For People with Bishop Rob Wright
For People with Bishop Rob Wright
Faith & Public Policy with Rebecca Linder Blachly
Faith and public policy are at a crossroads, making waves in national headlines. This intersection is deeply political, with Christians divided on all sides of the issue. As followers of Christ, it’s essential to remember that while Jesus’ message is undeniably political, it is never partisan.
In this episode, Bishop Wright sits down with Rebecca Linder Blachly, the Director of the Office of Government Relations for The Episcopal Church. Together, they explore the nation’s most pressing issues and the critical role the Church plays in advocating for humane immigration policies amidst political tension. Rebecca, whose journey took her from studying philosophy to navigating the corridors of the Pentagon, offers her unique perspective on how to maintain hope and stability, all while nurturing existing ministries. Listen in for the full conversation.
Since 2016, Rebecca Blachly has served as The Director of The Office of Government Relations for The Episcopal Church. Prior to this role, she was the Senior Policy Advisor for Africa in the Office of Religion and Global Affairs at the U.S. Department of State. Her previous positions include Acting Chief of the Strategic Communication Division at U.S. Africa Command in Stuttgart, Germany, Special Assistant to the Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, and Research Associate in the Post-Conflict Reconstruction Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. She has conducted fieldwork and research throughout Africa and the Middle East and she has published on civil-military relations and information sharing in complex environments. Ms. Blachly received her B.A. in philosophy from Williams College and her M.Div. from Harvard University, and she is a Term Member at the Council on Foreign Relations.
We are called to different things right, Different ministries, and we are not called to fix everything that we can't. So I just feel that if each of us can open our hearts to what that calling is, which again will be so different for some people it's advocacy, for some people it's direct ministry there's so many different callings and know that our help comes from the Lord that can help us through what can be some really challenging times.
Bishop Wright:Hi everyone, and welcome to this special edition of For People. Today, our guest is Rebecca Linder Blachly. She's the director of the Office of Government Relations for the Episcopal Church. Rebecca hi.
Rebecca Linder Blachly:Hi, so good to be with you today.
Bishop Wright:And welcome. Welcome and thanks for being with us. Her BA is from Williams and she has an MDiv from Harvard. Prior to taking this role as Director of the Office of Government Relations for the Episcopal Church, she was a Senior Policy Advisor for Africa in the Office of Religion and Global Affairs at the US Department of State. Her previous positions include Acting Chief of Strategic Communication Division at US Africa. Include acting chief of strategic communication division at US Africa command in Stuttgart, germany. Special assistant to the principal deputy under secretary of defense for policy and research associate in the post-conflict reconstruction Wow, that's a lot of experience, yeah, so well. First of all, let's start with you. How did you get into this work? You've got an MDiv, which means you're interested in God and interested in the ways in which we talk about God and live for God, and you've got this public policy background. Take me to that intersection.
Rebecca Linder Blachly:Yeah, for some it's surprising, but to me it always felt natural. There were two things that I was interested in and felt called to, so studied philosophy as an undergrad and dance as well, and found myself working at the Pentagon a few years after that, after spending a few years in a think tank, and I was surprised and interested to really think the work was so meaningful and I thought it was a really powerful way to help the hurting world. I was working on peacekeeping, disaster response, humanitarian assistance, went to divinity school and was kind of discerning what way forward, what the way forward would be, and then was able to actually work on the intersection of those two things at the State Department for a short time. It's no longer there, but there was an Office of Religion and Global Affairs where the State Department was trying to do a better job of understanding the many roles that religious communities play, so not separate, you know there was no constitutional question about separation of church and state, about separation of church and state.
Rebecca Linder Blachly:But it was more, that the State Department was realizing that religious communities, as you know, have health ministries and education networks and so many ministries that understanding those dynamics on climate change and anti-corruption work and, of course, education, health, all these things that are so critical for foreign policy goals better understanding religious communities could help. So I was, you know, happily in that role and then had the opportunity to come on over to the Episcopal Church and lead the advocacy efforts.
Bishop Wright:So I wanted to have you on because here, at the very beginning of President Trump's second term of President Trump's second term, we're thinking a lot about immigration, refugees, deportation practices and policies and, of course, in our church here in Atlanta and really in middle North Georgia, a lot of our members are men and women and young people of you know who are Hispanic, and there's a great wave of fear that's sweeping over over this community, as well as uncertainty, and people who love them and care a lot about them are wondering how best to help, and I know you've been taking a lot of calls and spending a lot of time in interviews and meetings, et cetera, and so where do you start in this conversation? What should the church be doing right now, as many of her members are fearful?
Rebecca Linder Blachly:I think the church should keep doing what we've been doing, which is keep having the ministries that we carry out, continuing them, realizing there may be a greater need, and that's for undocumented populations or those who currently have authorization to be in the United States but who may have that revoked. That's one of the things we're really concerned about. But also for US citizens, we may see social safety net provisions really scale back dramatically. So I think the first is just to know that the work is the same. It may need to be more but, as you point out, the fear is present and is just, I think, part of maybe part of the goal. Think part of, maybe part of the goal.
