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Mission, Vision, & Values

Our Mission

is to inspire, educate, and mobilize Christian communities to respond faithfully to the call to justice by standing in solidarity with the oppressed and defending the human rights of all.

Our Vision

is a just and equitable society in which every person can experience abundant life because the human dignity of all people is respected, the human rights of all are safeguarded, and all are treated as beloved members of the human family, formed in the image of God.

Guiding Values

When Jesus taught his disciples to pray he said, “Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” (Matt. 6:10) Throughout his earthly ministry, Jesus proclaimed a heavenly reign of justice, peace, and human fellowship with God at the center. Justice Revival bases its values on those that Jesus modeled and taught, as he preached the coming Kingdom of God, already among us but not yet fully realized (Luke 17:20-21).

“The Kingdom ideal contains the revolutionary force of Christianity.”

—Walter Rauschenbusch

Love

At the heart of Justice Revival’s mission is Jesus’ commandment to love one another as God loves us (John 13:34). We seek to create community where the radical welcome of Jesus is offered to all, for as the apostle Paul preached, there is no distinction in God’s love (Gal. 3:28). We challenge any division that would sever the circle of belonging in the human family. In all that we do, we seek to express a spirit of Christ-like love. This includes compassion for survivors of injustice and oppression, loving kindness toward colleagues and partners, and grace toward those with whom we differ.

“‘Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?’ He said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”

—Matthew 22:36-40

“Since love is the supreme law of Christ, the Kingdom of God implies a progressive reign of love in human affairs.”

—Walter Rauschenbusch

“In case everyone were in truth to love his neighbor as himself, complete human equality would be attained. Everyone who loves his neighbor in truth, expresses unconditionally human equality.”

—Soren Kierkegaard

Justice

Believing that the Good News of Jesus’ ministry means liberation for all, we are devoted to the cause of justice and the struggle to end all forms of oppression (Luke 4:18-19). We regard justice as an essential tenet of the Christian Gospel and the prophetic biblical witness, central to the work of the Christian Church and the spiritual life of its people (Micah 6:8).

We affirm that God’s love for creation confers immeasurable dignity and worth on all human beings, who without exception bear the divine image of the Creator (Gen. 1:27). Believing that human rights are what respect for human worth requires, we recognize our duty as Christians to respect and advocate for the inherent and equal human rights of all people, in our endeavor to “let the oppressed go free and break every yoke (Isaiah 58:6).”

Our pursuit of justice and liberation centers the needs of the marginalized: the widow and orphan, the prisoner and the poor, the immigrant and the stranger, who merit God’s special concern. We stand in solidarity with those who face oppression because of race, gender, ethnicity, sexuality, poverty, religion, or any aspect of their personhood. Our work aims to reform unjust, inequitable systems and remove barriers that would prevent anyone from living the abundant life Christ promises.

“He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”

—Micah 6:8

“It's a matter of taking the side of the weak against the strong, something the best people have always done.”

—Harriet Beacher Stowe

“Christian faith ought to be, and often has been, a very powerful force for human equality, for compassion, justice, love, and belief in the sacredness of every human life.”

—David Gushee

Truth

With regard for truth, we are committed to listening deeply to those affected by injustice and standing together in solidarity. In the spirit of truth, we acknowledge that our biases perpetuate destructive stereotypes, and place our hope in transformation through the renewing of our minds (Rom. 12:2). With sensitivity and intellectual rigor, we approach our work with openness to new insights, and in godly sincerity we endeavor to be transparent in all we do (2 Cor 1:12).

“If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”

—John 8:31-32

“You must let suffering speak, if you want to hear the truth.”

—Cornell West

Peace

We strive to repair the breach that results when human relationships are fractured by racism, sexism, xenophobia, homophobia, nationalism, or socio-economic inequity. We look beyond existing divisions for common ground where reconciliation is possible and relationships can flourish in the peace of Christ (Col. 3:15). We seek to collaborate with diverse Christian, interfaith, and secular movements for justice and human rights, and to foster peace through relationship. With allies and adversaries alike, we commit to nonviolent communication as well as action.

“Nonviolence is the answer to the crucial political and moral questions of our time; the need for [humankind] to overcome oppression and violence without resorting to oppression and violence.”

—Martin Luther King, Jr.

Faith

Believing the wellspring of ministry is communion with Christ, we root all of our endeavors in growing lives of Christian faith. Trusting that apart from God we can do nothing, we depend on the spirit of the living God rather than resting on human wisdom (1 Cor 2:1-5). Understanding scripture to be the inspired word of God and the unique witness to Jesus Christ, we rely on its wisdom to discern God’s will for our lives and work. We serve by the strength God supplies so that God may be glorified in all things (1 Peter 4:11). Our ministry is comprised of those who share our Christian faith, and we are enriched and inspired by our friendships and partnerships with those of other faiths and beliefs.

"Abide in me as I abide in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing."

—John 15:4-5

“What makes our lives good is not anything we are ourselves but the presence within us of what we are not, a divine presence never ours by right because it’s never ours by nature. All the glory for the good we exhibit in our lives should therefore be reserved for God."

—Kathryn Tanner