December 23, 2011
Theo Sitther writes for Third Way Cafe of the revolutions around the world and the connections to the Christmas story.
In this season of Advent, the words of Mary bring hope. Christ enters our broken world, uplifts the lowly, and feeds the hungry. Christ’s birth brings hope of newness and renewal. Was this a year of revolutions? In many ways, yes. How will we in our comfort respond to the injustice in our own communities and our world?
Read the article here and let us know what you think in the comment section.
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Articles, Global Economic Justice, Issues, Uncategorized | Tagged: Advent, Christmas, egypt, Mary, revolution, tunisia | 
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Posted by jesseeppfransen
December 23, 2011
Rachelle Lyndaker Schlabach writes about the end of the Iraq war and rising tensions between the U.S. and Iran in the latest Third Way Cafe.
One would think that policymakers would have no interest in getting into another conflict in the region. But since early November, U.S.-Iran relations, which have long been frosty, have gotten even more tense.
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Leave a Comment » | Articles, Issues, Middle East, Uncategorized | Tagged: Iran, Iraq, militarism, Third Way Cafe | Permalink
Posted by jesseeppfransen
October 24, 2011
Emily Wilson-Hauger reflects on the importance of advocating for environmental justice in the Third Way Cafe.
I recently helped draft a petition letter to President Obama and Congress urging them to support the integrity of the Clean Water Act and halt any efforts to undermine this important environmental law. As I sat at my desk on Capitol Hill and reflected, I wondered if this letter really could effect change.
Photo by Tammy Alexander
The following weekend, I traveled to West Virginia to enjoy autumn in one of the most beautiful mountain ranges in the country. Sunday afternoon our group set out on a hike along a small river. As we hiked down into the streambed, the postcard-worthy downstream view immediately distorted. The bedrock was an uncharacteristically coppery color; the strange milky color of the water had piles of strange floating foam; and the awful sewage smell made us want to retreat back up the trail. On the drive out, we then observed houses with foundations visibly crumbling and families living in severe poverty.
After some research on the North Fork Watershed of the Blackwater River, I found that…
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Posted by emilywh
October 10, 2011
Tammy Alexander reflects on the stories we tell about immigration ten years after September 11th in Third Way Cafe.
Photo by flicker/pixor.
The Bible is full of stories of migration, of people moving back and forth for food or safety, for opportunity and family connections. Ruth didn’t have to go through a border patrol checkpoint and show her papers to enter Judah.
In fact, in Moab Ruth and Naomi benefited from an Israelite law, spelled out in chapter 24 of Deuteronomy, which instructed farmers to leave part of their harvest in the field for the alien, the orphan, and the widow.
Today, especially during a time of recession, there is a feeling that there isn’t enough to go around – not enough money, jobs, food. But such an attitude of scarcity and fear makes us blind to the abundant gifts immigrants bring. Study after study shows that immigrants have a net positive economic benefit to the U.S., that they bring more in economic gain than they consume in services.
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Posted by jesseeppfransen
September 23, 2011
Theo Sitther reflects on his trip to Colombia for Third Way Cafe:
U.S. aid has worsened the crisis for communities in Colombia. Over the last decade the United States has
Pastor Willman pictured here with Bonnie Klassen (MCC Colombia Rep.). On the grounds of the Las Palmas high school. Photo by Theo Sitther.
provided more than six billion dollars, mostly for Colombia’s military and police to defeat illegal armed groups and eliminate drug trafficking. While communities like Las Palmas struggle to gain access to basic services, more than five million other Colombians have been displaced from their lands due to ongoing violence. Economic support for holistic development programs has been sorely lacking.
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Posted by Patricia Kisare
September 14, 2011
Rachelle Lyndaker Schlabach reflects on the U.S. government military spending for Third Way Cafe:
Photo by Clay Lancaster/DoD
What the campaign doesn’t mention is that the United States already spends more on its military than nearly all other countries in the worldcombined. It also doesn’t cite the study that showed that investments in education and health care create significantly more jobs than does military spending.
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Leave a Comment » | Articles, Issues, Militarism, Office Publications | Permalink
Posted by Patricia Kisare
September 6, 2011
Patricia Kisare writes about land grabbing for Third Way Cafe:
Melissa Engle/MCC
Once investors acquire land, those tracts are no longer available for use by small scale farmers, indigenous peoples, fisherfolk and nomads, seriously jeopardizing their rights to food and livelihood. Water resources are also captured, resulting in the de facto privatization of water.
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Posted by Patricia Kisare