Rebecca Linder Blachly:I mean I can't speak for the intent, but it certainly seems like that's certainly the effect. Again, whether or not it's the intent, I guess I can't say, but to have communities feel afraid and, I think, to continue to do the best we can to be rooted in our own faith and to then, practically speaking, help those of us in our communities who have a fear of deportation or, again, fear about a legal status with resources. And so there's Know your Rights trainings that help educate everyone in our churches about what our rights are, and there's family preparedness plans for people who may be at risk of deportation, having something in place so that the kids have a place to go and people know what bank accounts they've got or what to do with pets I mean, who knows? But just some practical steps to just be prepared. And then I would just say that we can advocate, we can reach out to our members of Congress and tell them that we support humane immigration policies and that we want to care for our neighbors.
Bishop Wright:Yeah, yeah, you know I'm thinking a lot about this right now. I'm thinking about you know, the people in our 120 worshiping communities. And I'm thinking about you know my own vows that I made when I was ordained bishop and I just reread those in light of everything that's happening in our country. And you know, in preparation for this phone call and I was really struck again by a promise that I made and it says will you be merciful to all show compassion to the poor and stranger and defend those who have no help? And I said, in front of God and everybody else, a pastor is the care of folks, the care of souls, the enlargement of compassion, first and foremost, and not very much about people's status, immigration status, citizenship status.
Bishop Wright:I think the gospel helps me to thread that needle. I pray and will advocate for the implementation of any policies that we have to implement, that they be done with care for the dignity of every human being. But I think the church has a sacred role here and that is to care for people and to bear witness that all are made in the image of God. Have I got that right? I mean, I know you spend some time with the presiding bishop and others who are thinking about these things. What would you say in response to that?
Rebecca Linder Blachly:I mean yes, a thousand times yes. Our call is to care for those in our midst and to show Christ's love and be agents of Christ's love. Our job is not to formulate complex immigration policy. Let's say that we can advocate for values that should undergird it. Our church has taken policy positions that my colleagues and I advocate for, certainly, but really, at the root of all of that is the dignity of every human being. At the root of all of it is that we, as church, serve all.
Bishop Wright:We met, that is, the representatives of the entire Episcopal Church. We met in Louisville, Kentucky, in June and, as you well know, that body worships together, prays together and passes resolutions, which are basically the mind of the church, if you will, who we say we are, and we passed some resolutions. I think that touch on this issue primarily. Which one of those resolutions or which number of resolutions are you thinking about as you try to support us, who are supporting congregations?
Rebecca Linder Blachly:Well, there certainly were some resolutions passed In Louisville.
Rebecca Linder Blachly:There was one called Migration with Dignity, looking at how we as a church respond to migration.
Rebecca Linder Blachly:But I would just say as well that we've, as a church, have more than 650 public policy resolutions that our office has called to carry out, so there is no shortage. We have more than 50 focused on immigration alone, and so there's a lot our church has said over the decades in various different political contexts and in different times. But, as I said, the values underlying them are the same. And then there's times when the church speaks to the current political moment and what's needed in that. But right now we've for decades and decades advocated for comprehensive immigration reform, recognizing the right of sovereign states to have a secure border while at the same time, the legal right for immigrants to claim asylum, At the same time, the legal right for immigrants to claim asylum. And of course, we are one of the 10 federally funded refugee resettlement agencies through the tremendous work of Episcopal Migration Ministries. So we know it's a part of our church, both in terms of the resolutions that we've spoken on through for decades and then again the ministries, both at the congregational level up through the church structures.
Bishop Wright:You know this is really important. This is an important point you're making here, and that is that we have been shouldered to the wheel of this work for some time. And so you know, I know that some people and I think legitimately they wonder, you know, if the church isn't engaged in partisan politics when it stands up and sort of affirms the right of, you know, to dignity for everyone. They're wondering if what we're saying and what we're doing isn't sort of specific to this president, isn't anti-President Trump. And you're saying we've been at this work for some time.
Rebecca Linder Blachly:Absolutely, and we have engaged with all the administrations of both parties members of.
Rebecca Linder Blachly:Congress of both parties and really try to find common ground whenever it's possible. Actually, there's a resolution so the church has said that we should work in a bipartisan way whenever possible. Actually there's a resolution so the church has said that we should work in a bipartisan way whenever possible. Of the Episcopal members of Congress, it's 50-50 Republicans and Democrats. We know that there's political diversity in our pews, certainly, so we really are not looking at our work as coming from a partisan place but instead as, again, the values that we as a religious community can offer.
