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It is always hard to get a healthy perspective on a system that you live in. We are all part of the capitalist system and we actively participate in it. It’s just that sometimes we don’t think about it very much.

Some Christians argue against capitalism and condemn the system as a whole. But then we have to ask: what is the alternative? There are not many around to compare it to. The whole world is evolving towards a universal capitalist system. There are two main reasons for this. Firstly, developing nations are seeking to create a capitalist infrastructure as fast as possible because they see this is the most efficient way to bring economic growth to their countries. Secondly, the communist economic system has been found lacking and has been abandoned almost everywhere (the most glaring exception being North Korea).

Let’s reflect on the first of these two trends.

It is a remarkable fact that during the past half-century there has been a decisive move towards capitalism in most developing countries. Feudal and dictatorial economic systems have given way to more democratic forms of government, thus promoting economic development. There have been strong drives to create infrastructures that promote capitalism: an efficient banking system, better transport and utility systems, less bureaucracy and corruption, freer flow of capital, etc. The overall effect of this trend has been economically positive. Many developing countries have taken huge steps forward and enriched their people. There have even been some spectacular success stories, such as Brazil and India.

However, there is a paradox here. While many developing countries have done very well, others have not. And here’s another paradox. While nations such as India have seen the rise of a very large middle class and a very rich elite, vast numbers still live in abject poverty.

So, relatively unbridled capitalism almost inevitably leads to massive divisions between rich and poor. This is an issue we will return to.

In the next post I’ll look briefly at the economic legacy of the fall of communism before we take a harder look at capitalism from a biblical point of view.

The ‘Occupy’ protests and the sad tale of St Paul’s Cathedral – part 2

In my last post I discussed the sad story of how St Paul’s Cathedral struggled in vain to know how to respond to the ‘Occupy’ protestors. It all became very messy. Several senior clergymen resigned – all giving the impression that they simply could not agree together and did not know how to handle the protests on their doorstep. Eventually the Bishop of London had to step in to take over the management of the situation.

At the end of the last post I said I would tell you my thoughts on what I might have done. So here goes…

Let’s start at the beginning: there seems to be a basic muddle here. The St Paul’s clergy were mixing up some unrelated issues in their responses. What were the issues? Firstly, the right to protest. Fair enough. We agree on that. Secondly, the legitimacy of the general concern of the protestors in challenging aspects of the conduct of capitalism. Yes, we can agree on that point too. Thirdly, the fact that the protestors were illegally encamped on St Paul’s land and were seriously obstructing the general public and the life of the church. Here’s where the problem came. The clergy simply couldn’t decide how to respond to this. Yet why did they have such a
big problem with it?

My suggestion as I was watching this drama unfold was very simply this: separate the public order and legal issues entirely from the protest issues. The protestors should have been asked either to reduce their encampment significantly (in order to overcome the obstruction they were causing to St Paul’s) or, if they failed to agree on this, they should have been moved on. However, whichever option was taken on this issue the church had a wonderful opportunity to promote the debate on capitalism by using its facilities and profile to enable a big national conversation.

Sadly, both issues were fudged at the time and a wonderful opportunity missed. It was left to others to promote the debate and bring alternative Christian perspectives and wisdom to bear on the issues.

More on this subject in the next post.

The ‘Occupy’ protests and the sad tale of St Paul’s Cathedral – part 2

In my last post I discussed the sad story of how St Paul’s Cathedral struggled in vain to know how to respond to the ‘Occupy’ protestors. It all became very messy. Several senior clergymen resigned – all giving the impression that they simply could not agree together and did not know how to handle the protests on their doorstep. Eventually the Bishop of London had to step in to take over the management of the situation.

At the end of the last post I said I would tell you my thoughts on what I might have done. So here goes…

Let’s start at the beginning: there seems to be a basic muddle here. The St Paul’s clergy were mixing up some unrelated issues in their responses. What were the issues? Firstly, the right to protest. Fair enough. We agree on that. Secondly, the legitimacy of the general concern of the protestors in challenging aspects of the conduct of capitalism. Yes, we can agree on that point too. Thirdly, the fact that the protestors were illegally encamped on St Paul’s land and were seriously obstructing the general public and the life of the church. Here’s where the problem came. The clergy simply couldn’t decide how to respond to this. Yet why did they have such a
big problem with it?

My suggestion as I was watching this drama unfold was very simply this: separate the public order and legal issues entirely from the protest issues. The protestors should have been asked either to reduce their encampment significantly (in order to overcome the obstruction they were causing to St Paul’s) or, if they failed to agree on this, they should have been moved on. However, whichever option was taken on this issue the church had a wonderful opportunity to promote the debate on capitalism by using its facilities and profile to enable a big national conversation.

