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Sanctuary Church Resolution, the Vestry of the Church of Our Saviour 1/14/07

Whereas, Jesus said that whoever welcomed a stranger had welcomed him and whoever refuses to welcome the stranger refuses him; and

Whereas, The Episcopal Church has called us “to commit to welcoming strangers as a matter of Christian responsibility, to advocate for their wellbeing and protection and to … resist legislation and actions which violate our fundamental beliefs as Christians” in the treatment of immigrants and those who assist them; and

Whereas, The Church of Our Saviour has found common cause in faith, hope and love with newcomers to the United States who are increasingly threatened by hostile attitudes and actions even from public officials who are supposed to protect public safety;

Therefore be it resolved:

That the Vestry and Clergy of the Church of Our Saviour Cincinnati identify this parish as a Sanctuary Church ;

That our members resist any effort to criminalize persons who come to this country seeking work and income to support their families;

That we will not cooperate with hostile actions by public authorities against families and individuals who pose no threat to society;

That we will do all in our power to support and sustain immigrants who seek to lead peaceful and productive lives in our communities;

That we urge all Episcopal Churches to stand for the rights and dignity of immigrants; and all communities of faith to witness for the imperative to “do unto others as we would have them do unto us.”

Resolución de Vestry

Considerando que Jesús dijo que cualquiera dé la bienvenida al inmigrante le da a si mismo, y cualquiera no la dé también rechaza a si mismo; y

Considerando que La Iglesia Episcopal nos ha llamado a ¨dar la bienvenida a los extranjeros como responsibilidad cristiano, a abogar por su bienestar y proctección, y a...oponernos a leyes y acciones violando nuestros creencias fundamentales cristianos¨

en relación a los inmigrantes y personas que los apoyan; y

Considerando que La Iglesia de Nuestro Salvador ha encontrado causa común con inmigrantes a los EEUU, en la fe, en la esperanza, y en el amor; y nuestros amigos son amenazados por actidudes y acciones hostiles por oficiales, incluyendo los que deben proteger la seguridad de todos;

Por lo tanto,

El Vestry y los Clérigos de esta parroquía la nombran una parroquía de santuario;

Rechazamos la criminalización de personas entrando este país para trabajar y apoyar a sus familias;

No colaboraremos con acciones hostiles por los autoridades contra familias y personas quienes no representen nada amenaza a la sociedad;

Haremos todo lo que podemos para apoyar a los inmigrantes buscando a una vida pacible y productiva en nuestra comunidad;

Apremiamos a todas las parroquías Episcopales que se mantengan firme por los derechos y la dignidad de inmigrantes, y a todas comunidades de fe que atestiguen al imperativo que ¨hagamos a todos lo que queremos a nos hacer.¨

Resolution of the 75^th General Convention of The Episcopal Church, 2006

* FINAL VERSION – Concurred Resolution A017

Title: Fundamental Immigration Principles Topic: Immigration

Committee: National and International Concerns House of Initial Action: Bishops Proposer: Anglican and International Peace with Justice

Resolved, That the 75^th General Convention of the Episcopal Church receive “The Alien Among You” in the Blue Book Report of the Standing Commission on Anglican and International Peace with Justice Concerns; and, while recognizing the duty and right of a sovereign nation to protect and defend its borders, adopt the following fundamental principles included in “The Alien Among You” as the policy of The Episcopal Church.

Undocumented aliens should have reasonable opportunity to pursue permanent residency.
Legal workers should be allowed to enter the United States to respond to recognized labor force needs.
Close family members should be allowed to reunite without undue delay with individuals lawfully present in the United States.
Fundamental U.S. principles of legal due process should be granted all persons.
Enforcement of national borders and immigration policies should be proportional and humane.

And be it further
Resolved, That the 75^th General Convention of The Episcopal Church deplore any action by the Government of the United States which unduly emphasizes enforcement, including militarization of the border between the United States and Mexico, as the primary response to immigrants entering the United States to work; and be it further
Resolved, That The Episcopal Church undertake a campaign to educate Episcopalians as to the plight of refugees, immigrants, and migrants, which will include information about the root causes of migration; and be it further
Resolved, That this campaign call the church to commit to welcoming strangers as a matter of Christian responsibility, to advocate for their wellbeing and protection and to urge its members to resist legislation and actions which violate our fundamental beliefs as Christians, including the criminalization of persons providing humanitarian assistance to migrants.

