An Invitation

By the time an average child in America reaches the age of 18 they will have seen 200,000 violent acts on television. Every year the average child sees around 20,000 television commercials.

Every time you turn on a television, play a video game, hear the news, read a book, or look at an advertisement you open yourself to a message. Every day messages are being planted in you and your children. Messages that say things like:

• The more you own the happier you are.
• The solution to the violence of bad people is the violence of good people.
• Be afraid of strangers, foreigners, people of other races, people of other religions, people who are homeless etc…..
• Everything can and should be competitive.
• People get what they deserve.
• Everyday people are powerless to make real change.

The more we allow these lies to flow into us unquestioningly the more they become part of us.

Take time to invest in a different message:

• Resources are to be shared so that all may have enough.
• Violence is never the right choice.
• Treat others as you would want to be treated.
• Cooperation over competition.
• Standing up against injustice is a sacred duty.
• There is hope for the world and anyone can contribute to that hope.

It is time to join in communities of resistance to the violence laced, greed driven culture of domination. We offer one such community: Keystone United Church of Christ. Bring your talent, bring your hope, bring your children, and work with us to build a better world.