This morning we are starting a new sermon series called “An Uncomfortable Itch: The Church, Personal Holiness and Social Holiness. It will run up to the Sunday before Ash Wednesday and we will be looking at various social issues and how we as Christians should respond. Now I understand some will ask the question “why are you bringing politics into the church?” or making the comment “There is enough bad things in the world I don’t want to hear it in church, I just want to feel good when I come to church”. Well, as Christians we are not called to turn a blind eye to evil in the world. We often think that the problems and issues others face do not occur in the United States, and yet they do. Also, as United Methodists it is part of our DNA to be involved in issues that involve social holiness. John Wesley and the early Methodists reached out to those who were the least, the lost, the left out and oppressed. They were involved in issues that were not necessarily “church” related. Throughout our history we as descendents of the Holy Club and early Methodists have been involved in social holiness. Wesley believed, and it is in our Book of Discipline, that we cannot have personal holiness without social hominess and that one cannot have social holiness without personal holiness. We have to have acts of piety and acts of mercy.
Now I need to make something clear again, we are not saved by the works we do but rather by our faith in God’s grace as shown through Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection. Our works should be a response to the love and the gifts God has given to us. The acts of mercy should not be seen as being like a game at Chuck E Cheese where you do good works and get so many tickets for each one and then you save the tickets up and redeem them for eternal life. The works do not save us. At the same time our faith is to be alive and active, not passive. We obey the Lord’s commands out of love, faith, and obedience and it comes alive.
Another point we need to remember as we talk about social holiness we pray about it and our participation in it each week. While the Lord’s Prayer is looking to the end of the age it also looks some at the present. We pray “thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” Realizing the kingdom will not be completely made perfect until Jesus returns we want it to come about as much as humanly possible in the present. We are the body of Christ and called to reach out to those who need help regardless of race, gender, ethnicity, language, etc. We are in essence asking that God use us in social holiness/acts of mercy.
I understand that there are going to be those who disagree with some of the conclusions that are drawn, and that is ok. We can disagree and still get along. I am going to encourage you to talk about these issues, and if you disagree please don’t try to knock some sense into the other person with a 2x4J.
As the series progresses we will be using two Scripture passages as the foundation for it. They are Genesis 1:26-31 which is the creation of humanity and James 3:7-12 which deals with the tongue praising and cursing other human beings who are in the image of God. Each week will also have some additional passages that will deal with the subject specifically, and they will all be tied together.
We are also going to be trying something new today. As the message moves along if you have a question and want to text it to me feel free to do so. After each of the main points I will check to see if anyone has sent a question to me and I will try to answer it. Now if we get a whole bunch I will have to pick and choose. I will try to get back with any who text me, but if there are too many I will have to select just a few. Also, if you would sign it I can make sure to add you to my contact list on the phone.
In 1865 at the courthouse in Appomattox, VA a significant event happened-the surrender of Gen Robert E Lee’s forces to Gen Ulysses S Grant thus effectively ending the Civil War, however, in that same year on December 18 a much more important event took place. It was the ratification of the 13th amendment to the United States Constitution that officially ended slavery. For many people when they hear talk of the 13th amendment, and remember what it is, they think slavery is no longer an issue or at least here in the United States it does not rear its ugly head. Unfortunately that is not true. Slavery and human trafficking is alive and well in the 21st century.
This morning we will be looking at slavery and human trafficking. Specifically we will look at:
1. A few modern examples of slavery that are taking place in our current time frame
2. The Scriptural/Theological basis for standing up against this practice and trying to end it.
3. What We Can Do
II. MODERN DAY EXAMPLES
Before we get into some examples of trafficking let’s define what human trafficking is. “The Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) defines “severe forms of trafficking” as:
a. sex trafficking in which a commercial sex act is induced by force, fraud, or coercion, or in which the person induced to perform such an act has not attained 18 years of age; or,
b. the recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining of a person for labor or services, through the use of force, fraud, or coercion for the purpose of subjection to involuntary servitude, peonage, debt bondage, or slavery.
A victim need not be physically transported from one location to another in order for the crime to fall within these definitions.”
In addition there are a few other categories such as child soldiers that would be counted as trafficking and/or slavery. Child soldiers are those children who have been pressed into either having to actually carry guns and shoot them or having to carry the soldiers supplies.
Trafficking and slavery takes two primary forms-trafficking for sex or trafficking for labor. It depends on what part of the world you are in which is more prevalent-trafficking for sex or trafficking for labor.