A017: Principios fundamentales para la inmigración
Se resuelve, que la 75a Convención General de la Iglesia Episcopal reciba "Los extranjeros y nosotros" en el Informe Libro Azul de la Comisión Permanente sobre Asuntos Anglicanos y de Paz Internacional con Justicia y, respetando el derecho que tiene cada nación soberana a proteger y defender sus fronteras, que adopte los principios fundamentales incluidos en "Los extranjeros y nosotros" como símbolo de la política de la Iglesia Episcopal.
1. Los extranjeros indocumentados deberán tener una oportunidad razonable de obtener su residencia permanente;
2. A los trabajadores legales debería permitírsele ingresar a Estados Unidos según las necesidades laborales del país;
3. A los parientes cercanos debería permitírseles reunirse sin demoras innecesarias con sus familiares que están legalmente viviendo en Estados Unidos.
4. A todas las personas deberá concedérseles los principios fundamentales de los Estados Unidos sobre el debido proceso.
5. El celo con el que se hacen cumplir las políticas de inmigración en las fronteras, deberá ser razonable y humano. y, además,

Se resuelve: que la 75a Convención General de la Iglesia Episcopal deplore cualquier acto del gobierno de los Estados Unidos que indebidamente ponga énfasis en el cumplimiento de la ley, incluyendo entre otras formas, la militarización de la frontera de los Estados Unidos con México como el método principal para oponerse a la entrada de inmigrantes a los Estados Unidos para encontrar trabajo; y, además,

Se resuelve: que la Iglesia Episcopal inicie una campaña para instruir a los episcopales sobre el derecho de los refugiados, inmigrantes y migrantes, incluyendo información sobre las causas principales de las migraciones; y, además,

Se resuelve: que esta campaña solicite que la iglesia se dedique a ser hospitalaria con los forasteros, por ser un tema de responsabilidad cristiana; a abogar por su bienestar y su protección y a urgir a que sus miembros se opongan a leyes y acciones que infringen sobre nuestras creencias fundamentales cristianas, incluyendo entre otras, la criminalización de las personas que ofrecen ayuda humanitaria a los migrantes.

¡La Iglesia de Nuestro Salvador se pone bilingüe! Empezando el 3 de septiembre, los libritos de la misa a las 10:30 cada domingo se leerán igualmente ingles y español; los boletines, las lecturas, y mucha de la música se presentarán en las dos lenguas.

The Church of Our Saviour Goes Bilingual! Beginning September 3, the service booklets at the 10:30 liturgy every Sunday will be read equally in English and Spanish; the leaflets, lessons, and much of the music will be presented in both languages.

Empezando el 23 de julio, después de la misa tendremos una conversación sobre el sermón, en español. Por supuesto, ¡ingles-hablantes quedan invitados a participar! Cada domingo, hay también un grupo discutiendo las lecturas antes de la misa, a las 9:30, en inglés. Naturalmente, hispano-hablantes quedan invitados a esta discussion. Estos grupos ofrezcan buenas oportunidades para mejorar su lengua segunda.

Beginning July 23, after the service we will have a conversation about the sermon, in Spanish. Of course, English-speakers are welcome to participate! Every Sunday there is also a group discussing the lessons before church, at 9:30, in English. Naturally, Spanish-speakers are invited to this discussion. These two groups might be good ways for people to work on their second languages.

Updated weekly, usually on Tuesday

The Mustard Seed is a weekly email newsletter of the Church of Our Saviour, Cincinnati, edited by the Rev. Paula M. Jackson, Rector, mother.paula@churchofoursaviourcincinnati.org . Snailmail version is edited by Junior Warden Helen Davis. For confidentiality, the Prayers & Thanksgivings portion of The Mustard Seed does not appear on the website. The Urban Youth Ministry section appears on another page of this website. If you would like to receive The Mustard Seed by email or snailmail, let us know!

We are a diverse, integrated urban parish of the Episcopal Church in the United States, embracing both catholic and protestant traditions of Christian faith. Our mission is to make justice happen, to love compassion, to walk observantly with our God.

COS EVENTS & OPPORTUNITIES

¡Gracias a Dios, que venga Madre Rosa! I am delighted that Mother Rosa Brown has agreed to work with us at COS on extending our ministry with Hispanic/Latino neighbors in Cincinnati . She arrived in time for Easter, after concluding a ministry in Los Angeles . She will work halftime with COS , and we hope that soon she will be in much demand as a consultant for other parishes and deaneries, and possibly diocesan projects, which will make for good stewardship of the gift of her presence among us. We are thankful to the Commission on Congregational Life in our Diocese, for making this visionary and inspiring partnership possible!

