The USA used to lead the world in the fight against hunger. But with President Trump, that has changed. Fresh off a fifth annual $1,000,000 Christmas fundraising campaign (in which over 5,000 travelers gave $100 matched by Rick – thank you!), Rick and Bread for the World president Eugene Cho give an update on the fight to end world hunger: the bad news, the hope-filled news, and why American taxpayers should understand this work as a practical investment in a stable world. Plus, we’ll learn how Bread for the World is speaking up for hungry people in the halls of Congress – and why Rick has been supporting their work for 40 years.
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Calling all hunger champions —Join this network of the Grand Canyon Synod! Meet to hear updates on national and local Hunger and Food Insecurity efforts and initiatives, to learn from one another, and to share with the group what’s happening in our congregations. Anyone interested in alleviating hunger is welcome. Prepare to be encouraged and supported!
If you have any questions about this group, please contact Melanie Hobden (Desert Cross, Tempe) or Solveig Muus (LAMA).
Has a glimmer of light ever helped you push past hopelessness? “To be an advocate that serves as ‘the light of the world’ means serving as a beacon of hope and guidance for others,” writes our author in the latest ELCA World Hunger Advocacy Fellow devotional post. Find at https://blogs.elca.org/…/devotional-guidance-when…/
Our advocacy takes many forms with long-term and immediate aims, and ELCA Witness in Society staff are active equipping members, building influential relationships with policy makers, networking strategically with other concerned partners, researching policy pieces and their impacts and inviting our ELCA Advocacy Network to action at impactful moments.
One timely way we can act as ELCA is to sign on with others to offer pointed comments to decision makers when developments demand.
What is a sign-on letter?
A “sign-on letter” is an advocacy tool that acts like a petition to members of Congress or other policy decision makers, often addressing an immediate issue or impending vote. Sign-on letters are drafted and circulated among organizations with similar policy goals to ask other organizations to join, showing support for a policy position or value by adding their name.
The Witness in Society team may recommend listing the ELCA as an organization on a sign-on letter. Some letters are tailored for individual sign-ons, usually by the head of an organization. In the ELCA, most individual sign-ons are done by the ELCA presiding bishop.
Impact of sign-ons
Sign-on letters are frequently used when swift and targeted action will have an impact on decision-makers. The aim is to provide education on an issue, articulate shared organizational values on a subject and urge the recipient to take a specific action or vote. Ecumenical and interfaith sign-on letters summarize broad consensus in the faith community. In addition to receipt by individual members of Congress or Executive Branch officials for example, they may be used in constituent meetings and shared as public statements as well.
Decision process
The ELCA joins sign-on letters following careful analysis by the Witness in Society team, sometimes in consultation with other staff. The Senior Director for Witness in Society makes the final determination for a sign-on. Sign-on letters require a foundation in ELCA social teaching and relevance to ELCA public policy advocacy priorities. Sign-on letters are also evaluated for accuracy of facts and the tone of the statement, seeking language that will educate or persuade, avoiding hyper-partisan or inflammatory language. Witness in Society staff are strategic about the use of sign-on letters, asking if a joint letter is the right approach at this time; how the letter will be disseminated and used to create awareness among members of Congress, the Administration and throughout the ELCA; what the impact of not signing a letter might be; and discerning whether a standalone effort from the ELCA would have greater impact at the given point-in-time or may be preferable to state distinctly the ELCA’s position.
To see an updated list of ELCA sign-on letters, click here.
Consider all the ways your church cares for God’s Good Creation.
Celebrate, share, and connect! For each pillar of church life listed below (Worship, Christian Education, Buildings/Grounds, Public Witness, Personal Discipleship) please respond to Lutherans Restoring Creation with what your congregation is doing already, or plans to get started this year. For help getting the conversation started: https://bit.ly/LRCTalks
Your responses below will help the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) know what we are doing now, where we have to grow, and how we can help each other restore a right relationship with God’s good creation (which includes each other). The Good Green News you share will be immediately posted through this site: https://bit.ly/LRCLoudLights (you can filter/sort/download the info without logging into AirTable, just ignore their prompt to sign up).
No personal contact information will be listed online or sold.
Don’t worry if you hit submit and then need to update or make changes. Reach out to info@lutheransrestoringcreation.org for a response within 48 hours.
Lutheran Engagement and Advocacy in Nevada 