Faith and Politics

We seek God’s vision for the world where human dignity is defended, creation is mended, and gifts are shared for the good of all.

In and with God,
   we can direct our lives toward right relationship
with each other and with God.
We can discover our place as one strand in the web of life.
We can grow in wisdom and compassion.
We can recognize all people as kin.
We can accept our mortality and finitude, not as a curse,
but as a challenge to make our lives and choices matter.

—A Song of Faith

What We Believe

People of faith have a responsibility to cast a vision of Canadian society

• that honours diversity, and opposes hate in all its forms, against all peoples;
• that is open and welcoming to displaced persons;
• that leads a movement of healing and protecting places and people being negatively affected by climate change, in our own communities, and around the world;
• that leads with integrity in the international community—Canada’s global relationships must demonstrate an unwavering commitment to human rights, dignity, and international law.

The vision above is grounded in the fact that all human beings are created in the image of God, equal, and infinitely precious, and we individually and collectively have a responsibility to live that out in action.

When we engage with government officials, elected and non-elected people, we are collaborating with those who have the responsibility to listen and engage with their communities to ensure that government decisions have the community’s best interests at the forefront.

Many individuals and communities feel sidelined and persecuted in the current moment. Although we cannot alleviate those feelings through democratic involvement, we can name issues and offer alternatives that might influence policies and practices of governments that can make a difference to our communities in real ways. Many rights and structures we have collectively understood to be fundamental are being questioned and/or dismantled.

As an individual you may feel powerless against the “big issues”. It is localized, personalized actions from constituents directly to their elected officials that receive attention. When those actions come from across our church with multiple perspectives and passion, they combine to become a message that cannot be ignored. This is how bold discipleship leads to daring justice! 

Institutional statements are taken more seriously when they are amplified by constituent voices sharing why they care about the same issue.  

What You Can Do

Work with political leaders to uphold the values listed above in political discourse, legislation, and practice, by calling on our governments and those around the world to act decisively. 

• Join our Succeed at Advocacy Community by emailing 
• Inform your elected officials of your values and priorities as you build a relationship with them.
  • Write them (letter-writing guidelines are provided in the downloads, below).
  • Meet with them. Find others who share your concern (guidelines on how to secure a meeting are provided in the downloads, below).
• Educate yourself on what The United Church of Canada says about a variety of justice issues:
  • Read current information about long-term justice initiatives of the United Church.
  • Visit the Library on the General Council website. This is a Public Document Library accessible to anyone. The Library is a central place for the United Church’s official documents and files, including current and historically significant social policies.

Background

This work is guided by three principles: 

• Prophetic: Much public witness draws on the biblical prophetic tradition of speaking truth about the state of society/world and calling for change and transformation to promote life and peace. Isaiah, Micah, Ezekiel, Amos, and Jesus are examples for us.
• Political: This word comes from the Greek root polis, which refers to the building up of life, health, and sustainability of the city, our communities, and all within them.
• Partisan: Refers, in this case, to a strong affiliation with a specific political party. As a church, we seek to work with those who are negatively affected by government policies but remain non-partisan regarding the democratic government of our country. As a registered charity regulated by Canada Revenue Agency, the United Church must remain non-partisan. (Details on how to be non-partisan can be found in the Political Activity Guidelines in the downloads, below.) Nationally, regionally, and locally, the church advocates and comments on particular policies based on our principles but does not advocate for or comment on political party platforms.

Resources

• Advocacy Toolkit Citizens for Public Justice: CPJ’s Advocacy Toolkit is designed to help you engage in and influence the legislative process. This guide provides tools for people with various levels of ability and offers guidance beyond what you will find here. It takes you deeper into different methods of advocacy, when to use each, and how to voice concerns most effectively.
• Engaging with Elected Officials KAIROS Canada: Some additional wisdom on what to consider in writing your letter, sample agendas, and note taking templates for meeting with an elected official. 

Want to know more? Want to tell us what has worked for you? E-mail