A Blinding Flash of the Obvious Friends and members of COS were able to attend the Cinti. premiere of a 22 minute documentary by People for the American Way , with a reception on Friday evening at the Underground Railroad Museum / Freedom Center . The film presents the triumph of human rights allies in removing Article XII from the Cincinnati charter in the 2004 election. I am very happy that we will receive a free copy of this documentary and am eager for all of our parishioners to see it. It features such compelling figures as Andrew Young, Sharon Zealey, Pastor Damon Lynch Jr. -- and COS shows up several times!

A Core Team is redesigning our GED program to be more effective. Carol, G'no, Eileen, Jim G are the team, with vestry liaison Nancy S.

On Jan. 29, we welcomed Megan S, enroute to Deutschland! Megan attended COS with her parents, as a young child. Now she is about to finish her BA majoring in German; and has spent the last two years in Berlin. Megan is involved with the children's and youth programs at her parish, St. George's Anglican Church. She is very concerned to help Christians in Germany, especially young adults, make a connection between their desire for social service and their faith. Megan shared her vision with us at the 10:30 service; and received our affirmation of support in prayer and in contributions. MEGAN returned to us as guest preacher on the last Sunday in June.

COS has been represented by G'no and Mtr. Paula at organizing meetings of day-laborers who are ready to seek support in asking that their rights be respected in Cincinnati. We are looking for more ways to be of support, including gathering stories and documentation from laborers whose rights have been abused.

PARISH & COMMUNITY BULLETIN BOARD

Human Rights Campaign 1640 Rhode Island Ave., N.W. Washington , D.C. 20036-3278 Phone: 202/628-4160 TTY: 202/216-1572 Fax: 202/347-5323 www.hrc.org Join in the witness for equal and just rights for all citizens in this land, regardless of gender or sexual orientation.

Publicy Policy alert: The Episcopal Church is one of the sponsoring organizations behind the group Save Darfur ; the Presiding Bishop and the Executive Council have spoken out about the situation in Darfur to Congress and also to President Bush. * Save Darfur is gearing up for a really strong effort to get the President to match his words about genocide in Darfur with action. * This campaign will include a "Million Voices for Darfur " postcard blitz, with the cards to be delivered as part of a march at the end of April. * If you'd like to know more about how you can participate, contact Nancy Sullivan at Church of Our Saviour , Mount Auburn , at nsullivan@fuse.net

Dear Church of Our Saviour, Thank you for supporting Episcopal Relief and Development's Fair Trade, organic and shade-grown coffee, Bishops Blend! Your purchase helps us provide emergency assistance in times of disaster, rebuild devastated communities after the immediate crisis is over, and offer long-term solutions to help people sustain safer, healthier, and more productive lives. We hope you enjoy this great coffee for a great cause! Sandra Swan, President

StreetChurch is forming a Rota of Sunday afternoon “sandwich and prayer” evangelists. We would like to have persons commit to one Sunday per month to join the “away team” after coffee hour/ 10:30 Eucharist. So far we have this much of a rota:

1st Sundays -- LindaMay

2nd Sundays --

3rd Sundays --Bill R

4th Sundays --Sonya K, David B.

5th Sundays --Rusty L.

Could you and/or your household consider making sandwiches during Coffee Hour in the parish kitchen, one Sunday per month? It’s a great way to visit with friends while also contributing to our parish / outreach ministry.

What Hurricane Katrina Revealed

“Flooding damage impacted both high and low opportunity areas, but low opportunity areas were impacted more. … African American neighborhoods were more likely to be low opportunity areas…. [and] also more likely to be impacted by Katrina related flooding. “ * New Orleans represents a painful reality for the Gulf Coast – and throughout our nation-- in regard to low opportunity, impact of disaster, and governmental response. We cannot deny past injustice, or the Hurricane’s impact. We call on our leaders, including Congressman Chabot, for a more effective response --and for change. When will relief and stability come to these citizens, brushed aside originally by low opportunity, then by a natural disaster, and finally by neglectful and shameful responses from their government?

A Call to Prayer

We pray for the survivors of this latest assault on their security and wellbeing, remembering the inequitable distribution which hindered so many, before and after the Hurricane. We pray for those displaced, often the first victims of displacement in “redevelopment” plans as well. We pray that redevelopment will include them and provide them with new opportunities, bringing justice at last, out of inequity and tragedy.

Putting Prayer into Action

The Pastoral Leadership Caucus of the AMOS Project calls on our leaders to ensure that redevelopment:

--Creates opportunity and provides neighborhood stability in previously disadvantaged communities.

--Remedies the issues depressing opportunity in poor communities.

--Connects marginalized displaced residents with opportunities in the region.

--Provides affordable housing in opportunity-rich communities within the region. **

*From The Mid-Term Report: (Feb. 1, 2006), Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity, OSU **Adapted from recommendations in the Mid-Term Report, Kirwan Institute, 2006.