Criminal Justice Sabbath
This weekend, Good Sam is joining faith communities across the State of Oregon in observing the Criminal Justice Sabbath, July 6-8.
We invite you to pray with us this weekend.
How Shall We Pray?
The Criminal Justice Sabbath is a time in the life of our faith community to demonstrate concern and compassion for all those impacted by the criminal justice system:
- Those in prison
- Those who carry criminal records
- Those who work and serve in courts, prisons and law enforcement
- Those who have survived crime
- Those who have been lost to violence
- The families of all of these
When we remember, we are also connected to one another, through — and in spite of — our justice system.
About the Criminal Justice Sabbath
You may be wondering where this observation comes from.
Last January, the Episcopal Diocese of Oregon, the Episcopal Diocese of Eastern Oregon, and Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon held a convocation of about 200 people from many faith communities, called “Hearing the Cries for Justice.” Its purpose was to engage, inspire, and educate: helping people learn how we can make a positive impact on our problematic criminal justice system.
Those who are affected by this sytem need our continuing effort in order to heal, feel supported, find ways forward, and transform the system into something better. But the current system is a quagmire of problems that can seem overwhelming. What can we do?
A good starting place is to align ourselves with God’s vision of justice and compassion through prayer. From there, we’ll have more clarity to define meaningful actions to take next.
Those who participated in “Hearing the Cries for Justice” are calling people of faith throughout Oregon to participate in the Criminal Justice Sabbath, asking each faith community to engage in their own personal way.
At Good Sam, we encourage you to remember our criminal justice system in your prayers this weekend, and to join us during Sunday services, where we’ll be remembering it in our liturgy.
By keeping the Criminal Justice Sabbath, we join with other Episcopal churches and faith communities throughout Oregon in an effort to be part of God’s transformative plan.