'Act justly, Love tenderly, walk humbly with your God'
Micah 6.8
All posts by Stephen Cooke
September NW NJPN E BULLETIN
The September NW NJPN E BULLETIN leads with the cost of living crisis which threatens to plunge many people into poverty and despair. It’s still uncertain who will be the next Prime Minister but we can only hope that adequate support will be made available for all those who struggle to make ends meet. The other key area of concern is the climate crisis. The recent catastrophic floods in Pakistan are proof that the greenhouse effect needs addressing urgently.
World news includes a statement from Pax Christi International condemning the recent raid on Palestinian human rights offices and the destruction of St Andrew’s Church in Ramallah by Israeli forces, concerns for the safety of children returning to school in the Holy Land, a damning report of human rights violations in China against the Uyghur Muslims and other ethnic minority groups, and a challenging opinion piece by writer and broadcaster Elaine Storkey. There’s a packed diary for the autumn, book and film reviews and news of a beautiful waterfall tapestry created by women who have suffered violence as part of the Women in Black support network.
Finally, a request from me for help. A reader has contacted me with the following suggestion:
“It seems to me that climate change is by far the greatest threat to human life in all the years human beings have walked this planet. We have reached the point where nothing else matters. Would it be possible to begin each bulletin with a section called Climate Monitor listing the latest developments (and in the case of the Church hierarchy the continuing absence of any significant action) in the struggle to avert climate catastrophe.”
If anyone has suggestions for this and/or can provide up to the minute info I’d be very grateful.
Another reader has welcomed the regular updates on the cost of living crisis. Do please continue to send feedback.
I am sending out the Autumn Mouthpeace in time for the Season of Creation. I have heard we will have an early Autumn this year because of the dry Summer and leaves are certainly turning yellow on some of the trees here.
Thank you to those who sent in positive contributions – things you have done or plan to do. It is such a change from the media news and good to know that J & P work is going on although sometimes under a different name.
Good reading and please pass it round to others who may like it.
The Mid August edition of the NW NJPN E Bulletin leads with the current cost of living crisis with reports from journalist Ellen Teague and Paul Morrison, policy advisor for the Joint Public Issues Team. There’s an urgent action request from the Balfour Project charity to halt plans by the Israeli authorities to construct a new illegal settlement in East Jerusalem. We celebrate the life of Japanese designer Issey Miyake who survived the Hiroshima bomb and reprint an opinion piece he wrote for the New York Times in 2009. Also featured is artist Raymond Briggs who died recently. Perhaps most well-known for the Christmas classic The Snowman, Briggswas also creator of the haunting parable about nuclear apocalypse – When the Wind Blows. Trevor Phillips, chairman of Index on Censorship, which campaigns for free expression, questions the decision by some University departments to ‘shield’ students from books which may cause offence. Upcoming events in the Justice and Peace calendar include Creation Time, Days of Nonviolence and Prisons Week with a wealth of resources suggested.
An urgent action has come to our attention from Sir Vincent Fean, Vice-Chair of the Balfour Project.
Sir Vincent writes: – Illegal Israeli settlements are by far the biggest threat to Palestinian rights – their rights to their land, to their livelihoods, to self-determination – including the right to sovereign statehood. The Israeli authorities are advancing plans to build a new illegal settlement in an area known as E1. If built, it will complete the encirclement of East Jerusalem, dividing it from the rest of the West Bank. It will split the northern West Bank cities – Nablus, Jenin etc – from Hebron, Bethlehem and Jericho. It will kill any prospect of a joined-up Palestinian state. That’s why the Balfour Project charity asks you to take action.
Our Government has long regarded E1 as a “red line” which Israel must not cross – but has never said what it will do if Israel persists.
The deadline for action is 12 September, when Israel’s West Bank Planning Committee is due to finalise its work and endorse the planned construction of E1. Israel’s Prime Minister can prevent this. Our Government must prevail on him to stop it.
Please consider writing now to your MP.
