The 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence invited many of us to look back — to remember the nation’s founding promises, to give thanks for real gifts, and to tell the truth about the people excluded from those promises. But now that the celebration has passed, the more urgent question is not only what we remember. It is what we will build.

For Lutherans, the work ahead is not nostalgia. It is vocation. We are called to live as neighbors, citizens, voters, advocates, servants, and truth-tellers in a complicated public life. We can honor the best ideals of our nation by asking how our communities, laws, budgets, and public choices can better reflect the dignity of every person.

LAMA’s earlier reflection on the Declaration of Independence spoke of gratitude for the Declaration’s vision of equality, rights, consent of the governed, and resistance to tyranny, and of humility, because those promises were never extended equally to all. Enslaved people, Indigenous peoples, women, immigrants, and many others were excluded from the freedom the document proclaimed. That history is not just a past-tense concern. It asks something of us now.

The Arizona Center for Economic Progress made a similar point as America250 approached: Arizona’s story must include all of us. Our state has been shaped not only by the wealthy and powerful, but also by working families, immigrants, teachers, caregivers, small business owners, Tribal communities, faith communities, and neighbors organizing from the bottom up. If our public celebrations tell a story of liberty while our public budgets leave families without a fair chance to thrive, then our story remains unfinished.

That is where people of faith come in.

The question ahead is not whether churches should care about public life. Our neighbors’ lives are shaped by public decisions every day: whether a child has enough to eat, or a senior can see a doctor; whether a family can afford rent, or a student can learn safely; whether a worker can earn a living wage, or a migrant is treated with dignity; or whether every eligible voter can participate without fear or obstruction.

Faithful civic engagement begins with listening. Who is being left out of the story? Whose voices are missing from the room where decisions are made? What would public policy look like if it were shaped not by fear, scarcity, or the interests of the powerful, but by the well-being of all?

For LAMA, the next chapter calls us to recommit to public witness rooted in love of neighbor. That means advocating for food security and a Farm Bill that protects SNAP. It means defending Medicaid/AHCCCS and access to health care. It means supporting housing and homelessness solutions, public education, immigrant welcome, voting access, fair taxation, care for creation, and budgets that invest in people rather than deepen inequality.

It also means practicing democracy as a discipline of faith. We can register voters, learn about candidates and ballot measures, attend town halls, request meetings with lawmakers, write letters, testify at the Capitol, use Arizona’s Request to Speak system when the Legislature is in session, and invite our congregations into respectful conversation about the common good. None of this requires everyone in the church to agree on every policy detail. It does require us to remember that disengagement is not neutrality when neighbors are harmed.

The ELCA’s social statement Faith and Civic Life: Seeking the Well-being of All reminds us that civic participation is part of our Christian calling. Lutherans do not place our ultimate hope in political parties, elected officials, courts, or constitutions. But we do believe God is at work in the world, calling us to seek justice, peace, and the well-being of all creation.

After America250, people of faith have an opportunity to move from commemoration to commitment. We can ask better questions, and tell a fuller story. We can build broader coalitions. We can continue to stand with those pushed to the margins. We can help our congregations become places where civic life is practiced with courage and compassion.

The anniversary has passed. The work remains.

The next 250 years will be shaped by the choices we make now — not only in Washington, D.C., or at the Arizona Capitol, but in congregations, school boards, city councils, county offices, neighborhoods, ministries, and voting booths across our state. Let’s step into that future not with despair, but with hope grounded in God’s love and with hands ready for the work of justice!

“Seek the welfare of the city… for in its welfare you will find your welfare.” — Jeremiah 29:7

During a recent meeting of the Nevada Legislature’s Interim Commerce and Labor Committee, lawmakers heard testimony on property ownership and the growing challenge of wildfire risk. One concern raised was the increasing number of homeowners insurance cancellations and non-renewals, not only in high-risk mountain communities, but even in places like Pahrump.

Homeownership doesn’t end when you receive the keys. For a growing number of Nevadans, keeping homeowners insurance is becoming another major challenge.

A recent report from The Nevada Independent found that Washoe County has experienced a sharp increase in homeowners insurance cancellations and non-renewals as insurers respond to increasing wildfire risk. Even homeowners who have invested in defensible space and other fire mitigation efforts are finding it more difficult to obtain or keep affordable coverage.

When insurance becomes unaffordable, or unavailable, the consequences extend beyond individual homeowners. It affects families, neighborhoods, housing affordability, local economies, and the long-term stability of our communities.

As people of faith, we believe everyone deserves a safe place to call home. Loving our neighbors means supporting policies that strengthen community resilience, reduce wildfire risk, promote responsible stewardship of our public lands, and help ensure families can access affordable homeowners insurance.