Sadly, both issues were fudged at the time and a wonderful opportunity missed. It was left to others to promote the debate and bring alternative Christian perspectives and wisdom to bear on the issues.

More on this subject in the next post.

Mountains have always been in my blood. It goes back to my childhood. My family lived on the foothills of the Himalayas in (Pakistani) Kashmir. My dad was a teacher at a school there. We lived at about 5,500 feet (about 1,800 metres), which is a lot higher than the summit of Ben Nevis in Scotland and nearly twice the height of Snowdon!

Since then I have always enjoyed hill- and mountain-walking. This has been mostly around the UK, but I have also been to the Alps, the Moroccan Atlas mountains and a few other places. I’ve also done a few gruelling mountain-walking challenges for charity.

But I’ve always dreamed of climbing up Kilimanjaro, the highest peak in Africa at 19,340 feet – that’s 5,895 metres! It’s fantastically beautiful, it’s really high and it’s a big challenge. Well, the good news for me is that the dream is coming true in March. Between the 5th and the 11th I shall be up Kilimanjaro with my good friend James Beardall. We’re training hard and hoping to reach the summit in one piece. It’s five and a half days of climbing to get to the summit.

So why am I telling you about this? Well, Kilimanjaro isn’t the only mountain I’m facing: I am seeking sponsorship for this climb for a specific project very near to my heart. Let me explain…

For a very long time our church in Shrewsbury has run many social action projects: working in our local prison, working with the elderly, offering money advice, running a food bank, etc. So far we have used our church building for this purpose, but this has become more difficult as we have grown. So the church has recently taken a huge step of faith in seeking to buy another building in our community to use as a dedicated social action centre and office base. We want to greatly expand our foodbank and provide better facilities for all our community outreach projects.

We have two very suitable buildings in mind and our trustees are negotiating as I write. The mountain we are facing is that we will have to raise around £400,000 by this summer to be able to make the purchase. Church members are being asked to give sacrificially. It’s the biggest financial challenge we have ever faced.

Could you help us? If you’d like more information so you can pray for us, or if you’d like to donate online, click here: http://www.everyclick.com/barnabascommunityprojects.

Any support you can give would be much appreciated. Thank you!

The ‘Occupy’ protests and the sad tale of St Paul’s Cathedral

Something rather bizarre, but very significant happened on 15th October last year (2011). Many of you will remember it.

A group of anti-capitalist protestors encamped themselves near the London Stock Exchange. It was part of a spontaneous worldwide movement with similar protests taking place at that time in the USA, across Europe and elsewhere.

The movement was a strong reaction against the abuses of the banking system (in particular) that had led to the initial ‘credit crunch’ and contributed to subsequent banking and sovereign debt problems. It was linked to the recent crisis in the Eurozone and it represented a deep sense of anger that ordinary people were being made to suffer for the mistakes of greedy bankers and other influential government and business leaders.

Where did the church fit into this? Well, it had been quite easy for church leaders to take a pot-shot at greedy bankers – many had done so, and very publicly. Many senior Anglican clerics, in particular, were very strong in their criticisms.

So far, so good.

But then came an awkward geographical fact. St Paul’s Cathedral is situated very close to the London Stock Exchange – and upon this simple fact hinges our whole sorry tale.

The ‘Occupy’ protestors could not gain access to the Stock Exchange itself, so they set up camp in the nearest open space – on land belonging partly to the City of London and partly to St Paul’s. The clergy were sympathetic – how could they not be after the sentiments expressed by their leaders on this issue? It looked like the church was going to get very friendly with the protestors.

Then it all started getting rather complicated. The protestors were getting in the way of access to the cathedral, forcing closure for a week. How long were they going to stay? Should they be allowed into the Cathedral? Should the church take out an injunction against them? Should they be evicted by force?

The senior clergy at St Paul’s discussed what to do and they simply could not agree. One-by-one they resigned. First the Canon Chancellor, then the Dean and then one of the Chaplains… It was a shambles. The press were scathing. The protestors were confused. The church missed a golden opportunity.

And it all hinged on a simple piece of geography…

What should the church have done?

What would you have done? I’ll tell you my thoughts in the next post.

I am sure many of you will remember two posts I wrote a few months ago about social enterprise. Well, this post is an update and an invitation!

First, the update:

Business is in the news all the time recently due to the difficult economic situation of the UK and the Eurozone, and also due to the scrutiny of business ethics that is constantly going on. We never seem to hear the last of the bankers and their bonuses!

