Rev. Christine Dudley

  MUSICAL REFLECTION: Turn This World Around, Words and music by Raffi (and Michael Creber), Troubadour Music Inc. 2006

November 20^th is the anniversary of the United Nations ratification of the Convention of the Rights of the Child. In Canada, November 20th is also designated National Child's Day. Because of these connections, the United Church designated the Sunday closest to November 20th as Children's Sunday. The main objective of Children's Sunday, as explained on the United Church of Canada's website is, "to lift up the realities of children's lives and celebrate their gifts to the church and the world."

In past years I've spoken directly about the UN's Convention of the Rights of the Child and highlighted the work of child advocates such as Raffi Cavoukian (whose song, Turn This World Around, we heard at the beginning of our worship service today). But, it's not just what adults can do for children, although that's important, but also what children and youth can do together with adults to make the necessary changes to turn this world around for all the children of the world. And that is why I've chosen to highlight the efforts of children and youth advocating for the rights of children.

For many years I have followed, with great interest, the growth of social activism in the life and work of Craig Kielburger. I'll begin with a brief videoclip of Craig in 1995, when he was 12 years old, and today:

Since 1995, Craig's passion for social justice and social change has grown and he has gained much knowledge and first hand experience of the lives of children in the more than 50 countries he has visited around the world. As an advocate and ambassador for the Free The Children organization, in the last fourteen years Craig has had conversations with Mother Teresa, the Dali Lama, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Dr. Jane Goodall and many others who have put their notoriety to work for social justice. In spite of the notoriety and media attention that Craig has received over the years he has remained grounded and certain that the message, and work that he does, is not about himself but about the rights and empowerment of children everywhere in our world.

Free The Children actively encourages children and youth to get involved. Even so, I was surprised to learn that on average 65 % of Free The Children's annual funding comes from funds raised by young people.

Now we'll view a short promotional videoclip for Free The Children which explains some of the programs and priorities:

Craig Kielburger did not set out to create a social justice movement but over the years, involving others at every step of the way, that is what has happened.

Craig's older brother, Marc, who has made his own notable contributions to community service joined Craig when Free The Children began to really grow in magnitude. Marc is a Rhodes scholar and lawyer, and now works exclusively for the non-profit organizations that he and Craig have co-founded.

Craig and Marc have co-authored a number books including Me to We (which explains their philosophy of volunteerism, service to others and social involvement) and The World Needs Your Kid: How To Raise Children Who Care and Contribute.

The concept of Me to We has developed into a social justice movement for children and youth. This past Sept. 29^th the first "We Day" event was held in Vancouver with a second event on October 5^th in Toronto. Between these two events 30,000 students attended. (You may have seen the national television special on CTV - October 10^th)

The We Day events were extravaganzas of world famous inspirational speakers and music which energized and inspired the audiences. But, more importantly We Day was the launch of a partnership with schools to begin a year long curriculum focussed on child poverty and concrete ways of participating in social change.

Craig and Marc's books and presentations are chock full of practical concrete ways for children, youth and adults to work together to create positive social change. Their message is that change is possible and that small concrete actions do make a world of difference in the lives of individuals and local and global communities. Their information is well researched utilizing the work of others and their own extensive personal experience. I recommend their books to you for your own information and to share with the children and youth who are near and dear to you.

As I have followed Craig and Marc's work, over the years, I have wondered about their childhood experiences and who mentored them and influenced their values and sense of justice. I learned very quickly, from reading their books, that their parents are the greatest role models in their lives. Their parents, both teachers, do not seek the limelight but in quiet ways enact their beliefs of service to others. They decided that it was important for their sons to attend church hopeful that would help engender in them a sense of the importance and call to service. As a family they often volunteered in service related activities so Craig and Marc had very early experiences of volunteering their time and efforts for the good of others.

I have also privately wondered if Craig and Marc's motivation and drive might be faith-based. I hadn't ever heard them speak of faith, at all, but when I began reading their books I particularly looked for any references to faith-based action. I've chosen four brief excerpts from their book, Me To We, to share with you. Speaking about faith and spirituality Craig and Marc say:

"...we grew up attending church and learning the parables, but we never felt really connected to our faith. It wasn't until we began helping others that we unlocked the true meaning of what we had always been taught. Putting our passion into practice, we found our faith." (p.106)

"Having grown up attending church, the Bible was one of the first books we picked up. We soon found that when you turn to almost any page, story after story parable after parable, and the teachings in psalms and prayers and songs all carry the same central message of service, community, and humankind's greatest calling. The biblical stories of Jesus' service to others are almost endless. ...Such teachings and actions were obviously guided by love, kindness, and compassion." (pgs.74-75)

"Practicing one's faith involves much more than simply attending a religious service. It means actively living the message to create community and networks of mutual support." (p.106)

"People sometimes ask us how we maintain hope when confronted with overwhelming human deprivation, the scourge of HIV/AIDS, and the devastation of war. We respond by saying that in doing the work we do, we can't help but have our faith renewed. It is often in the midst of horrendous suffering that we find the greatest virtue and human potential." (p.107)

As "in person" as is possible today, I'll leave the final words of this reflection to Marc and Craig Kielburger from their recent We Day event: