Nehemiah Action

So why does CAJM call this big gathering a “Nehemiah Action”?

The book of Nehemiah starts with heartbreak. Nehemiah learns that his city Jerusalem is in ruins. He gathers his courage and stands before King Artaxerxes, not as a helpless exile, but as an advocate.“  If it pleases the king,” he says, “and if your servant has found favor in your sight, I ask that you send me to Judah, to the city of my ancestors’ graves, so that I may rebuild it.” (Nehemiah 2:5) And the king listens. He gives Nehemiah the authority and resources to lead the rebuilding. But when Nehemiah arrives, it’s not enough to have royal approval. He needs the people to rise up and take action. Because Nehemiah understood that justice requires organizing! And what happens next? The people don’t just nod and agree. They commit. “Then they said, ‘Let us start building!’ So they committed themselves to the common good.”  (Nehemiah 2:18)

This is why CAJM calls its work a Nehemiah Action. It’s about gathering as a people of faith, standing before our leaders, and saying: “You see the trouble we are in.” But more than that: “Let us start building.” Because justice requires action. And justice requires all.