Challenge
We challenge injustice
God is a liberator. God always takes the side of people experiencing poverty and injustice and we are called to do the same.
Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? (Isaiah 28:6)
We long for God’s justice in the world. Around the globe and in their own local communities, Methodists are working for justice through responding to needs and campaigning for change.
Challenging injustice is never easy – it is rare for a challenge to be welcome. This can be something you do as an individual, but it can be better to work together as a small group or a congregation.
“Henry’s shift patterns enable him to pop into ‘tea and toast’ on a Friday morning. There is a community larder, debt advice, and offers of prayer, which Henry has valued. Because the organisers have built community and seen the effect of poverty on those at Tea and Toast, they’ve joined a city-wide lobbying group, working with the council to end food poverty in the local area.”
Pause for thought
In what ways are we powerful/powerless when it comes to an issue of injustice (eg bullying, homeless, human trafficking, poverty, racism)?
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Simple things to try
- Sign up to regular campaigns, eg from Christian Aid or the Joint Public Issues Team, and commit to write letters and talk with people at your church about the issues. Listen to members of your church and community to find out what issues matter to them, and together ask your MP to meet with you.
- Find out about the principles, priorities and practices of A Justice-seeking Church. How can you respond as an individual and a community?
- Explore how to start a Church at the Margins in your area.
- Check out resources, campaigns and actions you can get involved with from The Joint Public Issues Team (JPIT).
- Join the Let's End Poverty movement.
- Listen to a Taketime meditation based on Matthew 21:12-13: Anger in the Temple.