The refugee crisis, described as the worst since World War II, has resulted in more than 4.8 million Syrians being registered as refugees by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Another 6.6 million Syrians have fled their homes to other parts of their country because of the violence, according to the U.N.
And worldwide there are 19.5 million refugees, more than 50 percent of which are children, according to UNHCR.
The numbers are staggering, and no one organization can handle the enormous task of helping and ministering to this group. That’s why UNHCR is working to bring awareness to the refugee crisis through the annual World Refugee Day on June 20.
“On World Refugee Day … we commemorate the strength, courage and perseverance of millions of refugees,” UNHCR says.
One way to increase awareness is through the #WithRefugees petition that calls on governments around the world to “do their fair share” for refugees.
“Now is the time to show world leaders that the global public stands #WithRefugees,” according to UNHCR.
The petition — which advocates education, safe living arrangements and work opportunities — will be delivered to the UN headquarters for its general assembly Sept. 19.
According to the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC), Southern Baptists have a long history of refugee care such as during the refugee crisis following World War II. Then the Southern Baptist Convention urged Congress to pass legislation which eventually opened the doors for 400,000 refugees to be resettled in the United States.
ERLC President Russell Moore has said of refugees, “The lives of these many refugees fleeing the most brutal kinds of religious and ethnic persecution and oppression matter to our God, and so they should matter to us as well.”
For more information about World Refugee Day or the #WithRefugees campaign, visit unhcr.org/refugeeday.
(TAB, BP)
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