Vigilance pays off

This morning, a group of committed JRLC advocates gathered before the House meeting on SF 2168 to hold a vigil for the recipients of General Assistance Medical Care, and prayed that partisanship not stand in the way of protecting human dignity.

Indeed, human dignity won out today, as the House overwhelmingly voted for the bill, 125-9.

When GAMC was first line-item vetoed last May, many felt that no one would notice; that the program would end, and 85,000 people would lost their health care coverage unnoticed. This was not to be.

An incredible partnership garnered support for the most vulnerable among us. All that waits for this bill now is to be signed into law. Let us continue to be inspired by the words of our vigil in the same way our friends read these words this morning:

Leader 1: We are gathered here at the apex of a movement. For months, local advocates and activists have labored to reinstate health care as a fundamental right for all the people of Minnesota.

Leader 2: The provision of health care is an abiding issue of justice for Jews, Christians, and Muslims alike. In the Abrahamic traditions, healing, binding up wounds, restoring to wholeness, and preventing illness are ways people make sure that human dignity is protected and enhanced.

Leader 3: The loss of General Assistance Medical Care puts in danger the lives of 85,000 Minnesotans. Most will have no way to pay for adequate health care if GAMC ends.

Leader 4: When so many human lives are endangered by a lack of access to health care, we fail to uphold human dignity.

ALL: God of Compassion, be present in this space today. Guide our hearts, that our neighbors be as if they were our selves. Let us honor those who have been asked to sacrifice their bodies for the sake of a balanced budget.

Leader 5: We reject the false notion that some must give their lives in order that others need not give from their pockets.

Leader 6: We abhor the thought that a human’s worth might be designated in dollars.

Leader 7: We mourn the world’s failure to cherish all human life.

Leader 8: Each of you have been given a small, electric candle. At this time, please light your candle, recalling a face, a story, or a fact about a recipient of General Assistance Medical Care.

(A moment for reflection. At this time, participants may share a story relating to GAMC if any person feels so moved.)

Leader 1: We light this candle in honor of those in need.

ALL: We light this candle in hope.

Leader 2: May this light illuminate the faces of those who are struggling.

Leader 3: May we always remember they are our mothers, our fathers, our children, our friends, our neighbors, and ourselves.

ALL: God of Justice, help us to see You in each person that surrounds us. Let these candles flicker with the intensity of hope. Commit us to act in solidarity with our neighbors, remembering your vision of human dignity and wholeness.

Leader 4: We pray today for wisdom: that our leaders may discern a way of equality, compassion, and justice.

Leader 5: We pray today for courage: that our leaders might summon strength beyond themselves for the health and well-being of many.

Leader 6: We pray today for reconciliation, remembering that caring for the basic human dignity of all people is not a partisan concept. It is a human concept.

Leader 7: We pray for comfort to the weary. We pray for warmth to those who are cold, food for those who are hungry.

Leader 8: What else do we pray for?

(A moment to share prayers, if any person feels so moved.)

ALL: God of Wisdom, guide our hearts to reach beyond our own understandings. Inspire us to imagine fair and equitable policies, providing adequate care for all those in need. Provide us with generous hearts and creative minds to solve difficult problems. Be with those whose health is endangered, and help us all to turn to one another for comfort, strength, and solidarity. We pray with hope for the future. Amen.