Just Church eNewsIdeas and resources for Just Churches
March-April 2009
We want this to be a space where Just Churches can share ideas and
learn from one another. So if you have a story, a question, or an idea for
content in a future enews, let us know by emailing liamp@church-poverty.org.uk
or ringing 0161 236 9321.
Look down and blame up
Jim Wallis of the Sojourners network argues
that it is biblical to take the side of the poor:
"Biblical writers
tend much more to identify with and be sympathetic to the poor and vulnerable,
while putting most of the responsibility for poverty and injustice on the rich
and powerful. Yes, in the Bible there is blame for poverty. It's not just an
accident or nobody's fault. And, in the Bible, blame for poverty is seldom laid
at the feet of the poor, as is so common in our society. Blaming the rich is not
class warfare, as some would say - it's just biblical faith."
Tell your MP it's time to Get Fair
On 26-27 June, the Get Fair campaign is organising a huge Constituency Lobby.
Across the UK, people will meet with their MPs and ask them to support policies
that tackle the causes of poverty and inequality.
Please take a
delegation from your church to meet your MP, and make the case for a fairer
society. There are information packs available which explain what the campaign
is calling for, and how to engage with your MP.
Visit the Get Fair website now to find out more, download your
information pack, and register to take part.
Raise funds: hold an online jumble sale!
A new website offers a
creative way to raise money for charity: an online jumble sale. Could you use it
for your church or project?
JumbleAid say: "If you have any unwanted
items that are too good to go to landfill, now you can use them to raise funds
for your chosen charity. JumbleAID lets individuals and businesses post unwanted
stuff online and anyone can pledge a donation for an item. It's FREE, easy to
use, and it's good for the environment too! And, NOT A PENNY OF THE DONATION
GOES TO JumbleAID!"
Find out more and start raising money at the JumbleAid website.
Resources for Just Churches
Spread the word!
We want more groups and congregations to work
towards becoming Just Churches. To help that happen, we're running training
workshops which introduce the materials and how they can be used.
Look
out for a training session happening near you, and please encourage your friends
from other churches to come along. Or invite us to come and run a session in
your area. To find out more or extend an invitation, contact Liam Purcell on
0161 236 9321 or liamp@church-poverty.org.uk
Church Action on Poverty
If the Just Church programme is inspiring your church community
to work against poverty and injustice, perhaps you can work together with CAP.
There are a number of ways you can help us, and we can help you:
- Sign up for our full eNews
service, which will give you a monthly report on poverty-related news, CAP's
activities, and events and website of interest.
- Become a supporter of CAP. We welcome individuals and whole
churches as members of the organisation, and we depend on the financial support
of our friends and members to carry on with our vital work. All supporters
receive a newsletter three times a year, full of reports on CAP's activities,
worship and prayer resources, and ideas for action.
In this month's eNews...
CAP action request: Celebrate the 10th anniversary of the minimum wage!
On 1 April 2009 the national minimum wage is
10 years old. Please join the national campaign to get it increased to a living
wage.
The Minimum Wage is a major achievement. Over the last 10 years
it's raised the living standards of the lowest paid, and helped close the gap
between men and women's pay. Soon the Low Pay Commission will be making this
year's recommendation to the government on the national minimum wage.
Please
take this chance to make sure the Government continues to support the national
minimum wage, by increasing it to a living wage for all workers.
Find out about CAP's Living Wage campaign.
Get
your MP to sign up to the national living wage campaign.
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Celebration: Glasgow adopts a living wage
Glasgow City Council has become the first
local authority in Scotland to guarantee a living wage for all its
workers.
On 9 March, Glasgow City Council announced the launch of
the Glasgow Living Wage, set at £7 an hour. (This is the rate recommended by
CAP's Living
Wage campaign.)
The living wage will be the guaranteed minimum for all
Council employees. The Council will also encourage its suppliers to pay staff
working on Council business a living wage, and a Glasgow Living Wage Employer
Award will be developed to encourage wider uptake by employers in the public,
private and voluntary sector.
The first local authority in Britain to adopt
a living wage was London, in 2005.
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News for CAP supporters
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Poverty News
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Upcoming events
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Around the Web
Other things that may be of interest...
Poverty, Debt and the Financial Crisis -
recordings, presentations and talks from a recent conference organised by
Churches Together in Britain and Ireland
Credit Crunch Podcast - a Methodist Web Radio
programme, featuring an interview with CAP Coordinator Niall Cooper
A grassroots perspective on welfare reform - an article
for Oxfam's UK Poverty Post blog by Greg Brown, Project Development Officer for
CAP's Thrive initiative
Thrive on You and Yours - this episode of
the Radio 2 programme features members of CAP's Thrive project talking about the
television and other home furnishings hire-purchase company Buy As You View, who
prey on vulnerable customers
Thrive on Newsnight- this episode of the BBC
programme includes a feature about loan sharks, which CAP's Thrive project
helped to research
Community Money Advice - a helpful guide for churches thinking of
setting up debt advice services
Poverty, inequality and policy since
1997 - a new Joseph Rowntree study
The theory of everything - The Guardian
interviews Professor Richard Wilkinson about his new book, which reveals the
devastating effects of inequality
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Quote of the month
"....we need to move away from a model of economics which simply assumes that
it is essentially about the mechanics of generating money, and try to restore an
acknowledgement of the role of trust as something which needs time to develop;
and so also to move away from an idea of wealth or profit which imagines that
they can be achieved without risk, and to return to the primitive capitalist
idea, as sketched above, of risk-sharing as an essential element in the
equitable securing of wealth for all."
Archbishop Rowan Williams,
speaking at a lecture in Cardiff
And finally...
Recently, the band U2 as a corporate entity
moved to Holland to avoid paying taxes in Ireland. All band members are resident
in Ireland.
Campaigners took the chance to highlight the injustice of tax
avoidance by the rich, by sending their own 'Bono' to the Irish Department of
Finance. He sang his own version of a well-known U2 song to the finance
minister. You can see the video clip of 'Bono' online.
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Join our social networks
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campaigners, and we regularly post news updates and links to useful stories and
resources on our Facebook page.
You can also follow CAP on Twitter, to receive up-to-the-minute news
updates and details of upcoming events direct to your email or web browser.
Become a fan of CAP on Facebook
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What we are about
Church Action on Poverty works with
church and community groups across the UK to make poverty a priority. Our work
involves: educating churches about poverty in the UK; enabling people in poverty
to speak for themselves; working for policies to eradicate poverty; promoting
reflection and action for social justice.
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