Urgent Actions on Aid and G7

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Two Urgent Actions: Aid and G7

Pray and act to get back to 0.7%

On Monday there will potentially be a vote on aid. Former International Development Secretary Andrew Mitchell has tabled an amendment to the Advanced Research and Invention Agency Bill which would require the Government to reinstate our commitment to give 0.7% of Gross National Income (GNI) in aid for 2022. In essence, the BBC explains, the amendment would “oblige the new agency to make up any shortfall in aid spending if the government were to miss the 0.7% target.”

The commitment to give 0.7% of GNI in aid – a fundamental part of our obligation to help combat poverty – was enshrined in law in 2015 and has cross-party support. Maintaining it was part of the Conservative Party’s election manifesto. But last November, the Chancellor announced a temporary cut to 0.5% – and Government has refused to give a date for when the full target will be reinstated.

The decision to reduce the amount to 0.5% – coupled with a decline in our GNI – has reduced our total aid budget by about £4 billion just at the moment where poorer countries and communities desperately need help fighting the challenges posed by COVID 19, conflict and hunger. The results have been devastating, as our blog on aid and countries affected by conflict shows. While not all aid decisions may be ones that any individual would favour, aid overall has a tremendous positive impact. The cuts are jeopardising key programmes that give food to people facing acute hunger, access to clean water and sanitation to people for whom it could be a lifesaver, funding to crucial research, and assistance with some of the world’s most serious humanitarian crises.

The amendment needs to be selected by the Speaker – who could refuse it on the grounds that it is not within the scope of the bill. If it does get through, then it needs votes. Already at least 30 Conservative MPs have pledged support; only a few more are needed to create a majority. Please:

  • pray that the amendment will be selected
  • pray that the public response will show support for meeting our full aid commitment
  • pray for the success of the amendment
  • ring your MP or email them this weekend. You can use online forms from the Joint Public Issues Team or Global Justice Now, or, use our blog, an article from BOND and/or this CTBI briefing to compose your own email (something you write yourself is always the most effective). And we’d be really grateful if you could let us know if you do it.

 

Pray and act for progress at the G7

From the 11th to the 13th (this coming Friday to Sunday), the G7 leaders will be meeting in Cornwall.

It’s a brilliant opportunity for our Government – as hosts of both the G7 and the forthcoming UN Climate Talks (COP26) – to show leadership in a number of areas. One is vaccine equity. Another is climate finance.

Prayer and Action on Vaccine Equity

On vaccines, the current lack of equity is staggering. The UK, with its population of just under 70 million, had offered more than 32 million vaccine doses by mid-April. But at a recent (3 June) briefing, the WHO stated that only 31 million doses had been administered across the whole continent of Africa, whose population is almost 1.4 billion. Or, to put it in a different way; in high-income countries, about 62 doses have been distributed per 100 people. In sub-Saharan Africa, only 1 dose has. In many countries, even the most at-risk groups – the elderly, health care workers, and people with serious illnesses – can’t access vaccine protection.

Numbers give an overview – but it’s hard to relate to them. All of us, however, will have seen the agonising pictures of individuals grieving in India. And those of us with friends, family or colleagues in other parts of the world will know the sorrow of losing loved ones as countries encounter their second or third waves … people who would have had the vaccine, had they lived here.

Faith, health and humanitarian leaders have issued a joint declaration, which states bluntly: “We have a choice: vaccine nationalism or human solidarity.” It calls on world leaders to, among other things, “Ensure equitable access to vaccines between countries by providing vaccines, sharing knowledge and expertise, and fully funding the Access to COVID-19 Tools (ACT) Accelerator, which is working to provide equitable access to and implementation of COVID-19 diagnostics, therapeutics, and vaccines.” They also point out the simple fact that enabling vaccinations to occur globally is not simply altruism: because leaving large numbers of people unvaccinated can lead to the development of variants that may escape vaccines, it is also in wealthy countries’ own interest.

As the statement suggests, a number of things need to happen to achieve vaccine equity. In the short term, countries that have ordered more doses than they need for their populations can donate some of their vaccines to other countries. To put this in perspective, data show that Canada, the US, UK, EU and Japan have collectively ordered 5.3 billion doses of vaccine for their populations, which total around 1 billion. Some are already making a start: the US has committed to sharing 80 million doses and is already beginning to distribute them. The heads of the Wellcome Trust and UNICEF have issued an open letter to Boris Johnson, asking him to commit to donating 20% of the UK’s doses, which could, they say, be done without affecting the UK’s vaccination schedule. They also ask him to call for the G7 to commit to sharing 1 billion doses collectively, and to fully funding the ACT Accelerator.

Looking towards the longer term, there are bigger questions – to what extent should companies be allowed to profit from publicly funded research? When is it legitimate to override current intellectual property rights in order to save lives … and would it be possible to devise a system which both continued to encourage research and enabled greater sharing of the outcomes? How can countries’ capacity to manufacture their own vaccines be increased? Some of these questions are explored in a new briefing from the Anglican Alliance and the Anglican Health and Community Network – it’s worth a look.
In the next few days, if you can, please:

  • Pray for the G7 to take steps which will both address the immediate need for vaccine doses and start to address the longer-term structural inequalities in access to essential medicines.
  • Read the Anglican Alliance or other briefing materials that give insight into the issues surrounding vaccine equity
  • Take part in the ‘Wave of Hope’ campaign

 

Prayer and Action on Climate Finance

On climate finance, there are two main asks. The first is that the G7 countries will reduce their own investment in fossil fuels – and redirect the funds in ways that promote a true green recovery from COVID. Tearfund, the Overseas Development Institute (ODI) and the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) have produced an excellent report on this – which reveals that in their COVID recovery plans, G7 countries have spent more on support to fossil fuels than on support to clean energy and makes three suggestions to help them ‘clean up their act’. Worth reading.

The second is that the G7 will commit to the climate finance that is needed for a breakthrough at COP26 – and specifically that it will commit to new and additional funding for loss and damage, which helps countries deal with the impacts of climate change, such as the devastation in the Caribbean after Hurricane Maria, for which no level of adaptation can prepare. The Faith for the Climate COP26 Task Force has material on this.

In the next few days, if you can, please:

 

Refugee Week Resources

Refugee Week is coming up! It’s from 14 to 20 June, with 20 June designated as Refugee Sunday/Sanctuary Sunday.
We have a suite of resources to make it easy for your church to participate. Take a look!

  Our new resources include:

We also have a new video – Together in Welcome – which will be available from early next week. In it, eight Thames Valley Christians share their vision of a welcoming society. It’s both inspiring and accessible – watch this space!Pray and Fast June Prayer Points
The June Pray and Fast for the Climate prayer points are now available. Topics: the G7, Young Christian Climate Network relay, evaluating green promises, changes in the making for fossil fuel companies, warnings from the polar region, eco-anxiety in children, and a major court victory for eight Australian teens. Join in the prayers – and share them widely.

Prayers for the Environment and Tax Justice

Prayers for the Environment 

The 5th of June is World Environment Day – and the Sunday nearest that is traditionally celebrated as Environment Sunday. Some of our readers will be holding Climate Sunday or Environment Sunday services in their church – others may wish to focus their personal prayers on this area throughout the coming week.

It’s a great time to browse through the Care for Creation section of our website. We have links to prayers and hymns of thanksgiving and praise, prayers and hymns of lament and confession, prayers of intercession and commitment, preaching resources  and more. Take a look!

Prayers for Tax Justice

The 6th of June is also Tax Justice Sunday this year. It’s a time to note the ways in which “the tax system can play a vital role in building more just and sustainable societies, and in fostering good relations between human beings” (Church Action for Tax Justice [CATJ]) and to commit ourselves to working for fair tax systems that promote the common good.

Tax is very much in the news this weekend, as the G7 Finance Ministers have just agreed a proposal that would create a minimum global corporation tax and require the largest companies to allocate profits (and hence pay taxes) in countries where they make their sales, even if they are not physically present there. The proposal is being hailed by many as a breakthrough, and is certainly a step in the right direction, as it (a) moves the global system away from a ‘race to the bottom’ in which countries compete to attract business by cutting taxes and (b) makes it harder for companies to reduce their taxes by profit shifting. The Tax Justice Nework has noted, however, that there is also scope for improvement, as (a) many would argue that the minimum tax rate proposed is too low, (b) the way in which it is framed will benefit G7 countries far more than developing countries, and (c) the G7 action preempts a larger process being undertaken by over 130 countries in the context of OECD tax negotiations. So there’s material for both thanksgiving and challenge.

You might want to use a prayer from the CATJ Tax Justice Sunday materials – such as Reverend Alison Tomlin’s ‘Thanksgiving’ – which also ties into Environment Sunday and contains a commitment to strive for justice. Download the prayer here.

Christian Concern for One World
c/o The Rectory, Church End
Blewbury OX11 9QH
ccowemails@ccow.org.uk

Supporting Fair Trade during the Pandemic

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We continue to hear about the profound difficulties that declining orders and lockdown restrictions are causing small producers. In India, because sugar factories aren’t getting paid, they are in turn unable to pay farmers. In Sri Lanka, tea producers have been badly affected, and Fair Trade cooperatives are needing to offer assistance with food. and cash. Some Latin American farmers are harvesting and exporting at normal levels, but others are facing difficulties. Craft producers are finding fewer outlets. Please do pray for all Fair Trade producers – that they may stay safe and be able to access what they need for daily life and for the maintenance of production.

And please do continue to buy Fair Trade products. A number of people have asked us – “So how can we buy Fair Trade during lockdown?” If you’d like a fairly full list of options, do take a look at our brand-new guide to “Using Fair Trade in Your Church” – it’s got links to all kinds of outlets (on and offline) selling Fair Trade food, beverages, gifts, and cards. The lists are as useful for individual as for churches and other groups. We’re quite excited by the opportunities they offer!

If you’d like a quick summary, here are a few thoughts:

  • it’s still possible, of course, to buy a number of Fairtrade products from supermarkets and local independent shops, whether you’re going in yourselves or ordering online. If you are shopping online in a supermarket, enter ‘Fairtrade’ into the website search. Often that will bring up a list of the Fairtrade products your supermarket carries.
  • Several local Fair Trade shops are gearing up to re-open … and one, Fair Trade at St Michael’s, is now offering an order and collect service. You can order by email and collect the products on Mondays. Find out more about that here.
  • Traidcraft remains an excellent ‘one stop shop’ for Fair Trade goods – which includes staples such as pasta, fruits and nuts, jam, honey, and cereal, as well as extras like biscuits, cake, chocolate, and sweets. They also carry gifts, cards, and environmentally friendly household goods – including quite a full line of Bio-D products in addition to their own brand. Take a look at their website.
  • There are also a number of other online retailers carrying Fair Trade goods, including  Ethical Superstore (primarily Fairtrade foods, alongside a range of ethical and organic products), the Oxfam shop online (Fair Trade, ethical household products … and lots of charity shop gems),  One World Shop (a broad mix),  Fair and Funky  (ditto), and  Shared Earth (primarily non-food gifts, cards, crafts, etc).

Prayer Email 12 January 2020: Unity, Farmers, Hope, India’s Citizenship Bill

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Prayer for the Week

The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity begins on Wednesday the 18th, so this week’s prayer has Christian unity as its theme. You can also find the UK materials for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity here, and the international materials here.

A further collection of prayers for unity is in this Twitter thread.

