ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, April 17, 1996 TAG: 9604170010
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: A-9 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JAMES C. KLAGGE AND KATY SCOTT
MORE THAN 300 evangelical Christians gathered in Washington, D.C., recently in response to a "Call to Renewal" for an alternative biblical voice on the American political scene.
The group agreed that the nation faces a spiritual crisis: There is a breakdown of family and community and of personal responsibility. Yet there is also persistent and systematic evil in the political and economic structures of this land.
Many of the participants, experienced in urban ministry and community development, had witnessed the devastation wrought not only by drugs and violence, but also by chronic hopelessness: unemployment, inadequate schools, and a shrinking system of public support and investment.
In a statement, participants said the Bible demands that Christians be concerned about issues such as poverty, race and the environment: "The soul of our nation hungers for prophecy and thirsts for vision. As partners in prophecy, we commit ourselves to speaking and living God's love, exposing injustice, and articulating a vision which responds to our times. Rooted in scripture and testifying to our Christian faith, we embrace a covenant of compassion which affirms the wonderful diversity and dignity of all creation and calls public and private institutions to accountability before God and those God designed to serve them."
Among the specific planks of the statement were concerns that we: repair rather than indiscriminately reject the institutionalized expression of our nation's compassion in the form of welfare and foreign aid; evaluate policies by their effects on the most vulnerable, rather than on their benefits for the most powerful; and promote public and private policies that meet human needs and dignify human work.
Eight people from the New River Valley, from a variety of backgrounds, attended this conference. We feel sure there are many religious people who find their faith is not adequately represented by any of the well-known voices on the political scene. We seek to transcend old categories of conservative and liberal to find common ground with biblical integrity, speak the truth in love, and respect those with whom we may disagree.
Having returned to our communities, we hope to encourage community dialogue among citizens and among Christians generally about the direction and future of our nation.
James C. Klagge, a member of the Montgomery County School Board, attends Blacksburg Presbyterian Church. Katy Scott attends Holy Spirit Catholic Church in Christiansburg.
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