Housing justice is about more than building homes. It’s also about making sure people can afford to stay in them.

A recent report shows that Nevada is seeing a decline in Affordable Care Act marketplace enrollment as enhanced federal premium subsidies have expired. For many Nevadans, rising premiums mean difficult choices between paying for health insurance and paying for groceries, rent, or other necessities.

When people lose coverage, they are more likely to delay preventive care, skip medications, or wait until a health concern becomes an emergency. The cost is felt not only by individuals and families, but by our entire community.

As people of faith, we believe every person is created in the image of God and deserves the opportunity to live a healthy, dignified life. Access to affordable health care is one way we care for our neighbors and work toward the common good.

At Lutheran Engagement and Advocacy in Nevada (LEAN), we support policies that expand access to affordable, quality health care and protect Nevada families from losing the coverage they depend on.

Healthy communities begin with healthy people.

Natalie Abudayyeh has spent one month in Israeli detention with no charge.

On June 2, 2026, Natalie Abudayyeh, a 21-year-old Lutheran young adult of the Church of the Reformation congregation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land (ELCJHL), was abducted from her university housing at gunpoint by Israeli forces alongside three of her classmates. An “Update from Bishop Dr. Imad Haddad on Natlie Abudayyeh: 6 July” can be read from the ELCJHL Facebook page. To date, Abudayyeh has not been charged with any offenses. It is not known why Abudayyeh was abducted or continues to be held in Israeli detention, and no information has been shared with her lawyer, her family or her church. Abudayyeh’s family and pastor have all been denied access to see her, and her lawyer has only been able to speak to her through a video chat.

The ELCA has named the priority to “defend the human rights of groups most susceptible to violations, especially all minorities, women, and children” in the social statement For Peace in God’s World (p. 14). In 1 Corinthians 12:26, we are reminded: “If one member suffers, all suffer together with it; if one member is honored, all rejoice together with it.” Our voice as Americans and as Christians matters in proclaiming that Abudayyeh, her classmates, and the thousands of other Palestinians being held without charge have human rights and must be treated with the dignity, respect and humanity they deserve.

Abudayyeh is the latest victim of an institutional system of incarceration that mistreats Palestinian prisoners. Palestinians are processed in Israeli military court, while Israeli citizens are processed under a civil court which offers more rights and freedoms. Abudayyeh’s detention comes at a time when Israeli settlers and Israeli security forces continue to target the indigenous Christian community of Palestine. In 2025 alone there were 155 documented incidents in Israel and East Jerusalem against Christians, their property, and Christian institutions and houses of worship, as well as a marked increase in attacks on Christian communities in the West Bank. While Palestinians of any faith continue to face systemic persecution and violence, the uptick in violence specifically targeting the Christian community has risen markedly since October 2023.

Please take a moment to advocate for the release of Natalie Abudayyeh and her classmates.

August Recess is a congressional tradition that brings heightened opportunities to reach out to your federal lawmakers where you – and they – live. U.S. representatives traditionally return to their home districts in this month to engage with their constituents.

What does this mean for constituents? Town Halls and in-district meetings may be available in this period that create windows to raise your experiences, the experiences of your faith community, and policy concerns locally. It is a time faith voices can highlight ministries of accompaniment and draw attention to communities and concerns whose concerns may be disregarded in political processes.

How do you find out what opportunities are available? Your lawmaker’s Web presence is likely to highlight opportunities. One way to get to that Website is from govtrack.us. Local media and publicity may also share a schedule.

• If a Town Hall is listed, it may be an open forum or a virtual experience. You may need to register to attend and/or raise a question. Virtual experiences may be especially constrained in a question-and-answer format, but any Town Hall can be a meaningful connection point.
• You may request a local meeting in this period – but request this time on your lawmaker’s calendar as early as possible since calendars get filled.
  • Issue-centric meetings can be held in-person or virtually and will be strongest with intentional preparation including by pre-planning partner attendees. Find tips below.
  •  A showcase of your ministry can be an effective relationship builder with your presence in the community. In-person or virtually, a tour and impact illustration can position ongoing connection.
  • A chance for a lawmaker to speak or connect with constituents after a worship service or event can also be a strong relationship building experience, mindful that participation by congregations in such activities must be strictly nonpartisan and abide by Internal Revenue Service (IRS) guidelines.

If an ELCA-affiliated State Public Policy office is in your area, these leaders can be very helpful for local education and lawmaker connections.

Here is a ELCA Advocacy blog post with suggestions from our ELCA federal policy staff about issues that intersect with ELCA Federal Policy Priorities for the 119th Congress which are presently on the horizon. Question prompts may help you shape a timely way to use August Recess opportunities.