Lord Jesus Christ,
who prayed that all your followers might be one,
We ask your forgiveness for our divisions.
Unite us, we pray, in your love
And grant that, by your grace, we may come to serve you
As members of the one body,
Guided by your truth
And glorifying you together
Through the gifts you have given us.

 

Focus for Prayer – Farming

Our January prayer for farmers is on our website’s Prayer Space. Further resources are available from the Arthur Rank Centre.

As you pray for farmers this week, please pray especially for:

Those in Australia who have lost farms to the bushfires

All farmers whose livelihoods and lives are threatened by extreme weather, trade uncertainties, and conflict (UK, DRC, South Sudan, and others)

All farmers suffering from mental ill health as a result of the strains of farming. Give thanks for charities, such as FCN and RABI in the UK, that offer support for farmers under stress.

Items for prayer

Reasons for Hope

There are many reasons for concern as we look at the current climate situation – but where do we find hope?

I (Maranda) have recently revisited the brilliant collection of essays on Christian hope and the environment that Margot and Martin Hodson gathered for Anvil. The articles in that collection wrestle with key questions: how do we relate our ultimate hope – our trust in God’s good purposes for the creation – to our proximate hopes for the temporal future? How do we avoid ‘false hope’ which is based on an unwillingness to confront hard realities? How do we harness ‘optimistic hope’ which inspires people to keep working on tough issues? And what is ‘robust hope’? If you haven’t read the articles – or, indeed, even if you have – this is a volume to visit or revisit. The whole volume is freely available online.

Six climate researchers also started the year by sharing news that had given them hope in 2019. One spoke of country-level events, citing Costa Rica’s work to decarbonise its economy – an antidote to people who say that governments can’t or won’t undertake ambitious climate action.  Another cited advances in forecasting that that can make it possible to predict the behaviour of – and hence prepare for – extreme weather. Four cited political or economic movements or actions: the growth of divestment, local declarations of ‘climate emergency’ leading to local action, the rise of the youth climate movement, and the plans for decarbonisation in a recent party manifesto.

Over the next week, can you read some of the pieces on hope? Give thanks to God for the things that give you hope? And pray about how you can best act in order to give hope to others?

 

India’s Citizenship Act

Widespread protests have taken place for more than a month in India in response to the Indian government’s introduction of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act [CAA], which was signed into law on 12 December and took effect last Thursday, 10 January.

The new act offers a path to legal citizenship for migrants from the Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi or Christian religious communities of Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Pakistan,  who entered India before the end of 2014.* According to its terms, they “shall not be treated as illegal immigrants.” The government has justified its selection of these groups on the grounds that they  “were compelled to seek shelter in India due to religious persecution or fear of religious persecution.” Critics point out, however, that the act does not offer such a path to Muslims from any country, including those, such as the  Ahmadiyyas or Hazara who have fled religious persecution in the countries named in the act.

The act’s passage represents the first time that the constitutionally secular democracy has made religion a criterion for citizenship, and there are fears that it will be used to marginalise or expel Muslims. It coincides with suggestions that the government might create a nationwide ‘National Register of Citizens’, requiring people to prove their right to citizenship. In the state of Assam, when such a register was implemented, around 1.9 million people were found to lack adequate documentation to show that they qualified and so were deemed stateless and under threat of deportation.  Under the provisions of the CAA, Muslims in this situation would continue to exist under this threat, while members of other groups could claim a right to remain.

This move reflects the BJP’s vision of India as a Hindu nation-state and its idea that  Muslims and Hindus should live in different states. BJP ministers have articulated at various pointsthat their objectives include prioritising Hindu and Sikh refugees and expelling what they call ‘infiltrators’, often seen as code for those perceived as illegal Muslim migrants.

For all – Hindus and others –  who favour a democracy that preserves religious freedom for all its minorities and heeds the constitutional principle that India is to be a “sovereign socialist secular democratic republic”, the moves are profoundly worrying. Politicians from other parties, students, secularists, and religious leaders from minority communities including the Christian churches have united in expressing their concern and opposition.

Fr Cedric Prakash, a Jesuit in India, said, during the debates around the bill:  “The CAB risks tearing the country apart, reopening unhealed wounds of the Partition and ultimately destroying the secular and democratic tenets of our revered Constitution….” adding with respect to the proposal of a national register, “The country today stands at the brink of catastrophic human suffering and injustice, if the government implements it nationwide as planned.”

Students have been particularly vehement in protesting – inspiring many others in civil society – but have been attacked by government forces. The opposition Congress party has ordered its members who govern states not to implement the act, and the leader of another state governed by an opposition party  has also said the state will refuse to implement it. Opposition parties are due to meet this week to decide on a strategy.

Please pray:

  • for wisdom for politicians as they decide how to respond to the CAA and the protests against it
  • for wisdom for those who will be arguing and hearing legal challenges to the CAA in the coming month
  • that India will be a place that conforms to its founders’ vision of freedom and equality under the law for members of all religious groups
  • that India, and all countries, will offer refuge to all who come to it and qualify as refugees under international law
  • for wisdom for Christian leaders, as they consider their response to the act

*The Indian government estimates that of those who have claimed refuge so far on the basis of persecution and would benefit from the act,  81.2% are Hindus and 18.5% Sikhs.

 

Update on Aid

Thank you to all who have prayed and are praying about the Department for International Development (DfID)’s  future. In the past week, as Duncan Green outlines at the end of his piece on the issue, news first came through that suggested a merger that abolished DfID wouldn’t take place. Then almost immediately other news suggested that while a complete merger was unlikely, a restructuring that abolished DfID’s ministerial post and gave the Foreign Office de facto control of DfID’s structures was still possible. Such a plan would continue to raise concerns about the future independence and efficacy of the UK’s development work.  Please continue to pray, asking God to give all involved in the decision wisdom and a desire to do what will further the reduction of poverty and the increase of economic justice.

Short Notes …

Please continue to pray about the situation in Iran, the tensions between Iran and the US, and the tensions across the Middle East. If you would like more detailed prayer points, email us.

The Speaker of the House of Representatives in the United States, Nancy Pelosi, has indicated that she will send the articles of impeachment for President Trump to the Senate this week, despite profound disagreements with Senate leadership about how the trial should be conducted. The Senate leadership has indicated that it wants to put forward rules for the trial that will not involve a decision to call witnesses or to request documents that the President had refused to make available to the House. The Senate Majority Leader has also already suggested that there will be a speedy acquittal, and he has said that “Everything I do during this [trial], I’m coordinating with the White House counsel … There will be no difference between the president’s position and our position as to how to handle this to the extent that we can.”

During a Senate impeachment trial, each Senator takes an oath to “do impartial justice, according to the Constitution and laws: So help me God.” Whatever the merits of the case, there is a clear danger to the integrity of the Constitution and to the credibility of political processes if there is not a sense that a fair trial is taking place and impartial justice is being done.

As US politicians take the next steps in the impeachment process, pray for wisdom and integrity for all concerned.

Resources

2020 Dates for Prayer and Action
A reminder that the first quarter dates for prayer and action are on our website here.  Many people find them handy for planning services, rotas, and special events – and they can be used to shape your own cycle of prayer, too.

Supporting Refugees: A Guide for Oxfordshire Churches
Churches in Oxfordshire will be receiving this week a new guide to supporting refugees in our area. The booklet has been compiled by CCOW with the assistance of a range of local partner organisations. It introduces the different charities that are standing alongside refugees in Oxfordshire and the opportunities they offer to help with their work. If you would like your own copy (wherever you live), please do get in touch.

The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity materials this year include a suggestion that Christians and churches “Provide welcome and hospitality for those recently arrived into the UK and Ireland” If this call inspires people in your church who aren’t yet involved to get involved, the guide can help them find out what they can do.

 

Forthcoming Dates and Events

13 January – Asylum Welcome Charity Gala – Oxford
Information and tickets.

19 January 2020 – Peace Sunday
Theme: Peace as a journey of hope’ Materials: Pax Christi

22 January 2020 – Talk by Sophi Tranchell, Oxford
The Oxford Fair Trade Coalition is hosting a talk by Sophi Tranchell, CEO of Divine Chocolate UK at its AGM. She’ll be speaking about her experiences in Fairtrade – well worth hearing. Wadham College, 6:30 – 8:30. Registration.

25 January 2020 – ‘Saying yes to life’ – Reading
Day retreat (9:30 for 10:00 until 2:30 pm) based on Ruth Valerio’s new Lent book. Free. Lunch provided. For further information and registration, email maranda.stjohnnicolle@oxford.anglican.org.

1 February 2020 – Green Christian ‘Way of Life’ Day – London
Day conference on ‘rediscovering and maintaining a radical, creation-centred way of being’. Presentations on prayer, ‘living gently’, public witness and encouragement. Sessions on poetry, prayer and music. Information and registration.

This Week’s Readings

Revised Common Lectionary Readings – Isaiah 42 1-9  •  Psalm 29  •  Acts 10: 34-43  • Matthew 3: 13- 17

“Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations. He will not cry or lift up his voice, or make it heard in the street; a bruised reed he will not break, and a dimly burning wick he will not quench; he will faithfully bring forth justice. He will not grow faint or be crushed until he has established justice in the earth; and the coastlands wait for his teaching.”

Isaiah 42: 1-4

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Prayer Email 5 January 2020: Plough Sunday, Climate Prayers and more…

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A note to our supporters

We hope that you have had a good Christmas and pray that this will be a New Year of blessings, most especially of drawing closer to God amidst the many challenges that face us and our world.

The new year is also the start of a new prayer email. Over the past few years, we made the decision to shift our focus slightly in order to do more direct work alongside churches in our core areas of Fair Trade and trade justice, care for creation and solidarity with refugees. We’re very excited by some of the resources, events and opportunities already produced and coming up – and hope you will be too. But time is limited – and it became clear that we couldn’t both do that work and continue to produce the prayer email in the format that we had. This led to the hiatus in the old prayer email – and to its reappearance now in a different and more sustainable format. We apologise for the break in the email, hope you continue to find the material useful, and would very much value your feedback.

 

This month’s prayer focus:
Plough Sunday/Agriculture

Plough Sunday is on the 12th of January … here’s a prayer you may wish to use in your church or personal worship:

Creator of soil and rains,
Lord of all sowing and reaping,
We thank you for the gift of life and all that sustains it.
As the new year starts, we cannot know its end
But turning towards you, our maker and hope, we pray:
Help us to follow you in our endeavours.
And grant, for the sake of Him through whom all was made,
Wisdom to those who steward field and seed,
Support to those who face uncertain seasons,
Strength to those who seek to defend the earth.
We offer our prayer to you and in you, O perfect Trinity of love
Now and forevermore.

Featured Prayer Item

The Pray and Fast for the Climate January 2020 prayer points are out, looking back at developments over the past 18 months and forward to 2020. Items covered include the COP talks in 2019 and 2020, Australia’s bush fires, developments in electric vehicles, a groundbreaking case linking climate action and human rights … and more. Read them…

Items for Prayer

Northeastern Nigeria
The murder of eleven Christians by Nigeria’s ‘Islamic State’, a militia that splintered from Boko Haram, brought renewed attention to the often forgotten but still devastating conflict in northeastern Nigeria. It’s a conflict we should remember – and it’s important to pray for the people of that area. As of September 2019, the Red Cross said 22,000 people had been reported missing, of whom 60% were minors when they disappeared. Millions have been displaced, losing homes, communities, livelihoods and educational opportunities. Tens of thousands have been killed. Children have been kidnapped and forced into slavery, sexual exploitation, and use as child soldiers … even suicide bombers. While the government continues to fight the militias, a lack of resources and an unwillingness or inability to address some of the underlying issues in the area have impeded success.

