A faithful witness. (Reflections On Tolerance).

JOHN WESLEY, FOUNDER OF the Methodist denomination, had a tried and true commitment to social justice, to being in ministry with (not to) the poor and to the importance of health care for all. This doctrine, linked with the teachings of Christ, undergirds the work of the General Board of Church and Society, the social action agency of The United Methodist Church.

Historically, The United Methodist Church has been a leader in civil and human rights issues, health care issues, and women's concerns both domestically and internationally. Its rich history of involvement with population and reproductive health concerns is the focus of ongoing advocacy both in the United States Congress and at the United Nations. Two years ago, the General Board of Church and Society initiated the Louise & Hugh Moore Population

Project, an effort concentrated primarily on women's issues such as women and HIV/AIDS, reproductive rights and family planning, gender equity and economic justice. Through the work of this initiative, the church is living out part of its faithful witness.

"We affirm that programs to achieve a stabilized population should be placed in a context of total economic and social development, including an equitable use and control of resources; improvement in the status of women in all cultures; a human level of economic security, health care, and literacy for all." [Social Principles of the UMC.]

However, we now find ourselves in a very disconcerting environment regarding global population concerns. We are not only faced with a surge of religious extremism--including from within our own denomination--but also with horrific famine and poverty, the scourge of HIV/AIDS, and the damaging policies and practices of the United States government that exacerbate these situations. Our work, along with the world itself, has been greatly compromised by the present administration's policies on population-related issues such as family planning and reproductive health. And sadly, it is the women, children and families around the world who pay the price. The president's re-institution of the "Global Gag Rule" and the withholding of much needed funds for the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) for reproductive health services, including HIV/AIDS prevention, have reduced or eliminated options for women related to reproductive health.

There has also been a much-noted silence from the White House regarding the ratification of The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), and an unsettling movement in society that calls for the re-criminalization of abortion. These instances, and more, are moving us backwards in the area of human rights, women's rights and reproductive rights. The faith community has a mandate to be bold and courageous in light of these very disturbing trends and we, in coalition with faith-based and secular organizations, are trying to stem the tide.

A statement from the United Methodist Book of Resolutions is instructive for our work on the critical issues of our day: "The imperative upon the individual Christian and the Christian community is to seek patterns of life, shape the structures of society, and foster those values which will dignify human life for all. In this quest we must not `quench the Spirit,' but allow the Spirit to lead us into God's new day for all people, a new day that calls for the compassionate and passionate desire to see a new birth out of justice." [Book of Resolutions, #146.]

LINDA BALES is the program director of the Louise & Hugh Moore Population Project of the General Board of Church and Society, the United Methodist Church.

JAMES E. WINKLER is the General Secretary of the General Board of Church and Society, the United Methodist Church.