Today we gather in this place as Kansans - as Kansans seeking to unite all Kansans. We gather to unite in voice and spirit around our common and deep concern for the state of our State.
We are concerned about the moral compass informing the policies of our Governor and his Administration, and where these policies are leading us.
We are concerned the current economic circumstances are being used to justify the unjustifiable.
Rather than putting forward policies to demonstrate a clear commitment to helping the vulnerable, the Administration is putting forward policies which lead to massive cuts. It is cutting the very services that represent a valued Kansas tradition: mutual support in time of need.
At the same time, the administration would offer tax breaks to individuals, businesses, and large corporations, who will save us all, if we just allow them to do what they do best, with little or preferably no government interference.
Where is the transparency and accountability in all this?
If Kansans are being asked to support a tax policy that increases the tax burden on low to moderate incomes, while decreasing the tax burden on those with the highest incomes, then Kansans have the right to demand accountability.
Will jobs be created with these tax breaks? Will the quality of life for all Kansans be positively impacted, and verifiably so? And if not, what will the consequences be?
The best defense against those who claim this administration is a political tool for feeding corporate greed would be clear and transparent public-private negotiations, resulting in clear and transparent public-private agreements.
Businesses and corporations are important to our State, but they need to be good corporate citizens in a public-private win-win scenario.
We desperately need to defend the integrity of our elected officials. We need campaign finance reform. The integrity of our political representatives must not be put at risk. If it is, then our integrity, our ability to be heard, our citizen representation is also at risk.
Our ability to unite around areas of concern is becoming more difficult. Issues are more complex. Well-financed and skillfully produced campaigns don't always enlighten us. Instead, campaigns are increasingly designed to prey on our fears and incite anger against all kinds of people. The poor are branded as "lazy" and undocumented workers as "illegals" - and members of unions are deemed so many obstacles on the path to economic salvation.
We wants to be tough on undocumented workers, deny food stamps to their children (even if they are U.S. citizens), but seek exemptions for businesses who need those same workers in order to carry on. At the very least, this is disingenuous.
Constantly we hear that a policy initiative is a matter of "rooting out fraud." Doing this, where it is warranted, is one thing. But why must whole groups of people from social service recipients to undocumented immigrants to Kansas voters be cast in a suspicious light
All this is billed as a "matter of equity."
How, we must ask, is equity being defined?
Is equity really playing off one group of people against another in order to justify even further cuts? Is equity really playing off those severely physically and disabled residents of KNI against those who are eligible for services but languish instead on a waiting list for lack of funding? Is equity really making it more difficult for many of our fellow citizens to vote?
It appears that denying access to the ballot box is yet another tool in a politics of division? If so, it is the clearest indication that our democratic process is under threat.
Equity cannot be rooted in a politics of division. On the contrary, it requires unity around addressing fundamental issues, unity around the rights and responsibilities of citizenship. It requires a compelling vision of the future, one that is humane and sees Kansas as a place of opportunity for all.
It is not hard to foresee that the state of our State will be in ruins, if Kansas is allowed to continue on the current trajectory.
But we must all remember - a majority of us voted for this! It is our responsibility!
As a Christian pastor, I am appalled that all of this should be happening in and through an administration and members of the House and Senate, who waste no opportunity in publicly paying homage to their Christian faith, while rallying around policies that are contrary to everything Christ stood for.
I do believe Christians can be good politicians, but not if they are hell-bent on throwing a mantle of piety over all too worldly motives and agendas.
Our policies need to demonstrate a clear commitment to the poor, disabled, ill, jobless, and struggling people of Kansas.
In the Bible, the most abused book in American politics, Jesus says to his disciples, "No one can serve two masters... You cannot serve both God and money" (Mt. 6: 24).
When our Governor began to announce the list of 25 Notable Kansans, among the first five was Congregational Church pastor and Topekan, Rev. Charles M. Sheldon, author of one of the most published books in history: In His Steps. In it, Sheldon called for an approach to life that asked the question, "What would Jesus do?" Anyone who has read this book knows that the answer is: Not what we are seeing done before our very eyes today, and in this very place!
But Kansans aren't just Christians of varying stripes. We are Jews and Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists, and a host of other faiths. Kansans are people of many faiths and of no particular faith. But at our best we are all people ready to stand by our neighbors.
No matter who we are or what we believe, we are all citizens of Kansas. We are concerned for the quality of our life together, now and in the future. It is time we unite to reclaim our citizenship and, with it, ad astera per aspera, embrace a more compelling vision of our common future.
May our political leadership guide us in this way. Thank you.
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