Jubilee at Walmart Video

Friends,

Today a contingent of Interfaith Worker Justice Kansas gathered outside a Walmart store in Wichita to mark the 50th anniversary of Walmart by calling for a biblical Year of Jubilee. In the Bible the 50th year is a Year of Jubilee--a time for debt forgiveness and the redistribution of wealth.

The camera was handheld, as you will see, but it steadies after the first minute or so. In order of appearance the speakers were: Rev. David Hansen, IWJKansas; Dr. Michael Austin, Provost of Newman University; Rev. Tim Lytle, Unity Wichita; Rev. Sam Muyskens, Global Faith in Action; Rev. Charles Claycomb, University United Methodist Church. Also in attendance were: Ms. Sally Hansen, Ms. Jane Byrnes; Dr. Carolyn Bridges. Following this prayer vigil participants signed an Open Letter to Walmart Executives, which was then delivered to the store management.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wa0sYbdWy1E

 

My deepest thanks to all who participated, to all who held us in prayer, and to Interfaith Worker Justice for organizing this campaign in support of the 1.4 million Walmart workers in the United States.

As the Open Letter states it is time, and it is past time, for Walmart owners and shareholders "to redistribute corporate wealth to workers by providing a living wage, benefits and a safe workplace."

 

 

Jubilee at Walmart!

This Saturday, July 7, 2012, Interfaith Worker Justice invites friends and neighbors to join us for a 12:00 noon prayer vigil at the Walmart store on West Kellogg. This is part of a national IWJ campaign.

Professor Walter Brueggemann of Columbia Theological Seminary has written the following statement supporting Jubilee at Walmart.

  The Jubilee Year is authorized by Moses in Leviticus 25. It is celebrated in lyrical fashion in Isaiah 61 as "the year of the Lord's favor (Isaiah 61:2). It is claimed by Jesus as the shape of his life and destiny of his ministry:

       Today this scripture [Isaiah 61:1-2] has
        been fulfilled in your hearing (Luke 4:21).

   The biblical provision for the jubilee year proposes a pause in the rough and tumble of real-life-economics. It knows that through predatory action in the economy, some gain at the expense of others and some lose because of their vulnerability, and huge social inequities result. In order to curb such unsustainable economic arrangements, the jubilee year provides a regularized occasion when economic property and livelihood is given back by those who have gained to those who have lost. Giving back is a restorative action to maintain a viable neighborly infrastructure. The "give back" is an act of social realism that witnesses against predatory economics that "takes away."

   Given that the Jubilee in biblical provision occurs every fifty years, the 50th anniversary of Walmart is a splendid occasion for a Jubliee Year among us. Thus it is here proposed that on its 50th anniversary, Walmart pauses in its rough and tumble of economics to give back for the sake of the neighborhood. Such give back may take many forms: give back to the neighborhoods that the stores tend to diminish. Give back to the workers who stay locked into poverty by poor wages, give back hope to those locked into despairing economics. It would be an act of neighborly generosity that would bring health and well-being to the neighborhood to the benefit of all parties.

   Nay-sayers like to ask with a skeptical tone of the biblical jubilee, "There is no evidence that they ever really practiced it, is there?" We do not know. What we do know is that it is there in the text, in the life of Jesus, and in the vision that faith has for society. Jubilee waits to be enacted now. There is no better agent for such an action than Walmart. Walmart is a master at marketing. It could also be a master at neighborliness. This is the time!

   The term "jubliee" comes from the Hebrew term ybl, "ram's horn." The Jubilee Year begins when the ram's horn is blown. We can listen for it in Walmart stores all across the nation. When it sounds, the neighborhood will dance and sing!

Is Democracy for Sale?

Do you agree that America works best when our government is by "ALL the people," not by leveraged, unaccountable special interests?

Is money speech? The United States Supreme Court defined money as speech in Citizens United v. FEC.  Since this landmark ruling campaign spending rose 427 percent in the 2010 elections. Spending in 2012 may reach over $8 billion.

Do you want to discuss the issues and seek solutions?

A concerned citizen's group is inviting you to attend a nonpartisan discussion on the legal, economic, political and social consequences of the 2010 U. S. Supreme Court Citizens United v. the Federal Elections Commission decision. The discussion will be on Flag Day, June 14, 2012, at the Wichita Boathouse, 7:00 p.m.

Ms. Laura Dungan will moderate the discussion.

Panelist are:

Russell Fox, Professor, Friends University

Louis Goseland, Sunflower Community Action

Davis Merritt, Journalist and Author

David Hansen, Interfaith Worker Justice Kansas

Interfaith Worship April 4, 2012

WE ARE ALL TOGETHER

A Service Faith and Labor

Bringing together members of the faith community, labor and community organizations

Standing for Justice—Working for the Common Good


HONORING THE MINISTRY
OF
THE REVEREND DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.

Dr. King was killed on April 4, 1968 in Memphis, Tennessee where he had gone in support of sanitation workers who were on strike. This year marks the 44th anniversary of his death. We celebrated his birth on January 16th. Let us come together on April 4th and rededicate ourselves to his vision and to the struggle for the beloved community and justice for all.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 4, 2012
7:00 P.M.
UNITY CHURCH
21ST AND OLIVER
This is a service of witness and song and a call to action.

Sponsors: Interfaith Worker Justice Kansas, Service Employees International Union 513
, Sunflower Community Action, Global Faith in Action, Unity Church, AFL-CIO Wichita-Hutchinson Labor Federation

Remembering Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on April 4, 2012

There will be a community worship service on Wednesday, April 4, 2012 at Unity Church, 21st and Oliver, Wichita, at 7:00 p.m. honoring the ministry of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.by renewing our commitment to the Beloved Community that he saw. 

Unity Church, Interfaith Worker Justice Kansas, Global Faith in Action, Sunflower Community Action, the AFL-CIO Wichita-Hutchinson Labor Federation are co-sponsors of this event. Other members of the faith community and community groups will be added to this list of as we receive confirmation of their participation.

Please use the flier below as a bulletin insert in your place of worship. Become part of this Beloved Community in Wichita as you help spread the word and share in this time of renewal and re-dedication.