Many local churches have strong mission initiatives aiding the hungry, the homeless and others in need. These ministries are vital in our communities, but we can take this work a step further and ask ourselves, “Why are these individuals in this situation? How can the church address the root causes of suffering?”
1. Never stop learning
To expand your knowledge and understanding about our calling to engage in advocacy, consider leading social justice-focused book studies, discussion groups and a study of the United Methodist Social Principles in your local church.
The United Methodist Social Principles
The Social Principles set forth the basic position of The United Methodist Church on important social issues. They represent the effort of the General Conference to speak to human issues in the contemporary world from a sound biblical and theological foundation. They are reviewed by each General Conference and are printed in full in the United Methodist Book of Discipline.
Learn more:
“People want to know more about, and they need to live their faith in context of, current events… Those conversations have reinvigorated my faith,” says David Ascher, a layperson active in advocacy ministries in the Michigan Conference.
He observes, “The structure of The United Methodist Church has many on ramps for people to learn about advocacy.”
2. Stay informed and inform others
Resources are readily available from across our connection that support advocacy ministry. These tools will keep you informed about what is going on in our world and how we can respond:
- The General Board of Church and Society: Action Alerts, Faith & Fact Cards and the Social Principles, including study materials
- The General Commission on Religion and Race: R-Squared resource hub
Ascher says, “All I am doing is just helping make people aware of what is happening. And I think people want to do some of that work. It's really not me. It's the Holy Spirit and people willing to learn.
“I just want to put my head on my pillow at night knowing that maybe I tried to make a difference. I can't feed everyone. I can't fix every injustice. But I can try to make people aware. I can try to share, ‘Well, this is what I've learned. This is what I believe needs to happen. This is what I'm learning in church. This is what The United Methodist Church tells me about these topics.’”
3. Find partners
Sharing the information you gather will help you find allies who also desire to become stronger advocates for those in your community. As you brainstorm ideas and discern what action steps you can take as a team, you will build your skills, confidence and connections. Don’t be afraid to learn as you go. There will never be a “perfect” plan or time to begin.
At Ascher’s church, South Lyon First UMC, an advocacy team member mentioned that she was already engaged in an affordable housing initiative. Her idea led to a gathering of more than 70 people, including local elected officials and members of a manufactured housing political action group.
“Our minister welcomed everyone, and she gave a very brief history of United Methodism and the social advocacy that United Methodists have done. I did a quick introduction about us not being a Christian Nationalist church and I introduced the Action Alerts from the General Board of Church and Society.
“Then we dove deep into manufactured housing and some legislation,” shares Ascher. “That event ended up in more than 800 letters that were sent to legislators, a radio interview and an email distribution list of allies in advocacy, some in our church and some in the community.”
4. Create safe spaces for conversations
Given the diversity of political stances, many local churches are not sure how to make space for conversations about issues that can be contentious, but finding common ground, fostering deeper understanding and learning from each other can be a powerful unifying effort that is well worth the work. Explore these resources to support conversations in your church:
- Courageous Conversations: Intentional listening deepens community
- Fostering unity in the Purple Church: Engagement tools to foster unity in our diversity
As for Ascher, he says, “We're going to get better at teaching people that advocacy is one of the tenants of The United Methodist Church. So I see some of this work as, ‘How do you build the foundation where we can make these conversations safer?’ Too often, if we don’t say anything, we become complicit… People are really struggling and we can’t turn a blind eye to these things.”
5. Take action
Elected officials have encouraged Ascher to reach out to them, and have assured him that they keep track of what constituents express in voicemails, phone calls and emails.
“All of that makes a difference,” encourages Ascher. “And we can't leave these choices to other people. We have an opportunity to share our faith with our elected officials around policy issues. It's a moral calling and we have to do it, especially given some of the recent topics that have been coming up. Now's the time. If not now, when?”
But advocacy isn’t just about communicating with lawmakers.
Ascher explains, “Advocacy is so much more than that. It’s taking a stand, it’s putting a letter out in the public eye, it’s hosting informative events.
“Posting something on Facebook or Instagram to share your frustrations with friends is not doing something. There are more proactive ways that we can do something. We need to pray a lot, but we need to do prayer with action. The United Methodist Church is setting us up to do things to advocate for our Social Principles… The sky’s the limit.”
Laura Buchanan works for UMC.org at United Methodist Communications. Contact her by email.
This story was published on February 6, 2025.