Please pray that the hearts of those who seek conflict may be turned to peace, that the people of northeastern Nigeria may enjoy the fruits of peace,  that those who have suffered in their communities may find comfort and support, and that those who have been abducted may be freed, accepted back into their own societies, and helped to heal after trauma.  Pray especially for the work of churches in the area, asking God to grant members strength and safety and to bless their witness.

Background: Trained to Kill: How Four Boy Soldiers Survived Boko Haram  and a photo essay on the Chibok Girls who returned (both powerful – highly recommended),  How Boko Haram has regained the initiative and what Nigeria should do to stop it,  Boko Haram is back. With better drones, International Crisis Group coverage, Christian Solidarity Worldwide submission to 126th UN Human Rights Committee.


Department for International Development (DfID)

Boris Johnson has long advocated for folding DfID into the Foreign Office, on the grounds that it would avoid waste and ensure that aid cohered  ‘much better with U.K. political and commercial objectives’. Following the Prime Minister’s election victory, civil servants in both departments are reportedly working on proposals for the merger after Brexit, as well as proposals for how the two departments could work more strongly together while remaining separate.

100 leading development charities – including Action Aid, All We Can, British Red Cross, CAFOD, Christian Aid, the Mothers’ Union, Oxfam, Save the Children, Tearfund and World Vision – have issued a statement warning against a merger, noting:

“Merging DFID with the FCO would risk dismantling the UK’s leadership on international development and humanitarian aid. It suggests we are turning our backs on the world’s poorest people, as well as some of the greatest global challenges of our time: extreme poverty, climate change and conflict. UK aid risks becoming a vehicle for UK foreign policy, commercial and political objectives, when it first and foremost should be invested to alleviate poverty.”

“By far the best way to ensure that aid continues to deliver for those who need it the most is by retaining DFID as a separate Whitehall department, with a Secretary of State for International Development, and by pledging to keep both independent aid scrutiny bodies: the Independent Commission for Aid Impact and the International Development Select Committee.”

The agencies are not the only ones speaking in favour of maintaining separate departments: policy experts and politicians, including some Conservatives, have also expressed reservations about a merger. One major concern is that a merger would lead to aid that was politically motivated, as happened before DfID was formed when, for example, aid was linked to an arms deal. Another concern is that, while it has its critics on both the left and the right, the independent department is generally very highly rated in terms of independence, effectiveness, impact  and transparency: the international campaigning group ONE ranked it 1st in the world in aid volume, quality, and targeting; and the 2018 Aid Transparency Index, rated transparency around UKAID delivered by DfID as ‘very good’ with a score of 90.3. The FCO’s record is not always as strong: for example, UKAID delivered by the FCO (about 30% of the aid budget is spent outside DfID) was rated by the index as ‘poor’ with a score of 34.3.  There are also concerns about the possible blow to Britain’s global standing if it is seen as being less interested in development,  difficulties in merging different cultures, and the impact of merging the departments on departmental experts’ workload in the year when the UK will be hosting the UN climate talks, and needing to draw on expert advice.

Please pray that decisions that are made around the fate of DfID will prioritise the needs of people at risk because of poverty and climate change and will ensure continued or improved effectiveness and transparency.

Ebola Update

The Ebola epidemic in the DRC has, since its outbreak, involved 3.386 confirmed or suspected cases, and 2,233 people have died. The numbers of people suffering with the disease at any one point have been diminishing, but while the epidemic has abated, it has not disappeared – and a single person can inadvertently enable a flare-up, as happened recently when a taxi-driver relapsed, creating a chain of infection that involved 50 people. There are also concerns as the disease seems to be taking hold again in Butembo, which has seen hostility to health workers in the past, making prevention and treatment more difficult.

Please pray for all who have been affected, directly and indirectly, by the Ebola epidemic. Pray that health workers may be safe and able to work effectively. Pray more generally for an end to the violence and unrest in the eastern Congo, which is so destructive in itself and which creates environments in which disease can spread.

Our page on Ebola has further resources and prayer points. We’d especially recommend reading the inspiring and sobering story about Dr Shako, director of an Ebola response team.

Resources

Each year, CCOW produces a calendar of ‘Dates for Prayer and Action’ listing special Sundays, key upcoming events, and themed days/weeks/months. It’s one of our most popular resources, downloaded hundreds of times. The new one can be found here.

This year, however, we’ve also done a hard copy calendar, which  not only notes the dates but also offers photographs and a prayer or reflection for each month (sample here). If you’d like to receive one, please email us: if possible, we’d be grateful for a donation to cover the costs of the resource and postage (unless you are already a donor, in which case the calendar is our thank you!)

Forthcoming dates and events

6 January – Epiphany/Theophany (Orthodox)
During the Epiphany season, could your church reflect on the journeys of the Holy Family following the Wise Men’s visit … and the journeys of refugees today?

11 January – Talk by playwright Mike Bartlett in aid of Brightwell Supporting Refugees – Brightwell-cum-Sotwell
Information and ticket details

12 Jan 2020 – Plough Sunday
Also Plough Monday, Plough Wednesday. Pray for all who farm worldwide. Resources: Arthur Rank Centre

13 January – Asylum Welcome Charity Gala – Oxford
Information and tickets.

18 to 25 January – Octave of Prayer for Christian Unity
Theme: ‘Unusual kindness’ (local theme) ‘They showed us unusual kindness’ (intl theme). Materials from CTBI (local version), World Council of Churches (int’l version)

19 January 2020 – Peace Sunday
Theme: Peace as a journey of hope’ Materials: Pax Christi

25 January 2020 – ‘Saying yes to life’ – Reading
Day based on Ruth Valerio’s new Lent book. For details and to register, email maranda.stjohnnicolle@oxford.anglican.org

1 February 2020 – Green Christian ‘Way of Life’ Day – London
Day conference on ‘rediscovering and maintaining a radical, creation-centred way of being’. Presentations on prayer, ‘living gently’, public witness and encouragement. Sessions on poetry, prayer and music. Information and registration.

Prayer Email for 4/08/19: Climate Emergency – Action Stations

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Readings for this week :

Verses for meditation:

” So if you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.  Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth, for you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life is revealed, then you also will be revealed with him in glory.  Put to death, therefore, whatever in you is earthly…”
(Colossians 3:1-5a)

Reflection on the verses:

“The values from above should shape our earth.  Paul does not call us to escape this earth for heaven but to transform the earth with the gospel of heaven.   In so doing, we have the promise: ‘When Christ who is your life is revealed, then you will also be revealed with him in glory.'”
Robert Smith,  Commentary on Colossians 3:1-11, A Plain Account

 

Coming Up This Fortnight

For prayer before, during or after the events…

9 August – International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples

12 August – International Youth Day
2019 Theme: Transforming Education. Info from the UN. Could youth in your church lead prayers for young people worldwide?

19 August – World Humanitarian Day
 2019 theme: Women Humanitarians. Pray for humanitarian workers/efforts worldwide. Info from UN

Items for Prayer

Emergency – Action Stations

As we’ve been writing the Pray and Fast for the Climate prayer points this week, I (Maranda) have had company. A group of bluetits and a mistle thrush have taken up residence outside my office window. They flit from the rosebush to the windowsill, tap the sill probingly (it’s metal – not much satisfaction there) and then flit back. The rose’s blossoms nod as they land in its branches – and nod again as they take off for the nearby elder, whose darkening berries are an abundant source of food.

It’s all very idyllic – the kind of thing that recalls nineteenth century poetry: “the lark’s on the wing; the snail’s on the thorn: God’s in His heaven – all’s right with the world.” Juxtaposing that with the climate impacts I’ve been writing about has been somewhat jarring. It has highlighted one of the problems many of us in the UK  face: surrounded by a natural world which, on the surface, doesn’t look that different from the one we and our parents and grandparents have grown up loving, how can we maintain our focus on confronting  the very real planetary crisis that means that all is decidedly not right with the world?

For me, the hardest  prayer item to write was the one about the Arctic. What’s happening there is deeply disconcerting. There is the incongruity of intense heating in the coldest regions. Record-breaking heat in contexts where you expect heat is one thing. But three straight months of above average temperatures and highs above 30 in Alaska? Then there are the reports of mass animal deaths in recent years – tufted puffins starving, most likely  because of the warming seas, and thousands of Cassin’s Auklets being washed ashore. And finally there  is something that is both present and imminent – the awareness that the Arctic impacts that we are seeing are themselves drivers of accelerated heating, that we are looking at the type of feedback loops that scientists have long warned pose a primary threat to our ability to avoid runaway global heating. Ice melt means that less heat gets reflected and so leads to further ice melt; wildfires spread soot, increasing heat absorption that helps to create the conditions for further wildfires; the fires’ heat warms permafrost, releasing long-sequestered carbon ….

The crisis is real. And if we’re honest, it’s present even in our part of our common home. The birds at my window are lovely – but where are the flocks of swifts that used to wheel around the village? The roses are beautiful, but what about the more shallow-rooted plants, that have withered in the heat? If I’m working late at night, can I fail to notice that there are fewer moths bumping against the windowpane, trying to reach the light? The quiet apocalypse is a reality here, too.

This is why the language of emergency – climate emergency and, more generally, planetary emergency – feels so important. Human beings are, by nature, adaptively resilient. When things change, we change, too. If the change is gradual enough, it’s easy to embed the ‘new normal’ in our established patterns of language and action, shifting definitions so  that we can disguise from ourselves the significance of what’s happening. A ‘hot summer’s day’ this year is 38, but because we talk about  summer heat and ‘ice-cream weather’ as we once would have to describe a day of 30 degrees, it feels less threatening. The language of emergency cuts through this, acknowledging that what we are seeing is not a temporary extreme that we can fit within our extant paradigms, but part of an abnormal shift that can’t be ignored.

But there’s a challenge with ’emergency’ language, too. For some people, it feels disempowering, as if we’re saying that the situation is beyond our control, too difficult to resolve and hence pointless to fight. We may feel that it invites us to become like that stock figure of disaster films and real-life situations – the person who disconsolately moans ‘We’re doomed’ as a  crisis becomes apparent.

There are, however, other models.  One that springs to mind is the airline pilot  ‘Sully’ Sullenberge and his team. Sullenberger famously landed a crippled, engine-less jet in the Hudson River without loss of life. In what was a seemingly hopeless emergency, with only four minutes from engine failure to impact, he drew on decades of experience, his own courage and skill, the absolute knowledge of what the technology he commanded *could* do, and a well-trained team. He, his co-pilot, the air traffic controllers who alerted those in their path, the flight attendants who then helped evacuate the passengers,  the ferry and boat crews who rescued them, and the passengers themselves (barring one who panicked and opened a rear door) saw what needed to be done, and did it.

For us, too, the declaration of an emergency can be the impetus not for panic but for a focused, realistic assessment of where we are, the tools we have available to us, the changes that need to happen, and how we can both implement them on a small scale and work with others to see them implemented on a large scale.

