Print ads that ran Wednesday in the Washington Post, Washington Times, New York Times, USA Today and several other daily newspapers, will be accompanied by radio ads on nationally syndicated religious and conservative talk shows. The print ads have been signed by 24 national evangelical leaders, including Ted Haggard, president of the National Association of Evangelicals; Joel Hunter, president of the Christian Coalition of America; and Jim Wallis, president of Sojourners/Call to Renewal.
The newspaper advertisement message directed to President Bush reads:
“We come to you from across the evangelical spectrum. We beseech you to act on your faith and do the right thing by leading the world to stop the genocide affecting “the least of these” in Darfur. To date, more than 400,000 people have been killed, 2.5 million displaced. Countless more have been raped, maimed, and tortured: Men, women, and children created in God’s image, innocents all. Ending the atrocities will require your personal leadership in supporting the deployment of a strong U.N. peacekeeping force and multilateral economic sanctions. While we often disagree on matters of politics, we are united in the belief that your intervention can make the critical difference in Darfur. We join together now to urge you, in the words of Proverbs 24:11-12, to “rescue those being led away to death.” We pledge to do everything we can to rally support in both Congress and the U.N. to support your leadership in ending the horror in Darfur.”
In a press release, Wallis said, “This is not about Republicans and Democrats, conservatives or liberals, Christians or Muslims. This is about compassion and the commands of God.”
According to the United Nations, more than 300,000 lives have been lost in the conflict, and more than two million people have been displaced.
Covenant World Relief has been active in assisting the people of Darfur. That aid has included helping build the first latrines and wells in refugee camps in neighboring Chad, where tens of thousands of people have fled.
To learn more about the campaign on behalf of Sudan, please visit Sojourners/Call to Renewal.
