Kyle Meyaard-Schaap is the new executive director for ASJ-US. He likes to think his role is that of a cheerleader and storyteller. He gets to tell the amazing story of ASJ’s work to people around the world and cheers on all of the dedicated people in the US and Honduras who are making that work happen.
Songs of Justice / A Simple Faith
February 1, 2024
“At its simplest, justice is the way God intended for things to be.”
-Kyle Meyaard-Schaap
Dame una fe sencilla
“Give Me a Simple Faith”
Lyrics by Santiago Benavides
Translation by Julián David Salinas
Excerpt from the song:
Give me a simple faith
That sits at the table of the poor,
That rejoices in gladdening hearts,
And that weeps also with their sorrows.
A faith like that, similar to you.
Simple, just like your coming to earth was,
Just as your peasant stories were,
Just like your home in Palestine was.
Give me a simple faith
That does not give place and space to lie,
That can’t live with injustice,
And doesn’t keep silent about what it knows gives life.
Simple, like your compassionate look,
Like those villages traveled,
Like the love that led you to give your life.
When did your justice journey start?
I admire my older brother a lot. I was 17 years old when he came home from a semester abroad in New Zealand and announced to the family that he was a vegetarian. When he shared why, he connected dots for me that had never been connected for me before between global food production, land rights, environmental destruction, and human exploitation and oppression. He connected the kind of person I wanted to be with the choices that I make every day. It’s a connection that has grown stronger and stronger as I’ve had my own encounters with injustice.
What does justice sound like to you?
To me, justice sounds like a belly laugh. No sound to me better reflects joy, delight, fulfillment, and right relationship than a knee-slapping, eye-watering laugh.
What is your hope for justice in your context?
I live in Grand Rapids, Michigan, a city that is deeply racially segregated. One of the most polluted waterways in Michigan runs behind my backyard. Affordable housing is in short supply.
My hope for justice here is not just that these injustices would be remedied but also that it would be my neighbors and I who do it. I hope that barriers of suspicion and distrust can be dissolved as neighbors build meaningful relationships. I hope that all of us can come to see that injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. I hope that we can all come to see that if our neighbor is oppressed, if our neighbor is poisoned, if our neighbor is unhoused, then so are we all.
Hondurans cast their ballots during the November 30, 2025, general election, which saw historic voter turnout and a peaceful process supported by more than 12,000 national and international election observers working to safeguard transparency.
ASJ-Canada and ASJ-US Congratulate the Honduran People, Call for Full and Transparent Results As sister organizations committed to justice, peace and hope in Honduras, ASJ-Canada and ASJ-US extend our deepest congratulations to the people of Honduras on the peaceful conduct of their national elections on November 30, 2025. With the initial tally showing an extraordinarily close vote, we call on election authorities to do what is necessary to ensure a transparent count of the remaining ballots in order to guarantee public trust in the final outcome. We commend the Honduran voters for their dedication to democratic participation and their commitment to shaping the future of their country through civic engagement. We also recognize the efforts of electoral authorities, civil society organizations, the international community and the thousands of volunteer observers who worked to ensure a transparent, orderly, and secure process. We are especially proud of our sister organization, ASJ-Honduras, for their unwavering commitment to democracy demonstrated through their electoral observation efforts, their analysis activities, and their consistent call for a fair and orderly process. Now that such a process has been achieved, the work turns to counting the votes with accuracy and transparency. The results remain close, increasing the possibility of a contested result. We support the work of the election officials at the National Electoral Council to give Hondurans confidence in the final results by conducting their count with rigor and transparency. We remain hopeful that the spirit of peaceful participation in the democratic process embraced by the electorate will carry forward into the post-election period to come. We look forward to continued collaboration with ASJ-Honduras as we all work together toward a just and hopeful future for all Hondurans. Matthew Van Geest President, Board of Directors ASJ-Canada Russ Jacobs President, Board of Directors ASJ-US
A call to action for Honduras
The Association for a More Justice Society-US Supports the Network to Defend Democracy; Calls for Free and Fair Elections in Honduras November 25, 2025
Honduras’s Institutional Crisis Deepens Ahead of the 2025 Elections
Dear friend, I couldn’t stop looking at the picture. Of course, there had been plenty of inspiring photos from this summer’s Prayer Walk for Peace and Democracy. The sea of blue and white rising and falling as hundreds of thousands walked the Honduran hills through Tegucigalpa, flowing like a never-ending stream. Catholic nuns praying their rosaries alongside Pentecostals dancing in the streets. But the picture that still knocks me flat is the closeup. The one of the two men standing side by side (picture enclosed). They are exhausted, and the shorter collapses into the taller. The tears mostly hold joy and relief, but they are mingled with something darker. After all, there had been threats—promises of harm done to themselves and their loved ones if they led their followers through the streets of Honduras in prayer. Despite the fear and intimidation, Pastor Gerardo Irías and Monsignor José Vicente Nácher forged ahead. They knew Honduras needed unity and, above all, prayer before the looming November 2025 presidential elections. As an ASJ supporter, you know that these kinds of threats aren’t out of the ordinary, and your support has helped slow and reverse violence in Honduras. Today, I am writing to share a way you can continue standing with brave Hondurans like Pastor Gerardo and Monsignor José in hope. The Evangelical pastor and the Catholic archbishop put the word out as widely as they could to their churches, hoping to mobilize 20,000 to walk and pray. Instead, an estimated 230,000 walked in the capital of Tegucigalpa alone. It was a historic moment. And without your past support for ASJ, it may have never happened. After all, two years prior, Pastor Gerardo and Monsignor José didn’t even know each other’s names. They first met in 2023 at ASJ’s offices. They were two of many civil society leaders convened by ASJ to discuss safeguarding democracy– especially before the election in 2025. It was at that meeting that they shook each other’s hand and learned each other’s name. It was at that meeting–and many subsequent meetings–where old religious prejudices began to be replaced by trust and mutual affection. So, when the moment came this summer to act, Pastor Gerardo and Monsignor José knew what they had to do. And they knew that they had to do it together.
Calvin alums turn faith into action through nonprofit
MESSAGE FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Thank You for Moving Forward With Us this Summer!
When Policies Shift, Families Pay the Price * by Jo Ann Van Engen
