Displaying items by tag: Culture

Thursday, 08 April 2021 21:16

Bishop of Dover on racial equality

Rt Rev Rose Hudson-Wilkin, the Church of England’s first black female bishop, is concerned that a Government’s report on race and ethnic disparities said that the success of the ethnic minority population in education and economy is a model for other white-majority countries. The Bishop said that we will be an example when black people are not just sweeping floors, cleaning, and catering in establishments, but sitting around every table and in leadership in all walks of life. ‘There are serious issues around that report if it is telling us we are now a model country.’ The report, commissioned after the Black Lives Matter movement began, said there was no evidence of institutional racism in the UK: rather, geography, family influence, socio-economic background, culture, and religion all impact life chances more than racism. Many say the report was culturally deaf and out of step with public opinion.

Published in British Isles
Thursday, 09 July 2020 21:07

Battle over the USA

November 2020 will be the 400th anniversary of the arrival of the Pilgrim Fathers from Plymouth, England, to Plymouth, Massachusetts. They left England to escape religious persecution and establish the freedom of self-government, in the New World. The Declaration of Independence and the constitution were laid down by the founding fathers. The USA became a blessing to desperate and hopeful people from the nations, because of the culture of freedom and faith in God. American missionaries invested their lives in the spiritual restoration of the Old Continent, and until now have continued to impact the nations of Europe with the Kingdom of God. However, the strategy of the enemy is to destabilise, create conflicts in society, and gain control of governments. In 2020 the tragic death of George Floyd, BLM riots, and an out-of-control pandemic are threatening a divided electorate prior to November’s elections and the 400th anniversary of God’s freedom in the new world.

Published in Worldwide
Thursday, 25 June 2020 22:11

Portugal: brakes on amid new coronavirus cases

As a statue in Lisbon is ‘jokingly’ and ‘inappropriately’ fitted with a face mask, new restrictions have been imposed on the city following a spike in coronavirus cases. Portugal has gone from a European ‘miracle’ to a partial outcast in a matter of weeks, amid a series of setbacks to the country's reopening plans. The capital, Lisbon, and the surrounding metropolitan area woke up on 23 June to increased restrictions and more power for police to enforce them, following a series of illegal parties with as many as 1,000 revelers in recent days. Prime minister Costa imposed new controls just days after celebrating his government's Champions League final phase coup.

Published in Europe
Thursday, 25 June 2020 22:02

Lebanon: growing crisis

Vincent al-Boustani’s local council runs a tight ship. Staff and volunteers conduct 24/7 patrols, cameras monitor the streets, and motorcycles are banned after 9 pm. A policeman stands guard to provide security amid rising crime as the economy collapses and the crisis pushes more Lebanese into poverty. Protesters are targeting the ruling elite and banks that have frozen depositors out of their savings. Some banks have erected steel barriers to shield against attack, as the economy crumbles and fear of crime increases. Boustani believes things will get even worse, saying ‘That’s why we must remain alert, aware of danger as we go towards the unknown.’ This financial crisis has developed in Lebanon since 2019, more and more families can’t cope as the currency collapses and the state offers little or no help. Pray for God's peace to fill the streets as Lebanon faces enormous threats to stability.

Published in Worldwide
Thursday, 18 June 2020 21:43

Racial inequality

England contains many diverse, multicultural cities, and the current uprisings spectacularly play out in them. The movement’s heart is about injustices that go back decades - and centuries - with global foundations. Many parts of the UK have deep issues with racism that have long needed to be challenged, talked about, rectified and healed. On 15 June Boris Johnson announced plans to create a cross-government commission to examine racial inequality and the disparities experienced by minority ethnic groups in education, health and the criminal justice system. He said he could not ignore the strength of feeling shown by tens of thousands of people who had demonstrated in London and other cities across the UK. He said, ‘It is no use just saying that we have made huge progress in tackling racism. There is much more that we need to do; and we will.’

