Pastors Call on Lee, Lawmakers to Embrace a "Moral Agenda" in 2024

Advocates call for justice and inclusion ahead of legislative session

As the 2024 session of the Tennessee General Assembly was gaveled in today, a group of Tennessee pastors affiliated with the Southern Christian Coalition called on Gov. Bill Lee and the state's lawmakers to embrace what they called a "moral agenda."

The group said that in recent years, the legislature has focused more on power than on love.

Rev. Dr. Kevin Riggs of Franklin Community Church in Franklin, TN said, "What we have seen over the past few years is a Supermajority Legislature that abounded more in power but failed in love. We are asking today for a moral agenda. A moral agenda strives to love your neighbor as yourself. A moral agenda seeks the common good and not just the good of a select few."

Riggs said it was wrong to expel lawmakers for speaking up for Tennesseans and pointed the wisdom of bipartisan solutions.

"A moral vision clearly sees the wisdom of working across the aisle, soliciting everyone’s input and opinion, regardless of their political affiliation. An immoral vision quiets dissenters and expels members for speaking up for the people of Tennessee!"

Rev. Rick Roberts, Pastor of St. John's Lutheran Church in Donelson, said, "We are calling for the moral treatment of children under the care of our beloved state. This means that Governor Lee and his appointed leaders need to clean up their act and actually prioritize the care of children, and that's why we are standing here today, asking for Tennesseans across the state to join us in calling for the same."

The group said Gov. Lee's proposal to expand his school voucher program poses dangers for communities and for children.

Rev. Matt Steinhauer, one of the Interim Pastors of St. Andrew's Lutheran Church in Franklin, said, "Our teachers here in Tennessee work hard to provide every child a life and skill-forming quality education, yet Governor Lee is determined to get in the way by denying adequate funding, supporting distractions such as banning books, and now working to pass his harmful voucher scheme that would take funds meant for our public schools and instead give them to private schools."

Tennessee pastors gathered on the opening day of legislative sessionPhoto bySouthern Christian Coalition