With kind regards,
Vincent Fean
Vice-Chair, Balfour Project
Action of the Week
Write to your MP asking them to oppose the E1 plans, well before the Planning Committee meeting taking place on the 12th September.
(all you need to do is put in your postcode, which will bring up your MP, and then input your details – it takes less than a minute to do).
Thank you to everyone who supports this very important initiative.
Note on Data Protection
Your email address is stored with MailChimp only to allow us to send you these emails, and to track interactions (e.g. open rates). To read more about how MailChimp stores and uses your information, click here for the full MailChimp Privacy Policy. Sections referring to Distribution Lists concern your emails.
No sensitive data (such as credit card details) is given to MailChimp because we do not have an e-commerce element.
You can unsubscribe or update your preferences at any time by clicking the links at the bottom of the page.
Follow us on Twitter: @NJandPNetwork
Follow us on Facebook: National Justice and Peace Network
About these E-BULLETINS
The items above are emails received from around the Network which may be of interest to those involved in working for justice and peace.
The views expressed are not necessarily those of NJPN.
To unsubscribe from these mailings, email ebulletin@justice-and-peace.org with “unsubscribe” in the subject box. We also welcome your feedback at the same address.
Forwarding these emails: Please feel free to forward these emails on to your contacts – but please remember to tell them to contact YOU if they want to unsubscribe!
Urgent Actions:
We sometimes receive emails that need immediate action and cannot wait for the weekly bulletin. To receive these items email the same address with “urgent actions” in the subject box.
If you appreciate these bulletins, help to keep them coming by donating to NJPN:
Send cheques payable to NJPN to: NJPN, 39 Eccleston Square, London SW1V 1BX.
(NJPN is a registered charity no: 1114947 Company no: 5036866) If you shop online, you can support us at no extra cost to yourself by signing up with easyfundraising.org.uk, where lots of companies will make a donation to us when you shop online with them.
The August issue of the NW NJPN E Bulletin celebrates the life of two dedicated North West activist who died recently. Patrick Darnes was a dedicated campaigner for justice and equality for the Palestinian people and Tony McNicholl was a former Justice and Peace worker for the Diocese of Wrexham. We honour the legacyof Civil rights campaigner Roy Hackett, one of the organisers of the Bristol Bus Boycott whose actions helped pave the way for the Race Relations Acts of 1965 and 1968, and also the actress Nichelle Nichols who broke the barriers for Black women starring as Lt Uhura on the original Star Trek TV Show and who shared one of the first multi-racial screen kisses with William Shatner’s Captain Kirk. The England football team’s resounding success in Euro 2022 will hopefully break down barriers in sport although there are concerns that the government is lagging behind in promoting equality for girls in school sports provision. There are reports on UK poverty, climate change, current events and some hard-hitting articles about the situation in Palestine plus a topical personal report from a US Sister who works with transgender people. Finally, read a poem on refugees by Brian Bilston and then read it again!
I’ve just received this request from Maria in Wrexham diocese re the late Tony McNicholl.
Maria says, “I wonder if you could add this to the piece? It’s a website with a tribute to Tony and a link to being able to donate to the charity for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.”
If you want to go fast, go alone.
If you want to go far, go together.
(African Proverb)
Dear Friends,
It looks like it’s going to be a shorter e-Bulletin this week. Often these days, I find time just seems to run away with me, and that has indeed happened this weekend. I think this time I’ll just chalk it up to old age!
The news since our last e-Bulletin has been completely covered with
the Conservative Leadership race, and a lot of the campaign promises from both Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss seem to show a certain
disregard for the marginalised people of our society. On top of that,
with the extensive leadership race coverage, it is obviously drowning
out the voices of those who truly need to be heard.
Now, I couldn’t write my editor’s note without saying a big thank you
to everyone involved in the NJPN Annual Conference that took place between the 22nd and 24th July. Like last year it was a wonderful and enlightening weekend, filled with insight and education. For those who didn’t come this year, I hope to see you next year (or at any one of our upcoming meetings!). It is so encouraging to see the huge amount of people who really do want to make a difference.
