Spread the Word!!!

This Great Idea is inspired by a gathering of PC(USA) Matthew 25 Congregations with whom I had the honor of visiting this past weekend.

Members of discussion groups voiced interest and agreement about connecting with other people in their congregations who were out in the public sphere attending protests and rallies, visiting with legislators, and otherwise being public voices for justice in today’s highly unjust milieu.

We talked about a few different ways congregations might become hubs or hotspots for notifying people when public events are happening, places to safely connect with others with similar interests and intentions, and otherwise becoming more of a collective public voice, rather than scattered, unknown individuals within a congregation.

Here are a few:

  • Access Human Rights Campaign’s Tips for Preparedness, Peaceful Protesting, and Safety or the ACLU’s Know Your Rights: Protester’s Rights to prepare people who may feel frightened, threatened, or overwhelmed by public witness and public action.
  • Encourage participation in national boycotts, like those from The People’s Union USA, to invite people to engage in ‘passive action’. This can develop awareness and courage for more public action in the future.
  • Register with organizations like 50501 and/or Indivisible to learn about upcoming public group actions.
  • Make signs together to define your message and hopes and to bolster courage and commitment. Include those unable to attend the actual protest as a form of bonding across peoples’ capacities for engagement
  • Use What’s App or other social media to create text or email threads notifying people of upcoming events. Ask people to commit or not via the thread to bolster courage, confidence, and commitment in one another. Opting in and out of What’s App is pretty easy, so no one is ‘stuck’ once they’re in.
  • Announce events in worship.
  • Coordinate mass transit, carpools, and/or parking.

Gathering in community is essential for mental and spiritual well-being at any time. These days, it is critical.

Helping members find and create communities of safety, belonging, and shared conviction will bolster congregational and individual morale in a time when hope wears thin. It is legally okay to encourage people to speak publicly about political issues.

Jesus did.

And Jesus calls us to pick up our cross and follow.