All people are made in the image of God. So treating them with the dignity they deserve should always be high on leaders’ minds (and all our minds). Elevating a culture that honors that intrinsic human value is an endeavor worth praying and sweating for.

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At least that’s what I think. I suspect you do, too. So even in the midst of discouraging developments in Washington that undermine a culture of life, I took heart this week when I saw a ray of bipartisan sunshine for a good and just cause.

U.S. Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.) and Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) started off March on a strong note when they introduced a resolution calling for the establishment of a Senate Human Rights Commission. According to the legislation, this new commission would be a bipartisan forum to discuss and promote  international principles honoring human dignity.

Coons and Tillis already chair a human rights caucus, but a commission is a significant step up. It actually would receive financial resources from the Senate to hold hearing and briefings. It couldn’t move legislation, but I expect it would produce strong reports — reports that can catalyze and move the needle on efforts in Congress and beyond.

That is one of the benefits of such commissions. They are not the primary standing or select committees of the legislature, but commissions like the Helsinki Commission and the Congressional-Executive Commission on China can be invaluable as places to raise matters that may not otherwise easily come to the forefront. As Senator Coons said in a release announcing the resolution, this bipartisan commission could “provide more resources to advocate for those who suffer from violence, oppression, and wrongful imprisonment, and shine a light on abuses around the world.”

Among those cheering this effort are the Republican and Democrat leaders of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom. Vice Chair Tony Perkins (also president of Family Research Council) applauded Coons and Tillis. He said, “The Senate Human Rights Commission would be an important initiative for institutionalizing the kind of public discourse needed to highlight and find solutions for the most egregious situations facing our times, such as the Uyghurs in China, the Rohingya in Burma, and Christians in Nigeria.”

A commission like this can focus energy and shine a bright light.

Such a step up would also be fitting for the Senate, particularly since the U.S. House of Representatives has had a similar commission for years — one that has stayed true to its roots and principles. The Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission graduated from caucus to commission in 2008, largely in honor of its namesake, the late Congressman Tom Lantos (D-Calif.). Lantos was a Hungarian Jew born in Budapest and later pressed into a forced labor camp by the occupying Nazis. He is the only Holocaust survivor ever to serve in Congress, and — while certainly a very liberal statesman — his leadership pursuing human rights for those in need transcended party lines.

And that is another good that could come from such a commission. It provides a place where legislators can work together for those around the world who need real help. It gives them a natural forum in which to stand together for principles of life and liberty that are at the heart of our republic. These partnerships may not make headlines, but they can build trust and may open the doors for understanding and honest dialogue — even on the matters that stir us the most and where the stakes seem highest.

At least that is my hope.

Would you pray for efforts like this to elevate international human rights? Pray that they won’t be derailed, co-opted by agendas or other matters, or treated only as vain photo-ops. Please pray for leaders who will build bridges of trust and take their work as statesmen seriously, who will stand tall for God-given intrinsic human dignity, and who will (whether they use the term or not) advance a culture of life in this land and beyond.

How will you pray for statesmen who will stand for human life and dignity?

Aaron Mercer is a Contributing Writer with two decades of experience in Washington, D.C.’s public policy arena. He reflects on faith, technology, and the public square at FTPolicy.com. (Photo Credit: Unsplash.)