” What I do is a drop in the ocean. But many drops make a different ocean.”

St. Teresa of Calcutta
 

Dear Friends,

So the lockdown continues for however long the Government sees fit. The important thing for all of us is to stay safe and well, and sane, in these unprecedented times.

Hopefully, by the end of this, we will all step out to a better, cleaner and perhaps more kind world. One where we look out for our fellow humans, and our planet. That has to be our prayer really, doesn’t it.

God bless you all and your families.

NJPN Updates: – Just a reminder that our Networking Day and AGM on 2^nd May has been cancelled, and the AGM re-scheduled to take place on 19 July at the Annual Conference.

As previously mentioned we are still taking bookings for the Conference (details above).

If your organisation is interested in running a stall at the conference, please contact the Just Fair Manager, Ann Kelly at annkellynjpn@btinternet.com

Please note also a temporary postal address due to the closure of the Eccleston Square office:

Geoff Thompson, NJPN, c/o CAFOD Lancaster Volunteer Centre, St Walburge’s Centre, St Walburge’s Gardens, Preston PR2 2QJ.

You can still use the same phone number.

See below for: – 

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E-Bulletin Contents: –

News and Comment

1. Covid-19 Toolkit for Catholic Parishes and Caritas Diocesan Agencies.
2. Pope Francis speaks out on Earth Day
3. Busting the myths over Fairtrade
4. One Year on from the Terrorist Attacks in Sri Lanka
5. Women on the front line of the crisis
6. Ex-Detainees write to Priti Patel
7. Dorothy Day: new film showing her vision is very much alive

Newsletters

Actions

     14. Millions of garment workers going without pay.
     15. Sign for a temporary ceasefire.
    16. Email Matt Hancock
    17. Tell Dominic Raab to end UK arms sales
    18. UK urged to ban cotton imports from Xuar

    
The Last Word

    18. Robert Lindsay sums up life as it is for us now

News and Comments

1. Covid-19 Toolkit courtesy of CSAN/SVP

Caritas Social Action Network and the St Vincent de Paul Society (England and Wales) have released a toolkit to help Catholic parishes and groups develop safe, local responses to people in need during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The toolkit addresses the Christian call to step out in love to those excluded and at risk, throughout a time when the Government has asked people to stay at home as far as possible.  It includes examples of how parishes can offer support, advice and guidance on safeguarding, communication, dealing with health and other risks, referring people on as needed and to volunteer with other initiatives. Help could include keeping in touch with a friendly chat on the phone, shopping for food and other essential items, dog walking, help with prayer and advice on how to get involved with other initiatives locally.  It can be adapted to local circumstances.
To download the toolkit, click here

2. News from the Vatican and the Pope at audience on Earth Day

Holding his weekly general audience on the 50th Earth Day on Wednesday, Pope Francis called for common action and ecological conversion that lead to a deeper love for our common home and our brothers and sisters, especially the most vulnerable.
The full article can be read here
“We can each contribute in our own small way,” Pope Francis urged.

3. Why are there so many misconceptions over Fairtrade goods?

In an article that the Fairtrade Foundation produced last year, they are again trying to bust those myths surrounding Fairtrade. Makes thought-provoking reading, and something to share with anyone who has something negative to say about goods with the Fairtrade logo.
Read here.

4. A year on from the terrorist attacks in Sri Lanka

More than 270 people were killed in April last year, and Rome Reports have made a short documentary available on Rome Reports Premium. The trailer is available here 
‘The wounds were still fresh, and the fear palpable, but the faith and joy of the country’s Catholics transcended the pain.’

5. Podcast from Global Justice Now

Global Justice Now have produced a podcast about women on the front line of the crisis. They talk to two women, one in the Philippines and one in South Africa, about their experiences during the coronavirus pandemic. To listen, please click here.

6. Ex-detainees speak out

Freed Voices is made up of people who have experienced immigration detention in the UK, and are now committed to speaking out. Between them, they have lost over 20 years of our lives to detention, and they have written this urgent letter to the Home Secretary concerning the risks posed by Covid-19 to those in Immigration Removal Centres. Read it through the London Economic here.

7. Dorothy Day: Anarchist Grandma, Patron Saint of the Resistance

When Pope Francis addressed Congress during his 2015 visit to the U.S., he named four great men and women whose legacies helped shape the fundamental values of the American people: Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr., Thomas Merton, and Dorothy Day, the Catholic social activist and pacifist.

It was among his most audacious statements during the trip, and he got away with it because—outside of churches and the peace movement—Dorothy Day, the woman who could become America’s next saint, is largely unknown.

Revolution of the Heart: The Dorothy Day Story, a new documentary film by Martin Doblmeier, wants to put that right. It has been released in the US, but there is no release date for it here at present.
If you want to read more about Dorothy Day, her Granddaughter, Kate Hennessy, has published a book about her ‘The World Will Be Saved By Beauty.’

To hear a talk given by Kate Hennessy, and to buy her book, please go to the Pax Christ website.
 

