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A Proposal for Session Approval of Nassau Church Membership in NRCAT
from the Mission Committee’s Anti-Torture Advocacy Group
(Adopted, February 15, 2007)Motion: The Session of Nassau Presbyterian Church hereby approves Nassau’s “participating membership” in the National Religious Campaign Against Torture (NRCAT). The Session delegates to the Mission Committee a) the naming of a Committee member to the NRCAT Coordinating Committee and b) the determination of the required annual financial contribution (On January 23, Mission Committee has approved an initial membership contribution of $500 pending Session approval).
Background: Nassau Church’s Torture Is A Moral Issue adult ed series (co-sponsored by the Anti-Torture Advocacy Group and ABC Literacy), our Torture is Wrong Great Wall display and Coffee Hour table have drawn great attention & interest from our own congregation and beyond. In approving the display of the Torture is Wrong banner, Session has endorsed that principal, but not quite fully endorsed any specific “advocacy” in promotion of that principal. Nassau’s membership in NRCAT, an openly advocacy organization, would constitute that next step and would empower our advocacy to (more) openly urge congregation advocacy.
NRCAT is an inter-religious membership organization with different levels of participation available. A participating (religious organization) member is: a religious organization that (a) supports the mission statement; (b) can make use of the products of the campaign; (c) names a representative to the Coordinating Committee and thereby participates in the decision making process; and (d) makes an annual financial contribution at an amount that the participating member itself deems appropriate. (See Attachment 1.)
NRCAT was founded just a year ago by Professor George Hunsinger at a founding conference at Princeton Seminary. The NRCAT Mission Statement and organizational structure are described in Attachment 2.
Last year, “NRCAT made a concentrated effort . . . to defeat the ‘Military Commissions Act of 2006’.” This effort included prominent advertisements on the op-ed page of The New York Times and in the Capital Hill newspaper Roll Call comprising NRCAT’s “Torture Is A Moral Issue” Statement of Conscience (see Attachments 3 & 4) and a list of more than two dozen nationally prominent endorsers. To date, a total of some 13,000 people have endorsed this statement.
In December, NRCAT received an award from The Bellevue/NYU Program for Survivors of Torture, one of the leading treatment programs in the world:
For [NRCAT's] extraordinary work in mobilizing individuals and communities of faith to abolish U.S. participation in torture and all forms of cruel and inhuman treatment. Their moral leadership brings the light of hope to this dark time in our nation's history. -- Presented at the U.N., December 6, 2006.
Supporting Information Follows
1. List of NRCAT Participating Members [incl. PC(USA)]
2. NRCAT Mission Statement and Organizational Structure (3 pages)
3. NRCAT “Torture Is A Moral Issue” Statement of Conscience
4. NRCAT “Roll Call” ad listing prominent endorsers of “Torture Is A Moral Issue”
Proposal for NRCAT Membership: Attachment #1NRCAT Participating Members
Adventist Peace Fellowship. American Baptist Churches, USA, Baltimore Monthly Meeting of Friends, Stony Run, Brooklyn Monthly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends. California Council of Churches, Church and Society Network, Rocky Mountain Conference, UMC, Council of Churches of Santa Clara County (CA), Eighth Day Faith Community (Washington, DC), The Episcopal Church, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Fellowship of Reconciliation, First Congregational Church, Berkeley, CA, Franciscan Friars - Holy Name Province, Friends Committee on National Legislation . Friends of Jesus Church (Washington, DC), General Board of Global Ministries, The United Methodist Church, Holy Redeemer Lutheran Church (San Jose, CA), Islamic Society of North America, Jewish Council for Public Affairs, Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns?. National Council of Churches, Network of Spiritual Progressives, No2Torture, Pax Christi USA, The Presbyterian Church (USA), Presbyterian Peace Fellowship, Quaker House of Fayetteville, NC, Rabbis for Human Rights, Rahway and Plainfield Monthly Meeting, Religious Society of Friends, Reclaiming the Prophetic Voice, Rock Spring Congregational United Church of Christ (Arlington, VA) . St. Mary's Catholic Church (Seattle, WA), Sandy Spring Friends Meeting (Sandy Spring, MD), The Shalom Center . Shalom United Church of Christ (New Haven, CT), Union for Reform Judaism, Unitarian Universalist Service Committee, United Church of Christ, The United Methodist General Board of Church and Society, Washington Region Religious Campaign Against Torture, World Sikh Council - American Region
Proposal for NRCAT Membership: Attachment #2
THE NATIONAL RELIGIOUS CAMPAIGN AGAINST TORTURE (NRCAT)
MISSION STATEMENT
As men and women of faith and conscience, we are joined together on a non-partisan basis in profound opposition to torture and cruel and inhuman practices by anyone for any purpose. As United States-based organizations, we feel particular responsibility for the abusive practices being utilized by the United States government today. The United States has historically been a leader in outlawing these practices. The ever-increasing evidence, however, makes it all too clear that current grim abuses are not isolated incidents, but rather constitute a widespread pattern.Although our beliefs are rooted in many different religions, and although we worship in different ways and in different languages, we stand firmly united and unswerving on this crucial moral issue. Together we will work for the immediate cessation of torture by the United States, whether direct or by proxy, within our territory or abroad. We reject all proffered justifications and distorted definitions. Our condemnation of torture is not based on any political opinion or on the laws or treaties of any nations. Rather, we are guided by a higher law that serves as a compass for all of humanity.
