We are seeking someone who can take on the responsibility for the news & views section of our website. This involves:
seeking out suitable articles from people in parishes across the Diocese of Leeds about social justice issues. These might be factual articles about actions being taken in different parishes or it could more of an opinion piece about a particular issue of social justice (especially those that are currently the Commission’s priority issues)
editing any articles received and ensuring that they look attractive on the web page
occasionally write articles to supplement what is received from others.
What skills are essential?
good at networking with other people. We do not have a wide ready-made diocesan network of contacts – so you will have to find ways of finding out what is going on in some parishes.
A good written style and a very good standard of English.
A passion for social justice issues and what, as Christians, we are being called to do about them.
Someone who is able to manage their own time.
Someone who is comfortable and confident in the use of digital media (contrary to the image used for this post, no typewriters are involved in this work opportunity!)
What skills would be a bonus? – We can dream!
Someone who has experience of blogging and, in particular, of the Wordpress content management system (but training in this can be given)
knowledge or experience of journalism or marketing
There will be approximately 10hrs of work per month @ £20 per hour.
An ‘Animator’ (Advocate) is someone ‘dedicated to spreading the teachings of Pope Francis’s Encyclical ‘Laudato Si’ – Care for Our Common Home’. There are a growing number of Animators globally – hence in every UK diocese including our own Diocese of Leeds.
The current animator for our diocese is David Jackson, of St Walburga’s in Shipley. Many supporters of J&P,CAFOD and ACTA will be familiar with David. He has been an indefatigable climate change campaigner and great supporter of a more synodal church. However, David is now in his 80’s and would like to hand over the role to someone a bit younger.
Below, David sets out what the role involves. It may look a bit frightening! But what anyone reading it must understand is that the person doing this role does not do all of it alone. The point of being described as an ‘animator’ is that, central to this, you are animating other people to do a lot of the work – and this includes the J&P Commission itself as well as other parts of the diocesan curia.
QUALIFICATIONS The position is open to all present LSI Animators (‘Graduates’ of the on-line course offered periodically by the LSI Movement based in Rome within the dicastery for Human Development)
OR – IMPORTANTLY –
to anyone willing to complete the course to become a LSIA. No previous formal qualifications are required. AIM To work with the clergy and people of the diocese. This is so: • we all appreciate that care for our common home lies at the very heart of our faith – it becomes part of our core Catholic identity. • That, as a result, all are inspired to take practical action and advocate for taking better care of our ‘Common Home’. • That this conversion is expressed in worship, participation, community and mission. • That the diocese, from the Bishop and its curial centre to its parishes, schools and organisations, becomes a ‘LAUDATO SI DIOCESE’.
HOW WILL THIS BE ACHIEVED? By working with attention to the Diocesan Environmental policy, in close collaboration with and receiving support from: • the Laudato Si Movement (Rome) and the UK LSIA organisation; • Within the Diocese: the projected Diocesan Sustainability Director; the Diocesan Pastoral Council; the Curia Laudato Si Management Group; the Vicariate for Education; the J&P Climate Action group; SPARK; CAFOD (LiveSimply parish scheme); Leeds Trinity University Leeds Director of Sustainability & Director of Catholic Mission; the existing network of diocesan LSIAs and LSI supporters; ACTA; Caritas.
PERSONAL QUALITIES? A person who is convinced that care for our common home is a constitutive element in the preaching of the Gospel and who: • is familiar with the teaching of Laudat Si and is able to communicate its messages and so animate and empower both clergy and laity to take action in its spirit; • takes joy in creation and is able to work with and learn from others in parishes and school communities to inspire hope for its preservation and protection; • is able to recognise and appreciate that everyone is at a different stage of the ecological conversion journey and find ways to accompany them; • can develop and strengthen links creatively between faith and ecological and social justice, and is able to celebrate these in liturgy, worship, prayer and contemplation; • has a creative approach to the ways that action for ecological and social justice can be taken by way of both practical carbon cutting measures, sustainable living as well as advocacy, lobbying and pressure on government and industry; • is able to work cooperatively with all other diocesan and external agencies working for care for our common home mentioned above – and some outside of the Diocese as well
If this might be of interest to you then please email jandp@dioceseofleeds.org.uk and we will pass on your contact details to David
Ideally, it would be good to get someone in place in September or October.