Here are a few modern day examples. With the exception of the one from Ohio they are are taken from the US State Department’s Web site and the 2010 Human Trafficking Report. (pastor’s note-not all of these were actually used the Sunday it was preached. Ones in italics were the ones discussed)
1. Laos-Thailand-At 17, Khansee left his village in southern Laos to find work in a border town. He had very little education, could barely read or write, and was supporting his mother and grandmother. Another young man told Khansee he could earn $170 a month working at a garment factory in Thailand. Khansee trusted him because he was a fellow Lao, but he never made it to the garment factory. They crossed the river at night and boarded a van that took them to the coast of Thailand. When Khansee stepped out of the van, he was immediately led onto a fishing trawler under the watchful eyes of men armed with guns. For two years, Khansee worked day and night, heaving nets of fish without a rest or break. He ate and slept little on a crowded deck with 40 other men. He was beaten on a regular basis. Once, Khansee watched his traffickers beat a fellow worker until the man was unconscious. After two years of forced servitude, Khansee managed to escape when the boat was docked. He ran for days through the jungle, until he reached the home of a woman who took him in, fed him, and gave him money for a taxi to the Lao Embassy in Bangkok. With NGO and embassy assistance, Khansee made it back to his village alive.
For an example that is closer to home here in the United States let’s hear about Katya
2. Eastern Europe-United States
Katya, a student athlete in an Eastern European capital city, dreamed of learning English and visiting the United States. Her opportunity came in the form of a student visa program, through which international students can work temporarily in the United States. But when she got to America, rather than being taken to a job at a beach resort, the people who met her put her on a bus to Detroit, Michigan. They took her passport away, and forced her and her friends to dance in strip clubs for the traffickers’ profit. They controlled the girls’ movement and travel, kept keys to the girls’ apartment, and listened in on phone calls the girls made to their parents. After a year of enslavement, Katya and her friend were able to reach federal authorities with the help of a patron of the strip club in whom they had confided(pastor’s note-it is good the gentleman went to the authorities even though he probably should not have been there in the first place). Due to their bravery, six other victims were identified and rescued. Katya now has immigration status under the U.S. trafficking law. She works in a health club and hopes to finish her degree in kinesiology. The traffickers are in federal prison.
Katya, a student athlete in an Eastern European capital city, dreamed of learning English and visiting the United States. Her opportunity came in the form of a student visa program, through which international students can work temporarily in the United States. But when she got to America, rather than being taken to a job at a beach resort, the people who met her put her on a bus to Detroit, Michigan. They took her passport away, and forced her and her friends to dance in strip clubs for the traffickers’ profit. They controlled the girls’ movement and travel, kept keys to the girls’ apartment, and listened in on phone calls the girls made to their parents. After a year of enslavement, Katya and her friend were able to reach federal authorities with the help of a patron of the strip club in whom they had confided(pastor’s note-it is good the gentleman went to the authorities even though he probably should not have been there in the first place). Due to their bravery, six other victims were identified and rescued. Katya now has immigration status under the U.S. trafficking law. She works in a health club and hopes to finish her degree in kinesiology. The traffickers are in federal prison.
You may have friends who may not see this as a big deal in America, or who are not followers of God. Here is an example you can use on how it impacts people who have nothing to do with slavery or trafficking.
3. WASHINGTON, DC - Maria Terechina, a national of the Russian Federation, was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Columbus, Ohio, for her role in a human trafficking conspiracy involving guestworkers who worked in hotels as housekeepers and laundry workers. Terechina was sentenced to 12 months in prison and ordered to pay nearly $250,000 in restitution to her victims. After her release from prison, Terechina will be on federal supervised release for three years.
During her guilty plea hearing in April, Terechina admitted that she engaged in the harboring and transporting of dozens of illegal aliens from Russia, Estonia, Belarus, Ukraine, and other Eastern European nations. The guestworkers who labored for Terechina worked in various hotels in and around Columbus. Terechina admitted that she agreed to hold some of the workers’ passports and immigration documents in order to prevent them from leaving their employment. Terechina also admitted that she defrauded the United States of approximately $185,000 in taxes.
“The defendant participated in a scheme that created a condition of modern-day slavery, using intimidation to deprive the workers of their freedom for her own financial gain,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division.“ The Department of Justice is committed to vigorously prosecuting cases of human trafficking.”
Carter M. Stewart, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, stated “We will continue our efforts to stem the rising tide of involuntary servitude by bringing traffickers to justice and working to restore the rights and dignity of human trafficking victims.”