Neither the climate crisis nor the broader planetary environmental crisis is going to be simple to resolve. But one of the main merits of the Paris Agreement is that it has given us a clear long-term goal for climate action. To fulfill this goal, it’s now generally recognised that the world has to get to net zero emissions globally by mid-century. In this, developed countries need to lead the way as ‘early adopters’. This goal provides a framework for our efforts: it’s not just about doing this or that action, advocating for this or that policy. It’s about assessing now what it would take for us – individually, as Christian communities, as part of our wider societies –  to begin to approach the net zero target in a scientifically and morally credible time frame.

How we do this isn’t simply a technical matter. Any attempt to answer the question ‘How then shall we live?’ brings us back to the first principles of our faith – the nature of God, what it means to be human, what the relationships between God, humanity and the rest of creation – now so often manifestly broken – are meant to look like.   As Christians, our faith gives us some clear principles that can be a gift to the general response – a worldview that sees the intrinsic value of all creation, for example; a calling to love of neighbour which incorporates the need for climate justice; and a trust in the One who created, redeems and sustains all that is – the wellspring of our hope. Perhaps our first challenge is truly to ‘own’ the things we say we believe – so that they become the deeply embedded foundations on which we seek, by God’s grace and using all the technical tools at our disposal, to build a concrete reality.

In four weeks’ time, we start the Season of Creation, which runs from 1 September to 4 October and this year has the theme ‘Web of Life – Biodiversity as God’s blessing’. It’s a time for people and churches who are already deeply committed to caring for creation as part of discipleship to take stock and to renew that commitment … and for those just exploring this aspect of discipleship to take the first steps.

We hope and pray that it will be a time to celebrate the glorious diversity of what Richard Bauckham calls ‘the community of creation’. We hope and pray that it will be a time to pray together in repentance, praise, thanksgiving and intercession for the creation. But we also hope and pray that this won’t just be ‘the time of the year when we think about creation’ but a time to start or review a long-term plan for living as we have to live if we are to be responsible members of the creation before God. What would it look like, for example, if our churches committed, this Season of Creation, to developing over the coming year a credible net zero plan  and/or a credible plan to celebrate and protect biodiversity… and then began a year-long process of exploring the underlying principles and the technical tools that could shape their response?

This week, in our resources section, we highlight the official Season of Creation resources. But with the aim of helping churches to think about long term plans, as well as celebrating the season,  each subsequent week’s  resources section will have a particular focus: understanding and explaining the crises facing the planet, reflecting on our Christian calling, practical tools for action, and tools that help us connect with each other and our communities. At every point, we’d love to hear from you about things you’ve found helpful – so please do write in with suggestions! Please also let us know if you’d like to be part of a process of thinking through how we, ecumenically, can strengthen each other’s response. And please pray that this Season will further a restoration of relationships between God, humanity and all creation.

DRC Update: Ebola and Wider Concerns

Please continue to pray for the people of the Democratic Republic of Congo, especially in the eastern provinces. In the province of Ituri, a renewed outbreak of violence has led to many deaths and the displacement of hundreds of thousands of people, many of whom have fled to the city of Bunia. Pray for all affected,  especially for people who have lost loved ones, homes and livelihoods. Pray too for those who are seeking to offer assistance to people who have been displaced, and especially for Caritas Bunia, which is coordinating aid to people in camps.

Ituri, together with the province of Nord Kivu, is also affected by the Ebola outbreak, which, one year after it began, has now claitled over 1,838 lives. On 17 July, the World Health Organization declared that the Ebola outbreak is a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. The immediate causes for the declaration included the first Ebola case in the provincial capital of Goma. Goma is a major transport and trading hub, and there has long been concern that if cases began to appear in the city, the virus could spread more widely from there to other parts of the DRC and potentially to other countries.

Part of the hesitation in declaring a Public Health Emergency of International Concern has been a fear, especially within the Congolese government, that such a declaration could result in countries closing their borders with the eastern DRC – something which would further destabilise the already fragile economy there. The declaration explicitly asked neighbouring countries not to do this; thus far, most seem to have complied, and while Rwanda temporarily closed its border with Goma, it appears to have reopened it.

The declaration has had a positive effect in mobilising resources for the health response, and numerous countries and agencies, including the World Bank, have increased their involement.

Pray  that countries will continue to keep their borders open and that the declaration will continue to have a positive impact on the resources available for prevention and treatment.

In another development at the end of July, the oversight of the Ebola response was switched from the Minister of Health to a team of experts, led by Professor Jean-Jacques Muyembe Tamfum, reporting directly to the President. The shift may be related to questions of which vaccines and vaccination strategies to use, concerning which there has been a division of opinion (perspectives: RFI, Muyembe press conference, Minister of Health’s letter,  Peter Piot and Harvard Business Review). We pray for the new team as they take on their new responsibilities, asking God to give them wisdom and strength.

Finally, the Congo Church Association recently sent out its newsletter. We rightly hear much about the difficulties that people in the DRC face – we must be aware and pray in response. But in the newsletter, we also hear about the loving and courageous work that Congolese Anglican churches are doing, by God’s grace, to show God’s love in word and deed. We need to hear about this, too. Do take a look at this and at the Caritas Bunia website – and pray for Christians in the DRC, thanking God for them and asking God to guide and bless them and their ministries.

Some more prayers for the DRC can be found here and from the Congo Church Association. CAFOD has a prayer specifically for those affected by Ebola.

Short Notes

Yemen
845,017 people. It’s a little more than the total population of Berkshire – and it’s the number of people who are thought to have contracted cholera in Yemen between January 2018 and 7 July 2019. More than 1,230 have died. An estimated 3.3 million Yemenis have been displaced; 10 million are in need of food aid.

Please continue to pray for the people of Yemen, especially for the many civilians for whom the war and humanitarian crisis have meant loss of family, friends, health, homes and livelihoods. Pray that an apparent deal to increase the flow of aid will last and will be effective. Give thanks for all people of good will who are working for peace and to provide assistance to those in need. Pray for their safety and effectiveness.

Pray, too for all parties in the conflict – that they may seek a just peace. As the United Arab Emirates draw down their troops, pray that the result is an opening for a negotiated peace.

Sudan
Sudan’s army and its main opposition coalition have signed a constitutional declaration that sets out a plan for a transitional government. Pray that this development leads to justice and stability for all inhabitants of Sudan. Pray for those who will lead the new transitional government, as they seek to negotiate the country’s economic and political challenges.

Hong Kong
Please continue to hold the people and government of Hong Kong in your prayers. As protests and strikes continue, tensions also continue to mount, and there is concern about China’s response. Please pray for wisdom for all involved. Pray, too, that the  situation may end in a just resolution, by which the human rights, freedoms and safety of all Hong Kong’s inhabitants – and the preservation of their distinctive place – can be guaranteed.

For Prayerful Action

WIn addition to starting to plan for Season of Creation, could you:

 

Resources to help you pray and act

Season of Ceation

Put together by a global team, this year’s Season of Creation resources include a full celebration guide with information about the theme, a ‘Season of Creation’ prayer and further worship resources, and suggestions for events. The website’s resources section also includes  promotional materials, materials for young people and clergy, and a space for sharing community-created resources. Take a look.

We also still have some of Elizabeth’s beautiful Time for Creation postcards, which you can use as invitations to special events. They’re free; all we ask is a donation to cover postage and packing. Email if you’d like some.

 

This email was sent to you by Christian Concern for One World.(CCOW), The Rectory, Church End, Blewbury OX11 9QH. If you’d like to receive it in your inbox, please email us at info@ccow.org.uk

If you find our resources helpful, please consider donating to CCOW online or by cheque or standing order.

Prayers for Week of 12 May

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  • CCOW News
  • ‘God saw that it was good’
  • Ebola
  • After the Cyclones
  • World Fair Trade Day
  • This Week’s Readings

 

CCOW News

These are exciting times. We’re planning a follow-up to our 2018 conference on supporting refugees, putting together proposals to network churches around Fair Trade and local environmental action, and preparing more prayer materials for the coming months.

But we need more capacity if we’re to do both ongoing and new work – and so in addition to fundraising for our normal costs, we are hoping to raise £7,000 towards a new part-time post. We’re holding a sponsored walk on  Saturday, 1 June in the Windrush Valley (details here … walkers and sponsors welcome!) Pray that this will be well supported and also for funding from trusts, churches and individuals.

‘God saw that it was good’

One of the most striking moments in the recent event where Greta Thunberg spoke alongside Caroline Lucas and Anna Taylor came when a young woman spoke about politicians being “desensitised … to words like ‘mass extinction’ ‘climate change’ ‘deforestation'” and then asked: “So how do you make them understand quite how desensitised they are to words that they are throwing around?”

It’s a good question – and not just for politicians. Last Monday, the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services released its ‘Global Assessment’ (summary for policymakers here). The report’s  headline points were:

  • Nature’s Dangerous Decline ‘Unprecedented’
  • Species Extinction Rates ‘Accelerating’
  • Current global response insufficient;
  • ‘Transformative changes’ needed to restore and protect nature;
  • Opposition from vested interests can be overcome for public good
  • Most comprehensive assessment of its kind;
  • 1,000,000 species threatened with extinction

For us as human beings, a report like this could force us to acknowledge that our actions represent a threat to the entire web of life on which we depend. And for us as Christians, it could compel us to recognise that we are signally failing in our call to steward the earth and to contibute to the flourishing of what Richard Bauckham calls ‘the community of creation’. The good news is that the report also reminds us that there is still the chance to change – and to take steps that would help  heal the wounds of creation!

But will the report actually have these effects? Or are we so desensitised that news like this will come and go, and we’ll keep on as we are? The report got coverage in some media outlets (eg Guardian, New York Times) – but after a day or two it was supplanted by other stories. What can we do to keep the question of earth’s survival in the public eye and to push towards the action that scientists tell us is needed?

There will be many specific issues to address: the panel’s press release mentions, among others, plastic pollution, which has increased tenfold since 1980; the dumping of “300-400 million tons of heavy metals, solvents, toxic sludge and other wastes from industrial facilities …annually into the world’s waters”; overuse of fertiliser creating marine ‘dead zones’; the impacts of overfishing and intensive farming. Each issue will demand concrete action.

But perhaps the three most crucial things we can do – from which other, practical actions will flow –  are these. Firstly, to re-connect ourselves (and seek to help reconnect others) with the sense of wonder at the miracle of God’s diverse creation, so that we can truly appreciate what we are in danger of losing and can come to love it.  Secondly to reject views that instrumentalise creation as a vehicle for meeting our needs, rather than as something which is precious in its own right. And thirdly to reflect on Bauckham’s idea of a ‘community of creation’, in which all created things exist to praise God … and we are invited to listen to their praise and to, as it were, join the choir.

If you have a few minutes, take the time to read Bauckham’s short sermon ‘The Community of Creation’ and reflect on it. Then ponder … what do you feel called to do to help address the current groaning of the earth? What steps could you take in your own life? How might you add your voice to advocacy by others to enable larger actions to take place?  If you’d like some further inspiration, you might also want to look at Elizabeth’s powerpoint ‘God saw that it was good’.

Please pray:

  • in thanksgiving to God for the majesty and diversity of creation
  • offering praise to God for earth’s beauty
  • asking forgiveness for our part in misusing creation’s gifts
  • giving thanks for Christ’s work to redeem all things
  • that humanity may come fully to appreciate the intrinsic preciousness of the whole creation
  • that the UN report will inspire genuine action to preserve and protect species and ecosystems
  • that God will lay on each person’s heart things that they can do to play a part in protecting the earth
Ebola

“We are life-savers — we will not be intimidated by this attack. We will strengthen our resolve, and we will fight to finish Ebola.” WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus citing comments by health workers in Nord Kivu

During April the WHO released data showing  that the Merck Ebola vaccine which has been administered in North Kivu is protective over 97% of the time. This news  gives hope: furnished with such an effective tool, doctors can potentially contain an outbreak.

