Advocacy is Ministry

Last month, I wrote about why voting and civic engagement are important expressions of faith and why they matter to the work of faith-based health and human service organizations. As we continue this election season reflection, I would like to focus on a related topic that sometimes makes people uncomfortable: advocacy.

For many people, the word “advocacy” immediately suggests politics. For people of faith, however, advocacy is first and foremost about discipleship.

The ministries that make up CHHSM have a long and proud tradition of meeting human needs, accompanying people through some of life’s greatest challenges, and celebrating with them in moments of healing and hope.

Yet anyone who has served in these ministries understands an important truth: the challenges we seek to address in the world are not individual problems, despite the disparaging narratives some seek to promote; rather, they are the result of broader systems, policies, and social conditions intentionally designed and expertly executed for centuries.

A family struggling to afford housing faces a housing market that has become increasingly inaccessible. An older adult is unable to receive needed medical care because of funding decisions made years earlier. A child in crisis is affected by conditions far beyond the reach of any single provider.

Our faith calls us to respond to the needs of hurting people in a hurting world. Direct service responds to those immediate needs. However, advocacy addresses the conditions that create those needs.

As people of faith, we are called to do both.

The biblical tradition is filled with voices that insisted faith must extend beyond personal charity. Again and again, the prophets challenged systems that harmed vulnerable people and called leaders to pursue justice, righteousness, and the common good. Jesus himself not only cared for individuals but consistently lifted up those excluded from society and challenged structures that diminished human dignity.

For faith-based health and human service organizations, this means our ministry cannot end at the service encounter. While we remain committed to caring for each person who comes through our doors, we are also called to ask larger questions.

Why are so many people struggling to find affordable housing?

Why do barriers to healthcare persist?

How can policies better support older adults, children, families, and individuals living with disabilities?

What changes would help communities flourish rather than merely survive?

These questions are not partisan questions. They are ministry questions.

One of the great strengths of CHHSM organizations is that we bring practical experience to public conversations. We do not speak theoretically about housing instability, healthcare access, aging services, behavioral health, or family support. We see these realities every day. We know the opportunities. We know the gaps. We understand both the human impact and the policy implications.

That perspective is valuable.

When nonprofit and faith leaders engage elected officials, participate in advocacy efforts, educate their communities, or share stories about the people they serve, they help ensure that public decisions are informed by real-world experience rather than abstract assumptions.

This election season presents an important opportunity to engage in that work.

Advocacy does not require endorsement of candidates or partisan political activity. In fact, as charitable organizations, we must remain mindful of the legal and ethical boundaries that govern our work. But there is a profound difference between being partisan and being engaged.

We can educate. We can inform. We can tell stories. We can help our communities understand the issues that affect human well-being. We can encourage civic participation. We can elevate the voices of those too often left unheard.

Most importantly, we can bear witness.

The people served by CHHSM ministries are not statistics. They are our neighbors. They are older adults seeking dignity, families searching for stability, children needing support, individuals pursuing recovery, and communities working toward health and wholeness.

Advocacy allows us to carry their stories into conversations where decisions are made.

At its best, advocacy is simply love of neighbor expressed in the public square.

As we move closer to November, I encourage each of us to consider how our organizations can engage faithfully and constructively in civic life. What experiences from your ministry need to be shared? What lessons have you learned from those you serve? What opportunities exist to educate, inform, and encourage participation?

As you answer these questions and reflect on your stories, I invite you to share them with CHHSM, so that we may, in partnership with the UCC’s Advocacy office in DC, carry those stories forward. 

The future of many health and human service ministries will be influenced by public policies and elected leaders. More importantly, the lives of countless people we care about will be shaped by those decisions as well.

Faithful service and faithful advocacy belong together.

The ministries of CHHSM have long demonstrated what it means to care for individuals with compassion and excellence. The challenge before us is to pair that service with an equally strong commitment to helping shape the conditions that allow people and communities to thrive.

That, too, is ministry.