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Did You Know... Part 3

The United Methodist Church adopted its Social Principles in 1972, reflecting a commitment to social justice. While not church law, these principles represent the General Conference's effort to address contemporary issues, drawing on biblical and Methodist traditions.

Note: Throughout the Social Principles, the term “we” refers specifically to the General Conference and more broadly to all members of the global United Methodist Church.

This month we highlight the “Principle of Human Trafficking and Slavery”. Quoted statements are from the Social Principles document:

·        “We condemn human trafficking and slavery as profound violations of the inherent dignity and worth of every person and of their fundamental rights related to autonomy, including the ability of every individual to make personal life choices.

 ·   We understand slavery to be a repudiation of the basic Christian understanding that all people are created in the image of God.

• Human trafficking entails the buying and selling of human beings for purposes of forced or indentured labor, including private and commercial sexual exploitation. We consider such trafficking to be abhorrent because it violates basic human rights and exploits the vulnerabilities of the weakest members of society.

Those who are especially vulnerable include minor children and women, migrants, displaced people and others living in poverty.”

A core of the Christian message involves liberation from oppression and the pursuit of justice for the exploited. The Bible consistently advocates for the oppressed, with calls to "loose the bonds of wickedness" (Isaiah 58:6) and to free captives (Luke 4:18). It urges protection for the vulnerable (Psalm 82:4) and defending the voiceless (Proverbs 31:8).

The Bible views every human as a divine image-bearer, making the "buying and selling" of people an insult to God. Grounded in the concept that all are made in God's image (Genesis 1:27), other verses promote the idea that all are one in Christ (Galatians 3:28, Philemon 1:16).