08/28/2025
To: Governmental Officials, Church and Communion Leaders, and Educators
From: Sterling Lands II
Subject: The Crisis In Front of Us
Seventy years ago, the brutal murder of Emmett Till exposed the demonic face of American racism. His mother, Mamie Till-Mobley, demanded an open casket so the world could see what racism, bigotry, and white supremacy had done to her son's body. Eight years later, hundreds of thousands gathered at the March on Washington, demanding not only jobs and freedom but also the restoration of dignity that had been stolen for centuries.
This is no accident of history. It is divine providence reminding us that silence in the face of evil is sin. It is a call to pastors, bishops, elders, and prophets to remember that when the Church is silent, it is complicit.
Too many pulpits were quiet while Black bodies swung from trees. Too many clergy prayed for "peace" while refusing to confront injustice. Too many institutions baptized oppression with Scripture and called it divine order. That silence is not neutral; it is violence.
The prophets remind us: "Cry aloud, do not hold back; lift up your voice like a trumpet; declare to my people their transgression” (Isaiah 58:1). Silence is betrayal when the poor are crushed, when the innocent are lynched, when systems devour families.
The building is on fire. We are on the fifteenth floor with no man-made escape route. The flames are racism, greed, bigotry, militarism, and lies dressed in holy robes. The smoke is suffocating the breath of truth in our land.
Yet we are not without hope. The God who parted seas, the Christ who conquered death, the Spirit who gives breath to dry bones, this God has not abandoned us. But God will not do for us what we refuse to do for ourselves. Faith without works is dead (James 2:26). Prayer without courage is empty.
Pastors and bishops must repent of complicity and comfort.
Preachers must denounce violence, racism, and economic exploitation. The pulpit must be a trumpet of truth, not the echo of Western religious imperialism.
We stand in the line of Jesus, Harriet Tubman, Ida B. Wells, Martin Luther King Jr., Ella Baker, Fannie Lou Hamer, and countless unnamed freedom fighters. Nonviolence is not weakness; it is the most powerful weapon of the oppressed.
Leaders of this nation must acknowledge the unfinished work of justice. Reparations, policy reform, and dismantling racism and white supremacy are not optional; they are sacred obligations.
We Must Reject
Soft messages that soothe but do not convict, that flatter but do not transform.
Prayer words toward heaven with no obedience on earth.
Choosing the survival of structures over the mission of God.
Exalting denominational or religious labels above the Gospel and dividing the Body of Christ.
This is the time to save the soul of a nation and the integrity of the Church.
Micah 6:8 provides the blueprint: "Do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God." This must begin in the family, the first covenantal institution. Before kings, priests, or nations, there was the family. If the family collapses, society collapses, and the Church becomes powerless.
Teach youth vocations to replenish the deficit workforce at home.
Reestablish the family as a covenantal household rooted in God's Word.
Teach children their history, dignity, and God-given identity.
Confront the assaults against Black families, mass incarceration, broken schools, poverty wages, and violence.
Call fathers and mothers to be priests and protectors in the home.
Build networks of extended households through churches, neighborhoods, and kinship.
Do not mistake our nonviolence for weakness. We fear God alone. "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom" (Proverbs 9:10). Nonviolence is not cowardice; it is courage. It confronts evil without becoming its mirror.
Like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, we refuse to bow (Daniel 3:16–18).
Like Jesus before Pilate, we stand knowing power is from above (John 19:11).
Nonviolence safeguards the struggle, ensuring it remains righteous and the witness remains pure.
We will not be silent. We will not be moved. We will not bow. We stand because our lives belong to God, and only God has the right to claim our fear.
Let the Church renounce fear of man and reclaim holy boldness.
Let families teach courage measured not by fists or guns but by faith and faithfulness.
Let leaders declare: We are nonviolent, not because we are afraid, but because we are free.
The time is not tomorrow; it is today. To delay is to allow the fire to spread.
Each must ask
What am I prepared to do right now to protect and strengthen the family?
What injustice can I confront today in my home, my church, my community?
What act of mercy can I extend to heal wounds within my own family or someone else's?
Then do it. Not later. Not after another meeting. Now.
Rescuing the family for the purpose of God is not optional; it is a divine requirement. Justice in the streets begins with justice in the home. Mercy in society begins with mercy at the dinner table. Humility before God begins with families bowing together in prayer.
"As for me and my house, we will serve the LORD" (Joshua 24:15). This must become the covenant cry of our generation.
Respectfully,
Sterling Lands II
Presiding Prelate, International Communion of Churches
Presiding Prelate, International Conference of Bishops, Inc.
