A statement from UCC and DOC leaders on the assassination of the Rev. Edison Lapuz
As leaders of the United Church of Christ and the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) we join in expressing outrage and sorrow over the assassination of the Rev. Edison Lapuz, conference minister of the Northeastern Leyte Conference of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines, along with Mr. Alfredo Malinao. These deaths continue a pattern of harassment and intimidation of progressive church and social leaders whose prophetic voices have been committed to justice for the poor and marginalized. In response to this killing, we
As leaders of the United Church of Christ and the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) we join in expressing outrage and sorrow over the assassination of the Rev. Edison Lapuz, conference minister of the Northeastern Leyte Conference of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines, along with Mr. Alfredo Malinao. These deaths continue a pattern of harassment and intimidation of progressive church and social leaders whose prophetic voices have been committed to justice for the poor and marginalized. In response to this killing, we
express our profound sorrow to the families of Edison Lapuz and Alfredo Malinao, to the pastors and members of the Northeastern Leyte Conference, and to our brother in Christ, Bishop Elmer M. Boloncon, General Secretary of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines;
call on the government of the Philippines to aggressively investigate and bring to prosecution the perpetrators of these crimes and to ensure the rights of its citizens to speak and act freely in support of the poor and the marginalized in society;
express our solidarity with the United Church of Christ in the Philippines and with its leaders, including Bishop Boloncon, as they seek to be a prophetic witness to peace and justice in the Philippines;
ask the members of the United Church of Christ and the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) to pray for our partners in the United Church of Christ in the Philippines as they seek to be courageous in their ministries among the poor;
affirm the efforts of the East Asia and Pacific Office of Common Global Ministries to closely monitor the human rights situation in the Philippines and provide support to the United Church of Christ in the Philippines as they provide a pastoral and prophetic ministry in the Philippines on behalf of the church throughout the world.
John H. Thomas
General Minister and President
United Church of Christ
Christopher Hobgood
General Minister and President
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
Bennie E. Whiten Jr. and David Vargas
Co-Executives, Common Global Ministries
United Church of Christ and Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)