Alongside all this there has been a big discussion about ‘socially responsible business’ and the need to regenerate society through the ‘Big Society’. This should all be very interesting to Christians who would naturally incline to support this re-evaluation of business ethics, so it is not surprising to find that Christian entrepreneurs have had a lot to say on the current economic situation and the possible remedies. And their voice seems to be getting heard in the corridors of
power in Westminster.

So this brings us back to the discussion about social enterprise. In previous posts I gave a rather approximate definition of such businesses, which included two elements: the creation of employment for those who are relatively unemployable; or a business whose profits are directed towards a social benefit rather than being accumulated by the owner(s).

The interesting thing is that social enterprise is becoming a bit of a trendy concept at the moment. Many such businesses are being developed and much thinking is going on about their role in the economy or in social regeneration. Again, Christians are heavily involved in this discussion.

This brings me to my invitation.

In my role as enabler of social action within my church movement (Newfrontiers) I have convened a half-day conference in London on Friday 16th March to discuss social enterprise. I am indebted to my colleague Geoff Knott for working with me on this. I am also thrilled that Lord Wei will be our keynote speaker. Nat Wei is a Christian entrepreneur who has facilitated
some great business ideas and also advised the current government.

Interested? For more details, follow this link: http://jubilee-plus.org/events/article/doing-business-doing-good-social-enterprise-leadership.

Places are limited, so book in soon if you are interested and would like to come and join us.

Poverty in Europe part 4

If you have been following the last three posts you will see that I have been reflecting on my long-term involvement in eastern Europe and helping churches there to provide real support for disadvantaged groups within their communities, such as the elderly, orphans, the sick, ex-prisoners and addicts.

In the last post, I began to reflect on the dilemma of balancing charitable support with help that enables more people to rise up from poverty and become more self-sufficient. This is a constant balancing act since some people are just too weak or sick to provide from themselves. However, many can do a lot if given the appropriate encouragement and help.

About five years ago I came across an interesting agricultural project emanating from Zimbabwe. It’s called ‘Foundations for Farming’. Some of you will be familiar with it. The story is roughly this: A white Christian Zimbabwean farmer, Brian Oldreive, was dispossessed of his farm as a result of government policy to remove white farmers and release their land for use by blacks. Brian went through a difficult time but then started managing farming estates for others and began to experiment with new farming techniques. This has gradually developed into a complete method and is now known and shared as ‘Foundations for Farming’. It is specially suited to smallholdings and involves zero tillage and very exact planting, mulching and watering techniques. The results have been outstanding – greatly increased yields in staple crops such as maize and also many other vegetables and common crops. ‘Foundations’ is now becoming well known and used in Africa. It has been recognised by the Zimbabwe
government and is being widely taught across many African nations. It particularly helps poor people with access to small amounts of land to move towards self-sufficiency or to becoming small business owners.

While reflecting on the situation in Ukraine one day I suddenly thought: “Can ‘Foundations’ be used in an eastern European and Russian context?” I asked this question to official representatives of ‘Foundations’ and they felt it was likely to succeed in places with ample land and good quality soil such as the Ukraine.

So, to cut a long story short, our charity BREADtrust sent some Ukrainian friends to a training conference in Zimbabwe earlier this year. The first experiments were conducted immediately afterwards, during this last summer’s growing season, and the initial results are very encouraging. Next year we are planning to do a carefully monitored field trial in eastern Ukraine with the hope that this farming technique could provide the basis for increased self-sufficiency for many poor people, as well as the development of business opportunities for those who can grow to sell.

I’ll know the results in about a year’s time. I’ll keep you posted. What I do know is that similar trials in India and Mexico have shown encouraging results… Let’s hope we see the same in Ukraine!

Poverty in Europe part 3

I have been visiting eastern European countries for many years, as you will have read in the last two posts. As a church, we have been seeking to help those trapped in poverty. Much of this help has come through charitable work alongside local churches in such countries as Romania and Ukraine.

Some people support us enthusiastically in these projects and through our charity (known as BREADTrust). However, I am often asked whether we need to do something more radical to enable people we are helping to be more self-sufficient and less dependent. This is obviously a good goal, but I have found it hard to put into practice with some of the most impoverished people who are so weak they cannot do much for themselves – very elderly ladies, disabled children, invalids, etc.

On the other hand, there are many people who can move out of dependence and weakness into profitable work and small businesses. In the past few years we have been seeking to assist people we know in Ukraine to develop micro-enterprises so that they can generate their own income. We have been experimenting with business ideas such as making building materials for the construction industry, animal husbandry, vegetable growing and creating productive smallholdings.

One of the most amusing and exciting projects we have been involved with recently is enabling a church to buy some land and a tractor. The tractor turned out to be a very ancient Soviet-era machine that looks distinctly elderly and rusty. However, it chugs along nicely and enables the church to produce a significant amount of food to sell in the markets and give to their poorer members.

