A Statement of the Synod Council of the Central/Southern Illinois Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America in response to the Brutal and Unjust Killing of George Floyd Adopted June 6, 2020
“[The LORD] has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”
(Micah 6:8, NRSV)
In response to the brutal and unjust killing of George Floyd on May 25, 2020 and in response to the ongoing racial injustice that infects our nation, the Synod Council of the Central/Southern Illinois Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America,
- Stands united in condemning the killing of George Floyd, together with all acts of injustice against our sisters and brothers of color;
- Stands united in identifying racism as a sin both against God and against our neighbors;
- Stands united in confessing our own participation in racist systems and structures, both by what we have done and by what we have left undone, and in asking for God’s forgiveness;
- Stands united in rejecting all forms of violence against people and property as a faithful means of protest;
- Stands united in prayerful support of law enforcement officials and their families across our synod, giving thanks for their faithful and courageous service during these difficult times, even as we hold to account those law enforcement officials and agencies across our nation that continue to perpetrate unjust acts against persons of color;
- Stands united in denouncing systemic bias in our judicial system, including delayed arrests and indictments in civil rights cases, especially cases of police brutality, and the mass incarceration of people of color;
- Stands united in the conviction that, as people of faith, our words must always lead beyond our words to real and positive actions (see 1 John 3:18) in confronting the evils of racism and injustice wherever they exist;
- Stands united in our commitment to call on all expressions of our synod, including the congregations of our synod, to seek positive ways to work toward racial justice in our church, in our communities, and in our nation;
- Stands united in our commitment to seek intentional opportunities to listen deeply to persons of color in and across our synod, as well as to those in and across our synod with whom we disagree, learning from one another how to be advocates for change and agents of reconciliation in the name of Christ;
- Stands united in our commitment to encourage all expressions of our synod, including the congregations of our synod, to cultivate relationships with persons and agencies in our communities already engaged in the work of racial justice;
- Stands united in our commitment to call upon local, state, and national governments and their elected leaders to support legislation that brings about real and lasting change toward racial justice for all God’s people;
- Stands united in our commitment to lift up the Racial Justice resources of both the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (www.elca.org) and our Central/Southern Illinois Synod (www.csis-elca.org) as helpful tools for engaging in constructive conversation around these issues;
- Stands united in our commitment to develop an anti-racism working group in our synod to hold us accountable in living out the commitments stated above; developing and/or lifting up resources for anti-racism training, education, and advocacy across our synod; and seeking ways to engage our synod in positive action toward systemic change.