Justice Ministry is a ministry of First Church
Raising awareness, educating, sharing resources and information, and actively addressing core issues of injustice and inequality in our community and beyond.
Learn to do good. Seek justice: help the oppressed;
defend the orphan; plead for the widow.
Isaiah 1:17 CEB
First adopted by the 1972 General Conference, the Social Principles document stands in the Wesleyan tradition of forthright moral witness and ethical action.
During an eight year timeframe, Church and Society managed a global process to revise the Social Principles in their entirety (2012 – 2020). The momentous effort was adopted by General Conference Charlotte, 2024.
The Social Principles as adopted by General Conference Charlotte, 2024, will officially take effect January 1, 2025. Cokesbury, the United Methodist publishing house will print the updated, official UMC Social Principles booklet in 2025.
The Justice Ministry Team suggests
the following resources to learn more about this
important justice issue and how you can help.

First Church is a member of Reconciling Ministries Network.
Reconciling Ministries Network is committed to intersectional justice across and beyond the United Methodist connection, working for the full participation of all LGBTQ+ people throughout the life and leadership of the Church.
Justice Matters is a collaboration of 21 religious organizations that have joined together in order to research viable solutions to systemic situations that exist in the city. Members of First Church participate as Justice Network Members (JNM), who agree to work alongside clergy in building a powerful justice ministry within the congregation that promotes love, hope, promise, and abundance and extends into the life of the local community.
Join us as we celebrate our work and invest in our future!
During the last week of April, thousands of justice-craving volunteers — many of them affiliated with Great Plains Conference United Methodist churches — gathered in churches, college campuses and hotel ballrooms across Kansas and Nebraska in an effort to make their communities better places during Nehemiah Assemblies. ….
LAWRENCE — After celebrating advancements in the eldercare workforce and working toward ending chronic homelessness, Justice Matters turned its attention to better care for young, expectant mothers during its Nehemiah Action Assembly on April 26. …..






