What is ours to do when we can’t do everything?
The Methodist Conference agreed five priorities for justice for the next five years, following a process of listening and conversation. These priorities bring together the need for justice with Methodist action, energy and history.
The priorities of poverty, climate, refugees, discrimination and peace will offer an opportunity to combine our prayer and worship and our action in local communities with campaigning and working alongside global partners.
The resourcing for these priorities will get underway over the next year. In the meantime, you could undertake a community audit to explore the needs of your context, and explore each of the priority areas and, if this is something you want to explore, the first steps you could take in response.
Do you know what your community wants and needs?
Explore the five Methodist Priorities for Justice
Responding to the priorities for justice may not mean doing something new. It might involve refocusing on what you are already doing, responding to a challenge arising from the Practices for Justice or just doing things differently. It might mean stopping doing something in order to be able to respond to a greater need or to what your community wants.
You or your church may choose to respond to an injustice outside the five priority areas. That is fine! The Conference report said churches will need to respond to local and emerging needs: “Indeed both of these will need to sit alongside longer term work on Priorities if the Church is faithfully to seek justice. But amidst growing demands and shrinking resources, we seek to focus our voices, experiences and resources on a limited number of areas in order to enable a more joined up approach and increase our collective impact for change through greater collaboration.”