The Greatest Commission

Article by Brian Swarts at NeueMinistry.com

World leaders met in New York last week to discuss the progress of global efforts to reduce poverty, hunger and disease. It was a reminder that even as Americans face financial turmoil there are millions of people around the world who face the life and death financial crisis of extreme poverty.

Just prior to these meetings, Micah Challenge USA publicly released a letter to “The Church in the United States,” written by senior evangelical leaders in Africa, Asia and Latin America. The letter challenges what the authors see as the lack of Christian protest against America’s failure to live up to its promises to fight global poverty. It is a prophetic call, from ministers on the front lines in the fight against poverty, for Americans to remember the poorest of the poor even as we face financial worries of our own...

Read the rest of this article at: http://www.neueministry.com/2008/09/the-greatest-commission/

Micah on tour in Pennsylvania and Ohio

Over the weekend, Bishop Paul Mususu of the Evangelical Church in Zambia and I travelled in the Midwest touring with The ONE Campaign about the importance of our upcoming presidential elections as we seek to achieve the Millennium Development Goals - and effort that will get us on track to make poverty history.

In western Pennsylvania, Bishop and I met with two energized groups of students at Geneva College and Grove City College. While at Geneva, Bishop Mususu gave an overview of how effective aid programs such as PEPFAR and the Global Fund to fight AIDs, along with debt cancellation, have meant progress throughout Zambia. As Bishop of his denomination and head of the Evangelical Alliance, he would know -
over a thousand churches are in contact with him weekly on the needs,
dreams, and mission for God's health and wholeness. The Bishop's words
at the colleges have stuck with me over these last few days,
especially when he said that we must seek "the kingdom
life" (referring to Matthew 10) and that while he is doing his part in
Zambia, we must do our part in the United States. "As evangelicals, we
see ourselves in the prophet Micah... the relevance of our life on
earth is in the impact we make for positive change."

We travelled from Pennsylvania to Columbus, Ohio where we had a good
couple days with Blake Waggoner, ONE Vote '08's organizer in Ohio.
Over lunch with Dan Franz, a pastor on staff at Vineyard Columbus, we
reflected on how God has moved many around the globe to have a renewed
care and concern for poor and hungry people. Pastor Dan has been
active in Zambi with the Vineyard for nearly ten years and he and
Bishop shared many stories. At the end of our time together I was
especially moved at how we had just lived out Millennium Development
Goal #8 - a global partnership. It is my hope that Bishop Mususu and
Pastor Dan can continue developing this partnership in the years ahead.

We ended our time in Ohio at the John McCain / Sarah Palin rally at
Capital University in Columbus. There was an energetic crowd there out
to cheer on their candidates of choice. We were simply hoping to have
a moment with the candidates to encourage them to show leadership on
concern for the world's poor, especially in the Global South (we do
this at Obama/Biden rallies, too, when we can). It was largely a pep
rally for the McCain/Palin faithful in Ohio but we were able to talk
briefly with Governor Sarah Palin and her daughter Willow, giving them
each a ONE Campaign white band - to which they promptly put on and
exited stage left.

It was a busy few days in the Midwest - we even ran into CBS's Katie
Couric while waiting on our flight! We're in Colorado for the next few
days. Pray that we can be faithful and make an impression on folks out
here for a deeper commitment to ending extreme poverty.

Join us in our efforts to challenge the presidential candidates - sign "Micah's Challenge to the Future President"

Visit with Zambian Mission to UN

Posted by Jason Alfonse Fileta

I had the great honor and privilege to travel with Bishop Paul Mususu and Pastor Lawrence Temfwe of Zambia for the last week. We began in DC, and soon made our way to New York City for UN meetings and civil society events. On Thursday night we were tired and a bit discouraged as some of our plans had not materialized the way we had intended, but that changed at about 7pm when we met with the Zambian Ambassador to the United Nations, Mr. Lazarous Kapambwe. As I travel the country engaging folks with Micah Challenge I always share with folks that the exciting thing about Micah Challenge is that our partners in the Global South are consistently and powerfully engaging their leaders on the MDGs, and are aggressively holding them accountable as well. This notion that we are working hand in hand with those in the Global South energizes the students and pastors that I meet with. I had the privilege of seeing this first hand on Thursday night.