If you notice Maria admitted to defrauding the United States of $185,000 in taxes. Many people are concerned about the deficit in America. Every time a slaver/trafficker gets away with taking the ones enslaved wage, which are often under the table, taxes are not paid thus increasing the amount those who are doing things legally have to pay. I understand 185 thousand dollars is not a whole lot in the eye of the government, but multiply it out by hundreds or thousands of slavery rings and you begin talking some serious money.
4. Jamaica-United States (This one was not talked about, but is included here for informational purposes)
A recruiter in Jamaica promised Sheldon a visa through the U.S. federal H-2B seasonal worker program. The processing fee was hefty, but the prospect of working in America seemed worth it. Sheldon arrived in Kansas City eager to work, but he ended up at the mercy of human traffickers. Along with other workers from Jamaica, the Dominican Republic, and the Philippines, Sheldon cleaned rooms at some of the best-known hotels in Kansas City. The traffickers kept Sheldon in debt, constantly charging him fees for uniforms, transportation, and rent in overcrowded apartments. Often, his paychecks would show negative earnings. When Sheldon refused to work, the traffickers threatened to cancel his immigration status, and which would render him illegal in an instant. In May 2009, a federal grand jury indicted the leaders of this trafficking ring – including eight nationals of Uzbekistan – on charges related to forced labor in 14 states
A recruiter in Jamaica promised Sheldon a visa through the U.S. federal H-2B seasonal worker program. The processing fee was hefty, but the prospect of working in America seemed worth it. Sheldon arrived in Kansas City eager to work, but he ended up at the mercy of human traffickers. Along with other workers from Jamaica, the Dominican Republic, and the Philippines, Sheldon cleaned rooms at some of the best-known hotels in Kansas City. The traffickers kept Sheldon in debt, constantly charging him fees for uniforms, transportation, and rent in overcrowded apartments. Often, his paychecks would show negative earnings. When Sheldon refused to work, the traffickers threatened to cancel his immigration status, and which would render him illegal in an instant. In May 2009, a federal grand jury indicted the leaders of this trafficking ring – including eight nationals of Uzbekistan – on charges related to forced labor in 14 states
5. Just recently there have been episodes in Minneapolis & St Paul where people have been arrested for trafficking people.
III. SCRIPTURAL &THEOLOGICAL BASIS FOR STANDING UP AGAINST THIS PRACTICE AND TRYING TO END IT
Before we get into specific passages of the Bible we need to address something that is not in the Bible. There is no passage that says explicitly “you shall have no slaves.” Slavery was accepted as a cultural norm in the Ancient Near East. Even the Israelites could own slaves as long as the slaves were not fellow Israelites. This is why it is so important to read Scripture as a whole and see major themes that develop. Some of the major themes are God’s grace, salvation and the need for it, and the need for repentance. We also see, and these are important for today’s discussion, liberation, creation, justice, mercy, freedom from oppression.
The first passage we are going to look at is Genesis 1:26-31
“26 Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals,[a] and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”
27 So God created mankind in his own image,
in the image of God he created them;
male and female he created them.
in the image of God he created them;
male and female he created them.
28 God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”
29 Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. 30 And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food.” And it was so.
31 God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.”
29 Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. 30 And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food.” And it was so.
31 God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.”
This passage takes place at the end of the Creation story. The Lord has created everything else and then we hear that the last thing created is humanity. “Male and female he created them, in the image of God he created them”. It is important to note that both male and female are in the image of God. Now I have a question for you, what does it say when God looks over Creation after humanity is created? Many people think that it says “God saw that it was good”. However, that is not what it says. In reality after humanity is created the text says “God say it was very good”. It is a small word that carries a huge amount of significance. As we think about it we, humanity, are God crown jewels of Creation.
When we condone, or turn a blind eye, to slavery or participate in it we are subjecting an image of God to oppression, to bondage, to conditions that God did not originally plan for individuals of the human race. Human traffickers are like people who try to cut jewels, but are not concerned about whether or not it is a good cut, they just want to break it apart without any concern for how it ends up looking or how strong it may be after the cut. Actually they want people to become weak.
James 3:7-12
7 All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and sea creatures are being tamed and have been tamed by mankind, 8 but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. 9 With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. 10 Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be. 11 Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? 12 My brothers and sisters, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water. (New International Version)
As we go on to look at James you might be wondering what does a section dealing with the tongue have to do with slavery. In of itself not much, rather it is the idea of praises and curses coming out of the same mouth and some of the ideas people in the ancient world had about images. If we participate or condone trafficking are we not in essence cursing the image of God? We may not be doing it with words, but in their lives. Should we be cursing a person to slavery while praising God?