But April was also the worst month so far for new cases in North Kivu – 406 were recorded. That single month’s number would, on its own, constitute the fourth largest Ebola outbreak on record anywhere in the world. And the start of May has been equally worrying: 139 new cases (probable and confirmed) recorded in the opening nine days – with more likely unrecorded.

The issues that continue to hamper prevention and treatment efforts are social, political and economic).  Conflicts make some areas hard to reach, disrupting attempts to treat patients and trace their contacts. Many communities are  angered by the priority being given to Ebola when there are so many pressing health and economic needs …and/or see local elites making money from foreign interventions, so resent public health efforts. Various people and groups have promoted unhelpful rumours and conspiracy theories about Ebola  – from a denial that Ebola exists to suggestions that vaccination campaigns are in fact a way of infecting the population or that the disease itself has been introduced for political ends. “The Ebola vaccine isn’t poison” …”Ebola isn’t a tool to reduce the population density in Beni and Lubero,” a Congolese group recently tweeted, trying to counter some of the disinformation and get correct information to the public.

Given these issues, there has been not only a reluctance to engage with public health programmes, but also violence directed at health workers and health facilities. As of 3 May, there had been “since January … 119 separate attacks on Ebola response workers or operations,  42 direct attacks on health facilities, and 85 health personnel injured or killed” including Cameroonian doctor Richard Mouzoko, who was killed in Butembo in late April. Just this past week, another health worker was killed and violence closed most operations in Butembo.

This is a crucial time: two public health experts pointed out last week that the West African Ebola outbreak “really began to accelerate when daily case counts reached the numbers we are seeing now in the DRC.” It is still possible to contain the epidemic – but there needs to be more funding (the WHO has received only half its requested funds), more vaccine doses – and perhaps a new vaccination strategy – available, better security for the region, community ownership of the public health response, and greater trust among the different parties involved.

Improving the situation is possible. The UK has pledged more funds, and other donors may follow suit. A strategy to vaccinate more people, and supplies of a second vaccine, are due to be coming on stream. The DRC government and the UN mission in the Congo (MONUSCO) have offered their help with security – though there is, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus acknowwledged, a balance between the need for security and the need not to seem to intimidate local communities. New strategies for testing and treatment are more integrated with general healthcare. Churches and faith groups are committed to trying to get correct information to their followers; Tearfund speaks of its partners “producing Ebola prevention songs in local languages for broadcast on the radio and for use by choirs; talks and announcements in church services; and door-to-door sharing.”

Please continue to pray (prayer points a mixture of those from CCOW and those adapted from the Congo Church Association):

  • for all who have lost loved ones in the epidemic, especially children who have been left vulnerable. Pray that children who have lost parents will be taken into families and not stigmatised.
  • for survivors as they seek to recover from the mental and physical trauma of the illness … and for people indirectly affected
  • in thanksgiving for the courage and dedication of Congolese and foreign health workers, who are continuing their efforts despite facing personal danger. Pray for protection for them, and for them to have safe access to affected communities.
  • in thanksgiving for work being done by Christian agencies and church leaders to provide correct information about Ebola and to support those affected by it. Pray that this work will be effective.
  • for greater funding for WHO efforts
  • for all who are seeking to build stability and trust in the region generally, and to increase trust in the Ebola response
  • for those in other cities and countries who are undertaking vaccination programmes and other preventative measures to reduce the risk of a wider spread.
  • for ongoing health education in schools, churches, markets, via radio programmes and posters: pray that the message would get through, and cultural practices and beliefs and fear would not hinder the prevention and treatment of Ebola.

Further Reading:   CCOW has a page about the outbreak, with information, links and prayer points. It’s also worth following @HelenBranswell and @DrMikeRyan on Twitter.

After the Cyclones

“I have witnessed this pain of displacement. I have seen young children traumatised. I have heard people repeatedly say ‘It happened in the night’ and they are scared at the moment in some villages to sleep at night just in case Cyclone Idai comes again.  I have seen the makeshift homes that people live in at the moment. I have seen the agricultural areas destroyed and water everywhere…So Cyclone Idai is indeed a humanitarian crisis that once again lies bare the fundamental injustice of climate change.”  Archbishop Thabo Makgoba

“‘I’m trying to fix my house but I can’t afford to fix it properly. I don’t even have the money for any food for the family. I have a bag of rice from my employers, they gave it to us when they heard about the house, but that’s all we eat. We can’t buy fish like we used to. I just don’t have the money” Gomez Salgado Tome, Mozambique

The past six weeks have seen a series of devastating tropical cyclones. First was Idai, which caused catastrophic flooding in Malawi, southern Mozambique and eastern Zimbabwe. Then came Category 4 strength Kenneth, which hit northern Mozambique. Over 240,000 people were affected by its storm-caused damage, which included the partial or total destruction of over 43,000 houses. In some cases, whole villages were wiped out: in one island community, only three buildings were left standing.

Just over a week later, on 4 May, another strong Category 4 cyclone, Fani, struck in Odisha, India, cutting a destructive swathe across parts of northeast India and Bangladesh, affecting 100,000 hectares of agricultural land and uprooting more than a million trees. Despite a massive evacuation, Fani killed 64 people in Odisha State and thirteen in Bangladesh.

What happens now? While the areas affected have disappeared from the headlines, their concerns haven’t ended. With Idai and Kenneth, survivors will face for some time lack of shelter, the threat of water-borne disease, as water and sanitation facilities have been destroyed, and food insecurity, as tens of thousands of hectares of crops were ruined. Throughout Mozambique, the UN estimates that about 1.85 million people need humanitarian aid, and the World Bank has estimated the costs of rebuilding at $2 billion.

The difficulty for Mozambique, one of the world’s poorest countries, is that the government simply doesn’t have the money needed for rebuilding. The Mozambican government has, therefore, had to seek external funding. The World Bank has offered $350 million in grants to Mozambique, as well as grants for Malawi and Zimbabwe. The IMF, meanwhile, has provided $118.2 million in funds from its Rapid Credit Facility – but in the form of a loan, not a grant. This is profoundly worrying; while the loan conditions are generous (zero interest at present), Mozambique has historically been negatively impacted by its international debts. Will any new loans tip it into a cycle of debt again? The IMF itself acknowledged that most assistance to Mozambique would have to be in the form of grants “to ensure debt sustainability”.

There is a strong argument that countries like Mozambique should, in fact, receive substantial grant funding as a matter of climate justice.

Category 4 strength Kenneth was one of the strongest recorded tropical cyclones to hit mainland Africa and the furthest north to have reached hurricane-level intensity.  Scientists say that the intensity of its rains and the impact of its storm surge are likely to have been increased by climate change, and the stalling that concentrated the rains may be part of a climate-related pattern.

But Mozambique’s carbon footprint per person is tiny  – about 1% of the US’s or 2.5% of the UK’s by some calculations. Its people are not responsible for climate change – but they are suffering the consequences. Should they then be left to bear the costs ?

Various mechanisms exist that are helping countries with limited economic resources cope with climate impacts:

But for some time, developing countries have also been pushing for funding via the ‘loss and damage’ mechanism – money which would help address climate impacts that are beyond the capacity of countries to address through adaptation. Developed countries have been nervous about the concept of  ‘loss and damage’, as they fear that it would lead to their being held liable for climate-related damage and open them to  claims for compensation. Instead they have favoured market-based solutions, such as increased access to insurance. But market-based solutions still often throw financial responsibility onto the people who are potentially going to suffer climate impacts – and some developing countries and environmental/development organisations are pushing for a loss and damage fund, financed perhaps by taxes on fossil fuel use or production, to which developing countries would have access.

Please pray:

  • for all who continue to suffer because of the recent cyclones
  • for churches, agencies, governments and all who are working to provide relief and recovery services to those affected by the three cyclones
  • in thanksgiving for the UK’s commitment to giving 0.7% GNI to the aid budget. Pray for continued support for the policy and for a right use of the aid money.
  • for proper funding to help developing countries recover from both slow-onset and extreme weather disasters
  • for wisdom for all who are preparing negotiations around loss and damage at the next UN climate talks.

World Fair Trade Day

 “I believe beautiful things are better when the people who make them are well-paid. Fairtrade has lifted quality and equality among smallholder coffee farmers in Tanzania.”
Anna Eliuze Bwambo AMCOS

“To me, fair trade means co-operating and collaborating for justice, fairness and equality for producers, farmers and handcrafters.  It is about recognising and truly valuing those who produce many of the goods we enjoy and affording them the dignity and income they deserve.”
Sally Seddon, Volunteer Engagement Manager, Shared Interest

Saturday, 11 May, was World Fair Trade Day –  a reminder to celebrate the work of Fair Trade Enterprises around the world. The quotes above were among those gathered by TWIN Trading, one of the oldest Fair Trade organisations in the UK, which asked the people it works with what Fair Trade means to them..

The World Fair Trade Day theme for 2019 is ‘Fair Trade Innovates’ – and the focus is on ways in which Fair Trade is innovating to find solutions to issues like inequality, climate impacts, and the need to produce goods sustainably. Find out more at the World Fair Trade Organization’s excellent new website.

Over the coming week, could you pray for the Fair Trade movement? The prayer below may be helpful – we also have many more resources on our website:

Dear Lord, we ask your blessing on all who are involved with Fairtrade, lifting before you:

  • producers as they grow their crops and craft their works. Bless them, we pray, in their endeavours and grant them wisdom and discernment as they make decisions about how to use the benefits of Fairtrade.
  • people who transport Fairtrade goods to market. Grant, we pray, that they, too, may be fairly treated.
  • those who import and retail Fairtrade goods. Grant them, we pray, a genuine commitment to fairer trade for all.
  • all of us who shop where Fairtrade goods are for sale. Grant us an understanding of the impact of our choices.

We ask all these things in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Further Reading:  ‘4 Ways Fair Trade is a Christian value”

This Week’s Readings
  Acts 9:36-43  •  Psalm 23  •  Revelation 7:9-17  •  John 10:22-30

“My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me.  I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them out of my hand. What my Father has given me is greater than all else, and no one can snatch it out of the Father’s hand. The Father and I are one.”
John 10:27 – 30

Image: Minster Lovell Hall  (cropped). Credit: Hugh Llewellyn, Flickr. Used under Creative Commons License.

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Prayer Email: 7 April 2019

in

In this email

  • Storms and Floods

  • Brexit

  • Short Notes: Faith and Asylum, Immigration Detention, Positive Climate Action, Ebola, Rwanda

  • This Week’s Readings

Storms and Floods

Our last email focused on Cyclone Idai. Please continue to pray and give for relief and recovery in Mozambique, Malawi & Zimbabwe. Please also pray for people who suffered losses when Australia was hit by two cyclones (there were also some for whom the storms’ rains were a gift) In the US, there have been historic river floods in the Midwest: pray for all affected and especially for farmers, some of whom are considering leaving their farms. Pray for those affected by floods in  Angola, deadly flash floods in Afghanistan,  flooding and landslides in Indonesia, which have killed over one hundred people, major floods in Iran

which have killed 70 people and forced largescale evacuations, and flash floods after storms in southern Nepal.

