The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s Rubén Ortiz is one of more than 20 Latino religious leaders behind a new campaign urging Latin American Christians to actively oppose corruption in church, government and society.
“Integrity that Transforms: Churches Against Corruption” was launched earlier this month to mobilize congregations and clergy to help restore trust in business, government and society by living lives rooted in integrity and transparency.
CBF Latino Ministries’ support for the project stemmed from observing the connection between corruption and migration across the continent, said Ortiz, Latino field ministries coordinator for the Fellowship.
Ruben Ortiz (Photo/Dede Smith)
“We decided to join this campaign because we believe corruption erodes trust and disproportionately harms Latino communities,” he said. “And we carry this with us wherever we go. But we also see, with concern, how corruption threatens to collapse the accountability systems we have historically trusted right here in the United States.”
The timing of the campaign coincided with the United Nation’s “International Anti-Corruption Day” observance Dec. 9.
“Corruption and the lack of transparency and public integrity are deeply rooted in our societies. The vast majority of Latin American countries suffer from systemic corruption, as demonstrated by empirical evidence,” Ortiz and other faith and ministry leaders said in announcing the initiative.
Graft, abuse of power and negligence across institutions have contributed to the systemic poverty, violence, inequality and despair plaguing many Central, South American and Caribbean nations, the leaders added. “The poorest and most vulnerable are its worst victims. For children and young people, corruption ‘steals their future.’ Systemic corruption leads them to believe that efforts and merit do not matter — that only money and influence count — leaving them with fewer opportunities to escape poverty and pushing them toward cynicism and disillusionment with civic life.”
The church must lead the way in addressing social ills by teaching and living the principles of justice, public honesty and transparency, and especially by communicating the same values to children and youth, according to the statement.
People of faith also are called to expose injustice at all levels of business, church, government and society by “raising a prophetic voice against abuses of power, favoritism, impunity, and all forms of corruption, without fear or partiality.”
But the effort must start with congregations and their leaders living those values themselves, the leaders said. “An upright church is testimony to the power of the Lord and a source of moral and social transformation for all Latin America. For this reason, we invite churches, pastors, Christian leaders, youth movements, and faith-based organizations to join actively in this commitment to public integrity and transparency.”
Other backers of the campaign include:
- Harold Segura, director of faith and development for World Vision, Latin America and the Caribbean
- Rolando Pérez, Fraternidad Paz y Esperanza
- Luis Estevez, Alianza Cristiana y Misionera
- Loida Carriel Espinoza, Tearfund
- Benjamin Bravo Guerrero, Iglesia Evangélica Peruana
- José Vinces, Fraternidad Paz y Esperanza
- Mayra Soria Escobar, Red Ecuatoriana de Fe
- Carlos Hernandez, Asociación para una sociedad más Justa -ASJ. Honduras
- Irma Espinoza, Iglesia Cristiana Vida en Cristo.
- Nina Balmaceda, Iniciativa de las Américas para la Transformación y la Reconciliación
- Anna-Maria Jonsson, INTERACT
- Roberto Laver, FIDES
- Arthur Nascimento, Projeto Fé Cidadã
- Darío Andrés López Rodriguez, Iglesia de Dios del Perú
- Jorge Arboccó Gallardo, Paz y Esperanza
- Daniel Oliva, Sociedades Biblicas Unidas en Ecuador
- Miguel Toscano, Observatorio Cristiano por la Transparencia la Integridady la Justicia OCTIJ
- Angélica Camargo, Fepas — Federação da Entidades e Projetos Assistenciais da Cibi.
- María Alejandra Andrade Vinueza, Tearfund
- Nelson Elias Ayllon Flores, CONEP
- Lisbeth Souza, Movimiento con la niñez y la juventud