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hotline 48 CHURCH AND SOCIETY NETWORK HOTLINE 4820 December 2005
With our good wishes for a happy and peace-filled Christmas and New Year
ANTI-TERRORIST LEGISLATION
The URC has welcomed a decision by the Home Office, to drop provisions from proposed anti-terrorist legislation, which would have allowed the police to apply for places of worship to be closed if they felt that ‘extremist behaviour’ was taking place on the premises. In an earlier submission on the proposal, the Church had said that is was particularly sensitive to any suggestion that freedom to worship might be curtailed, because of the history of persecution of the URC’s predecessor denominations. Christian and Muslim communities were generally critical of the proposal, as were the police.
Click here to see the full submission.
‘WHAT CAN I DO?’ A new edition of a guide to volunteering opportunities within criminal justice has been produced in a brighter and more easily accessible format. ‘What Can I Do?’ comes from the Churches’ Criminal Justice Forum and the Prison Advice and Care Trust and covers youth justice, prison visiting, work with victims of crime, and many other national and local options. The authors say they want to see faith groups taking a lead in fostering a culture of shared community responsibility for addressing criminal behaviour and its underlying causes, and volunteering is the clearest demonstration of a willingness to do that. ‘What Can I Do?’ is accessible at www.whatcanIdo.org.uk. Papers copies are available free from Pact, Suite C5, City Cloisters, 196 Old Street, London EC1V 9FR.
STAMP OUT POVERTY
The Stamp Out Poverty campaign originated as the Tobin Tax Network, and is a coalition of organisations, of which the United Reformed Church and FURY are two. The campaign seeks to rectify the shortfall in finance devoted to Millennium Development Goals. It has pushed for the introduction of a currency transaction tax (CTT) which would be half of a basis point (0.005%) on currency transactions. The proceeds would be ring- fenced, and used specifically to help fund the Millennium Development Goals. Stamp Out Poverty has had high-level talks with HM Treasury, and has released a report containing comprehensive answers to the Treasury’s technical challenges. This means the major stumbling block is no longer feasibility, but political will. In financial terms, the duty would constitute 1p. in every £2000, yet could raise annually, somewhere in the region of £1.77 billion. Stamp Out Poverty has recently widened its remit to campaign for other innovative sources of finance; most commonly talked about is an Air Ticket Levy. More details from www.tobintax.org.uk
CHURCH INVOLVEMENT IN
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT The URC was represented at a consultation event, held on an electric barge moored on the Grand Union Canal in London, by a government initiative that seeks to support and encourage community action, in putting sustainable development into practice. The aim of Community Action 2020, a programme of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, is to provide practical advice, training and access to funds, to assist existing projects in undertaking sustainable activities in specific areas.
See www.sustainable-development.gov.uk for more information. Advice on how local churches can become involved in sustainable activities is available from the Rev. Peter Southcombe, Regeneration Development Officer for Southern Synod at hitc@btconnect.com
UNITED REFORMED CHURCH
PEACE FELLOWSHIP The text of Roberta Rominger’s address to the Peace Fellowship Conference on 26 November 2005 is now available.
POVERTY ACTION SUNDAY - 26 FEBRUARY 2006
‘Stories that need to be heard’ However affluent this country becomes, one group or another is always left out. Poverty still affects many people from different communities and walks of life. On Poverty Action Sunday 2006, you are invited to listen to the stories of people seeking asylum, to reflect on our response as Christians and to celebrate our common humanity. Resources include: Worship Resource Pack (£1.00); Worship Resource Pack plus CD with video clips, powerpoint presentation and additional resources (£2.50); Living Ghosts campaign postcards (free); collecting envelopes (free). Order from: Church Action on Poverty, Central Buildings, Oldham Street, Manchester M1 1JQ; phone: 0161 236 9321 (cheques payable ‘Church Action on Poverty’). The worship resources will also be available to download from www.church-poverty.org.uk
EXHIBITION: RESISTING TYRANNY - CELEBRATING DIETRICH BONHOEFFER
WHAT DO YOU EXPECT AT
MY AGE?- Listening to the pastoral needs of older people Day Seminar, Wednesday 1 March at the Leveson Centre for the Study of Ageing, Spirituality and Social Policy, Temple Balsall, Knowle, Solihull B93 0AL; led by the Director of the Centre, Dr James Woodward. Booking essential. For further information, to book online or download a booking form, go to www.levensoncentre.org.uk (select ‘events’ from menu on the front page) or ring the Centre Administrator on 01564 778022.
CHURCH AND SOCIETY
CALENDAR 27 January 2006 Holocaust Memorial Day
www.holocaustmemorialday.gov.uk 29 January 2006
Homelessness Sunday 29 January 2006 World Leprosy Day www.leprosymission.org.uk/html/world.html
The full calendar for 2006 is on our newly-designed (and imaginatively illustrated!) Church and Society Calandar
WEEKEND OF SERVICES FOR PEACE AND DISARMAMENT - 27-29 January 2006
Apologies that the information in Hotline 47 gave an incomplete address for ordering the resource pack. The correct details are: Peace Services, WDC, PO Box 28209, Edinburgh EH9 1ZR (£5.00 - cheques payable ‘World Disarmament Campaign’).
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