Brexit

We’ve been working for several weeks on a piece on Brexit. The difficulty with this is that as the situation changes almost daily, it’s very difficult to write. If we can, we’ll send out a ‘Brexit’ supplement to the prayer email over the weekend … but in the meantime, please keep praying for all involved in the process of discerning a way forward.

Short Notes: Faith and Asylum, Immigration Detention, Positive Climate Action, Ebola,  Rwanda

Faith and Asylum

Christian leaders have raised concerns about the Home Office’s treatment of people seeking asylum for religious reasons, after an Iranian convert to Christianity had their asylum application refused by a Home Office official who used selected verses from Scripture, taken out of context, to dispute the convert’s account of having converted to Christianity because it was a religion of peace. While the Home Office has agreed in this instance that the letter did not follow its ‘policy approach’ and that it will reconsider the person’s case, this is not the first time that Home Office criteria for deciding on the authenticity of conversions have been questioned. Failures in this area are a serious issue, as converts who are refused asylum and returned to their countries of origin could, in some cases, face prison, physical punishment, or death. Pray for greater religious literacy in the process and for converts to receive a fair hearing and protection from persecution.

Immigration Detention
The Joint Public Issues Team and other Christian organisations welcomed the House of Commons Home Affairs Committee’s critique of Home Office practice relating to detention.  An official summary of the report noted that it found “that the Home Office has utterly failed in its responsibility to oversee the safe and humane detention of individuals in the UK, that too often it does not follow its own policy and guidance, and that a series of safeguarding and case-working failures have led to people being wrongfully detained, held in immigration when they are vulnerable and unnecessarily detained for too long.” Among its recommendations, “the Committee calls for an end to indefinite detention and a maximum 28-day time limit and says the Home Office must do much more to ensure that detention is an option of last resort. The Committee also calls for an overhaul of the Adults at Risk policy, stronger judicial oversight and a more humane decision-making process for detention to ensure that vulnerable people are not being let down.” Pray that these recommendations are heard and acted upon.

Action Point: Join MPs from all parties, human rights groups, Christian groups and others in calling on the UK Government to end indefinite detention and to place a 28 day time limit on immigration detention. You can do so via Liberty/s pettion or through the [Catholic] Bishops Conference of England and Wales. In addition to the new report, see the report by the Joint Committee on Human Rights for more information.

Positive Climate Action

Thanks to initiatives like #PlasticLessLent and the Living Lent programme, more and more people are making personal lifestyle choices that reflect their commitment to care for our environment. ‘But what about wider action?’ people sometimes ask. In fact, recent weeks have seen a number of new and noteworthy positive signs of large-scale change. Here are a few, drawn from different areas where new initiatves are needed. You can find more climate prayer points in this month’s Pray and Fast for the Climate prayer sheet.

  • Shell has withdrawn from the industry lobby group American Fuel and Petrochemicals Manufacturers, citing “material misalignment on climate-related policy positions with this association” including the AFPM’s unwillingness to state support for the Paris Goals.  Shell also said that it would monitor its membership in 9 other industry associations with whom it had ‘some misalignment’.
    Fossil fuel lobbyists have been fighting positive policy change for years – to have an oil major break with a lobbying group – and put others on notice – because of policy differences is a significant development.  Give thanks – and pray that others follow.
  • It’s less than we need – and too long a lead time when it’s already long overdue – but it’s still worth giving thanks for the Government announcement that gas heating will be banned in new build housing from 2025 onwards, as it’s at least a sign of movement. Pray, though, for more rapid action.
  • In 2018, for the first time ever, more than 1 million ‘pure’ electric cars were sold. The major German car manufacturers have agreed a common position on the electric technology for the next decade or so and are pushing for infrastructure to support it, and even auto show reviews are focusing on sustainability. Pray for an ever more rapid shift to sustainable transport.
  • Vegan Big Whoppers were launched on April Fools Day … but they weren’t an April Fools joke, just the most visible sign of the mainstreaming of plant-based eating. The new burger is a product developed by a former Stanford professor who has made it his mission to create vegan food tasty enough to help people reduce their meat consumption. Many seem to feel he’s succeeded on the taste front. And while fast food still raises many issues, as do the technological processes involved in some meat substitutes, give thanks more broadly that a much-needed shift in eating habits is gaining traction.

Ebola

As of Friday the total number of Ebola cases in the current Nord Kivu/Ituri (DRC) outbreak was 1,117 and 702 people had died. While this is far smaller than the 2014-2016 Ebola outbreak in West Africa, it is the second-widest recorded Ebola outbreak – and, after looking earlier this year as if it might slow,  has actually accelerated in recent weeks. March had the most cases per month since the outbreak began. The increase is attributed to the combination of political instability, community mistrust, and resultant attacks on health workers and health facilities that have made prevention and treatment more difficult.  Please give thanks for the courage and dedication of Congolese health workers and the international colleagues working alongside them. Pray for all who are affected. Pray for an increase in stability and trust in the region that will enable effective prevention and treatment. And pray that the outbreak does not spread to areas where it would be more difficult yet to contain.

Further Reading:   CCOW has a page about the outbreak, with information, links and prayer points. If you speak French, you can listen to the coordinator of Ebola response in Butembo, speaking in a Ministry of Health broadcast about the importance of community action and support.

Rwanda

This Sunday marks the 25th anniversary of the start of the Rwandan genocide, in which over 800,000 people were killed in about 100 days. We’ve put links to some reading/viewing below, which offers the testimony of different people affected by the genocide. The prayer points are derived from those readings.

Please pray:

  • for continued healing for all who suffer because of the genocide
  • for the ongoing process of reconciliation within Rwanda
  • for peace and stability throughout the Great Lakes region, and for an end to the many conflicts there, some related to those of Rwanda, that blight lives today
  • for those who struggle with the Christian faith because of Christian participation in the genocide
  • in thanksgiving for all – Christians and others – who opposed the violence.
  • for the work of Christians and churches on reconciliation and renewal
  • in thanksgiving for those who suffered who have been able to show forgiveness and love to those who harmed them
  • for all who conntinue to struggle with anger and hatred because of the harm done to them
  • in thanksgiving for those who have apologised for their action or inaction. Pray for those who have yet to ask forgiveness.
  • for justice and freedom for all in Rwanda
  • for all who stand up against the kind of dehumanising language that fuelled the Rwandan genocide, wherever it now manifests itself. Pray that dehumanising language about our fellow humans may have no place anywhere.

This Week’s Readings

Isaiah 43:16-21 • Psalm 126 • Philippians 3:4b-14 • John 12:1-8

“More than that, I regard everything as loss because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord … Beloved, I do not consider that I have made it my own; but this one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:8, 13-14

As we continue through Lent, help us, Lord, to seek a deeper life in you as our greatest prize.

Image: Tropical Cyclone Idai seen by NASA’s Aqua satellite in Mozambique Channel (cropped). Credit: NASA Worldview, Earth Observing System Data and Information System (EOSDIS)

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Refugees, Brexit and Trade, Christian Unity, Peace Sunday

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  • Praying for Refugees

  • Brexit and the Trade Bill

  • Week of Prayer for Christian Unity

  • Short Notes: Peace Sunday, Coming Up

  • This Week’s Readings

Praying for Refugees – Saturday

On Saturday 26th January, from 9:30 am to 1:30 pm at St Clement’s Church in Oxford, CCOW will be offering ‘A time of reflection and refreshment: Praying for refugees, asylum seekers and all walking alongside’. The event will include prayer stations, reflections, shared prayers and a shared lunch.

If you haven’t already signed up, please email Joanna to do so.  We hope that Christians from different traditions and with different experiences will join us. All are welcome. Book by Thursday.

Brexit and the Trade Bill

It has been a tumultuous week in the Brexit debates. To find prayers for the nation and its leaders, you may wish to look at:

As we consider, this week, the themes of unity and pursuing justice, we are conscious of the many ways in which decisions around Brexit could have an impact on justice issues. Decisions about tariffs, for example, could have a substantial negative impact on small farmers here and developing country producers who currently export to the UK. And because trade agreements also cover regulatory frameworks, the way we approach trading relationships could affect labour rights, protection for the environment, food standards, and chemical safety standards in the UK, with impacts also on our trading partners.

In light of this, please pray as the  Trade Bill comes to the House of Lords this week. While the withdrawal of the Bill from Commons business in the coming weeks means that this Bill may not, in fact, be the one that comes to a final vote, the discussions around it still matter, as they are an opportunity to draw out central principles of trade justice that need to be included. Pray for:

  • wisdom for the Lords as they discuss vital issues relating to Brexit and trade
  • a willingness to look at the social and environmental impacts of economic decisions
  • wisdom and a sense of peace for those who engage in international trade, as they face uncertainty around their future

For more information, see our Resources on Trade and Brexit page, which has links to materials explaining the issues. Given the sheer volume of misunderstandings about trade and Parliament’s options, we would particularly commend following on Twitter David Henig (@davidhenigUK), Dmitry Grozoubinski (@DmitryOpines), and Peter Ungphakorn (@CoppetainPU) – all of them former trade negotiators committed to explaining clearly how trade agreements work; Helen Dennis (@HelenDennisDevt) at the Fairtrade Foundation and Liz May (@LizMay12) at Traidcraft Exchange, looking at impacts on developing countries; and @Brigid_Fowler, at the Hansard Society, an expert on parliamentary procedure.

Week of Prayer for Christian Unity

“Justice, and only justice, you shall pursue.” As we reflect on the theme chosen for this year’s Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, we’ve been calling to mind churches’ work for justice around the world. For each day of the coming week,  we’re providing a short prayer note relating to the daily focus, with a llink to the excellent materials provided by Indonesian Christians.

Sunday:  Theme – “The Lord is gracious and merciful to all” … God’s mercy to all people

“In various ways, [members of the Indonesian churches] work together … women of different communities in the Kebayoran area of Jakarta, for instance, work together to provide very cheap lunch packs to the becak (rickshaw) drivers, low income families, and the homeless.”

Pray for churches and Christian groups that are living out Christ’s love in their interactions with people whom others marginalise. Pray especially for those Christians who witness to God’s gracious and merciful love for all while themselves facing marginalisation or danger because of their faith.

Among these, pray for churches and Christian groups in the UK and in countries around the world which, like the Indonesian churches, offer a welcome and practical assistance to people who are on low incomes or without adequate housing. Give thanks for the many churches and Christian groups who undertake activities such as running community food projects, opening as winter shelters, providing support for refugees, and lobbying for fairer social and economic policies in solidarity with peole in poverty. If your church isn’t already involved in any such activities, pray to discern whether you might be called to action; the links above will take you to sources of inspiration and information.

Monday: Theme – “Be content with what you have” … justice in distribution of resources

“The PGI [Communion of Churches in Indonesia] member churches share the conviction that greed is the root cause of the four different but interrelated issues [poverty, injustice, radicalism and environmental degradation]. Therefore PGI promotes the so-called ‘spiritualitas keugaharian’ or ‘spirituality of moderation’.” Pray for the churches in Indonesia and around the world who work to combat greed and its consequences, and to offer an alternative of joyful moderation.