There is a big difference between giving a man a fish and a giving him a fishing rod. In the next post I’ll tell you about a more ambitious agricultural idea we are seeking to develop in the Ukraine – and elsewhere in eastern Europe and Russia.

Poverty in Europe part 2

In my last post I began to explain how I became involved in eastern Europe. I visited
Romania many times during the mid-1990s and my church was involved in helping
churches there to reach out to the poor in their communities. Then an opportunity
opened up for our church to go further east and do something similar – we became
involved in Ukraine.

I didn’t know much about Ukraine before then. I knew it had been a key part of the
Soviet Union and had broken away in the early 1990s when the Soviet Empire began
to disintegrate. What I quickly found out was that Ukraine had poverty levels similar
to those in Romania.

Over the years our church has formed some wonderful relationships with local
churches in Ukraine. Through these churches we have been able to help many types
of needy groups in their communities. In fact, we decided to form a separate charity
to carry out this work – we called it BREADTrust (or British Eastern Aid Doorways). It’s been running for over 10 years now and has been energetically led first by Jim & Pam Baker, then, on their retirement, by Ray & Beryl Green.

Our basic idea is to equip local Ukrainian churches to serve the poor in their towns by
providing financial aid and practical support.

I’ll give you an idea of the sort of things we have been involved with by describing
aspects of my recent trip in November 2011:

In one place, we took part in the distribution of food parcels of elderly ladies in a day
centre. We have formed strong friendships with several day centres who welcome
our visits eagerly. We also saw several church-run rehabilitation centres. The drug
and alcohol problems in such countries as Ukraine are epidemic – far greater than
in the west and with much less State help. Many churches run rehab centres. Some
ex-addicts become Christians – they mostly work on smallholdings attached to the
centres and some re-enter society fully and find work. One man we met on this visit
had rebuilt his life after 22 years in prison and an addiction to alcohol. It was amazing
to see the smile on his face!

Another project we have been doing has involved working alongside medical staff in
State-run hospitals with chronic lack of facilities. In one town we have invested over
the years in refurbishing two departments. The medical staff are delighted to show us
their greatly improved facilities. They now welcome local churches to support them
and even to pray for chronically sick patients.

It’s been a great visit. I’ll be going back again.

Poverty in Europe part 1

I am writing this post on an aeroplane as I travel back from a visit to Ukraine in
November. Ukraine is pretty cold right now as the winter is setting in. Temperatures
sank to -12C at times as my friends and I travelled around some rather unknown
places in eastern Ukraine. We have been visiting churches and various humanitarian
outreach projects linked to those churches – but I’ll tell you more about that in the
next post. First, my involvement requires a little explaining – why am I in a country
such as Ukraine at all?

It all started in 1980. I was in Berlin. The ‘Iron Curtain’ was firmly in place and West
Berlin was surrounded by a wall – the Berlin Wall. Berlin was then a geographical
island in the middle of communist East Germany. Fortunately, I was able to cross
over into East Berlin through the famous border post known as Checkpoint Charlie
(there is now a museum at that point). It was a real shock to see the enormous
contrast between West Berlin and East Berlin. The same city had two completely
different identities and levels of prosperity: the East was dour, poor, short of
commodities and generally shabby; West Berlin was bright and commercial rather
like other big western cities. It was at this point that I began to realise what happened
to societies under the dead hand of Soviet Communism. Poverty was everywhere.
The economy was stagnant and the State ruled supreme.

Let’s fast forward a few years. In 1989 the ‘Iron Curtain’ fell rather suddenly and the
previously closed nations of eastern Europe became open to visitors from the west.
Rumours of extreme deprivation and injustice abounded. Romania was a particular
focus. In 1991 I was able to travel by road to Romania with a friend, on behalf of our
church. We were moved to reach out to this deprived nation and find ways of helping
the churches there. It was a momentous trip.

My first memory is still very vivid. Crossing over the border from Austria to Hungary
revealed a distinct increase in the level of poverty – older cars, shabby towns,
smaller houses. However, the real shock came when we crossed from Hungary to
Romania. It felt as if we had stumbled into the ‘third world’. The roads were dreadful,
horses and carts abounded on the highways, cars were very old, towns were decrepit
and the people were clearly very poor. Then we came to the infamous orphanages.
I was totally unprepared for the piteous sight of abandoned children living in such
squalor and poverty. I had seen the Romanian orphans on television, but it was quite
another matter to meet them, hold their hands and look into their eyes.

Through these experiences I came to realise how big the gulf between eastern and
western Europe was. Communism had impoverished whole nations, while the west
had been growing in affluence. I became deeply interested in helping churches in
eastern Europe as they courageously reached out to help their communities and
address some of the stark poverty.

