Dear Supporter,
Please forward to your lists and congregations:
Chanukah, Solstice, Advent in CT: Immigrant Rights
People of Faith CT e-newsletter
Monday, December 18, 2006
View newsletter on the web
CONTENTS
1. Chanukah Lights
2. Advent Week 3 in CT: Immigrant Rights
3. Winter Solstice: Be A Light & Fire for Good
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1.
Chanukah Lights
"This is the word of the Sovereign to Zerubbabel:
'Not by an army, nor by military might,
but by my spirit, says the eternal God."
Zechariah 4:7
As the US empire presses for hegemony
in the oil-rich Middle East
via direct and proxy wars
in Iraq, Afghanistan and Palestine,
we are reminded that God's peaceful dream
for Earth can never be initiated by violence.
Instead God calls us
to walk in the light of nonviolence,
building peace on justice,
in the spirit of tikkun olam,
repairing the brokenness of the world.
Happy Chanukah
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2.
Advent Week 3 in Connecticut: Immigrant Rights
"John said to the crowds that came out to be baptized:
'You brood of vipers!
Produce good fruits as evidence of your repentance.
Do not begin to say to yourselves,
'We have Abraham as our ancestor'
for I tell you, God is able from these stones
to raise up children of Abraham."
Luke 3:7-8
The national debate on immigrant rights
has too often been waged with a spirit of self-righteousness
by those advocating apartheid walls, arrest and deportation
of undocumented Latino/as.
"Our ancestors came here legally," they proclaim,
"and so should everyone south of the Rio Grande."
Unfortunately, the analogy overlooks the fact that the US
has a long history of supporting right-wing dictatorships
in Latin America that dispossessed people from their lands
and instituted a reign of terror against those who fought for
economic justice. More recently, the US has instituted
"free-trade agreements" that make it easier for multi-
national corporations to exploit workers in Latin America.
John the Baptist's rebuke of his contemporaries
may well take this form today:
"Your immigrant ancestors with their legal entry
are not clubs to wield against the oppressed.
You who have enjoyed the freedoms of this country
now seek to deprive others of their fair share.
If you love democracy, welcome the economic and politcal refugees
whom your complicity and tax-dollars have created.
Show by deeds of justice and solidarity that you appreciate
America's blessings."
The terrorization of immigrants came to CT on Sept. 19:
11 day laborers were approached by an unmarked van with
hardhats on the front seat. The workers jumped into the
van expecting to go to work, but were instead taken
straight to jail. The federal government refused to release
their names, leaving their families unsure of the fate of
their loved ones.
They were taken 150 miles away to impede their defense.
Soon six were shipped to two prisons in Texas.
The Danbury 11 joined the nearly 16,000 Latino workers currently
being unjustly held in a system of local and national prisons.
This raid, like all the other raids being carried out by the
Immigration & Customs Enforcement Agency - an arm of Homeland Security -
is designed to induce terror and keep workers from fighting
for decent wages and conditions.
"They are asking, my friends. They are asking.
They are asking us for a chance to find a decent job, at decent wages.
They are asking us to empower their dreams of home ownership.
They are asking us for human dignity. They are asking us for a chance to
feel safe, to feel that they have a future which is bright, and without daily strife."
The Danbury 11: A Reflection
by Jean C. Hislop, member, Danbury Peace Coalition
http://www.faithct.org/immigrantrightsarticles/danbury11reflection.htm
"Hopes And Handcuffs"
Hartford Courant Story on Yale Law School Suit Against the Feds:
http://www.courant.com/hc-danburyroundup1214.artdec14,0,4380615.story
"Yale Students Sue Federal Officials Over Immigration Raid"
Stamford Advocate
Read Article
Stop the Raids
Stop the Unjust Detentions
Free the Danbury 11
Saturday, Feb. 3
7:30 p.m.
Saint Augustine Church
10 Campfield Ave, Hartford
Speakers TBA.
Sponsored by:
The Regional Coalition on Immigrant Rights
and a broad coalition of social justice organizations.
Proudly endorsed by People of Faith CT
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3.
Winter Solstice
December 21 marks the Winter Solstice,
the rebirth of the Sun.
For the last 6 months,
as Earth has been dancing around the Sun
at 67,000 mph
the daylight hours
have been getting
progressively
shorter
in our
northern
hemisphere.
Lately, as the daylight faded
in the mid-afternoon,
so too our energies.
But with the Solstice,
the daylight will begin
to progressively lengthen again!
Solstice is a time to celebrate the rebirth of the Sun,
to re-kindle our hopes and dreams
for ourselves and our world
to discern the light we are meant to offer the world,
and to pray that we may shine forth that light
progressively each day into the coming new year.
This Solstice, light a fire, a candle
without and within,
warm someone by your loving-kindness,
share your food and your home with the poor and lonely,
let the fires of justice burn passionately inside you,
be a light of hope, healing and peace in all your circles.
Blessed Be.
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