wfn.org | Journalist Krystal Greene Calls for Fight against Injustice

["Frank Imhoff" <FRANKI@elca.org>]

LWF Pre-Assembly Youth: American Journalist Krystal Greene Calls
for Fight against Injustice
Our Families, Communities, Children and Churches Need Help and
Protection

GUELPH, Canada/GENEVA, 16 July 2003 (LWI)  -The issue of human
rights and access to medical care should be taken up and more
attention paid to social and political topics pin order to
promote a more just and peaceful society, United States
journalist Krystal Greene told young adults participating in the
Lutheran World Federation (LWF) Pre-Assembly Youth Conference
(PAYC) in Guelph, near Toronto, Canada.

Referring to the United Nations human development index, Greene
pointed out that of the 4.6 billion people living in developing
countries, about 850 million cannot read or write, one billion
have no access to improved water sources and 2.4 billion do not
have basic sanitation. Worldwide, almost three billion people
live on less than two dollars a day, and an estimated four
million babies die annually in their first week of birth. "Our
families, our communities, our children and our churches are in
need of service and protection," emphasized the journalist, who
is a moderator on Channel One News, a US School TV network with
about eight million daily viewers.

She said the suffering endured by an overwhelming number of
people worldwide meant that families and communities are
fragmented and the children could not reach their full potential.
She expressed her conviction that those who advocated on behalf
of the poor were making a connection between the needs of those
struggling for human dignity and those who had the desire and
commitment to save lives. This is how the process of healing
injustice in the world begins, she said.

It was impossible to live out one's faith and discipleship
without caring for other people and the creation. Greene
criticized the many walls that separate people from one another -
materialism, consumerism, prejudice, class, origin,
miscommunication and misunderstanding. Too often those who
appeared different and did not share the same experiences were
excluded.

In her presentation Greene called on the churches not to tolerate
any injustice like poverty, human rights violations, exclusion
based on ethnicity, gender or class. Without dialogue healing
could not begin. In an age in which poverty was growing at an
alarming pace and HIV/AIDS was claiming millions of lives each
year the task ahead clear, she said. It was to struggle for the
respect for human rights and against divisions in the church and
society.

About 90 youth delegates and stewards from 54 countries are
attending the pre-assembly youth conference. It is the last of
seven conferences in the lead-up to the Tenth LWF Assembly,
concerned with its theme and content from the perspectives of
women and young people.

The LWF Assembly on the theme of "For the Healing of the World,"
will take place 21-31 July 2003 in Winnipeg, Canada, hosted by
the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada
Around 800 participants are expected including over 400 delegates
from the LWF member churches. The assembly is the LWF's highest
decision-making body and generally meets every six years.

For the full text of Krystel Greene's address:
www.lwf-assembly.org/lwfimages/Healing_Krystel_Greene.pdf

(The LWF is a global communion of Christian churches in the
Lutheran tradition. Founded in 1947 in Lund (Sweden), the LWF now
has 136 member churches in 76 countries representing over 61.7
million of the 65.4 million Lutherans worldwide. The LWF acts on
behalf of its member churches in areas of common interest such as
ecumenical and interfaith relations, theology, humanitarian
assistance, human rights, communication, and the various aspects
of mission and development work. Its secretariat is located in
Geneva, Switzerland.)

[Lutheran World Information (LWI) is LWF's information service.
Unless specifically noted, material presented does not represent
positions or opinions of the LWF or of its various units. Where
the dateline of a article contains the notation (LWI), the
material may be freely reproduced with acknowledgment.]

*	*	*
LUTHERAN WORLD INFORMATION
PO Box 2100, CH-1211 Geneva 2, Switzerland
English Editor: Pauline Mumia
E-mail: pmu@lutheranworld.org
Tel: (41.22) 791.63.54
Fax: (41.22) 791.66.30
http://www.lutheranworld.org/