Published in British Isles
Thursday, 11 June 2020 21:22

Demonstrations and democracy

British port cities grew wealthy transporting slaves to the Americas. On 7 June Bristol protesters tore down a statue of a slave trader whose company branded its victims with the company’s initials on their chests. Unfortunately on a weekend that marked the anniversary of D-Day, Sir Winston Churchill’s statue was also defaced as agitators chanted, ‘Churchill is a racist’; and at the Cenotaph, a monument to those who died for free speech and democracy, a protester tried to set fire to the Union Flag. Pray that Black Lives Matter marches are not muddled with wilful criminal damage. The government has been accused of appalling treatment of British Caribbean citizens who came to rebuild Britain after World War II. Sadiq Khan and many others are calling for all statues and street names linked to slavery to be taken down. The first to fall was a statue of slaveholder Robert Milligan at Docklands.

Published in British Isles
Thursday, 28 May 2020 22:04

Youth homelessness on the rise

England has seen a 36% increase in homeless under-25s seeking support since lockdown began. Youth charities in Wales and Northern Ireland have a 50% increase. Charities and youths say some councils are failing them during the Covid-19 crisis. ‘Stay at home, protect the NHS, save lives.’ But what if you don’t have a home? ‘Your grandparents were called to war, you were called to sit on the sofa,’ is a saying. But what happens if other people’s sofas are the only thing keeping you off the streets? For many homeless young people, sofa surfing is the only way of keeping a roof over their heads, staying with different friends for days or weeks at a time, while they seek support and work out their next move. The government has stopped landlords evicting tenants until the end of June. There is no protection against being thrown out by parents or friends.

Published in British Isles
Thursday, 14 May 2020 21:22

Palestine: women and coronavirus

A woman leads the fight against coronavirus in the Palestinian territories, while at the same time it has brought more violence and suffering to women. Umm Iyad travels to the northern West Bank to follow up on emergency procedures as part of the efforts to stem the outbreak of coronavirus. She has been heading the village council since 2017, and is now head of the emergency committee. She is also working on a community initiative to cultivate land and grow vegetables to achieve self-sufficiency for the villagers. However, during lockdown, statistics showed social workers across the Palestinian governorates have been dealing with increased victims of domestic violence. 40% of women have been subjected to emotional and mental abuse, and 31% to physical abuse. 60% of the victims have fled their houses, and 21% attempted suicide.

Published in Worldwide
Thursday, 14 May 2020 21:19

Unsafe in lockdown - child sex trafficking

Any child sold for sex is a victim of sex trafficking. Since 2006, IJM South Asia has rescued 1000+ survivors from sex trafficking, seen over 500 criminals restrained and trained over 30,000 police, government officials, and NGOs. Sex trafficking survivors have described being beaten and forcibly injected with narcotics. This is continuing during lockdown. There is particular concern about the rise of online sexual exploitation of children during the pandemic. It is highly possible that seasoned human trafficking criminals will exploit the current situation. Please pray against this increased exploitation. Pray also for safety and security for the survivors of sex trafficking now thriving and living independently; many are now unable to work in lockdown and risk falling back into desperate poverty. Pray that IJM can maintain contact with these survivors in their network, and provide what is needed to keep them safe.

Published in Worldwide
Thursday, 05 March 2020 21:37

Global: liberation of women and girls

March is International Women's History month. Women are two thirds of the world’s poorest citizens. Nearly two-thirds of illiterate people are women. Globally women are paid less than men. A cultural preference for male babies has led to 30 million deaths of unborn or baby girls in India and China and fuels trafficking women as brides or sex slaves. God looks on the heart: what do we look at when choosing leaders? Pray for more women and men to be recognised, equipped, and released into service based on their giftedness and godliness. Pray for more humble, Christ-like models. Prideful ‘hierarchy’ and ‘angry feminism’ destroy the unity that God designed and desires. Pray that Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, atheist, and tribal people groups will see amazing unity in the Body of Christ between men and women that causes them to turn to Jesus.

Published in Worldwide