This ultimately led me to Ukraine. We’ll take up the story in the next post.

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By Natalie Williams, Jubilee+ team member

Reaching out to the poor is a Gospel imperative. But who are the poor? How should the Church respond to the overwhelming needs in the world today? And how important is it for local churches to engage in social action?

All of these questions and many more are answered in Embracing the Poor, a collection of chapters edited by David Adams, which combine to form an incredibly comprehensive exploration of the biblical mandate for preaching the Good News to the poor.

Starting with a chapter about God’s heart for the poor, authors such as Nigel Ring, Steven Oliver and John Hosier proceed to take us through the Law, the Prophets, the Gospels, Acts and the Epistles, highlighting at every turn that our God has always delighted to take “those who are broken, those who are poor, those who are captive, and […make] them instruments of excellence in his kingdom purposes”.

Many who pick up Embracing the Poor will need no convincing that the Church must care for the vulnerable and needy, but the authors delve much deeper than this, with sections expounding the role of apostles, the local church and the poor, the importance of eldership authority, and our duty to the poor among us as well as those outside.

This thorough look at the theological framework for ministering to the poor is coupled with practical examples and advice, an outline of the key indicators for measuring success and a number of inspiring stories of lives transformed.

The overarching theme of Embracing the Poor is that God’s plan is not just that his Church should meet the material needs of the poor, but that we are co-workers with Christ in lifting the needy from the ash heaps so that they can be seated with princes (Psalm 113) and, as the book’s tagline says, “Releasing, resourcing and equipping the poor for world mission”.

This is not a book for the faint-hearted or comfortable; one to be read and then put back on the shelf. If you’re eager to hear about God’s particular affection for the poor and to understand how it applies to local churches today, it will inspire and provoke you – and, be warned, require you to do something in response.

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One of the highlights of my university career was getting to hear the teaching of some of the best known names in the evangelical church at the time (and before you ask, it was rather a long time ago!). First, there were the big Anglican church leaders of the day: Michael Green, David Watson, John Stott and others. Then there was Billy Graham – in person, not even on a screen! Then there were Latin American leaders such as Juan Carloz Ortiz; and Africans such as Bishop Festo Kivengere and Michael Cassidy… and even Tom Wright as a PhD student lecturing on a possible new interpretation of Romans that he was working on!

Then there was Ron Sider – does that name mean anything to you? He had just bought out a block-busting book, Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger. Sider’s book shook my world with its devastating comparisons between rich and poor, between the first world and the rest. What did all this mean for my discipleship? Many questions… and not many answers at the time.

Click here to read ‘Time to Declare the Jubilee – part 1’ in full…

When you actually come to think about the Mosaic Law in the Old Testament, the very specific and practical way that land ownership and employment status was transformed by the Jubilee is very remarkable, down-to-earth and filled with hope for social justice. It shows us something profound about God and what happens when his justice and mercy are reflected in his people.

With all this in mind I have been contemplating how the early church seemed to have worked out this ‘Jubilee’ emphasis…

Click here to read ‘Time to Declare the Jubilee – part 2’ in full…

In the New Year, we’ll look back over the first year of Jubilee+ and our plans for 2012.

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It was 30th July 2009. My birthday. I was with my family on holiday in Yorkshire. We were in a beautiful location by the sea. My family asked me what I wanted to do for my birthday, thinking I might have in mind a trip to a local resort. However, without really thinking about it I said, “I would love to visit the Wilberforce museum in Hull.”

The idea did not appeal to anyone else… So we came to a good agreement: they offered to celebrate my birthday with an evening meal out later in the week and suggested that I take the train to Hull to see the museum!

It seemed a strange thing to do on my birthday, but I had always been fascinated by Wilberforce and now was my opportunity to see his home town and the museum in the house where he was born.

The museum was no disappointment. I had a great day out.

On the train back I took out of my bag a scrap of paper and a pencil and wrote a question down: “What would Wilberforce do if he was alive today?” Quite quickly, I came up with four key themes. Here they are:

The first is outstanding issues of injustice. Just as he had addressed the greatest injustice of his day – slavery, so Wilberforce would surely have identified similar issues today. Almost certainly abortion would have been near the top of his list.

The second is the rebuilding and strengthening of the institution of the family. Wilberforce was a deeply dedicated family man who firmly upheld family life. Surely he would have been deeply concerned about the weakness and fragmentation of family life today.

The third is the issue of rights and freedoms. Wilberforce was deeply grateful for the opportunities to speak out for truth that he had as a Christian in his era of British history. He was a quintessential spokesman. He would have been deeply concerned about the erosion of freedom of speech taking place in Britain today.