In the UK, pray for endeavours like Green Christians’ ‘Joy in Enough’ programme, the Ecumenical Council for Corporate Responsibility’s ‘using ethical investment to close the gap’ ( creating fairer pay structures), and the Joint Public Issues Team’s work on poverty and inequality. If you’re not already working for justice in this area and feel called to do so, consider whether these or other resources or opportunities relating to your own experience might be offering something with which to engage.

Tuesday: Theme – “To bring good news to the poor”… combattting exploitation of people in poverty

“The prophet Amos criticized traders who practiced deceit  and exploited  the poor  in order to gain maximum profit. Amos also underlined how God observes their wrongdoing and will never forget it. God listens to the cries of victims of injustice and never forsakes those who are exploited and treated unjustly.”

Pray for Christians around the world who are seeking to end exploitation by providing fairly paid work, fairly priced housing, and fair access to credit for people who are trying to escape poverty. Pray especially for:

  • Traidcraft’s team in the UK as it reshapes the organisation in order to make it sustainable.
  • Traidcraft’s  Christian producer partners (and all its producer partners) worldwide who are providing opportunities for good employment, and who will be seeking new markets. You might want to use the prayers from Asha Handicrafts which are on our website.
  • Housing Justice in the UK  and church housing initiatives globally.
  • Credit unions, savings groups, and microcredit institutions serving poor communities, especially those formed by churches, either alone or working ecumenically

Wednesday: Theme – “The Lord of Hosts is His name”… care for creation

“Many people have been driven by  greed  to exploit creation beyond its capacity. In the name of development, forests are  cleared and pollution destroys land, air, rivers and seas, rendering agriculture impossible, making fresh water unobtainable and causing animals to die. In this context it is useful to remember that  after  his resurrection, Jesus commissioned  the disciples to proclaim the good news ‘to the whole creation’. No  part  of  creation is outside God’s plan to make all things new. And so  conversion  is  needed from a tendency to exploit to an attitude  that values and  reconciles  us with creation.”

Pray for Christians around the world who are seeking to care for creation, especially:

  • The churches in Indonesia, as they come together “to promote eco-friendly churches, and to take a stand against environmental abuses”
  • all who are inspiring people to see the beauty of creation and to appreciate the wonder of God’s gift to us
  • all who are taking steps – whether small, beginning steps or larger ones – to live more sustainably. Pray too for programmes like Eco Church and LiveSimply that offer support in living joyfully and sustainably
  • all – such as Rene Pamplona and Sister Susan Bolanio in the Philippines  – who are environmental defenders in places where opposing exploitation and protecting natural resources can be dangerous
  • all around the world who are seeking to influence their governments to have stronger environmental policies, especially, at this time of regulatory rollback in the US and Brazil, those in US networks like Creation Justice Ministries, the Evangelical Environmental Network and the National Religious Partnership for the Environment and those working in Brazil for environmental justice

Thursday: Theme – “Woman, great is your faith” … fighting trafficking and exploitation of women

“In recent years churches in Indonesia have taken common action against human trafficking and the sexual abuse of children. Their efforts, and those of people of other faiths, are all the more urgent since the number of victims in some parts of their country is increasing daily.
As Christians unite in prayer and study of the Scriptures, truly listening for God’s voice, they can discover that God also speaks today through the cries of the most abused in society. It is when  they hear God’s  call together  that  they are  inspired to join in common action against the scourge of human trafficking and of other evils.”

Pray for all – men and women – who are affected by the evils of trafficking and sexual exploitation. Pray for Christian initiatives to end these scourges, including:

  • The Clewer Initiative, a project helping Church of England churches and wider church networks “to develop strategies to detect modern slavery in their communities and help provide victim support and care”
  • International Justice Mission,  which seeks to rescue people from slavery, press for the conviction of slave owners, and address the situations that engender slavery
  • Medaille Trust, “a charity founded by groups of [Catholic] Religious congregations … to work against the evils of human trafficking in response to the plight of thousands of people who are being trafficked into the UK each year”
  • Stop the Traffik, a global movement seeking “to unite people around the world by inspiring, informing, equipping and mobilising communities to know what trafficking is, know how to identify it and how to respond, and know how to protect themselves and others”

Could your church take a look at the “7 Ps” – principles for churches taking action to tackle trafficking?

Friday: Theme – “The Lord is my light and my salvation” … A unified church working for justice

“Day by day, year by year, and especially during this Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, Christians join together for common prayer, professing their common baptismal faith, listening for God’s voice in the Scriptures and praying together of unity in Christ’s body. In doing so, they recognise that the Holy Trinity is the source of all unity and that Jesus is the light of the world, who promises the light of life to those who follow him. The many injustices in the world frequently sadden or anger them. But they do not lose hope, they move to action. Because the Lord is their light and their salvation and the stronghold of their lives, they do not fear.”

Please pray:

Short Notes

Peace Sunday

“”One thing is certain: good politics is at the service of peace. It respects and promotes fundamental human rights, which are at the same time mutual obligations, enabling a bond of trust and gratitude to be forged between present and future generations… today more than ever, our societies need ‘artisans of peace’ who can be messengers and authentic witnesses of God the Father, who wills the good and the happiness of the human family.”

This Sunday, 20 January, is Peace Sunday, with the theme ‘Good politics is at the service of peace’. At a time when so much in politics worldwide turns to conflict more than peace, please pray for God to transform the politics of hatred into a politics of love and peace. Each person will have a particular situation that they wish to pray for. We’d ask your prayers at present for people working on a political solution to the conflict in Yemen, those working to create peace and justice following the disputed election in the Democratic Republic of Congo, those seeking freedom for minority ethnic and religious groups in China and Myanmar, and those seeking a politics of love, justice and righteousness amidst the divisions in the United States.

Coming Up

Next Sunday is both World Leprosy Day and Holocaust Memorial Day. Click on the links for materials.

This Week’s Readings

Revised Common Lectionary Readings – Isaiah 62:1-5  •  Psalm 36:5-10  •  1 Corinthians 12:1-11  •  John 2:1-11

“Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of services, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. To one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the discernment of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. All these are activated by one and the same Spirit, who allots to each one individually just as the Spirit chooses.”

1 Corinthians 12: 4-11

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Troubled Waters, God’s Gifts and Our Response, Nobel Peace Prize, China and Religion – 7/10/18

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  • Troubled Waters

  • God’s gifts and our response

  • Nobel Peace Prize

  • Short Note: China and Religion

  • This Week’s Readings

Troubled Waters

We start this week by praying for the people affected by the earthquake and tsunami that hit the Indonesian island of Sulawesi. We remember also the many recovering from recent tropical cyclones and from floods in Nigeria and Kerala. Please pray and give for relief and recovery; there is a page with links here.

Not all disasters are climate related. But we know that climate change is making some types of extreme weather more frequent and more severe. The new 1.5 degree report from the IPCC calls us to take immediate and drastic action. For an aid to prayer on climate impacts and climate action, take a look at Elizabeth’s powerful new video meditation ‘Troubled Waters’, prepared  for the Anglican Alliance and CCOW.

God’s gifts and our response

As Christians, we recognise that we are all recipients of God’s gifts. By God’s grace, we all have access to the gift of Salvation and the gifts of the Spirit, freely given. We also have access to God’s material gifts in creation. The extent of that access, however, varies. For some of us, the amount of resource available to us may not be enough – or may be just barely  enough – to cover the genuine necessities of daily life. For others of us, there may be quite a lot of resources to which we have access and, in some cases, over which we exert control – perhaps far beyond what’s involved in meeting our basic needs.

It’s an important part of being a disciple to reflect with thanksgiving on God’s goodness in offering so many gifts – and how we can best respond. Looking specifically at the material gifts in creation, how do we understand our relationship to them? How does our understanding work itself out in our practice? Over the coming weeks, our prayer email will be offering some reflections on these questions – beginning with some general thoughts and then looking at specific areas for prayer and practical action. Inherently, these will be tasters. not full explorations, of the questions involved. But in each case, we’ll also have links to further explorations, if you want to delve deeper.

We’d encourage you to seek out, if you haven’t already, a few people with whom you can discuss your thoughts in these areas. One of the findings of the recent Good Money Week poll is that we as a society are very uncomfortable discussing our finances with our peers – in fact, people would generally rather discuss almost anything else! This isn’t really a surprise. Our society tends to regard ‘personal’ resource use as simply ‘personal’ – our own business. We’re encouraged in this by pressures all around us that want us to focus on  our wants, our needs, our lives so that they can sell us their products and keep us from looking too closely at the issues behind them.

But because we believe that God is the source and ‘owner’ of all things, and that having created the world in love, God longs for us to show love – to God, each other and the whole created order, we can’t take that view.  I can’t talk about ‘my’ money or ‘my’ property or assess ‘my’ needs on the basis of what is good for me alone. I have to regard myself as accountable to God and my neighbour (in the widest sense) for the way I relate to God’s blessings.And that’s something that requires honest self-assessment, study – but also the perspective of others, especially others who may have different types of knowledge, different  views or experience of living with access to different amounts of resource.

We look forward to exploring these questions – and hearing from you about your responses.  To start, please pray:

  • in thanksgiving to God for the gifts of creation and redemption
  • that God will open our hearts and our minds as we consider God’s gifts in creation and our relationship with all that shares our ‘common home’

Nobel Peace Prize

“We think that if their voice can be heard, the world ha[s] to take responsibility about what is happening to women. We have the responsibility to draw the line and never accept that women can be destroyed in the way that is happening today. We can change hate by love.” Dennis Mukwege, interviewed by Bill Gates and his team

“[The Nobel Peace Prize] means a lot, not just for me but for all of these women in Iraq and in all the world … it wasn’t easy for me to go out and … speak about what happened to me … I thought that … women who are suffering sexual violence in conflict that their voice, their cries will not be heard, and for those small communities that are being persecuted in many corners of the world that their cries will not be heard. But this prize tells me that their voices are being heard … and … will be a voice for all the women that are suffering from sexual violence in conflict in every place … I hope … it will help bring justice for those women that suffered from sexual violence … and hopefully prevent similar acts like that.”  Nadia Murad, interview upon receiving the Nobel Peace Prize

This year the Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded to Denis Mukwege and Nadia Murad “for their efforts to end the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war and armed conflict.”

Dr Mukwege is the founder and director of the Panzi Hospital in Bukavu, DRC, which is managed by the Communauté des Eglises de Pentecôte en Afrique Centrale (Pentecostal Churches in Central Africa) and which specialises in treating women who have suffered from sexual violence. He i also a co-founder of the City of Joy centre.

Eastern Congo has been an area of conflict for many years, and both Congolese security forces and other non-state armed groups – have used rape as a weapon of war. Hundreds of thousands of women (and, though less frequently, men) have suffered. Panzi Hospital has treated more than 50,000 women survivors, many of whom were raped and tortured in ways that left them with serious medical injuries. Panzi’s work, however, isn’t simply medical: as the Panzi Foundation explains, it has a “five-pillar holistic healing model [which]  includes physical care, psychosocial support, community reintegration services, legal assistance, and education and advocacy to address the root causes of violence.” All women are assigned a social assistant who helps with support beyond medical issues. Those who are unable to return home because of medical issues, continued conflict or stigma can make use of Maison Dorcas, which offers housing, meals, ongoing therapeutic care, and access to an array of training programmes. A legal clinic helps them pursue justice – attacking the culture of impunity that perpetuates sexual violence. And Panzi’s advocacy project helps to educate communities to addres the root causes of violence. Dr Mukwege himself has been tireless in advocacy, despite the fact that his push for accountability and justice has made him the target of threats and acts of violence.

