Slavery, Sex, and Cheap Vegetables

September 16, 2012

Luke 4:14-21 Scripture reading: Acts 7:18-20
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Acts 7:18-20

Then another king, who knew nothing about Joseph, became ruler of Egypt. 19He dealt treacherously with our people and oppressed our forefathers by forcing them to throw out their newborn babies so that they would die. "At that time Moses was born, and he was no ordinary child. For three months he was cared for in his father's house.
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The late-night calls began when Theresa Flores was 15. In 1980, before everyone had a cell phone, the private phone that Flores' parents had installed in her bedroom was a luxury. But it nearly proved her undoing. Minutes after getting a call, Flores would silently slip out of the house, cut through the backyard and get in a car waiting at the curb. She would then be whisked away from her home in an affluent Detroit suburb to homes and hotels, anonymous places where she was forced to have sex for hours with strangers. "I can't describe to you the feeling of terror. No child should ever have to know that kind of fear. I didn't know what I was going to have to endure that night, for how long, or if I was going to come back home." What started innocently with Flores' infatuation with an older male classmate turned to date rape caught on film by some of the rapist's friends. They used the photos to blackmail the girl into sexual slavery that lasted two years and involved hundreds of men. (Columbus Dispatch, Sunday, January 25, 2009) In 1999, a teenage girl was taken from a Haitian orphanage and smuggledusing phony documentationinto Miami, where she was forced to work as a domestic servant for up to 15 hours a day, seven days a week. She was never paid, not allowed to go to school, occasionally beaten, and subjected to other inhumane treatment. After suffering for nearly six years, she managed to escape in 2005. In March of 2009, justice was finally served when three of her captors were convicted in the case. This past year, 2011, was the 150th anniversary of the end of the Civil War in the United States. When we think of the Civil War, one of the first things that we think of is slavery. Most of us believe that with the passage of the Emancipation Proclamation in 1862 and the surrender of the South at Appomattox Court House on April 9, 1865, slavery in the United States ended. At least we like to believe that it ended. 1

The reality is that slavery is alive and well and prospering in our world, and in our nation, today. Slavery lives today providing cheap clothing in our malls, cheap vegetables in our grocery stores, domestic servants in our homes, pornographic videos, child prostitution and sex slaves to a nation that is wealthy but all too often wants, what it wants regardless of the cost to other human beings. We deceive ourselves into believing that slavery is a thing of the past because that illusion is more comfortable than reality. The reality is that today, according to the U.S. State Department, somewhere between 4 and 27 million men, women and children are held as slaves worldwide with 800,000 more trafficked across international borders each year. In case we would like to think that it couldnt happen here in the land of the free and the home of the brave, we have become one of the leading destinations, that is, purchasing nations of these illegally trafficked human beings. It is estimated that between 10,000 and 50,000 Asian, Latin American and Eastern European women and children are trafficked into the United States for sexual exploitation each year and if that doesnt scare you, The U.S. Department of Justice estimated that as many as 200,000 U.S. citizens may be trafficked within our own borders each year. Three quarters of those trafficked are female and half are children. Incidentally, 70 percent of all women who are trafficked worldwide are sold into the commercial sex industry so the chances are very good that anyone who purchases pornography will, unintentionally, be providing financial support to the practice of slavery. There is no way that we can pretend that pornography is harmless. Human trafficking is the fastest-growing criminal industry in the world, with the total annual revenue for trafficking in persons estimated to be between USD$5 billion and $9 billion. A report by the US Department of State earlier this year estimated that up to 2 million people are trafficked worldwide every year, with an estimated 15,000 to 18,000 in the U.S. In many cases, prostitutes are forced into servitude by their recruiters to pay back the cost of passage out of their countries. Investigating human trafficking and other civil rights violations has become one of the FBIs top priorities. Modern day slavery is the second largest criminal industry in the world second only to drugs and just ahead of illegal arms smuggling Please dont think that this sort of thing doesnt happen around here because the FBI considers northwestern Ohio to be one of the "top recruiting locations" in the U.S. for underage prostitution (girls as young as 12) Although it is getting better, one reason Ohio is a world leader in human trafficking is because the laws against it in Ohio are weak. A new report conducted by the Trafficking in Persons Study Commission found that 1800 people are trafficked in Ohio every year. This includes 800 immigrants who are exploited in factory work and commercial sex as well as about 1000 American-born children who are forced into prostitution. Listen to the words of Jesus as he read the scroll from Isaiah in the synagogue in his hometown of Nazareth (Luke 4:14-21).
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"The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, 19 to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor."

Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him, 21and he began by saying to them, "Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing." Because Jesus asks his followers to do the things that he did and to take responsibility for his ministry until his return to earth, we too are called to release the oppressed. For Luke (Acts 7:18-20), oppressed people are forced to do things against their will. In Deuteronomy, oppression is associated with robbery, in Judges with affliction, cruelty and distress. As the prophet Samuel was retiring and preparing for the end of his life, he asked the people if he had done wrong to anyone (1 Samuel 12:3-5)
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Here I stand. Testify against me in the presence of the LORD and his anointed. Whose ox have I taken? Whose donkey have I taken? Whom have I cheated? Whom have I oppressed? From whose hand have I accepted a bribe to make me shut my eyes? If I have done any of these, I will make it right." 4 "You have not cheated or oppressed us," they replied. "You have not taken anything from anyone's hand." In the mind of the people, oppression was equated with theft, cheating and other illegal activity that, in some way, takes something of value away from another. In Proverbs 15:15, Solomon says that,
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All the days of the oppressed are wretched.

But the people of God have a different calling. In Isaiah 1:17 God calls his people to learn to do right! Seek justice, encourage the oppressed. Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow. As followers of Jesus and members of the Body of Christ, every one of us is called to combat oppression in every form whether it is spousal abuse, child abuse, child labor, slavery, sweat shops, forced prostitution, human trafficking or any other form of oppression where men, women and children have their rights, their happiness and their lives stolen from them or justice denied them. We are called to speak out and to advocate for those who dont have a voice in our society or in our legal system. One hundred and fifty years ago our nation fought a great Civil War in order to secure freedom for the slaves and the churchs voice was heard speaking out against slavery. Less than a hundred years ago, women were denied the right to vote and many church leaders spoke out against that injustice. A generation ago, persons of color were deprived of their basic human rights the church played a key role in that fight as well. Today we see the rise of other groups who are denied justice under our system of law and government. Regardless of our opinion or political position on illegal aliens or undocumented workers, it is our moral obligation and our Christian duty to see that no human being is bought or sold, denied their freedom, deprived of their rights, or denied protection under our system of justice. Many people are not able to speak for themselves, but the body of Christ can. The laws in Ohio may not be sufficient to protect persons who are being violated by human traffickers, but the voices of the people of God can be heard in Columbus and we can help to prevent such terrible abuses from happening in the future. The shocking reality is that the lives we protect, just might be our neighbors, our children and our grandchildren.
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Doing something about human trafficking is not a job for the faint of heart, but neither is it a job for just a few. It is a job that requires the effort and the vigilance of every single member of the body of Christ. As I read the stories of the victims of human trafficking, it was disheartening to hear how often these victims had the chance to be discovered but were not, simply because good people failed to take any action whatsoever. One woman received treatment by EMTs in full view of a crowd in a turnpike restaurant but neither the medical technicians nor anyone in the crowd thought to report the scars and bruises that were apparent around her neck, wrists and ankles. After her treatment she was taken back to the car by her abductor, handcuffed and thrown in the trunk while being watched by a well-dressed couple driving a Cadillac. No one called the police. Because human trafficking and many other modern forms of oppression are hidden, we cannot rely upon the local police or other law enforcement agencies to rescue those in need all by themselves. A watchful and informed public, including the Body of Christ, can accomplish what the police may not. Our legislators in Columbus and in Washington will not understand the urgency to strengthen laws against human trafficking if only a few voices are heard. This is a job that will require the courage to take action. We cannot watch as others are abused but we must pick up a phone and alert the authorities when we see other human beings robbed of their rights. Take a chance to call 911 to report something suspicious, or call Childrens Services because of the condition of your neighbors children, or report a relative for spousal abuse. Christs call is not to worry about getting involved, but to take action and to do the work of Jesus Christ. Combatting this evil will take constant vigilance and commitment because it is often hidden and it is not a problem that is going to go away. The people of God are called to be an army, working together to rescue those who have had their rights, their happiness and their lives stolen from them or justice denied them. The fight against slavery and injustice needs champions. This fight needs the Body of Christ more than ever. Will you answer the call? Will you be a champion for the oppressed?

You have been reading a message presented at Trinity United Methodist Church on the date noted at the top of the first page. Rev. John Partridge is the pastor at Trinity of Perry heights in Massillon, Ohio. Duplication of this message is a part of our Media ministry, if you have received a blessing in this way, we would love to hear from you. Letters and donations in support of the Media ministry or any of our other projects may be sent to Trinity United Methodist Church, 3757 Lincoln Way E., Massillon, Ohio 44646. These messages are available to any interested persons regardless of membership. You may subscribe to these messages, in print or electronic formats, by writing to the address noted, or by contacting us at subscribe@trinityperryheights.org. If you have questions, you can ask them in our discussion forum on Facebook (search for Pastor John Online). These messages can also be found online at http://www.scribd.com/Pastor John Partridge. All Scripture references are from the New International Version unless otherwise noted.