STRUCTURE
1. A membership organization: The NRCAT is an inter-religious membership organization with different levels of participation available.
Participating (religious organization) member: a religious organization that (a) supports the mission statement; (b) can make use of the products of the campaign; (c) names a representative to the Coordinating Committee and thereby participates in the decision making process; and (d) makes an annual financial contribution at an amount that the participating member itself deems appropriate.Endorsing (religious organization) member: a religious organization that (a) supports the mission statement, and (b) can make use of the products of the campaign.
Adjunct (secular organization) member: a secular organization that supports the mission statement, and can make use of the products of the campaign. An adjunct (secular) organization member is free to contribute to the financial well-being of the campaign, but may not participate in the decision making process for the organization. Adjunct members may be asked to join an Advisory Board, to serve as counsel for the NRCAT Coordinating Committee, or to participate in Coordinating Committee meetings with voice but not vote.
National, regional, and local religious (and secular) organizations are welcome to membership in NRCAT, including national structures and organizations, national orders, national advocacy agencies, judicatories, state and local ecumenical and interfaith organizations, and congregations.
Organizations wishing to become a member of NRCAT should write to campaign@nrcat.org. Checks should be written to NRCAT and sent to NRCAT, 4500 Massachusetts Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20016
National Religious Campaign Against Torture · www.nrcat.org
2. Definition of Torture: The definition of torture that will be used by the NRCAT is the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, Part I, Article I, paragraph 1 and Article 16, paragraph 1:“For the purposes of this Convention, the term "torture" means any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intentionally inflicted on a person for such purposes as obtaining from him or a third person information or a confession, punishing him or an act he or a third person has committed or is suspected of having committed, or intimidating or coercing him or a third person, or for any reason based on discrimination of any kind, when such pain or suffering is inflicted by or at the instigation of or with the consent or acquiescence of an public official or other person acting in an official capacity.” (Article 1)
“Each State Party shall undertake to prevent in any territory under its jurisdiction other acts of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment which do not amount to torture as defined in article 1, when such acts are committed by or at the instigation of or with the consent or acquiescence of a public official or other person acting in an official capacity.” (Article 16)
3. NRCAT functions:
Clearinghouse: Members will describe their own efforts, and will learn about the efforts of others.Program development: Members, working jointly or in ad hoc groups, will develop new program initiatives, including education, organizing and advocacy (including support for legislation and national initiatives).
Communications: NRCAT will operate a website, promote resource materials, and maintain email lists.
4. NRCAT structure:
NRCAT is a "bottom-up" organization. The goals and functions of the campaign will inform its structure. It is a campaign, designed to serve the action functions of its members, rather than a coalition.Policy and organizational decisions will be made by a central Coordinating Committee composed of appointed representatives of participating religious organization members.
Executive Committee: The Coordinating Committee may, if helpful, name an Executive Committee, and may, if helpful, have regional or topical subcommittees.
Staffing: The Coordinating Committee will seek funding so that it can have paid staff. It is expected that funding will come from participating members, foundations and other funders.
Fiscal Agent: The fiscal agent of NRCAT is the Churches’ Center for Theology and Public Policy, a § 501(c)(3) organization.
Self-Assessment: The Coordinating Committee will perform a self-assessment annually, in January, to evaluate whether it is still serving members’ needs and whether it needs to make major or minor adjustments in structure.
Advisory Committee: The Coordinating Committee of NRCAT may decide to form an Advisory Committee to help it with its work.
5. Suggested Guidelines For Annual Financial Contributions To The National Religious Campaign Against Torture
Suggested minimum annual contributions for participating member organizations:
At least $100 for local organizations;
At least $250 for regional or state-wide organizations;
At least $500 for national organizations.National organizations may wish to use criteria such as:
· Typical annual contributions to interfaith efforts (e.g., some denominations and faith groups contribute as much as $10,000 to similar issue-based efforts);
· Size of the faith group;
· Size of the organization’s national staff;
· Estimate of what is needed from participating member organizations to make NRCAT’s $150,000 annual budget.Every organization must make an annual financial contribution to become a participating member of the NRCAT.
Every participating member organization is expected to make the largest financial annual contribution that it is able to manage in order to support the expenses of the organization.
No organization will be excluded from participating membership status if the organization’s circumstances necessitate a modest annual financial contribution.
6. Draft 12 Month Budget National Religious Campaign Against Torture
Director $60,000
Director’s benefits $15,000
Intern $25,000
Office $5,000
Postage $2,000
Phone $3,000
Printing $10,000
Website $15,000
Travel $10,000
Miscellaneous $5,000
Total $150,000Revised June 15, 2006
National Religious Campaign Against Torture
4500 Massachusetts Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20016
www.nrcat.org
Phone: 202-885-8648 · Fax: 202-885-8559
Proposal for NRCAT Membership: Attachment #3
ToRture is a moral issue Statement of Conscience