council brings together mainstream American denominations with a combined membership of 45 million.

He continued: "Particularly in the wake of the barbaric execution of Saddam Hussein - an act that reflects not the ideals of democracy and justice, but rather mocks them - and an act that promises only to breed more violence, as only a violent act can - one would think that the United States would immediately seek to bring about a change of policy. Sending more troops is not a change in policy, nor is it even a change in strategy; it is more of the same…"

"It is time for moral strength, not military power, to take precedence in the US plan for Iraq.

"It is time to recognize the failure of a military policy that is not promoting freedom, not ending terrorism, not building up the Iraqi nation, not bringing security to the region, and not making the world safer.

"It is time - and here we agree with the President - to insist on political benchmarks for the Iraqi government, and to provide reconstruction aid to the Iraqi people, if it is not already too late. But the benchmarks must be achievable, and this time the disbursement of aid must be transparent."

Click here for the full story.

Institute on Religion on Democracy Report Written By Bush Campaign Worker

Yesterday the Republican Party-aligned Institute on Religion on Democracy (IRD), a group funded by right-wing extremists, released a "report" critical of funding sources relied on by the National Council of Churches USA.

"The institute, a Washington-based think tank, is allied with conservative groups on issues such as same-sex marriage. From its founding in 1981, its primary effort has been to challenge what it calls the "leftist" political positions of mainline Protestant denominations, such as the United Methodist Church and the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)," reports The Washington Post.

IRD has long opposed positions taken by the NCC on issues ranging from anti-poverty efforts (IRD promotes policies that benefit the wealthy at the expense of the "least of these" in society) to issues around war and peace (IRD strongly advocates the use of U.S. military force to resolve nearly all international disputes).  The group even questions the existence of global warming. 

IRD's leaders often confuse the Republican Party platform with the Gospel teachings of Jesus. 

The Washington Post, in their article on the release of IRD's report, reported today that:

...the institute released a 90-page report, titled "Strange Yokefellows: The National Council of Churches and Its Growing Non-Church Constituency." It argued that the council in recent years has faced diminishing contributions from its member churches and has made up the shortfall with grants from such "left-leaning" groups as the National Religious Partnership for the Environment, the Ford Foundation and the Sierra Club.

"Several of these [non-church] groups that the NCC has turned to for financial and other forms of support are so blatantly partisan that they can be accurately described as . . . the shadow Democratic Party," the report's main researcher, John Lomperis, told reporters.

The article did not mention that Lomperis worked on the Bush 2004 campaign. 

However, The Washington Post did report that:

James Tonkowich, the institute's president, said that about 60 percent of its roughly $1 million in annual revenue comes from individual donors and about 40 percent from conservative foundations, such as the Scaife, Bradley, Coors and Smith Richardson family charities.

Tonkowich also acknowledged that his organization has made public less information about its funders than the NCC has.

NCC, under the leadership of The Rev. Bob Edgar, has diversified their funding sources and turned a nearly $6 million deficit into a balanced budget.  The council has also worked with bi-partisan leaders in the United States on several issues and been critical of both democrats and republicans when needed.  Unlike IRD, the NCC is not beholden to partisan political interests.

   

Click on the photo to see John Lomperis on the job for the Bush campaign.

Religious Leaders Call For Increase In Federal Minimum Wage

Today over 1,000 religious leaders from across the United States (including this blogging minister from Oregon) delivered a letter to Congress calling for an increase in the minimum wage.

Let Justice Roll reports:

Washington, DC -- Let Justice Roll, a nonpartisan coalition of ninety faith and community organizations, today sent a letter to members of Congress signed by more than 1,000 Christian, Jewish and Muslim faith leaders from across the country. Anticipating House debate on minimum wage this Wednesday, Jan. 10, faith leaders urge congressional support for The Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2007 (HR 2), which would increase the federal minimum wage to $7.25 from the $5.15 level set in 1997.

"As people of faith, we believe there is no better way to urgently address the poverty that afflicts so many low-wage working people and their families than by raising the minimum wage," said Rev. Dr. Paul Sherry, National Coordinator of Let Justice Roll and co-author of "A Just Minimum Wage: Good for Workers, Business and Our Future." Sherry added, "A job should keep you out of poverty, not keep you in it. That conviction is at the very heart of the faith we proclaim."

The Most Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori, Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church, said, "We seek a just community for all people. We are a decade late in even beginning to raise the minimum wage toward a living wage. We call on Congress to remember the least among us, and raise the minimum wage without any further delay."

In December, the nation broke the record for the longest period in history -- more than nine years -- without a minimum wage raise, while Congress's ninth pay raise since 1997 is scheduled to take effect in February. Today, a full-time worker earning the federal minimum wage of $5.15 an hour makes an unconscionable $10,712 annually. Although worker productivity and corporate profits are both way up, the buying power of today's minimum wage is lower than it was in 1950.

As the faith leaders' letter states, "The strong victory on all the minimum wage ballot initiatives is evidence that there is strong and widespread support from A