The fourth is the question of the environment. Wilberforce was very keen on the natural world and saw it as a supreme gift of God for mankind. There can be no doubt that he would have engaged deeply with the pressing environmental problems of our day – not least global warming with strong links to social justice.

These were my thoughts as I sat on that train. I still believe them to be a valuable incentive to us if we want social justice in our country and world today. I will be writing about these four issues in the future. Watch this space!

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William Wilberforce laboured hard for many causes throughout his life. He was as concerned for education, housing, and working conditions in factories as he was about slavery. This fact is easily forgotten. It should also be remembered that he was passionate about the advancing mission of the church, especially in Africa and India.

Wilberforce formed a strong network of supporters, of whom the inner circle was known as the ‘Clapham Sect’. They were bankers, public servants, politicians, educators and clergy. It was an amazing group of committed evangelicals who were determined to address the major injustices and problems of their day. History records their remarkable influence and achievements. They were motivated by a passion for justice and godliness. Their social outlook was more conservative than is common today among Christians, but much of what they aimed to do still resonates with us today.

However, their supreme achievement was the overthrow of slavery. This happened in two main phases. Firstly, in 1807, the slave trade was abolished within the British Empire. Later, the successors of Wilberforce and co achieved the abolition of slavery itself in 1833. There had been many disappointments and difficulties along the way. However, Wilberforce and his friends stuck to the task and eventually won the day. Their persistence was remarkable.

What were the ingredients of success? This is an important question. Here are a few factors:

· The outstanding personal leadership of Wilberforce himself;

· The strength of religious conviction among key leaders;

· The role of detailed research;

· The formation of a small network of influential supporters;

· Good political tactics in Parliament;

· The active support of much (but not all) of the Church; and

· Good use of public relations, such as public meetings, pamphlets, newspaper articles, etc.

When Parliament finally voted to abolish the slave trade in 1807, the whole House of Commons rose to give Wilberforce a sustained standing ovation. It was one of the most deserved rounds of applause ever given. An evil institution had been delivered a fatal blow.

There is much to learn from the life of Wilberforce.

In the final part of this series, next week we will ask what Wilberforce would do if he was alive today…

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So just why did Wilberforce focus on slavery as the defining issue of his political career? It’s an important question that deserves consideration. It wasn’t so obvious to his generation that slavery was such a big issue. At the time, most British people accepted slavery without question. After all, it took place only in the West Indies and was not seen in Britain. What’s more, the popular view was that the slaves were well treated and certainly had a better life in the West Indies than they had in their homelands in Africa. Slavery was also important for the growing consumer economy – after all, it produced sugar. Sugar was a much prized, luxury commodity that was hugely popular.

Before his conversion to Christianity, Wilberforce had not given a great deal of thought to slavery. He was, more or less, willing to accept the popular view of slavery.

Then something remarkable happened.

Wilberforce was targeted by a very small but determined group of anti-slavery activists. Many of them were Quakers. The Quakers were a small church community in those days (as now). However, they were the only church that had maintained a consistently anti-slavery stance. The Quakers were not popular, but they were principled. They provided the backbone for the anti-slavery movement as it gained momentum in the 1780s.

There was also Thomas Clarkson, a young Anglican intending to become a clergyman. He had been deeply affected by the issue of slavery and had started very extensive research into it. Then there were a few other anti-slavery enthusiasts.

These activists arranged a series of meetings with Wilberforce. They carefully presented to him the case against slavery and asked him to take on the political leadership of their intended campaign to overturn slavery. Wilberforce took his time in replying. He knew this decision could shape his whole life and would certainly lead to much unpopularity with people in the political establishment.

Wilberforce reflected. He took advice. And he prayed.

Then he decided to take up the challenge and head up the new anti-slavery campaign. The rest is history…

But Wilberforce is unlikely ever to have got started in the battle against slavery without the work done by the anti-slavery group. They represented the conscience of the church and the commitment of a small group who were not prepared to allow the status-quo to go unchallenged.

Every generation needs those who seek at all costs to reflect a Christian social justice perspective concerning the issues of the day.

Next week we’ll explore the ingredients in the success of the campaign against slavery…

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Wilberforce Part 1

William Wilberforce is a national hero. Not many politicians have ever achieved this iconic status! However, everyone seems to agree that Wilberforce’s lifelong campaign against the institution of slavery was an act of political heroism and determination that deserves the highest respect.

2007 was a big year for Wilberforce consciousness. This was the 200th anniversary of the Abolition of the Slave Trade by the British Parliament. Wilberforce celebrations took place all over the country. Many learned articles were written. Press coverage was extensive. Fresh biographies came off the press in quick succession. There was even a successful film released that highlighted the main features of Wilberforce’s life. Many of you will have seen the film, Amazing Grace.