Rebecca Linder Blachly:And that's something we hear from members of Congress that there are many lobbyists who are working for industry, advocating for interest and tax cuts for the industry that they're working for, but where are the people who are speaking up for the most vulnerable? It's religious communities and non-profits, secular and secular nonprofits as well. You know, certainly we work with ecumenical, inter-religious secular groups all the time, but there's a lot that religious communities can do because we have the ministries, know the people and can say we need to make sure that there's a voice in Washington for the people relying on food assistance or supplemental you know, supplemental nutritional assistance, or need housing help or need support when they're encountering domestic violence, and just make sure that those are priorities too, right, and not just not just the things that you know the corporate lobbyists are paying to advocate for, and that's really how I see us.
Bishop Wright:Sure, let me take you to the granular level here. You know I've gotten calls, emails and text messages and people are wondering about. You know what is this idea of sanctuary? Is that real, is it sentimental? You've heard that question before. I mean we should have sanctuary hearts for everyone, of course, but they're asking about property. How do we participate with law enforcement and when do we resist nonviolently and respectfully?
Rebecca Linder Blachly:So the sanctuary question, I think, is a hard one because the word is so meaningful to us as Christians and our church has committed ourselves to the spirit of the sanctuary movement. But what that means is so different based on different contexts so it can be confusing. So I usually urge diocese congregations, if asked, to emphasize welcome rather than using a word that has a different meaning in different contexts. So sanctuary city can mean that the local law enforcement doesn't cooperate with federal law enforcement, but then for the churches it doesn't have a technical meaning but it can mean sheltering someone. So I think other words are more helpful because of the ambiguity of that term.
Bishop Wright:Yeah, Well, the verbiage is one thing, but what about? Do we have an official policy in the Episcopal church about property, for instance? Do we hold our properties as private property and therefore can limit access?
Rebecca Linder Blachly:What I've heard in briefings that I've been doing over the past few weeks with our chief legal officers to really be in touch with legal counsel within, you know, depending on the jurisdiction. But you know we have know your rights trainings that talk about what to do if there's a raid and whether something happens in the sanctuary or in public space and open space and private space. You know you don't need to let someone into private space unless there's a specific warrant that you can ask to see. But again, I don't want to step out of my lane here too much. But there's certainly resources that can speak to what to do if law enforcement comes in various settings. But there's not a universal church policy that sort of is across the board for these settings because it depends on the context, both the locality and the context of you know who's there at any given time.
Bishop Wright:No, I appreciate that and I know it's complex, you know. So for us here in middle and north Georgia, I mean, we're distributed over 75 and a half counties and it's just not uniform right. It's sort of a moving target and it kind of depends. And so people are sort of asking me what is the broad statement I can issue that's going to be elastic enough for everything and everyone. And it's really difficult. And I've talked to other bishops and we all sort of agree that because it's so complicated we feel ineffectual.
Rebecca Linder Blachly:Yeah, I think. I mean it's such a challenging moment for just so many around the church, and I think that the things we can do are just continue our ministries and not ask about people's immigration status. That's a really good one. We don't need to know that, and that can protect people in a sense too, because then we're not knowingly involved in anything, but again, knowing, like offering trainings, sharing resources for family preparedness plans that can help people who are feeling at risk to know what they have in place and then to know that the church will be there for them and their family. The federal government has pretty broad authority on some immigration questions, that's true, and so we want to seek a transformative policy agenda around our immigration policy. But in this moment, I think we want to make sure to protect those in our communities as best we can and serve those in our communities as best we can.
Bishop Wright:I appreciate that answer. I really do, because it is evolving. The issue is evolving, rapidly evolving, in fact, and it's being applied different places in different ways and it's sort of hard to know. And yet we want to make sure that the message is clear that we love our brothers and sisters, that we are siblings entirely under God and that when they hurt, we hurt. You know, one of the things that I've heard that some people are going to do is, you know, develop sort of banks of lawyers to be able to assist, provide some resources, some know-how to people those of us who possess two languages can really really be helpful right now et cetera, et cetera. But all of it is to just deliver as much care and compassion as we can. So let me ask you this lastly You've worked at a great and large scale in faraway places and now you're here at home working through all of this complexity. You're a person of faith, so what image or word from Scripture is helping you to hold steady at this hour so that you can help us?
Rebecca Linder Blachly:I was just reading through the Psalms and came to 121. I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where's my help to come? My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth. We are called to different things right, Different ministries, and we are not called to fix everything that we can't. So I just feel that if each of us can open our hearts to what that calling is, which again will be so different for some people it's advocacy, for some people it's direct ministry you know there's so many different callings and know that our help comes from the Lord that can help us through what can be some really challenging times, and know that we're called to try right. I don't know that we're called to have to succeed, that our judgment depends on that, but really, instead, just with good faith, good effort, wisdom, do the work we each feel called to do.
Bishop Wright:Yeah, it's a, and not give into despair.
Rebecca Linder Blachly:Yeah, yeah.
Bishop Wright:That's, that's that's what that Bible verse tells me, that that hope is here and on the way simultaneously.
Rebecca Linder Blachly:Amen.
Bishop Wright:Rebecca, thank you so much.
Rebecca Linder Blachly:Thanks so much, Bishop Rob. It's really a pleasure.