I was listening to the Gospel reading today, and in the Gospel according to Luke, Jesus explained to his disciples that it was best to
be ready and waiting when the Master arrives. Perhaps Jesus was
talking about the Day of Reckoning, or perhaps our own deaths.
Regardless of whether or not you are a Christian, I think these words could still apply. Now more than ever, we are aware that we have to try and leave the planet in a better state than how we found it.
Off the back of our Conference, I have a few related bits and pieces in this week’s e-Bulletin, but also I have tried to add in a bit of variety
here and there as well.
The next edition will be out around the first weekend in September. If you have anything you want included please send it through.
Enjoy the rest of your summer,
Sharon
Footnote: – it was actually my son, Michael, that wrote this editorial – he offered, and I agreed – hence the old age comment in the first paragraph!
NJPN Conference 2022: ‘Let us build the City of God’
NJPN Conference 2022: ‘Let us build the City of God’
Media Release
24 July 2022
‘Let us build the city of God’ by Dan Shutte was the final hymn of the 2022 annual weekend conference of the National Justice and Peace Network (NJPN) on Sunday. It summed up a morning highlighting the work of NJPN members to build a more just, peaceful and sustainable world. And some of the 160 participants at NJPN’s 44th conference 22-24 July in Derbyshire were dancing to the hymn at a gathering which took the theme, ‘Hope is a verb with its sleeves rolled up.”
Sunday morning was the final session chaired by Tim Livesey, CEO of Embrace the Middle East, which works with marginalised and excluded communities. It was uplifting, focusing on ‘Signs of Hope’ and introduced with, “four members will inform us what it means for hope to be a verb.”
Aisling Griffin, Schools and Youth Worker Pax Christi, reported that, “injustice, peace, fairness and climate change are among the issues important for young people” and “teachers find young people more interested in social justice than ever before.” She said young people want practical ideas and she was “fortunate” to work on peace education with networks such as the Columban Education programme, CAFOD, Christian Student Movement, Young Christian Climate Network, Interfaith Youth Network and Teach for the Future. The Million Minutes Awards recognise young people putting Catholic Social Teaching into action, and she applauded the young people who received awards at the Westminster parliament three weeks ago. “Young people want to put their faith into action; they are involved in and leading social action; they are the hope for the present as well as the future of the Church.”
Ann Farr, Pax Christi’s Chair, reported on solidarity work in the Middle East. She has worked with Palestinians and Israelis as an ecumenical accompanier. Ann reported that Palestinians see hope in the replanting of olive trees destroyed by settlers seeking to claim Palestinian land. They plant new trees and are supported by the international community donating trees. Ann pointed to the L’arche project in Bethlehem, where disabled people are treated with respect, and the work of Comboni Sisters with the Jahalin Bedouin who have lost their ancestral homes and their traditional way of life but still manage to produce a ‘HOPE’ mural on the wall of a school. Pax Christi partners, the Arab Educational Institute and Wiam, were mentioned, who work everyday with people experiencing violence. “They create spaces of encouragement and it is essential we support activities in the West Bank,” she said. She urged the international community to bring hope by challenging systems in the Middle East which cause injustice. A Pax Christ prayer card was handed out.
Martin Birdseye of Christian CND talked of “many years working to end nuclear weapons,” and lamented that there remain about 13,000 weapons around the world. He talked of work towards the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, which 122 nations have signed. “We have an important role – as citizens of one of the nuclear weapons states – to get our government to sign up to the Treaty” he said. He urged participants to get their home areas to produce local resolutions, as Manchester has done. “We need to get on with abolishing nuclear weapons,” he added, “and this will bring an active hope.”
John Paul de Quay of Journey to 2020 and the NJPN Environment Working Group talked of the focus on “ecological conversion” inspired by ‘Laudato Si’ and the call of Pope Francis in ‘Let Us Dream’. He said Journey to 2030, “is about reimagination and we need creative interventions.” The conference was invited to form groups to produce artwork on hopeful pathways for the future and ideas they came up with included gardens, wildflower meadows, education to recognise the interconnectedness of issues, good public transport and green buildings. “Everyone should have the opportunity to share real wealth and to thrive,” said one feedback.
