(The Archbishop's Council Board for Social Responsibility)
INTRODUCTION
1. 1 The pivotal event for social responsibility work in England in recent years must be the election of a Labour Government on May 1st, 1997. The new government has introduced a rapid succession of consultation documents, bills, and initiatives on a variety of issues. Some of this action responds directly to the policies of the previous administration; while other initiatives respond to social and international movements and trends. Dialogue and consultation with the churches has taken place; and church leaders have welcomed much that is positive in the government's program and its openness to faith communities. At some times churches have not been uncritical in this dialogue (e.g. refugee and asylum policy), at other times the church has been divided about how it responds to the government (e.g. the lowering of the age of homosexual consent). Parts of the government's program have been caricatured as 'authoritarian,' other parts as 'communitarian' - we live in interesting times!
1.2 Social exclusion has become a key theme within the government's program. A 'Social Exclusion Unit' has been set up to cross the departmental boundaries within government on issues such as homelessness, school exclusion, youth alienation, and urban renewal. A study group has been initiated to look at the theological implications of the rhetoric and action of social ex(in)clusion.
1.3 Below is a summary of some of the key issues that are current for the Board for Social Responsibility.
SOCIAL JUSTICE
Unemployment.
2.1 Unemployment and the Future of Work, produced by an ecumenical commission in 1997, under the leadership of Bishop David Sheppard, examined changing patterns of work, the economic basis of employment, and the churches' response - locally and nationally.
Urban Renewal & Urbanization
2.2 The process begun by the 1986 Faith in the City report has continued to highlight the increasing gulf in our society and the experience of poor urban communities. The process is concerned with the life and witness of the church in these communities; the response of the non-poor parts of the church, and the promotion of dialogue with government and decision-makers regarding urban policy. The Church Urban Fund has partly funded a large variety of projects, most initiated through local churches, concerned about practical Christian witness in inner city and outer estate areas.
2.3 During the Lambeth Conference, the Church of England's Urban Bishops' Panel hosted an evening event exploring the impact of urbanization and globalization on urban communities and congregations. This led to the section two resolutions that are currently being developed with ACC.
RACIAL JUSTICE
Asylum & refugees.
3.1 The UK continues to receive moderate numbers of asylum seekers and refugees (approximately 3,000 per month). Draconian polices and inefficiency within the immigration service have led to a large backlog of asylum applications waiting for decisions (56,020 in August, 1998). The last government withdrew welfare rights. Local churches have been involved in education and welfare provisionÑ ball circles, prison visiting etc; as well as a few high-profile sanctuary cases. Nationally the church has sought to advocate the needs and rights of refugees, and rebut the negativity of the press. The Archbishop of Canterbury's New Year Message reflected some of these concerns.
Stephen Lawrence.
3.2 Stephen Lawrence was a black teenager murdered by racist thugs in London in 1993. The failure of the police to bring his killers to justice is well documented. A public inquiry into the police investigation has revealed incompetence, corruption, and institutional racism on a wide scale; this has become apparent through church involvement in campaigns concerning miscarriages of justice, deaths of black people in custody, and patterns of policing. The report also points to a racism inherent in public attitudes and institutions. The report and its recommendations have implications for the church as an institution. Bishop John Sentamu of Stepney was a member of the inquiry team and has been a prophetic voice for racial justice in both church and society for a number of years.
HUMAN RIGHTS & PENAL AFFAIRS
4.1 The Board for Social Responsibility, through its Home Affairs Committee, is publishing a report on prisons in November. The focus is on vulnerability or exclusion and includes the mad, the sexually dangerous, women, and children who end up inside; also the families of prisoners.
4.2 Work is in progress on pastoral care of sex offenders, again with a booklet in mind, and the care of psychopaths and their place in the system, medical and criminal. In July 1998 the General Synod debated issues concerned with the use of drugs and the Christian response.
INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS
Jubilee 2000.
5.1 The Jubilee 2000 campaign has been widely promoted within the Church of England. The BSR is listed as one of the campaignÕs original sponsors. The demonstration during the 1998 G8 Summit centered on Birmingham Cathedral with a significant presence of bishops, ecumenical leaders, and parish groups.
Development Minister at General Synod.
5.2 The new governmentÕs claim to be pursing an Òethical foreign policyÓ has been scrutinized on a number of occasions. Most significantly during the visit of the Secretary of State for International Development, Clare Short MP, to the autumn 1998 session of the General Synod. In her speech she challenged the church to consider the long term structural transformations that were needed beyond debt relief. (A full text will be available in Crucible.)
