For just as the body is one and has many members, and
all the members of the body, though many, are one body,
so it is with Christ. For in the one Spirit we were all baptized
into one body — Jews or Greeks, slaves or free —
and we were all made to drink of one Spirit… If one member
suffers, all suffer together with it…— I Corinthians 12 (selected verses) NRSV
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
The churches in the Philippines have turned to us, to churches in the
United States, to the National Council of Churches of Christ USA (NCCC)
and to churches throughout the world for solidarity and assistance as they
confront gross human rights abuses against their people. Affirming our spiritual unity
with the churches in the Philippines and the nature of the crisis facing our brothers
and sisters and their nation, I seek your earnest and fervent prayers for them in this
time of great suffering.
Over the past year, human rights violations, especially political and extrajudicial
killings, have occurred with alarming frequency in the Philippines. The victims of
these killings include clergy and church lay leaders.
According to the churches in the Philippines, in the history of their country there
has never been such a high incidence of clergy killings. Reports on this documented
violence against religious leaders, even including a report of a commission created by
the Philippine’s government, indicate military involvement in the killings, and government
complicity would seem to be confirmed by
the impunity enjoyed by the perpetrators of this violence.
As a result of NCCC efforts, in particular the work
of the Rev. Bob Edgar, a United Methodist who
serves as General Secretary of the ecumenical body
that represents 45 million Christians in 100,000 congregations
across the country, a courageous nine-member ecumenical delegation from
the Philippines, including United Methodist Bishop Solito Toquero, participated in
house and senate briefings with full knowledge that church leaders who have been
outspoken critics of the situation have been targeted. Their courage stands as a witness
to us all. I encourage you to pray for their safety and strength and to pray for our own
members with family and friends in the region.
In addition, I join our brothers and sisters in asking you to urge the U.S. government
to “assert its leadership within the international community in order to bring
justice to this horrific situation and peace to the people of the Philippines.”
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