By Marg Siberry & Brian Flynn, St Benedict’s Garforth
The recent electoral boundary changes resulted in Garforth becoming part of the new Leeds East constituency, so Churches together felt it was important to provide constituents an opportunity to hear the views of all the candidates on issues that concerned them. The main arrangements for the meeting were organised by the Faith, Justice & Action group in St. Benedict’s parish. Five of the seven candidates (representing the Labour, Conservative, Social Democrat, Yorkshire and an Independent) accepted the invitation, with the Reform party and Greens each sending an apology. More than fifty people gathered at St Benedict’s Parish Centre on Saturday 22nd June and were invited to write a question for the candidates so that these could then be collated to allow candidates to respond to issues that concerned their constituents the most. The meeting was chaired by Brian Flynn who invited each candidate to give a short introduction as to why people should vote for their party.
It was no surprise that the first issue raised concerned the NHS, its funding, its current problems and how each party planned to address these. Following closely the next issue covered energy – costs, the use of fossil fuels in its production and the consequent impact of this on climate change. Another concern was the political process that often pitted central government against local government in planning.
Poverty, how to deal with people seeking asylum and the extent parties would be willing to collaborate in order to resolve some of these major issues were also discussed. Each candidate was given two minutes to respond, with strict time keeping. This allowed a quick fire round of questions at the end, which included views on proportional representation and whether the UK government should support countries that break international law.
Finally each candidate was given a chance to sum up and was offered the option to stay when the formal meeting had closed so that people could meet candidates individually. There was a lively buzz of conversation for a good while afterwards which reflected the energy that had characterised the meeting. The feedback from those who attended felt it had been a worthwhile event that had enabled them to hear candidates in person and consider their differing responses. The candidates also felt the morning had been well organised and worthwhile.
Would your meeting benefit from using a PA System?
The meeting made use of the J&P PA system. This portable system is very easy to use, includes 2 radio mikes and can work on battery power – so is ideal for these sorts of meeting. It even has wheels like a suitcase!
Get in touch with us if you would like to use it for an event in your parish – the Season of Creation is coming up in September, for instance!
Matthew (Matty) Maslen has been appointed to the Trustee Board of CAFOD. Matty has edited our monthly newsletter since November 2021.
Matty has also been involved with our project for younger Catholics, SPARK Social Justice. He part-sponsored by SPARK Social Justice to attend the youth stream of the first two Conference of the Parties to the Treaty for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.
When Bronagh Daly( now the Creativity Lead at Leeds Church Institute) was the CAFOD Community Participation Coordinator for the Leeds Diocese she recruited him as a CAFOD volunteer. As a student CAFOD gave him the opportunity to attend COP26 in Glasgow, where he attended university. He was a CAFOD volunteer for a number of years and also joined the Volunteer Reference Group at CAFOD. Christine Allen, Director of CAFOD, commented “We are so pleased to have you join the CAFOD board Matty. You will bring so much. Thank you for your dedication and commitment”.
Matty commented “Thank you to Bronagh Daly for starting me on this path, and for continuing to be an amazing friend and supporter over the past 5 years. As a CAFOD volunteer I’ve had incredible opportunities. CAFOD does incredible work around the world to tackle structures that cause the climate crisis, poverty, and conflict. I’m honoured and excited to begin this new role on the Board of Trustees.”
The Commission are agreed that Matty will be an asset to the CAFOD board and offer him our hearty congratulations.
We reported recently on the arrival of gingko tree seeds at the Laudato SI centre in Salford so they could develop them into saplings to act as signs of hope in relation to our Climate Emergency and to enable more discussions about the Church’s teaching about nuclear weapons. The centre has now had a further delivery of one yar old saplings.
James Ross, from the organisation in Co Antrim that facilitates the import of the seeds commented “Those Ginkgo tree saplings are about a year old as when they arrived from Japan they had already started to germinate (whist in the post), so we took the decision to start growing them straight away.” In total there will be 15 one year old saplings which will need to be cultivated for another two years before they can be planted out.
We welcome interest in taking one of these saplings from parishes and schools across the Diocese – just contact jandp@dioceseofleeds.org.uk to express your interest and a member of the volunteer project team will be in touch.
By David Jackson (LSI Animator and contact person for the Diocese of Leeds)
As we approach the tenth anniversary of Pope Francis’s encyclical LAUDAT SI – Care for our Common Home (2015) – ten Laudato Si Animators (Advocates) mainly representing the Northern Dioceses met at Hinsley Hall on Friday 14th June for a day of shared reflection, discernment by way of ‘Conversations in the Spirit’ and contemplation.
