Disciples and UCC Leaders to President Obama on anniversaries of Iraq and Syria

Leaders of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), the United Church of Christ, and Global Ministries were among nineteen signatories to a letter to President Obama that was delivered to the White House yesterday.  The letter was also sent to members of both houses of Congress.

On the occasion of the 12th anniversary of the US-led invasion of Iraq (March 2003) and the 4th anniversary of the violence in Syrian (March 2011), both of which were marked this week, faith leaders tied the two events together and stated that “the violence and death must end, on all sides; it must not be stoked with the recourse to lethal action.”  They highlighted the effects of instability and ongoing violence in both countries and condemned the violence perpetrated against various groups of people.

Signatories included Global Ministries’ Co-Executives Rev. Julia Brown Karimu and Rev. Dr. Jim Moos, as well as Disciples and UCC General Ministers and Presidents, Rev. Dr. Sharon Watkins and Rev. Geoffrey Black, and the UCC’s Justice and Witness Ministries Executive Minister, Rev. Linda Jaramillo.

The full text of the letter is below: