“We pledge
to act in allegiance to God alone, and to resist injustice with goodness”
- I will resist evil and injustice by individuals, governments or other institutions, with the goodness exemplified by Jesus Christ and his apostles; I will not hold back from fear of punishment or loss
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| Rashid Qambari w/ family pictures |
During
the 1990’s the U.S. brought 67 endangered Kurdish families from northern Iraq
(Kurdistan) to the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia as political refugees. They
were among thousands threatened for their relief work. As these Muslim
families resettled and found work in the Shenandoah Valley, they sent money
back to their families remaining in Iraq. But in the culture of fear after
9/11, the FBI put several under investigation. In August 2004 fourteen
government agencies collaborated in a fearsome operation, surrounding the homes
of six Kurdish families in the middle of the night, confiscating belongings,
records, even finances. Living on the ironically named street “Freedom Court,”
families, aroused from sleep were shocked by the similarity to Saddam’s terror
tactics. Given no effective opportunity to respond, the refugees were
traumatized by the violation of their dignity.
In the end, the
government decided none of the families had connections to terrorism and that
all their money had been sent to legitimate family, friends or charities. Yet
four men were still arrested in 2005. Fadhil Noroly, Rashid Qambari (pictured), Amir Rashid and Ahmed
Abdullah were charged with unlicensed international money transfers which, in America’s
post-9/11 anxiety, had been changed to a felony.
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| US District Court House - Harrisonburg (VA) |
Seeing an opportunity to strive for Christ’s peace amidst
the legal system’s injustice against their Kurdish neighbors, Mennonite and
other community members responded to the xenophobic trials. To recognize the
Muslim Kurds as human neighbors and not as dangerous foreigners or terrorists,
the impromptu group, "Standing With Our Neighbors" (SWON) ran a
full-page newspaper ad with nearly 700 signatures, publicized the unjust charges,
accompanied the men to trial and agreed to respond quickly as witnesses in the
event of further FBI raids. The group prayed around the courthouse, created a
documentary and even contributed thousands of dollars to legal fees. I was in
the packed US District courtroom on the day final verdicts were given. The room
was full to capacity with nearly 100 SWON members and another hundred waited
just outside. When asked to rise and identify ourselves, the judge responded to
the massive support with apparent awe, “This is remarkable!” In the end the men were fined
thousands of dollars and put on probation but not charged with felony, thanks in part to the faithful witness of
local church members.
While local
churches could not work directly for justice in Iraq, the small steps of
hospitality and stubborn advocacy from the faith community helped restore some
stability and dignity to their local Iraqi-Kurdish Muslim neighbors. May we seek
Christ’s peace as we similarly enact today’s vow: “I will resist evil and
injustice by individuals, governments or other institutions, with the goodness
exemplified by Jesus Christ and his apostles; I will not hold back from fear of
punishment or loss.”
For
Reflection and Action:
- I Peter 3:9-14 was written to churches facing great evil and injustice. Romans 12:9-21 contains words for a church living at the heart of an unjust empire. What is God speaking to you and Salem Mennonite in these words today?
- Who in your neighborhood suffers injustice or other evils at the hands of individuals or institutions (economic, educational, health, legal, governmental, religious, etc.)?
Pray for their protection
from injustice.
(If you can’t think of anyone, do some asking around to various members of
your community.)
- How might you stand with your hurting or disadvantaged neighbor, “overcoming evil with good” and “repaying with a blessing”? What holds you back? What costs do you anticipate (reputational, relational, time & energy, financial, legal, personal safety, etc.)?
Prayer Focus
God of the orphan, the widow, and the immigrant foreigner:
You have called us to do justice,
to overcome evil with good;
extending hospitality to both stranger and enemy,
repaying evil with blessings to both victim and oppressor.
Give us the courage to stand with our suffering neighbors,
to call for justice, to seek peace and pursue it.
Yet give us the patience to hand vengeance on evil over to
you, Lord.
Now go with us into our day as we overcome evil with good.
Amen—It will be so.