NEWSLETTERS

8. NJPN E-Bulletin North West

Our friends in the North West have put together a very interesting and informative e-bulletin. Always a good read…click here

9. Church Action on Poverty Newsletter

Sparks, the Church Action on Poverty’s Summer Newsletter is available to read here and will replace the printed copies that normally get sent out.

10. Newsletter from Operation Noah

Operation Noah, who provide a Christian response to climate change have produced their latest newsletter. There is a tribute to the eminent Meteorologist, Sir John Houghton, who recently passed away; plus an invitation to encourage your church to move away from fossil fuels.
Find the full newsletter here.

11. Quarterly Return Newsletter

Shared Interest are celebrating 30 years of helping people trade their way out of poverty. Discover their story, and find out about the people and places they are involved in here.

12. ‘In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps’ Proverbs 16:9 NIV

Love has been the driving force for communities to stand together during this period of uncertainty. And we’re reminded that love unites us all.

In this month’s campaigns newsletter, Christian Aid celebrate love in action, highlight some activities you can get involved in and share campaign successes. Find it here.

13. Joint Public Issues Team Newsletter

In the midst of a changing world, the team at JPIT still want to continue to hold their Six Hopes for Society before the Church by continuing to work for peace and justice. One of the ways that they are doing this is through their Stay and Pray initiative. To find out more, go to 

ACTIONS

14. Traidcraft Exchange – many garment workers are not being paid.

Some of the UK’s biggest fashion brands are refusing to pay factories that make clothes and shoes for them. The factories have done the work, but the brands aren’t paying up.

Millions of garment factory workers are going without pay as a result.

Traidcraft Exchange are contacting brands including Marks and Spencer, John Lewis, Edinburgh Woollen Mill, Clarks, Primark, and the group that owns shops like Burton and Dorothy Perkins.
For more information and to send a message to the brands follow the link

15. Global Action is needed now!

World Beyond War is calling for a temporary ceasefire, with a view to making it permanent, and including weapons production and shipment.
Sign the petition and find details of #NoWar2020 going virtual at the end of May.

16. Support access for all to Covid-19 testing, treatments and vaccines.

The spread of Covid-19 globally will only be halted if everyone has access to tests, treatments and any future vaccine. Global solidarity has never been more important. Sharing knowledge openly would speed up research while removing monopolies on treatments and vaccines would save lives quickly. Global Justice Now are asking us to petition the Secretary of State for Health, Matt Hancock, to publicly welcome and commit to supporting the proposal for a Covid-19 global mechanism for all countries to get access to affordable testing, treatment and vaccines.
Click here to add your name.

17. Campaign Against Arms Trade – contact Dominic Raab

The UN Secretary General has called for an historic global ceasefire, to allow war-torn countries the chance to focus on responding to the COVID-19 crisis. A ceasefire could allow vital humanitarian aid to people in need, alleviate already stretched healthcare workers, and offer a crucial window to build lasting political solutions.
UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab has backed the call for a global ceasefire. Let’s encourage him to turn these words into action.

18. Sign Freedom United’s petition to ban cotton imports from
      XUAR

The UK should block cotton imports from Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR), Northwest China, due to the systematic forced labor its people face, rights groups argued this week.

In a 60-page letter to the UK’s customs authorities, the Global Legal Action Network (GLAN) and Freedom United partner World Uyghur Congress (WUC) submitted “overwhelming and credible evidence concerning the scale and gravity of the forced labour regime in Xinjiang.”
At the start of this month, Freedom United launched a campaign calling on the Chinese government to end the forced labor of Uyghurs and other marginalized ethnic groups, bolstered by multiple partners including Anti-Slavery International. To read more and sign, click here.

The Last Word

Unashamedly borrowed from a Tweet he posted on the 14th April following the death of a friend, please find below a shortened version of words from Robert Lindsay, summing up the emotions we are all feeling right now: – 

“How did it come to this? How did we find ourselves in isolation for fear of our lives, fearful for our children and our loved ones? How many charities have materialised to help fund our NHS workers when we’ve all watched the years of under-funding and how our unappreciated Health Service has been treated?
The NHS was totally unprepared for this global catastrophe and we watch in horror how the front-liners (many of whom are reinforcements) are coping amidst this chaos.
Throughout all the Brexit madness – the lies – the spin – the fake promises our NHS would benefit from, when we all knew that many of our doctors and nurses had moved into the private sector and all the heath service employees from overseas would be sent back home.
We knew from Branson and Trump that many deals were being put in place to privatise our National Health Service – and now the people of this country are applauding from their doorways and streets a service so unprepared with doctors and nurses fighting under abject conditions.
My children constantly ask when things will go back to normal, that’s what we all want to know, but I don’t want things to be going back to normal – I want life to be better, gentler, kinder, more honest in an environmentally-friendly world.
This virus is a killer. It’s killed old people, it’s killed young people, it’s killed people we know. There will be other diseases which infect our globe if we carry on destroying our environment and abusing our wildlife, our oceans and forests…so let’s not go back to normal. If we learn anything from this insanity that has affected us all LET’S MAKE LIFE BETTER

NEWS LINKS

Independent Catholic News
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