Liberal Democrat Christian Forum - HOPE for the Nation

HOPE for the Nation

Written by Andrew Bradstock
Monday, 30 April 2007
Hope-2008 is an initiative with a big vision: to encourage every UK church to get more involved in transforming its local community. On behalf of Christians in Politics, Christian Socialist Movement Director Andrew Bradstock spoke to one of the project’s drivers, Matt Bird, to find out more... AB: Tell me about HOPE-2008: MB: HOPE is a nationwide initiative to encourage and resource the Church to ‘raise its game’ in community service through 2008. Whether a church is already doing a little or a lot, HOPE is about encouraging it to do more and do it together with other churches and, where appropriate, local government and police. AB: A whole year of activity sounds ambitious: how is it going to be paced? MB: Various‘high points’ in the calendar will provide foci for action, including New Year, Easter, Pentecost, summer holiday and Christmas. There will be a menu of community service ideas from which churches can choose, depending on their community’s needs and their own resources. Churches will go at their own pace: some will respond at every point, others at just one. This is a grassroots project: they decide. AB: Whose idea was HOPE-2008? MB: HOPE emerged from a conversation between three people who’d all been involved in city-wide projects and wanted to extend their vision to the whole church across the whole country for a whole year. They were Mike Pilavachi (Soul Survivor), Andy Hawthorne (The Message) and Roy Crowne (Youth for Christ). AB: And who's supporting it? MB: Everyone! The Archbishops of Canterbury and Westminster, the Moderator of the Free Churches, leaders of black majority churches as well as politicians and police chiefs. AB: You mention politicians: what has been their response to HOPE? MB: The project has enjoyed full cross-party support, thanks, I believe, to recognition by the major parties of the social value of faith-based initiatives. There can be confusion around the interpretation of the equality and diversity agenda and whether this means that a single faith initiative is politically correct. I work on behalf of Christian charities to communicate that we are ‘faith based not faith biased’ – it is our faith in God that motivates us to do. what we do, and we serve people of all faiths and people of no faith. AB: Are you not just encouraging churches to do politicians’ and the police’s jobs for them? MB: Let’s turn your question around. Christians believe that God cares for people, and churches want to reflect that in their actions. Whatever the police and politicians think of that is, in one sense, irrelevant. AB: How different will the UK look on 31 December 2008? MB: It depends where you look… We will see communities changing for the better, churches working together more, churches partnering with local police and government more. The legacy of HOPE will be stronger communities and growing churches. AB: Is this about the organisers of HOPE-2008 telling churches what to do? What’s HOPE’s ‘added value’? MB: HOPE is a bottom-up initiative. Local churches and their leaders know the needs and opportunities within their communities and what resources they have. The ‘added value’ brought by HOPE is in encouraging and resourcing churches to raise their game and work with others. It is not prescriptive in any way. AB: Isn’t this about churches just doing nice things? Where's the 'cutting edge' of the Gospel in this? MB: HOPE is about the unity of words and actions – about encouraging churches who ‘do’ to say why they do it, and churches who preach to back that up with deeds. The Church’s credibility comes from a platform of service, from living what it preaches. AB: What happens after 2008? MB: Local churches and charities will be given a huge boost during 2008, but afterwards the work will go on because it’s not ‘top down’, it begins and ends with local churches. AB: How can ordinary church members get involved? MB: Ask your church leader if your church can work with others in your locality on HOPE. Your readers could assist their church in working with local police and government. They will understand more how local government works – they may even be councillors. AB: If we want to plug into it now what can we do? MB: Check out the HOPE Website - www.hope08.com - or telephone 01273 571939.

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