The Ambassador shared with us his views on the MDGs, and the challenges for Zambia to meet them. He highlighted fair trade as one of the most significant barriers to Zambia meeting the MDGs. It was amazing to see his commitment to the MDGs and to Zambia, and a blessing to know that there ARE leaders in the Global South who will stand up for the MDGs. It was likewise amazing to see how talented and insightful my colleagues Bishop Mususu and Pastor Temfwe were as they engaged with him on the MDGs. One thing that was very obvious was that these men were well known by the Zambian government because of their advocacy and development efforts back home, and that allowed them to get the meeting in NYC on such short notice. It was their testimony as church leaders who stand up for poverty that allowed them to even have such a meeting.

I was definitely inspired, and as we continue to travel across the country meeting with church leaders and college campuses I look forward to what else I can learn from my Zambian Brothers. Will we follow their example and sensitize our political leaders so much to the MDGs that they become as articulate and passionate about them as Ambassador Kapambwe? Take the time to write a note to our presidential hopefuls asking them to commit to meeting the MDGs.

Remembering the Poorest of the Poor

World leaders met in New York this week to discuss the progress of global efforts to reduce poverty, hunger and disease. It was a reminder that even as Americans face financial turmoil there are millions of people around the world who face the life and death financial crisis of extreme poverty.

The echoing refrain from the meetings on the Millennium Development Goals this week was one of both worry and wonder: Worry that the Wall Street financial crisis will dangerously dampen efforts to address the MDGs. And wonder about how we can somehow find $700 billion to bail out wealthy banks but not the $25 billion needed to help the 30,000 people who die every day just because they're poor.

At the assembly the leaders of countries renewed their commitment to achieving the MDGs by 2015, but with bold actions these commitments remain empty promises. Throughout the week Micah Challenge USA worked to bring attention to the need for action and to raise the voices of Christians working on the frontlines of poverty all over the world. On Thursday, Micah Challenge joined a gathering of more than 70 national religious leaders (organized by Bread for the World), who committed together to make sure that the poorest of the poor are not forgotten in the commotion of the financial crisis and presidential politics.

Yesterday, Jim Wallis wrote about Micah's Challenge to Christians in the US:

A ‘Micah Challenge’ to U.S. Christians

You can also read Brian's blog from today on God's politics:

Micah’s Challenge to the Future President

Micah's Challenge to the Future President

We need bold leadership on poverty and global hunger crisis (not just Wall Street)

Tomorrow US presidential candidates will meet to debate foreign policy. Today the United Nations are meeting to discuss our progress towards cutting global poverty in half by 2015.

While most of us in America are focused on our financial mess in Wall Street, there is another major crisis taking place – one of life and death. Right now, the developing world faces a major hunger crisis that threatens to push an additional 70 million into extreme poverty. Just as the US government is taking bold action to stem financial troubles for wealthy banks, people of faith are calling on our leaders to remember their promises to the poor and to take bold actions to stem rising hunger and poverty.

In response to this need for Christians to speak out for the poor, Micah Challenge USA is launching Micah's Challenge to the Future President, an open letter calling on McCain and Obama to support a foreign policy that renews America's commitment to the pledge to dramatically reduce poverty, disease and inequality by 2015 (Sign your name to the challenge).

On Monday, I moderated a press conference panel of American and global evangelical leaders in calling on the UN and US presidential candidates to take bold steps to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). This conference was in response to a prophetic Letter on poverty, written by senior evangelical Christian leaders in the Global South, representing four continents and hundreds of millions of Christians. The Letter calls on Christians in the United States to protest the lack of progress that has been made toward cutting global poverty. Yesterday, I attended a meeting of more than 70 national religious leaders to discuss how the faith community is going to respond to the global hunger crisis, which threatens to be overshadowed by our own financial challenges.

The clear consensus of both these events was that is the faith community’s role, more than any other group in the country, to remind Americans of our responsibility to those who are suffering most. Just as we need to urge Congress to remember families losing their homes as they bail out banks, we need challenge our political leaders to remember our promises to those living in extreme poverty around the world.

