SOCIAL action current events
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Our social mission
Our task as a parish community is ‘to make the Kingdom of God present in our world’ (Pope Francis). We are called to embody Christ-like love for all, and especially to those who are poor or excluded or face injustice. Our concern is both for those in our own community and for our wider society and our global community.
Across the parish of Guildford, there are many groups and activities that take forward this aspect of living our Catholic faith. All welcome new members. Some are shared with other Christians and neighbours locally.
Across the parish of Guildford, there are many groups and activities that take forward this aspect of living our Catholic faith. All welcome new members. Some are shared with other Christians and neighbours locally.
The parish justice and peace group
The parish justice and peace group works to encourage the parish to take part in activities that express the Catholic commitment to working for a more just, equal and peaceful world. We link up with the campaigns and programmes of Catholic organisations and bring opportunities to the parish to take simple actions that can make a difference. We also raise awareness about the social teachings that are part of our Catholic faith.
We support Pax Christi, the Catholic organisation that works for peace. You can find out more about Pax Christi here http://paxchristi.org.uk/ We encourage our churches to celebrate Peace Sunday in January each year. We also organise prayer vigils for peace in situations such as Syria. When opportunities arise to make a public stand for peace, we add our voice.
We have a continuing commitment to care for creation and environmental concern. When Pope Francis issued his letter, Laudato Si, or On Care for our Common Home, we organised some evening talks with discussion to read the text together. You can find this text here
In September each year, we propose a Car-Free Sunday to the parish, encouraging people to walk to church if they can or share lifts.
We also promote Racial Justice Sunday and encourage our churches to include this theme in their liturgy. Racial Justice Sunday falls in January each year. You can read about the 2018 theme here
The Justice and Peace Group is working out how to support refugees over the last year or so. Guildford Catholic Parish has been very supportive of Bishop Richard’s Refugee Fund, through a number of fundraising events organised by volunteers. Some people have also been involved in the initiatives of the Anglican diocese to sponsor and support Syrian refugee families in Guildford. We are currently exploring how to support more refugee families locally.
The Justice and Peace Group is concerned with the abuse of human rights of those unjustly imprisoned and of prisoners of conscience. Accordingly it organises two campaigns each year – before Christmas and Easter – asking parishioners to send greetings to encourage those in prison with messages of hope and love. The details of those to whom greetings may be sent are provided by ACTION BY CHRISTIANS AGAINST TORTURE (UK) and they issue recommendations for the content and manner of sending the greeting. These details are set out below.
The Easter Campaign signings this year will take place after all masses at St Joseph’s and St Pius on the weekend of 6 and 7 April. Greetings cards and guidance for messages will be provided at the signings. The Christmas Campaign in 2018 resulted in over 50 messages and it is hoped this number will be exceeded in the Easter Campaign.
For further information contact Michael Combes at mpfcombes@gmail.com or Kevin Burr at kevin@cpg.church
The Justice and Peace group also organises – or promotes – pre-election meetings so that when elections happen, we can question the candidates about their priorities and ensure they listen to our views. This helps people make better decisions with their votes.
There is also a diocesan justice and peace network, and an annual diocesan conference, which group members take part in. We also link up with the National Justice and Peace Network (NJPN) which brings together people from parishes all around England and Wales. For more information about NJPN, go here
The Justice and Peace group meets monthly, usually on the first Tuesday, in St Pius’ Church meeting room. We would be delighted to welcome new members. For more information, contact Kevin Burr at kevin@cpg.church.
We support Pax Christi, the Catholic organisation that works for peace. You can find out more about Pax Christi here http://paxchristi.org.uk/ We encourage our churches to celebrate Peace Sunday in January each year. We also organise prayer vigils for peace in situations such as Syria. When opportunities arise to make a public stand for peace, we add our voice.
We have a continuing commitment to care for creation and environmental concern. When Pope Francis issued his letter, Laudato Si, or On Care for our Common Home, we organised some evening talks with discussion to read the text together. You can find this text here
In September each year, we propose a Car-Free Sunday to the parish, encouraging people to walk to church if they can or share lifts.
We also promote Racial Justice Sunday and encourage our churches to include this theme in their liturgy. Racial Justice Sunday falls in January each year. You can read about the 2018 theme here
The Justice and Peace Group is working out how to support refugees over the last year or so. Guildford Catholic Parish has been very supportive of Bishop Richard’s Refugee Fund, through a number of fundraising events organised by volunteers. Some people have also been involved in the initiatives of the Anglican diocese to sponsor and support Syrian refugee families in Guildford. We are currently exploring how to support more refugee families locally.
The Justice and Peace Group is concerned with the abuse of human rights of those unjustly imprisoned and of prisoners of conscience. Accordingly it organises two campaigns each year – before Christmas and Easter – asking parishioners to send greetings to encourage those in prison with messages of hope and love. The details of those to whom greetings may be sent are provided by ACTION BY CHRISTIANS AGAINST TORTURE (UK) and they issue recommendations for the content and manner of sending the greeting. These details are set out below.
The Easter Campaign signings this year will take place after all masses at St Joseph’s and St Pius on the weekend of 6 and 7 April. Greetings cards and guidance for messages will be provided at the signings. The Christmas Campaign in 2018 resulted in over 50 messages and it is hoped this number will be exceeded in the Easter Campaign.
For further information contact Michael Combes at mpfcombes@gmail.com or Kevin Burr at kevin@cpg.church
The Justice and Peace group also organises – or promotes – pre-election meetings so that when elections happen, we can question the candidates about their priorities and ensure they listen to our views. This helps people make better decisions with their votes.