There is also the ancient ideas about images that are behind he writing of James. As I understand it in the world of Jesus and the Apostles when someone made a negative comment in front of a statue, bust, or other image it was the equivalent of making a comment to the person’s face. The image was seen as being the person. With that knowledge are people in effect trying to curse God or enslave God as they enslave those who are made in the image of God?
Galatians 3:24-29- “ 24 So the law was our guardian until Christ came that we might be justified by faith. 25 Now that this faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian. 26 So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, 27 for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” NIV
Paul when he was writing Galatians was not explicitly dealing with slavery. At the same time he points out that in Christ there are no distinctions between different groups. When someone comes to know Christ as their Savior they should feel welcomed and be treated as equals when they walk through the doors of a congregation. Unfortunately through the years the congregations and denominations have not always been faithful to that. In the book “Hell without Fire” the author points out that when the African slave trade was first gaining ground in England those slaves who became Christians were not allowed to stay slaves. However, due to economic interests influencing the church and the government in a comparatively short time they found ways to justify keeping the slaves enslaved even if they converted to Christianity. Instead of the Church influencing society and culture, culture and society influenced the Church. As we reflect on Paul’s passage here in Galatians and the passage from Genesis we can draw a conclusion that God wants people to be free .
And finally we come to the verse from Ecclesiastes.
1 Again I looked and saw all the oppression that was taking place under the sun:
“I saw the tears of the oppressed—
and they have no comforter;
power was on the side of their oppressors—
and they have no comforter.” (Ecclesiastes 4:1, NIV)
and they have no comforter;
power was on the side of their oppressors—
and they have no comforter.” (Ecclesiastes 4:1, NIV)
If you have not read Ecclesiastes or have not read it lately it might be good to do so. It is an interesting book that is also kind of cynical. The author, who could have been Solomon, or somebody else, has lived a long life and comes to realize people are not always good, bad things happen, and yet one still needs to trust God. What I find interesting about the first verse of chapter four is the way people acted 2500-3000 years ago is the same as they do today. There are still people who have no one to speak for them. There are still people who are oppressed.
As we read Scripture in both the Old and New Testaments we hear a recurring theme for the people of God to not only treat people correctly, but to help and speak up for those in need. Care for the widows and orphans, reaching out to those who are outcasts, feeding the hungry, bringing freedom to the ones bound in chains. These are actions we are called to do. “What does the Lord require-to act justly, to seek mercy, and walk humbly with your God.”
So what can we do? Well first of all we can acknowledge that human trafficking and slavery exists even here in America. Also understand anyone can be enslaved. Do not say it will never affect me or my family because it can. While the vast majority of those who are trafficked are from areas of extreme poverty slavers will take advantage of anyone they can use. Runaways, addicts, people who do not see much hope and grasp at straws, even kidnappings (rare in the US), desire to get out of poverty or a better life for their children all are potential candidates to be enslaved or trafficked.
We can make sure we respect people of all ages, races, ethnicities, genders, and languages. This is important as it sometimes is easier to turn our eyes away from evil if it is someone or some group we do not like. I know in south eastern Minnesota there are those who do not like the Hispanics, I have heard terms like “all those spics”. For those who think like this do you think they will work so hard to see that mercy and justice is shown?
Study the issue. Educate yourself. The General Board of Church and Society and the General Board of Global Ministry have materials about trafficking. The State Department is required by law to issue an report annually on human trafficking . There are non-profits who are working to eliminate slavery in the world. Look for them, pay attention, tell others. (The United Methodist Church’s magazine “Interpreter” came out this week after this sermon was preached. Some of the main themes to explored in it is Human Trafficking).
Know that the United Methodist Church and other Christian Denominations and groups are working to prevent and eliminate this scourge. People sometimes ask where do apportionment moneys go to, and this is one of the ministries in which help fund when we pay our apportionments.
And finally, pray, pray, and pray. Pray for the victims of the trafficking. Pray for the families of those who are held in bondage. Pray for those who use slave labor for either work or for sex acts. And pray for those who traffic in people.
As we close I want you to think about traffic. Most of us do not want to be stuck in traffic. We want it to move constantly. Human trafficking however is a traffic that we should want to stop in its tracks. What are you going to do?
Next week we will be looking at the issue of Immigration, the Church, and the Government. The Scripture lessons are: Genesis 1:26-31; James 3:7-12; Exodus 22:21; Deuteronomy 10:12-22; Malachi 3:5
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