Micah Challenge USA, a coalition of US evangelical denominations and institutions dedicated to fighting global poverty. Visit www.micahchallenge.us to read the “Letter to the Church in the United States” and ‘Micah’s Challenge to the Future President”

By Brian Swarts, National Coordinator of Micah Challenge USA

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Evangelicals Make Case for Bolder Poverty Response

By Michelle A. Vu

Christian Post Reporter

Tue, Sep. 23 2008 01:42 PM EDT

http://www.christianpost.com/article/20080923/evangelicals-make-case-for-bolder-poverty-response.htm

Prominent American evangelical leaders called on their government, the United Nations and the Church on Monday to adopt a bolder, more aggressive plan to combat global poverty.

For too long, they acknowledged, U.S. churches have failed to advocate on behalf of their counterparts in the global South for stronger government commitment to poverty reduction in the world. Read this article

Micah Challenge in Christianity Today

Micah Challenge USA Urges Focus on Global Poverty
Evangelical church leaders plan to circulate letters to presidential candidates.

Adelle M. Banks, Religion News Service | posted 9/23/2008 11:41AM
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2008/septemberweb-only/139-23.0.html

Responding to a call from their Third World counterparts, U.S. evangelical leaders are urging church members to pay greater attention to global poverty, saying increased advocacy is necessary in light of the current U.S. financial crisis.

Last month, 21 leaders of churches in Africa, Asia, and South America wrote that the U.S. church has preached the gospel in their lands but "has not also raised its voice in protest against the injustices that powerful governments and institutions are inflicting on the global South."

In response, several evangelical leaders, organized by the group Micah Challenges USA, spoke Monday about the need for action by U.S. churches.

"Those of us in evangelical churches are kind of late to the table on some of these issues because we've been focusing on more personal morality … and we've forgotten to address the issues of public morality," said megachurch pastor Joel Hunter of Longwood, Fla., a member of the board of the World Evangelical Alliance.

"Even though there are a great number of people who are facing financial instability, this is just the right time to find out what your priorities really are and whether or not you're going to love your neighbor as you love yourself."

Brian Swarts, national coordinator of Micah Challenge USA, said the letter to U.S. church leaders was timed to the upcoming U.S. presidential elections and a Sept. 25 summit on the United Nations Millennium Development Goals, which aim to cut global poverty in half by 2015. He said U.S. evangelical leaders that have partnered with his organization will be circulating a letter to be sent in October to presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama seeking their attention to global poverty.

Pray for Haiti

Please continue to pray for Haiti. The following requests were sent by Valery Vital-Herne of Micah Challenge Haiti BEFORE Hurricane Ike so it has only gotten worse.

We pray for Micah Challenge Haiti. Valery Vital-Herne, the coordinator of MC Haiti writes:

‘As you may know the situation is terrible in Haiti. About 8/10 departments had severe floods. We are still counting the dead. The Minister of Finance has estimated the destruction to more than 10 billion US dollars. We were in harvest time, so no need to tell you how great the lost is. There are about one million stricken people. The main roads and bridges leading to the most affected departments are destroyed. So relief is delayed.

After 3 hurricanes (Fay, Gustav, Hanna), people are waiting to see if Josephine will hit Haiti.

Please pray for God’s intervention in this situation. Pray also for the church to be courageous and be the heart, hand, feet of Christ to express love and compassion to the most afflicted.’

Micah Challenge Haiti has sent us this link with images so we get a sense of what took place there: http://defimicheehaiti.blogspot.com

Christian Leaders Fast Ahead of UN Poverty Summi

By Anne Thomas

Christian Today Reporter

Wed, Sep. 17 2008 09:49 AM EDT

The prayer and fasting initiative "Think:Fast" is a joint collaboration with Micah Challenge, a global movement of Christians lobbying their governments to tackle poverty. It provides educational materials designed to help Christians pray, reflect and increase their understanding of poverty over the ten days.

Read the entire article: http://www.christianpost.com/article/20080917/christian-leaders-fast-ahead-of-un-poverty-summit.htm

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please keep the summit and all the surrounding activities in your prayers--may there be more than talk and show, may something actually happen to end extreme poverty during the summit.

Only 45% of aid arrives on time

This is an interesting article about the aid effectiveness taking place in Accra, Ghana. This is an important conversation to the Millennium Development Goals. Read the article.