Break the Silence: Congo Solidarity
BREAK THE SILENCE!!
Sisters and Brothers of the Community of the Disciples of Christ in the Congo
Greetings in the name of our risen Savior and living Lord, Jesus Christ!
Global Ministries of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and United Church of Christ are aware of the mounting hardships and human-rights violations being committed in your region. We are saddened to hear of your enormous suffering and covenant to be in solidarity with you to address the injustices in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and to advocate for peace with justice. We especially grieve the suffering of women and continue to be in solidarity with them as they are being violently raped and maimed as a weapon of war.
During the week of October 19-25, Disciples of Christ and United Church of Christ congregations will participate in Break the Silence: Congo Awareness Week and the Cell Out on October 22, affirming our solidarity with you through these actions. The Cell Out is an organized cell phone usage boycott from 12pm – 6pm on October 22nd to bring awareness to the conflict over natural resources, such as the coltan in our cell phones. The purpose of the boycott is to bring awareness to the war in the Congo, which started in 1996 and continues to this day with 45,000 people dying each month till today.
Paul wrote in I Corinthian 12:26, “If one member suffers, all suffer together with it; if one member is honored, all rejoice together with it.” Global Ministries, as members of the Body of Christ, suffers today because of injustice and exploitation of our Disciples of Christ sisters and brothers in the Democratic Republic of Congo. We are committed as members of the Body of Christ to break the silence, stop the pillaging, promote justice, defend women and children, protect the environment and support you as you minister amidst adverse circumstance. As we participate in Break the Silence and the Cell Out, we seek to honor the millions who have lost their lives, those who struggle to survive and the many displaced Congolese. As we gather to raise our voices to God, we pray that God will use our voices to address the root causes of suffering in the Congo.
We hope that through our participation in Break the Silence and The Cell Out that Disciples of Christ and United Church of Christ congregations will begin to talk about the atrocities being committed in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, speak a word of hope to what appears to be a hopeless situation and speak prophetically to leaders around the world to make a real difference in their policies concerning the Congo.
Break the silence! May the God of peace guard and guide your heart as you seek to be faithful during these troubling times.
Blessings,
|
The Reverend Sharon Watkins |
The Reverend John Thomas General Minister and President of United Church of Christ |
|
The Reverend David Vargas |
The Reverend Cally Rogers-Witte Co-executive of Global Ministries |
| The Reverend Sandra Gourdet Africa Executive |
The Reverend LaMarco Cable Program Associate for Advocacy and Education |