'Act justly, Love tenderly, walk humbly with your God'
Micah 6.8
All posts by Stephen Cooke
NW NJPN E Bulletin March 2025
The March issue of the NW NJPN E Bulletin contains a wide range of resources for Lent. In his Message for Lent 2025, Pope Francis invites the faithful to “journey together in hope,” and to use the opportunity of the upcoming Lenten Season to ask ourselves whether we are truly willing to heed God’s call to change our lives.
The Pope’s reflection ties into the broader theme of the Jubilee Year: ‘Pilgrims of Hope.’ Picking up on from this we look at a three-year project to promote walking pilgrimage in England & Wales by developing Pilgrim Ways between the cathedral of each Catholic diocese and one or more shrines within the same diocese and examine the many benefits of pilgrimage.
The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales has issued a new resource which helps Catholics use Scripture and their faith to inspire effective social justice action – we take a detailed look.
Pressing issues are discussed: concern about the UK government’s decision to cut international aid in favour of defence spending in the light of President Trump’s intervention in world affairs, an excellent opinion piece from Ian Linden, and a focus on the ongoing conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine. Regular contributor Heather Kiernan provides first-hand accounts of the impact of these conflicts.
There’s a packed diary of events for March and April and information about upcoming conferences.
I am pleased to send the Spring Mouthpeace. With Easter being so late I have been able to include several suggestions for Lent – some to do in groups, some on your own.
Also there is quite a lot about the Jubilee – reports of the NJPN first two Opening Doors meetings and an article using Pope Francis’s own words plus information about A Day of Reflection at Workington (Lancaster Diocese) on April 5th.
Also information about CAAT celebrating 50 years, the Amos Trust’s webinars with Raja Shehadeh’s latest books and a report on Peace Sunday in Liverpool .
“If we just do the ordinary things well” Sr. Imelda
To all who attended last evening, thank you so much but a special thanks to Sr. Imelda Poole who is working in Albania and to Kevin Hyland whose generosity of time and experience made last night’s event one to remember.
Thank you for your interest in Conference 2025 ‘Towards a Just Peace’.
Once you have read the Conference Details and Terms and Conditions, and are happy to go ahead and book please do one of the of following: –
Save the Word version of the Booking Form to your computer, fill it in, and then email it to admin@justice-and-peace.org.uk, letting us know whether you will be paying by Bank Transfer or Cheque (details on the T’s & C’s document).
If you are able to Gift Aid please contact us directly and we will ask you to fill in a form. If you have attended previous Conferences and your Gift Aid circumstances have changed, please also email admin@justice-and-peace.org.uk.
Please note that we will not be able to offer single night stays, or day visitor places until nearer the time. If you are interested in going onto a waiting list, please email us on the above address.
NW NJPN JUSTICE AND PEACE E BULLETIN FEBRUARY 2025
The February edition of the NW NJPN JUSTICE AND PEACE E-BULLETIN leads with news of the ceasefire in Gaza. We join with Rabbi Hanan Schlesinger’sprayer (page 2) for a true and lasting peace to bring reconciliation, justice and hope for all. A group from Justice and Peace Scotland are currently visiting the Holy Land – you can read their reflections on page 3 and catch up with the next stage of their pilgrimage via their Facebook page. Heather Kiernan has sent an update from the Hands up Project which connects young people from Palestine to the rest of the world by sharing stories, poetry and drama. HUP’s Trustees are keen to recruit more Youth Ambassadors (so far there are only 6) to establish new links with schools in the UK to Gaza and also strengthen existing partnerships – read more on pages 5-7.
On pages 8-9 Ian Linden gives a comprehensive – and fascinating – overview of Russia’s & China’s scramble for Africa. This Friday, 24 January, Catholic Schools are joining together to celebrate the 2025 Jubilee Year of Hope Launch Day for Schools, as children and young people embark on a journey as “pilgrims of hope” (report on page 9). On page 10 Ellen Teague of The Columbans describes 3 “Jubilee” years that she has prepared for and reminds readers that the deadline for the current Columban competition, “Jubilee: Pilgrims of Hope,” for 13-18 year olds closes in three weeks’ time, on 7 February.
There are links to the most recent podcasts in Theresa Alessandro’s series All Kinds of Catholic (page 11) which cover a broad range of topics. Christian Aid warns of the cost of climate change, both financially and to the planet. A Rocha UK is supporting the Climate and Nature (CAN) Bill as it progresses through Parliament and nears a crucial stage, its second reading, on Friday 24 January – do please urge your MP to add their backing – follow the links on page 12.
Finally, page 13 has a very full diary of local, regional and national events. Don’t forget to send news from your area for the next issue.
NJPN: Opening the Doors to Freedom from Human Trafficking
The first NJPN event of this Jubilee Year will take place on Thursday February 6th from 7pm – 8.30pm
The evening will be facilitated by Brian O’ Toole, who is a member of the National Justice and Peace Network (NJPN) Executive, (APT Ireland) and the Religious in Europe Networking Against Trafficking in Europe (RENATE) and Talitha Kum.
At this event you will learn a little more about the insidious issue of Human Trafficking and Modern Slavery in the UK and importantly what we can do as “Pilgrims of Hope” during this Jubilee Year to help victims of Human Trafficking as we shine a light on this important issue.
Archbishop Malcolm will be celebrating the Mass at 11am and following this there will be light refreshments. Gee Walker’s talk will begin at 1:15pm. If you wish to attend this talk, please could you sign up using the link above. Thank you. If you have any difficulties doing that, or need any further information, please let me know.
To start off the New Year we’re shining a spotlight on some of the dreamers and thinkers who feature regularly in these bulletins with reflections to challenge and inspire us: Rev’d Jon Swales, David Gee, Jenny Sinclair, Jon Kuhrt and Ian Linden. There is information about the 2025 Jubilee Year ‘Pilgrims of Hope’ which runs from December 26, 2024 to the feast of the Epiphany in 2026 plus a wealth of resources from Pax Christi to help us celebrate Peace Sunday on 19 January. The diary for January is already looking full – do please send notices of events in early Spring for the next bulletin.
Wishing all our readers every blessing for the New Year.