By any standards, Wilberforce’s career is fascinating and instructive. He came from a rich business family in Hull and enjoyed all the benefits of being part of the social elite as he studied at Cambridge University in the late 1770s. He chose politics as a career and managed to get elected into Parliament in his early twenties. Wilberforce was blessed with a strong mind, an attractive personality and an outstanding public speaking voice. He was quickly tipped for a high profile political career in government. He even had a close friendship with William Pitt, the Prime Minister at the time, whom he had met when at Cambridge.

However, something fundamental changed for Wilberforce just after he had started his political career. He was deeply influenced by some evangelical Christian friends and experienced a profound personal conversion to Christ. There had been Methodist influence upon him through some relatives during his youth, but it was only in his twenties that he fully committed himself to Christ.

His conversion led to a profound re-assessment of his lifestyle and goals. He even considered quitting politics and training for the Anglican priesthood. While considering his options he went to seek advice from the much respected leader of the Anglican evangelicals at the time – John Newton. Newton is well known to us as author of the hymn Amazing Grace and as an ex-slave trading sea captain. By the time Wilberforce went to see him, Newton was in his sixties and a long-standing clergyman. It was a crucial conversation. What was Newton going to advise the young and idealistic Wilberforce? Newton was clear – he urged Wilberforce to remain in politics and use his influence to work for Christian values in public life.

It is hard to over-estimate the significance of this conversation. It empowered Wilberforce to give his energies wholeheartedly to many important social causes on behalf of the poor – not least the black slaves of the British Empire.

We need the same social vision in our own generation – a social vision that releases some of the most capable leaders of the Christian community to do their most important work outside the confines of the local church.

Next week we will look at why slavery became the focus of Wilberforce’s political career…

Social Enterprise Part 2 The Bible is big on business. Does that surprise you?

Many church people seem to think that business is a necessity, not a calling – but they are wrong. Everywhere you look in the Bible you notice that business plays a vital part in life.

Take, for example, the people of Israel in the Old Testament. They all worked in an oppressive business environment when in captivity in Egypt. God then promised to take them out of all that and… turn them all into farmers in the Promised Land! They were promised that they could all run their own little businesses. It’s amazing how central to the life of ancient Israel was their agricultural identity. Everyone had a stake in the land. Everyone ran their own farms and small holdings. These were carefully regulated by the Law of Moses to ensure that everyone benefited from the business of farming.

So what’s the ‘social’ side of the farming of the Israelites? Well, the farmers were not allowed to keep all that they produced. A part had to be given to help both the priests and the poor. Also, the harvest was not supposed to be fully gathered in – the edges of the fields were to be left for the poor to gather in some food for themselves. So, in this way, part of the harvest was designated for the benefit of those in need. In modern terms, that’s a version of a ‘social enterprise’, where profits are designated for a social benefit rather than for the consumption of the business owner.

The book of Proverbs is another interesting place to look. Here there are many mentions of business-related themes. Hard work is commended. Honesty in the workplace is called for. Justice for the poor is commanded. Generosity for the needy is an important virtue. Adding these types of insights together we can suggest that Proverbs advocates business with a social conscience.

Judging by the book of Acts, there were a lot of enterprising business people in the early church. Have you ever noticed them? Barnabas is known as an apostle, but he first appears as a landowner who sold some land for the social benefit of the church. The first convert in Asia was Lydia, who appears to be a wealthy businesswoman dealing in marketing fabrics – she helped to establish the church in her city by using her (presumably) large house for its meetings. Also, have you noticed a couple called Priscilla and Aquila? They turn up in the book of Acts in three different cities – Rome, Ephesus and Corinth. They had a leather-based business which was mobile enough to move from city to city. Their material resources helped the church get established in these three cities.

The other interesting fact about the early church is the obvious emphasis placed on meeting the needs of the poor. It was clearly a top priority.

However, it is only a small step to add together these two themes from the New Testament: a positive account of business people and a concern for the poor. Put these two together and you get two likely outcomes: firstly, great charitable work; and secondly, social enterprises. We’ll be coming back to this subject in future posts.

Social Enterprise Part 1 There has been a lot of debate recently in the UK about the balance between government responsibilities and the work of volunteer organisations in social provision for the needy within our society. This is the sharp end of the debate about the so-called ‘Big Society’. I have referred to this debate on a number of occasions in this blog. The general outcome always seems to be a sense of tension and frustration in the dialogue between government and voluntary bodies.

Currently the Church is at the very epicentre of this issue. The focus on what the Church is actually doing has been increased. There is a growing awareness that the Church is one of the most potent forces for social activism in the country. In many ways, the Church is doing a great job and there is much to commend in its social activism.

However, there is a catch – this is noticed particularly by church leaders. I run seminars for church leaders and the frequent question they ask is: “How on earth can we keep increasing our capacity for social action as the needs grow and the State reduces its capacity – where are we going to get the resources from?”

Good question.

The essential issue is that the charitable model of social action has a ceiling determined by lack of finance. Charitable giving can only go so far. What’s more, the availability of grant money is likely to continue to diminish due to the economic climate.

This is where social enterprises come in. So what exactly are they? In a nutshell, social enterprises are viable businesses designed to benefit people in social need rather than the owners or shareholders. There are two principal ways in which such businesses can achieve this: firstly, by providing employment for people whose employment prospects elsewhere are very poor; and secondly, by designating its profits to social action projects as a form of ongoing investment.

In this way, business activity becomes the income generator for social action projects and thus replaces the need to depend purely on charitable giving.

This is a great idea for churches to develop in the future. Social enterprises could become the income generator for social action projects linked to churches with a strong Christian ethos.

Interested? I am involved in an initiative to get together a network of church-based business-minded people to work together to encourage the development of a social enterprise culture in churches in the UK. If you send an email to the following address we’ll contact you when we are ready to launch the network: sue.lyndon@newfrontierstogether.org

Despite everything I said in my last post, the fact remains that many people remain curiously detached from the huge human catastrophes caused by natural disasters. This may be because we are selfish or lazy. Or perhaps it is because we still have some nagging questions about why some parts of the world seem to have repeated disasters.

Let’s look into this a little bit by thinking about the current East African famine. What really caused it? Well, there is no doubt about the basic answer to this question: the famine was a direct result of drought. The drought has been extensive and enduring. Crops failed, animals died, water ran out in some places. These are the harsh realities of drought conditions. Thousands moved to find help. Refugee camps were set up and the aid agencies moved in.

Let’s dig a bit deeper. There are a number of factors that have made this drought so severe in its outcomes – and all these factors are man-made. The first is the lack of sufficient investment in water pumps, wells, water preservation and irrigation systems in the affected areas. There simply isn’t the infrastructure to withstand drought conditions. Then there is the political weakness and disarray of Somalia as a nation. The government does not control the country. Islamic militias are controlling the terms of some of the aid initiatives. All this has created a severe problem in reaching and assisting the drought victims. Also we should mention the lack of sufficient funds to enable the UN and other charities to move in quick enough to prevent the most extreme suffering of the victims.

Then there is a provocative question: is climate change a partial cause of the seemingly increasing pattern of extreme drought in hot, arid parts of the world? The increased occurrence of drought in these areas is exactly what the climate scientists have been predicting. If there is any truth in this proposition, then we are suddenly faced with the fact that we are all implicated indirectly with natural disasters such as droughts – through our actions that fuel climate change.

Natural disasters remind Christians of the fact that we should be doing what we can to pre-empt or minimise the impact of natural disasters. There are many ways this can be done – but supporting the process of development and reform in vulnerable countries is a good start.

I heard on the news last week that the UN emergency food programme in Pakistan has only received 20% of the funds it requires. A spokesman said that it will close down in a few weeks unless individual nations start making generous donations. This is extraordinary and very worrying. Tens of thousands have had to leave their homes; many have died of malnutrition or water-borne diseases. The huge floods will take many weeks or months to subside. After that it will take years to rebuild houses, villages, businesses and agricultural capacity.

One of the striking things about recent new coverage in the UK is how little attention has been given to current natural disasters such as the Pakistani floods.

And what about the East African famine? This is an even more serious natural disaster that has devastated whole areas of Somalia and neighbouring countries. The East African famine was becoming critical during the height of the Libyan crisis – and it got buried under Libya in our news coverage. This was a travesty – and it affected the response of both governments and individuals to the crisis. Resources were hard to muster to respond quickly to the unfolding tragedy. Lives were lost as a result.

Here are a few thoughts on this important subject:

We should never get ‘tired’ of hearing about major natural disasters in other nations. News is important. Bad news needs to be heard.

We should be thankful for the UN! I know its political interventions may be controversial, but its capacity to organise disaster relief on behalf of the world community is unprecedented in human history and enables much more to be done, much more quickly than any other approach.

It is good to see that the Christian response to disaster relief is often very robust and at the forefront. This is as it should be. The UK Disasters Emergency Committee is composed principally of Christian charities. By acting together and soliciting funds together, the DEC is able to make a decisive contribution to disaster relief.

Finally, swift response to disasters is not the only thing that can be done. We will look at other important issues in my next post.