Nadia Murad is a Yazidi woman whose village was attacked by IS. The attackers murdered the men and older women, including six of her brothers and her mother, and took her and other young women to Mosul to be used in sex slavery. Claimed by an IS judge, she was repeatedly raped and beaten. Eventually, she was able to escape the home of her captor and was enabled to flee Iraq by a sympathetic stranger. Having found safety in Germany, she decided, despite the difficulty of doing so, to speak out about what happened to her. By speaking, she hopes to get justice for her community and to prevent further episodes of genocide and sexual violence. She has founded an initiative to rebuild communities devastated by conflict and has addressed audiences around the world, from Yazidi communities in Iraq to the UN General Assembly (video), telling her story and calling for the prosecution of IS militants, an end to religious persecution, and the rebuilding of her area. She called her autobiography ‘The Last Girl’ – as she says “more than anything, I want to be the last girl in the world with a story like mine.”

This Nobel Prize recognises both the pain that sexual violence in conflict inflicts and the courage with which survivors and their allies are working to end it. As we come before  Christ,  please pray:

  • for healing of body and mind for all who have experienced sexual violence – and that each person, male or female, who experiences sexual violence may know the depth of God’s love for them
  • in thanksgiving for the courage of survivors like Nadia Murad and the women of Panzi Hospital, who are willing to speak about their pain in order to make a better future for others
  • in thanksgiving for the way Dr Mukwege and the Panzi hospital staff manifest God’s love through practical care – and for the courage he shows in advocacy against violence despite the continued risk to himself. We pray for protection for him and for all those threatened because of their work on accountability for sexual violence.
  • for an end to sexual violence in conflict

Short Note

China and Religion

China’s increasing repression of non-state-sanctioned religion is a serious concern. This is currently most notable in the case of the Uighur (or Uyghur) Muslims of Xinjiang: China is estimated to be holding more than a million in internment camps for ‘education’ with some two million more “undergoing some form of coercive re-education or indoctrination.” Accounts from people who have experienced the camps speak of torture and detail the pressures on those detained to renounce their faith and culture. The government’s policies, which have created fear among Uighur communities throughout (and beyond) China, also include intense surveillance and have been described as ‘cultural genocide’.

China’s repression is not restricted to the Uighur Muslims; numerous religious groups are experiencing pressure. These include Christians, especially those belonging to churches outside the state system. Since the entry into force of new Regulations on Religious Affairs this past February, prominent independent churches have seen their pastors fined or imprisoned and their members questioned and harrassed; some have been closed.  In Henan province, Catholic and Protestant churches have been forced to display signs banning children from worship, and some church buildings have been destroyed. Moreover, the Chinese government clearly intends further intrusions: Christian Solidarity Worldwide has noted that, following the Communist Party’s taking on direct oversight of religious affairs, “the state-sanctioned China Christian Council and Three-Self Patriotic Movement launched a five year plan to ‘Sinicize’ Christianity, which reportedly includes plans to write a ‘secular’ version of the Bible, revise other religious materials, and include teaching on socialism and patriotism alongside religious study.” A new draft regulation on disseminating religious materials also appeared in September; this would require people to apply for a license to send such materials via “texts, pictures, audio and video, etc. through Internet sites, applications, forums, blogs, microblogs, public accounts, instant messaging tools, and live webcasts”

Please pray that God may transform the situation in China, asking God to change the hearts of those in power, to bring true comfort to all who are suffering, and to endow church leaders and Christians generally  with wisdom, strong faith and courage. Pray that Christians in China will be able to be a blessing to those around them, despite the pressures that they face.

This Week’s Readings

Revised Common Lectionary Readings – Job 1:1, 2:1-10 and Psalm 26  •  Genesis 2:18-24 and Psalm 8  •  Hebrews 1:1-4, 2:5-12  •  Mark 10:2-16

“Long ago God spoke to our ancestors in many and various ways by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom he also created the worlds. He is the reflection of God’s glory and the exact imprint of God’s very being, and he sustains all things by his powerful word. When he had made purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.”

Hebrews 1:1-3

CCOW Prayer Email: World AIDS Day, Advent Resources 2017

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In this week’s prayer email:

  • Advent Resources for Prayer and Action
  • World AIDS Day: Children and the ‘Right to Health’
  • To Do … To Watch … To Read
  • Events

Advent Resources for Prayer and Action

New Lectionary-Based Prayer Resources

He has brought down rulers from their thrones, but has lifted up the humble.
He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty.
He has helped his servant Israel,remembering to be merciful
to Abraham and his descendants for ever, just as he promised our ancestors.

Luke 1:52 -55

The songs of Zechariah and Mary in the opening chapter of Luke’s gospel are profound declarations of God’s ongoing story of love for the world and its people. These glorious prayers precede the Christmas birth narrative and reflect many of the great themes of Advent: the songs look both back and forward – back to God’s covenant with Abraham and forward to God’s unfolding salvation; they are full of waiting and watching – waiting for God’s purposes to be revealed, watching for the Lord’s coming; they are about now and not yet – singing of an upside down kingdom, which is both here now and still to come; and they are shot through with the confident hope that light will overcome darkness.

During Advent we will be offering four reflections that develop these themes, based on the Sunday readings set in the Revised Common Lectionary. Each week, a short written reflection will be accompanied by a PowerPoint presentation of images and selected verses from the set passages.

The four reflections show a progression through the season of Advent: the first, for example, focuses on longing and lament; the next on promise and preparation; the last on revelation and response.

We hope you will find these reflections helpful for both personal prayer and in church services: we will be bringing the prayer email out on a Friday so that they are available for Sunday service planning.

A Challenge

This Sunday the Revised Common Lectionary Gospel is Matthew 25:31-46. Christ in glory separates the ‘sheep’ from the ‘goats’, inviting into the Kingdom those who fed the hungry, gave drink to those who thirsted, welcomed the stranger, clothed the naked and visited those who were sick or in prison.

“But when did we see you?” both groups ask Jesus. He responds “Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you did it to me.”

During Advent, we often talk about being prepared so that we recognise the Messiah when He comes. What Christ reminds us is that we are called to see Him every day in the people around us. So as we prepare to celebrate the Incarnation of Christ seen as a vulnerable baby in the manger, our Advent Challenge will call us to see and serve Christ by following his command to serve Him in His brothers and sisters.

Each week of Advent we’ll take one of the areas mentioned in this week’s Gospel and tweet (@ccowinfo) daily suggestions for living it out. We’ll retweet other people’s suggestions, too – so please follow and send us your thoughts!

 

World AIDS Day: Children and the ‘Right to Health’

This Friday we mark World AIDS Day.

The theme that UNAIDS has picked for this year is ‘Right to Health’. What is the ‘right to health’? In his World AIDS Day statement, UNAIDS Executive Director Michael Sidibé uses the definition from the Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, “the right to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health.”  The UNAIDS 2017 Report gives a detailed and rich history of the concept in various international agreements  – which involves guaranteeing access “to the information, services and conditions [including social and economic conditions] that we need to be healthy and to stay healthy” and within that making sure that healthcare is accessible, available, acceptable (treating all with dignity) and of good quality.

In the UNAIDS report, Sidibé notes the strong role that people living with AIDS have played in promoting this right: “The AIDS response,” he says, “has been a pioneer in the expansion of the right to health. Its hallmark has been giving a voice to people living with HIV and giving affected communities and civil society the means to demand their right to health. People took to the streets, demanded access to life-saving  medicines and for prices to be brought down. They demanded confidentiality and treatment with dignity and without discrimination …They became part of the solution, at the forefront of service delivery.”

The report recognises, however, that some groups living with HIV and AIDS still do not have access to the information, services and conditions that would qualify them as enjoying their full rights. A poor family in a rural area, for example, may have no means of receiving vital information about HIV testing, live at a distance from the nearest clinic – and hence be hesitant to go for testing or treatment, be unable to access medication even if they can attend the clinic, lack sufficient income for nutritious food,  be in an area without ready access to proper sanitation, and fear knowing their status because of their community’s stigmatising of people living with HIV.

Among those who often have difficulty accessing their rights are children and young people. Because of the considerable successes in breaking mother-to-child transmission, we tend to hear less about children living with HIV and AIDS.  The reduction in transmissions is cause for rejoicing. In the report, Chip Lyons,  President and Chief Executive Officer of the Elizabeth
Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation (EGPAF), notes that since 2010, “the number of new paediatric infections has been reduced by 53% in the 21 priority countries.” The latest UNAIDS data show that overall, new infections among children have decreased by 47%.

But the successes don’t cover all children. According to UNAIDS,  2.1 million children (aged 0 to 14) globally are living with HIV.  Dependent on adults for access to both testing and treatment, many receive neither: in 2016, AIDS charity CABSA and the WCC state, “only 43 percent of HIV-exposed infants received the recommended diagnostic test within the first two months of life.” Unsurprisingly, only the same percentage of children are receiving proper treatment. “Without treatment,” CABSA and the WCC note, “half of children with HIV will die by their second birthday.”

For young people, the situation is equally critical. Young women between 15 and 24 account for 20% of all new HIV infections; young men in the same age group account for about 14%. These figures reflect economic and social vulnerabilities and – clearly – gender imbalances.

In recognition of the particular difficulties faced by children and young people, this year’s CABSA World AIDS Day service, produced in conjunction with the WCC, focuses on prayer for and with children and adolescents.

Please join in praying for a world in which “no child is born with HIV, children and adolescents stay free from HIV, and those who are living with HIV will have their rights fulfilled.”
You might wish to use this prayer, adapted from the service:

Gracious loving Father,
Today we pray for the 5 million children who have died from AIDS-related illnesses since the start of the HIV epidemic.
We pray for those living with, or affected by, HIV and for their loved ones.
We pray to receive strength and courage to fight injustice and inequalities and to work so that HIV testing and treatment are accessible to all, including those living in poor settings.
Forgive us, Lord, if we do not always stand up against a system that perpetuates injustice. Show us how we can serve your children.
If we are to see a day when there are zero AIDS-related deaths, zero new HIV infections and zero discrimination, guide us, oh Lord, to work together to ensure that the practical
efforts, political will and financial commitments continue.
As we give thanks for what has been achieved, we commit ourselves anew to doing all we can to make sure that no one is left behind.
Amen

To Do … To Watch … To Read

Every week we come across a variety of interesting materials on areas related to our work. Links to films or reading materials do not necessarily indicate CCOW’s endorsement of particular media outlets, organisations or positions.

  • To Do:
    • A simple 16 Days action from the Mothers’ Union: “link hands with one another to represent our unity in ending gender based violence; reach out hands to represent our connection with those around the world affected by, or campaigning against gender-based violence; and lift hands up, as a sign of prayer for an end to gender-based violence.” A way to engage churches or small groups in prayer around an issue many find difficult – could you try it?
    • Sign the Hope for the Middle East petition, calling on the UN Secretary General to use his good offices to secure legal rights for all citizens in Syria and Iraq, ensure dignified living conditions for the displaced, and identify and equip religious leaders and faith-based organisations to play a constructive role in reconciling and rebuilding after conflict

  • To Watch:
    • Two videos from Carbon Brief
      • a href=”http://bit.ly/2i6ncQt”>Transcription and video clips of an interview with evangelical climate scientist Katharine Hayhoe.
      • Three need-to-knows from the recent UN climate talks in Bonn

  • To Read: