A friend of mine on a Senate staff in Washington, D.C. recently told me that if the same ratio of elected congress members to constituents was the same today as it was two hundred years ago there would be 10,000 congress members. His boss, one man, represents 25 million people.
That’s huge. So few people hearing so many voices... And while the debate over the government’s size is certainly hot, it impresses upon us the importance of having a voice when there are so many out there.
An important voice for Episcopalians is the Episcopal Policy Network (EPPN). They go to bat for us on Capitol Hill over issues that are near and dear to Episcopalians as expressed in our once-every-three-year General Convention.
Many of us shed tears last January seeing the pictures of Haitians suffering from that devastating earthquake. It was great to see the huge outpouring of support, but many of us fear that the spotlight will shift with the 24-hour news cycle, and the rebuilding of Haiti will be neglected. One of EPPN’s jobs is to make sure that doesn’t happen, as Haiti relief is just one of many issues for which they advocate on behalf of Episcopalians.
EPPN is one of the ways Episcopalians try to live out their baptismal covenant, to “strive for justice and peace.” It is one of the ways we move beyond the work of charity, to the work of addressing systemic injustice. EPPN is a great resource for current legislation of which Christians should be aware.
If you’re interested in learning more head to their website at www.episcopalchurch.org/eppn, you can sign up for regular alerts that allow you to email your elected representatives on pressing issues and get your voice heard.
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