I can remember a time when the most conscientious Christians I knew were divided into two basic camps: those deeply concerned about personal faith commitment and those who had a burning zeal to see justice and peace in the world. And Sojourners was born. A new breed of believers came forth ... persons who shrink neither from disciplines of personal and communal piety nor from confrontation and protest in pursuit of a society with a life-support system designed for the health and well-being of all God's children.
From the Sojourners family came a bold and comprehensive witness: articles and actions, news conferences and consultations, symbolic demonstrations and community-building activities. All these give evidence that there is now a powerful network of radical reformers with a mission for critique, revision, and reconciliation.
During the war in the Persian Gulf, while the minds and hearts of our citizens were so mercilessly manipulated to accommodate the war plans, the media were severely discredited. No longer could citizens believe that network news and national press associations were able to report the truth. Spin-controlled communiques and authorized releases of "what the public must be made to believe" held truth hostage.
Meanwhile, computerized versions of reality lobotomized the public's mind with surgical-strike accuracy. Ethical and moral reflections became difficult as scrambling devices confused right and wrong, the angelic and the demonic, courageous compassion and brutal criminality.
Even more perilous for our citizens was the understanding of patriotism that emerged and made one a traitor to the country and to one's own flesh and blood to ask: Is this war necessary? Is it morally justified? Is there another way? Can we tell the truth now about what we have done? Have we become victims of our own power so that celebrations of victory are partially designed to honor our returning conquerors, as well as to hide a nagging sense of shame behind a blinding shower of confetti?
Sojourners has become sanctuary for those who believe that faith demands integrity of heart and mind even when a nation has been agitated into malignant militancy. Sojourners provides a safe and sober context for raising questions that strategists for the establishment wish would go away. This contemporary company of the committed gives voice to unauthorized but persistent judgments, hopes, and fears. These writers, workers, and community supporters nourish the humanitarian impulse and the spirit of sacrifice so that our nation will not exchange our precious high ideals for the government's wheeling and dealing.
If Sojourners fulfills a ministry like this, it may be one of our nation's most valuable assets. Whoever cultivates, communicates, and protects the ideals of a nation helps to keep it from losing its soul.
James A. Forbes Jr. was pastor of Riverside Church in New York City when this article appeared.
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