Pray and Act Accordingly
Alveda C. King
Published on Urbanfaith.com
September 28, 2009
The church can turn the tide in the current political debates. God is
neither Democrat nor Republican; God is sovereign. The first and final acts
of people of faith should be to pray and act accordingly. As to the current
health-care debate, we must encourage the President and leaders of our
nation to remember the dignity of all Americans.
In a recent open letter to President Obama, I joined several African
American leaders to declare:
"Mr. President, in the Beloved Community envisioned by Dr. Martin Luther
King, Jr., equal justice means that young people in the womb are not
terminated and the elderly in ill health are not denied care because of
their age.
We are concerned that your current healthcare plan will not serve the
needs of those who are most at risk....
If healthcare reform passes, we have no doubt the number of African
American women having abortions will sky rocket. The healthcare bill text
needs to clearly exclude abortion from any taxpayer-subsidized or
government-mandated benefits. Abortion is not healthcare.
People with disabilities, terminal illnesses, and the elderly, all who
need special and expensive care, are also at risk of losing accessibly to
doctors and having care denied or delayed.... We are concerned that patient
care would be made based primarily on cost and that people with disabilities
or special health needs will be put on waiting lists, or worse yet, denied
potentially life-saving procedures outright....
We, the undersigned, urge you and your colleagues to seriously consider
the concerns we have outlined above. Now is the time for Democrats and
Republicans to come together to stand for compassionate care for all
Americans, joining the chorus of "Free At Last" as proclaimed in Dr. King's
" I Have A Dream" speech." [Read the
complete letter here.]
Considering these words, I invite people of prayer to hold steadfast to
the dream as we pray that God will heal our land.
Dr. Alveda King is a pastoral associate and the director of African
American Outreach for Priests for Life.
African
American Outreach
