Joy to you and your loved ones in this year’s end! Dec. 23, 2020
Deportations, forced detentions, and agonizing family separations are anything but new. We could just ask the ancient Israelites, in exile for decades in an unknown land and under rule of a threatening Babylonian empire. No wonder Isaiah’s promise of a God who acts powerfully in real history and real time circumstances brought such hope, as the prophet encouraged, “those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength…they shall walk and not faint.” (Isaiah 40:31)
Migrants and refugees who are today exhausted from walking to escape dangers, trapped in COVID-filled detention centers, stuck at the border, far away from their parents, without a chance for food, protection, or homes, are desperately seeking renewal and hope.
Our work, as Disciples Refugee & Immigration Ministries, brings us close into partnerships with affected communities to build lasting solutions. In this Fall,
- We helped congregations in Georgia build leadership amid atrocious revelations of dozens of unwanted gynecological surgeries inflicted upon detained women.
- We organized faith partners nationally to “lift the welcome torch” for refugees; pushing back against efforts to further cripple the U.S. refugee program which has already been reduced the past several years from 95,000 arrivals per year to a mere 15,000.
- We supported farmworkers as they seek protections amid high covid rates as they grow food for us all.
- We are fighting particularly high injustices against black migrants; with children and parents threatened with deportations even this holiday week.
- We continue to lead congregations to walk in solidarity with DACA and TPS recipients, whose lives remain on yo-yo paths of uncertainties until permanent protections are secured.
While we journey soon towards Epiphany light, we thank God for hope growing as vaccines are now being distributed to combat COVID. Indeed, we lift up how immigrant contributions are a central part of this hope—since Moderna’s founder and CEO and Pfizer’s founder are all immigrants!
Of course, we already know that refugees, immigrants, and asylum seekers ALWAYS offer hope to our communities and congregations—when they are respected and given the chance to thrive.
PLEASE, will you help Disciples Refugee & Immigration Ministries RENEW and REBUILD our nation’s heritage of offering compassion and welcome in the new year ahead?
Hope CAN be restored! But the prophet Isaiah said, to do so requires that we must “enlarge your tent…hold not back, and strengthen your stakes.” (Isaiah 54:2)
The year 2020 has been personally and financially challenging to so many—including to RIM, as well as all our General Ministries. As we--and likely you-- feel collective loss, we invite you to “hold not back, and strengthen your stakes” to give in this year-end IF you are able, to ensure 2021 becomes a year of renewal and hope.
In grateful partnership for justice,
Rev. Dr. Sharon Stanley-Rea, Director, Disciples RIM
Refugee and Immigration Ministries equips Disciples to respond to Jesus’ call to welcome the stranger through refugee resettlement, ministering with immigrants, and advocacy. We provide resources for your congregation, legal consultations, and connections to hands-on mission work. For further information, see website: www.bit.ly/DisciplesRIM or contact us through Facebook: www.bit.ly/RIMFacebook, on Twitter @StanleyRea, or through email: sstanley@dhm.disciples.org, or phone: 202-957-7826.
Questions or Comments?
Contact: sstanley@dhm.disciples.org, Rev. Dr. Sharon Stanley-Rea,
Director, Disciples Refugee & Immigration Ministries
