Who
Christian Concern for One World (CCOW) is an ecumenical organisation and a registered charity, working primarily in the three counties of Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire.
We take our lead from the Bible imperatives: 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind and your neighbour as yourself.' Luke 10:27
When we fully accept the implications of this command and the parable of the Good Samaritan with which Christ explains it, we realise that we have a great many neighbours in this globalised world, many of whom we shall never meet. We touch people in farflung places through the purchasing choices we make, the decisions of our elected governments, the consequences of our use of resources. We are all, truly, neighbours.
Moreover, we belong as Christians to a worldwide family, the Body of Christ, whose members Christ commanded to "love one another" with the same sacrificial love with which he loved us.
At CCOW, we seek to serve and equip Christians in the 3 counties who wish to live God's love in a global context. We have a particular focus on economic justice issues, partnerships for service and transforming unjust structures, and care for creation.
We work by:
- providing information about economic, social and environmental issues, which enables people to make informed choices;
- resourcing and sharing in theological exploration in these areas;
- fostering prayer and preaching that has a world perspective;
- networking individuals and groups who feel called to prayer and/or action
- supporting existing projects or helping to initiate new ones
At present our projects include:
- working on climate change in partnership with churches, Christian environmental groups, overseas partners and the Environmental Change Institute at Oxford University
- coordinating a variety of Fair Trade initiatives, including campaigns, an annual "Big Brew," and smaller projects to help local Fair Trade shops and to link producers with markets.
- preparing a package for World AIDS Day which offers liturgical materials, stories about local partnerships for change, and opportunities to engage in the issues around AIDS with speaker
- preparing materials to help churches engage with poverty issues through the Micah Challenge and the Global Week of Action on Debt and Stand Up and Speak Out initiatives in October.
Resources on each of these topics are available for download from this site and we can draw on the resources of our partners to provide opportunities and worship materials that fit a church's particular needs. Our general brochures: "What Can I Do for Justice and Peace?" and "Promoting a Just World: What Can My Church Do?" (also available for download from the "Getting Started" section of this site) offer some suggestions for prayer and action on a variety of topics.
CCOW is represented on the Council of Churches Together in Oxfordshire and is a body in association with Churches Together in Buckinghamshire. It has an ecumenical board of trustees, from different strands of churchmanship and denominations:
- Colin Cockshaw (chair)
- Catriona Cappleman (secretary)
- Stuart Ingwell (treasurer)
- Anne Martin
- Julie McLaren
Maranda St John Nicolle is the Coordinator for Christian Concern for One World. She also serves, by agreement between the Diocese of Oxford and CCOW, as World Development Adviser for the diocese, and co-chairs the Core Group of World Development Advisers within the Church of England. She is a member of the Council of Churches Together in Oxfordshire, the planning group for the Ecumenical World Development Consultation, and other groups working on development issues in a Christian context.
For further information, contact Maranda in the CCOW office, 29 Anderson's Close, Kidlington OX5 1ST (tel. 01865 378 059 or email ccowinfo@fish.co.uk).