This ‘Community Encounter’ was part of a national, continental and then global LSI Movement process of reflection and consultation round three connected questions:
What have been your experiences of being part of LSM? The joys, surprises, challenges?
What is the Spirit calling us to do to fully live the messages of Laudato Si in our parish, diocese?
What dreams do we have for our diocese in the light of the last ten years of LSI?
The aim being to contribute to global attempt to identify more clearly LSM aims, mission, goals and values world wide.
We used periods of guided silent contemplation and a mindful walk in the open air to open us to the breath of the Spirit – through the four elements of the natural world – air, water, fire and earth – despite and even assisted by the rain! We ended by presenting our experiences and hopes in picture/diagrammatic form.
We used the synodal method of ‘Conversations in the Spirit’ as the framework for seeking answers to the questions: each person spoke uninterrupted for 3 minutes; each input then followed by a one minute silence; similarly we then shared our impressions before agreeing a short joint set of conclusions. As those who attended the first General Assembly in Rome last October we found the method at first unfamiliar but then deeply fulfilling, formative and liberating. It helped us make room for the Spirit!
The day gave us the opportunity to share the experience of often working alone or with limited support in parish and diocese. We swim against a current not so much of denial of climate change and the need to protect creation and respond to the cries of those most affected. The task is still to link our faith (love of God) to sustainability (love of God’s creation) but then of ‘animating’ ourselves and the communities of parish and diocese to take action together. There is, after ten years, still a job to do to translate the teachings of Laudato Si into faith-based action on behalf of the poorest and of creation.
We came away grateful for the opportunity to have meet face to face – many of us for the first time and newly determined to witness to the fruits of the Spirit: love, joy, peace and, perhaps above all – patience! Our thanks are due to all those at Hinsley Hall who made the meeting possible.
On Thursday 6th of June 15 Gingko tree seeds were delivered to Dr Emma Gardner, Head of Environment for Salford Diocese. However, these are not just any old seeds. They originate from a tree that was in the blast zone of the Hiroshima nuclear bomb. Although the tree was damaged it did start to produce seeds again, along with a few other plants in the blast zone.
The seeds will be nurtured into saplings at Salford’s Laudato Si Centre at Wardley Hall. This is an initiative of the Diocese of Leeds Justice & Peace Commission for a project that they have recently started.
John Battle, Chair of the Leeds Commission, commented “These seeds and the saplings that will grow from them act as a sign of environmental hope: that nature can recover from devastation. This hope is something that we all desperately need at this time. These trees will also provide an opportunity to discuss the overall morality of nuclear weapons, in the light of the Church’s recent teaching, which has become only too relevant again because of the war in Ukraine.”
Sean Morris, part of the Commission’s peace and nonviolence action group added “We are looking for church and school settings in the Leeds Diocese that would be interested in taking up the offer of planting one of the saplings when they have developed sufficiently. This usually takes around 3 years. They will need some care and attention during the first 3 years – which is why we asked the Laudato Si centre at Wardley Hall, with their horticultural expertise, to take on this role. We were delighted when Emma readily agreed to take on this task.“
Anyone interested in having one of the saplings when they are ready is asked to contact the J&P office by emailing jandp@dioceseofleeds.org.uk
Earlier this month, I travelled down to London to take part in ‘A nuclear-free future: A day in Parliament with Youth and Student CND’.
With other young people from across England and Wales, I took part in workshops with MPs and Peers of the House of Lords.
We were joined for short question and answer sessions by Jeremy Corbyn MP, Bell Ribeiro-Addy MP, Kirsten Oswald MP, and Baroness Jenny Jones.
We discussed sustainability, peace, and nuclear disarmament. For example, the risks associated with, and greenwashing of, nuclear power. Particularly, the threat that nuclear power stations pose in areas engaged in conflict, as we have seen in Ukraine.
We also discussed the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, and how we can encourage our government to engage with the treaty process in the run up to 3MSP.
It was inspiring to see their dedication and continued passion for these causes, and to hear of their work to empower others to take action. As Corbyn said: “you should not cut yourself off from being an activist on becoming an MP”.
At a time when military spending is increasing, and US nukes are set to return to the UK, it’s reassuring to know that there are pro-peace voices representing us.