There is also a diocesan justice and peace network, and an annual diocesan conference, which group members take part in. We also link up with the National Justice and Peace Network (NJPN) which brings together people from parishes all around England and Wales. For more information about NJPN, go here
The Justice and Peace group meets monthly, usually on the first Tuesday, in St Pius’ Church meeting room. We would be delighted to welcome new members. For more information, contact Kevin Burr at kevin@cpg.church.
EASTER GREETINGS CAMPAIGN 2019
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As usual we suggest that you write a simple card or greeting to the individual saying that you are thinking of him/her and/or urging him/her not to lose hope (or words to that effect). A picture postcard is always welcome and cheapest to send. You can include your name and address (if you wish) but do not mention ACAT or include a religious greeting if so advised, as communication from a foreign organisation can endanger the prisoner and lead to a harsher sentence (a very general greeting, such as 'We are praying for you', is acceptable). It is important not to forget individuals featured in previous campaigns and some (marked with an *) are included here with updated information where available. For the Easter campaign we focus on prisoners persecuted for their faith, although others are included. Members should not feel obliged to post to every group or individual listed. Postage overseas is expensive: a letter or card weighing up to and including 10g (e.g. a postcard) costs £1.25 to Europe and the rest of the world; a letter or card up to 20g (e.g. a folded Christmas-type card) costs £1.25 for Europe (including the Ukraine) and £1.45 for the rest of the world. These are the rates at the time of writing.
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You should sign your name to your message and by all means provide your address as well, but please be aware that some groups may use this to invite you to join or donate to them. You may mention ACAT unless otherwise stated.
| Groups and Individuals to send greetings to |
Pax Christi, (The Catholic International Movement for Peace)
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Vision:
The work of Pax Christi – the Peace of Christ – is based on the gospel and inspired by faith. Our vision is of a world where people can live in peace, without fear of violence in any form. Pax Christi is rooted in Catholic Christianity but is open to all who share its values and work. Working for:
The main source of income for Pax Christi comes from the retiring collection on Peace Sunday in January each year. Pax Christi is a non-profit, unincorporated membership organisation. As a membership and campaigning organisation, it chooses not to be a charity so do not benefit from government schemes such as Gift Aid. This makes donations all the more important. Education: Education for peace is of paramount importance. Pax Christi has a full-time Schools and Youth Education Officer. The Christian Peace Education Fund now has its own website where you can find out about the CPEF, how you can support their work, and applying for grants. www.paxchristi.org.uk, Tel: +44 (0)20 8203 4884, E-mail: info@paxchristi.org.uk |
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CAFOD
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The parish is a strong supporter of CAFOD, the official Catholic aid agency. You can find out more about CAFOD’s work here. There are CAFOD representatives in our church community that help to organise the Family Fast Days in each church at Lent and at Harvest time. We also participate in their campaigns and use their resources for prayer and reflection.
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Support for Fair Trade
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Volunteers in the parish work hard to encourage people to buy fairly traded goods, because fair trade helps people in poverty to earn their way to a better life, and reduces the need for aid. There is a shop in St Joseph’s Church that sells Traidcraft goods every week, and a Traidcraft stall in St Pius at regular intervals. Both of these are organised and run by volunteers. There are some celebration events organised each year, usually in Fairtrade Fortnight and in Advent. You can find out more about Traidcraft goods here and about the Fair Trade Foundation which we also support here. If you are interested in finding out more about getting involved with Fair Trade, please contact us at the form at the bottom of this web page.
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Number Five
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Number Five is a night shelter for homeless people that was started by the local churches in Guildford. It provides beds every night for 14 men and 2 women and works with local social services to get the help homeless people need to find a way out. It is a charity (Reg 1015474), with most of its funds coming from statutory grants and housing benefit, but these sources don’t provide all that is needed, and local churches are generous supporters as well. Several parishioners are trustees. To find out more, click here
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Footsteps
Footsteps is a completely voluntary project helping homeless and vulnerable people in Guildford by providing a drop-in centre every Sunday evening, offering a hot meal and company. Several volunteers from the Catholic parish are involved, together with other people from local churches and the community. Footsteps operates in Beverley hall Community Centre, next to Waitrose in the town centre. Footsteps is also a registered charity (Reg 1085472). Find out more here
Support for other charities
The Catholic Parish of Guildford provides generous support through fundraising for many other charities.
- There is a continuing relationship and regular events in support of Project Peru, a locally based charity that links Guildford with poor communities in Peru. See www.projectperu.org.uk
- There are parish quiz evenings, film nights, shared meals and other event to support other charities. In recent years these have included Life, Phyllis Tuckwell Hospice, Jesuit Refugee Service, the Cardinal Hume Centre, Headway Surrey, Oakleaf Enterprise, a mental health charity in Guildford, and others.
- Before Christmas each year, in St Pius Church, there is a 10% collection, in which parish members are invited to donate 10% (or whatever they can afford) of the amount they spend on Christmas and to choose which three charities, local, national and international, should benefit. The amount raised is usually around £3000-£5000. The charities helped include Housing Justice, Women at the Well, a project linked to the parish primary school and others.
Other ways that parish members serve the local community
There are many other ways that members of the parish get involved in local community activities and respond to people who need our help. Some of these are supported or organised by other churches and some are community based.
- The Merrow Lunch Club offers a meal to people who are isolated or in need of company, and provides a sociable meal and transport help. Volunteers from three local churches including St Pius X organise this in Merrow Methodist Church each Tuesday in term-time.
- Guildford Street Angels www.gtcc.org.uk/street-angels
- The North Guildford Food Bank www.northguildfordfoodbank.co.uk
- The support of work in HMP Send and HMP Coldingley. including, preparing gifts for the children of prisoners in HMP Send at Christmas each year, and volunteers from the parish work in both prisons.
