Engaging Your Church: Faith in Action

your Congregation in the Fight against extreme poverty and AIDS and Poverty “let us love, not in word and speech, but in action and truth.” --I John 3:18

With compassion and commitment, religious leaders have both guided their congregations to and have been spokespersons for taking action in the fight against extreme poverty and AIDS. Congregations from different denominations all around the country have lent their voices to this effort in as many different ways. Here are a few suggestions for you to begin engaging the members of your congregation:

  1. Ask your parishioners to sign The ONE Declaration. Display ONE information in the lobby of your house of faith.
  2. Dedicate part of the announcements towards ONE and the fight against global AIDS and poverty. Also, incorporate AIDS and poverty into a prayer or call to action. Stuff your congregations’ bulletin with our Bulletin Insert.
  3. Encourage your congregation, as faithful citizens, to raise your voice about global poverty and AIDS. In your services, you may want to use Bread for the World’s Offering of Letters resources to write letters to Congress on specific legislation that will benefit people who live in extreme poverty.
  4. Show a DATA Multi-Media presentation of a 3 minute “short talk” from Bono, Michael W. Smith, Max Lucado, or Christian Music Artists about AIDS in Africa and what you can do today! To request it, contact your regional field organizer or contact the field staff here.
  5. Dedicate a Sunday night service to AIDS issues and include ONE materials and the most recent ONE alert information on the website so your guest can take immediate action. This could include African food, music, stories, and pictures!
  6. Provide a 4-week course or class (possibly Sunday School) with curriculum on AIDS using The AWAKE Project: Uniting against the African AIDS Crisis for adults or Mission: Africa for teens.
  7. Hold meetings with those parishioners who have already been on mission trips to other countries and talk about what they can do now that they’re home.
  8. Hold regular meetings (maybe bi-monthly) to update parishioners and the broader community about extreme poverty and AIDS and encourage guests to take action locally.
  9. Coordinate a Leadership meeting with your Congressional Representative in their district office to talk about extreme poverty and AIDS.
  10. Hold A Time for Prayer for those suffering from AIDS and poverty. Include in the service an educational component and an advocacy component to prepare congregants for reflection and for action in the wake of prayer.