The Liberty Bell is still cracked,
but we can do things to make repairs.

A report by Jane Hanna
[9-1-04]

Again, the Ghost Ranch seminar (sponsored by the Witherspoon Society, Presbyterian Peace Fellowship and Presbyterians for Restoring Creation) compared current events with Scripture.

The Liberty Bell had a crack in it when the seminar began and the crack is still there. However, we gained a better understanding for identifying it, the causes, and what we can do to help repair the stress.

Three well-informed presenters addressed the global economy, corporate power and decisions, environmental impacts, our personal  lifestyle, and public policy advocacy. These topics are so closely interconnected it's rather like pulling a thread in the personal, national or international arena to find it tangled in each of the others. We concluded that to be effective change agents, we must be simultaneously informed and pro-active at those points where unjust structures reinforce and perpetuate each other.

Elenora Giddings Ivory began our week together with an attentive reading of Matthew 25: 31-46. We noted that these passages about God's separating the sheep from the goats are often read as a mandate for local charity. When hearing them, usually we individually ponder in which of the categories God would place us. Elenora, Director of the Presbyterian Washington Office, pointed out that it is the nations that God gathers to judge their concern for the poor, the hungry and thirsty, the stranger, the naked and imprisoned. It is our collective role that concerns God.

In light of this scripture reading, she posed several questions. Can there be such a thing as an "illegal" or "undocumented" person? Will judgment be brought upon nations for a lack of adequate health care for all? When we privatize prisons do we violate God's demands? Does the privatization of life's basic necessities draw our nation away from living by Matthew 25? Her biblical reading finds it clear that we need to both feed the hungry and write to our legislators when as a nation we fail to prevent poverty and overlook those in need.

In addition to the Bible, we looked at the Patriot Act, the Homeland Security Act, The Declaration of Independence, The Bill of Rights, and the UN's Universal Declaration of Human Rights - examining what civil rights and human rights mean in light of these varied documents. They all reflect the value of collective citizenry, the common good as the opposite of "rugged individualism." Matthew 25:32 reminds us of our collective role; it is our nation that will be judged by how it treats the poor. Privatization draws the nation away from our communal responsibility. Portions of the Patriot Act nullify some of our constitutional rights and democracy erodes as corporate money and power more strongly influence political decisions than do the voices of the people.

Elenora described how the Washington Office works in response to decisions made by General Assemblies. Unfortunately, some Presbyterians do not understand this process and are critical of the Washington Office when they disagree with an advocacy position. Several in our group urged financial and appreciative support for the Washington Office because the rhetoric against it seems to increase each year.

Peter Sawtell, Director of Eco-Justice Ministries, shared Zechariah 8:1-13 as a model for the wholeness of the community. He spoke of the biblical emphasis on shalom, God's model for the common good. We need to think of God's creation as the inclusion of all life, rather than as "nature" which tends to separate us from other living things. For example, our nation violates a commitment to shalom communities when people of color bear a disproportionate burden for living in polluted areas.

Peter shared four words for remembering ecological justice that pays close attention to the web of life. Sufficiency means all people's basic needs are met, that each has enough and none too much. Participation requires that everyone should have a say in decisions about things that affect him or her. Sustainability refers to one generation using only enough to meet its needs without diminishing resources for future generations. Solidarity describes the relationship we need to have with all creation, to act for the good of all for justice to exist.

When shalom becomes our guiding vision, it helps us make decisions about our everyday life. When this vision is rooted in our faith we judge public issues and policies by that standard. Environmental devastation, international conflicts and war, inequalities of wealth and power become important concerns because they deny the possibility for justice.

Each of us filled in a lifestyle assessment sheet that revealed how we live from an environmental measurement. We were surprised and shocked that despite our impressions that we live fairly lightly on the environment, the class ranged from needing three to nine planets to support our lifestyles. An "Ecological Footprint Quiz" can be found on the web at www.MyFootprint.org. Try it! You may be surprised.

It became clear that the environment cannot sustain continued industrial expansion because the resources of the planet are not sufficient to support it. Nor is it possible for the world's people to live at the level of consumption we take for granted. God created a planet with enough for everyone's need, but as Gandhi said, "not enough for everyone's greed."

A video on global fisheries pointed out the radical depletion of life in the seas because massive sea-going factories are harvesting fish faster than they can reproduce, catching many other forms of sea life as well by the methods employed. The negative environmental impacts of plantation agriculture at sea and on land are also economic issues as corporations increasingly control more of the world's sources of food.

Andrew Kang Bartlett, Associate with the Presbyterian Hunger Program, began the discussion about the global economy with a brief but illuminating U.S. economic history beginning with colonialism and slavery. The economic model that has emerged over the years since World War II, sometimes referred to as neoliberal or free market, contains elements that work well for corporations but too often worsen conditions for the poor. International trade agreements, structural adjustment policies of the World Bank, excessive third world debts, multilateral agreements on investments, NAFTA, CAFTA, and proposed FTAA trade agreements are made by unelected elites, mostly from the rich north, with rare input from those most negatively affected by these policies.

Andrew arranged for each of us to receive a PowerPoint CD on Global Discipleship produced by the Presbyterian Hunger Program. The contents cover sweatshops, food and faith (in both Spanish and English), living wage, determining a living wage where one lives, a resource list, tables, articles, and maps. These free CDs may be obtained by calling 1-800-524-2612. PDS number is 74360-03-311. This is an excellent resource for relating our role as Christians to the negative consequences of economic globalization.

Congregations and individuals can make positive connections between environmental and economic issues by shopping for Fair Trade items, particularly coffee, tea and cocoa. Buying Fair Trade products provides a living wage for workers, export income for poor countries, and numerous environmental benefits. Small-scale family farms certified for Fair Trade use land more efficiently, use fewer chemical fertilizers and pesticides, support an environment for migratory birds and other wildlife. Plantation production, in contrast, has contributed to deforestation and erosion, overuse of poisonous agrochemicals, water pollution, and poverty level wages.

Our small group discussions were times to share our frustrations, things we'd seen work in our localities, and intentions for follow-up back in our communities. Our time together was informative, and challenging. We were given a notebook full of resources and action ideas and models. We practiced contacting our legislators using materials available from the Washington Office. As the week progressed, it became clear that there is a moral problem when some people have too much and others not enough whether we consider this reality from a global, environmental or public policy concern.