Ashley Ralston of the NJPN Environment Group introduced campaigning recommendations in the lead up to November’s COP27 UN Climate talks in Egypt. The UK will be urged to fulfil pledges made in Glasgow last November on reducing carbon emissions and phase out fossil fuels. Forests, oceans and biodiversity need better protection from pollution and large-scale extractive industries. “It is very important that Churches speak up and hold the UK government to account for delivering and building on COP26 commitments at COP27,” suggested Ashley and “this is a key chance to avoid catastrophic climate change.”
Keynote speakers throughout the weekend explored the conference theme of ‘Hope’. Irish diplomat Philip McDonagh explored the meaning of hope, drawing on Pope Benedict’s encyclical Spe Salvi, especially the statement that “all serious and upright conduct is hope in action.” He felt “we should ‘image’ or visualise peace as the rightful possession of the human community as a whole,” despite current global conflicts. He felt that, “through developing a culture of dialogue or encounter in national, regional, and global politics we can transform our understanding of effective action and create the conditions for a different kind of civilisation.” He felt, “the National Peace and Justice Network is living proof that individual interventions in the name of justice and mercy reinforce one another and can support wider social objectives as well.” He pointed to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as already providing a common plan for humanity and called for consultative processes to include representatives of religion to underpin their implementation. “In this moment of fractured politics and dissolving ethics, renewed attention to religion as a source of unity is a bold and much-needed initiative,” he suggested.
Rev Dr Patrick Devine SMA spoke of his peacebuilding work in East Africa as
chairman of the Shalom Center for Conflict Resolution and Reconciliation. Shalom seeks to identify, understand and address the underlying causes of conflict rather than just address the symptoms. Fr Devine spoke of dramatic, life-changing results in the areas of conflict transformation, peace education and poverty alleviation. Shalom researches root causes of inter-ethnic conflicts, trains local peace-builders, organises workshops to facilitate resolution and reconciliation processes between factions, and develops inter-ethnic and inter-religious schools. “Theory without practice is empty and practice without theory is blind,” he said.
‘Getting beyond Optimism to Hope: demonstrating or building the Kingdom in the world of politics,’ was the title of a presentation by Andy Flanagan of Christians in Politics and a singer-songwriter. He spoke of leading parliamentarians in singing about integrity, truth and justice at a parliamentary prayer breakfast in early July and a spate of government ministerial resignations which took place hours later! Christians believe that, “integrity in leadership is really important.” A firm believer in tackling the causes of injustice, he praised NJPN for its campaigning work over the years to promote justice and compassion. His music provided the Saturday evening entertainment.
Liturgies were organised by the Lay Community of St Benedict and both Catholic and ecumenical worship was offered. Conference planning partners included ACTA, Christians Aware, Joint Public Issues Team, and Stella Maris. Rev Ruth Gee, a Methodist pastor and patron of NJPN who led a service on Saturday afternoon, spoke of, “being united by concern and passion for justice and peace and by a shared faith.”
Workshops included issues of domestic poverty and universal credit, Salford’s ‘Guardians of Creation’ project, restoring dignity to prisoners and their families, Church Action for Tax Justice and Interfaith work on Justice and Peace. A preview of the film, ‘Finite: The Science of Climate Change’, which looks at non-violent direct action in Germany and UK to protect ancient forests from coal mines, attracted an audience of 60.
A Just Fair hosted 25 stalls, including Together for the Common Good, Green Christian, Christian Climate Action, Columbans, Missio, World Community for Christian Meditation, Fairtrade, Palestinian Goods and Global Justice Now. Food at the conference was guided by LOAF principles (Local, Organic, Animal Friendly, Fairly Traded). Participants left with plenty of ideas and inspiration.
All talks from NJPN Conference 2022, ‘Hope is a verb with its sleeves rolled up’
