By Sean Morris, Good Shepherd Church Community, Mytholmroyd & Commission memberThe Church, like so many parts of society, is acutely aware of the damage humans have made to our planet, and the real risks climate change has for all of us. It is important to encourage the Leeds Diocese to follow in the footsteps of […]
Yorkshire
18 Jul – A Celebration of God’s Creation
By Michael Emly, Our Lady of Kirkstall parishNearly 200 parishioners of Our Lady of Kirkstall, Leeds, came together on June 25th for an afternoon that celebrated God’s creation. Inspired by Pope Francis’ teaching in Laudato Si’ and organised by our parish Live Simply group, the event was intended to bring people from the parish together […]
14 Jul -The Anti-Boycott Bill
By Richard BurdenThe following article was written by Richard Burden in his capacity as trustee of the Balfour Project. It explains why the Balfour Project charity opposes the Bill. Until 2019, Burden was an MP chairing the Britain Palestine All Party Parliamentary Group at Westminster.In June, the UK Government has published a Bill that will […]
10 Jul – From Asylum Seeker to Priest: A Journey of Faith
By Father Yemane AradomI was a stranger and you welcomed me… (Mt 25:35)I am Father Yemane Aradom. I was born in Sudan and raised in Eritrea. My childhood was a happy one and I grew up in a loving Christian family. I will tell you the main events of my story which took me from […]
01 Jul – LiveSimply comes to John Mary Vianney parish
By Tony O’Brian, St John Mary Vianney Parish, LeedsAbout 25 members of the parish of St John Vianney in north Leeds met on 20 June 2023 to take forward our action planning for our LiveSimply parish award application. Information leaflets on LiveSimply and Laudato si’ had been distributed at Sunday masses each week during Lent […]
20 Jun – Refugee Week events across the Leeds Diocese
By Matthew Maslen, J&P Newsletter editorThis week (19th – 25th June), is Refugee Week. This year, the 25th Anniversary of Refugee Week, the theme is Compassion.The organisers, Refugee Week UK, “invite you to celebrate what compassion looks like in action”. They call on us to draw on our experiences to help us to be compassionate […]
11 Jun – Progress on the Journey to 2030
As indicated last month, the Commission hosted a meeting of the Northern Dioceses’ Environment Group on 08 June, at Wheeler Hall in Leeds. This is an open group of interested people from each of the Northern Dioceses, and they meet about 4 times a year Five out of the seven dioceses in the North were […]
04 May – Encounter, Conversion, Hope!
The urgency of the Climate Emergency can sometimes feel overwhelming. There are so many calls for action. The changes required to ameliorate the worst effects are huge – and require international political action. In these circumstances it is easy for people to lose hope.This was the backdrop that led the Spirituality of Justice group within […]
27 Apr – International Conscientious Objectors’ Day
The Commission is working in partnership with Pax Christi in the Leeds Diocese and the Leeds Palestinian Film festival to draw attention to International Conscientious Objection Day on 15 May.Rev Clive Barratt, who has written a book about first world war conscientious objectors in Yorkshire, will provide a short context for the film which follows. […]
26 Apr – Yorkshire Women in Black groups
Women in Black (WiB) is a world-wide network of women committed to peace with justice and actively opposed to injustice, war, militarism and other forms of violence. As women experiencing these things in different ways in different regions of the world, we support each other’s movements. An important focus is challenging the militarist policies of […]
11 Apr – Wanted! New Members for the J&P Commission
We are looking for new people to join the Leeds Diocese Justice & Peace Commission. Anyone living in the Leeds Diocese who is interested in changing the world could serve as a Commission member! Our activity levels are starting to increase. However. we can only do more if we have more people helping to devise, […]
09 Mar – Leeds Trinity announces online Lecture Series
Leeds Trinity University have organised a series of open online Lectures for 2023 with the series title “Beyond the Dark Clouds”. They are all examining where we can find hope in today’s world. They have been organised by the office of the Director of Catholic Mission at Leeds University, Dr Ann Marie Mealey (who is […]
07 Mar – Seeing with Prophetic Imagination
It’s taken a while to sort out, but you can now listen to the talkstalk given by David McLoughlin at our Day of Reflection held in October 2022. This day was titled ‘Has the Church become a ‘Not for Prophets’ organisation? In this first talk, David explores what is meant by the ‘prophetic imagination’. You […]
18 Dec – Comboni Abuse Survivors Update
By John Duffy, Commission MemberAfter many years campaigning, being ignored and treated as troublemakers, the Comboni Survivors Group have achieved their aim, in a meeting in September with the Very Reverend Tesfaye Tadesse, Superior General of the Comboni Missionaries.The group persisted through barren years to have such a meeting, and gradually built support from a […]
11 Dec – Boycott: a film with a lesson for all of us
By Joe Burns, Commission Member This year, the Commission sponsored the final film of the Leeds Palestinian Film Festival. It took place in Wheeler Hall, Leeds Cathedral, on 9th December and was watched by over 60 people. In addition, Ben Jamal (Director of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign) led a post-film discussion. The film concerned efforts […]
28 Nov – Climate Prayer Vigil at the Bishops’ Conference
On the 14th of November, several Catholic climate activists – held a five-hour prayer vigil outside Hinsley Hall during the Catholic Bishops Conference of England and Wales (CBCEW) Autumn Plenary Meeting.The meeting took place at Hinsley Hall, Leeds. The Animators held their vigil from 12noon until 5pm. The group consisted of activists from Dioceses across […]