Abp Welby calls for world to wake up to ‘modern day slavery’; Youth camps the secret to the future of Japan’s Anglican Church; Southern Africa Anglicans honour synodsman killed in Nairobi
Abp Welby calls for world to wake up to ‘modern day slavery’
The Archbishop of Canterbury has sent a message of support to an anti-human trafficking conference organised by the Christian organisation Hope for Justice.
In a message sent to the Hope Conference 2013, which took place last Friday and Saturday in Leicester, Archbishop Justin said that trafficking was ‘one of the greatest scandals and tragedies of our age’. He prayed that the conference ‘might help to transform awareness, as the world urgently needs to wake up to the scale of human trafficking that is modern day slavery’.
‘Trafficking in human beings is one of the greatest scandals and tragedies of our age. It is intolerable that millions of fellow human beings should be violated in this way, subjected to inhuman exploitation and deprived of their dignity and rights. This outrage should concern each one of us, because what affects one part of humanity affects us all. Virtually every part of this world is touched in some way by the cruelty and violence associated with this criminal activity.
‘I am encouraged to see that Hope for Justice is drawing so many together to speak out and act against this injustice. This conference is about touching individual lives, about reaching and releasing individuals from violent control and fearful manipulation. Hope for Justice, alongside other outstanding organisations both faith-based and secular, has developed practical strategies for raising awareness, rescuing and restoring individuals and supporting prosecutions. I commend these issues and the people caught up in trafficking to our prayers and action. I also pray that your conference might help to transform awareness, as the world urgently needs to wake up to the scale of human trafficking that is modern day slavery.’
Read more about Hope for Justice at http://hopeforjustice.org.uk/
Youth camps the secret to the future of Japan’s Anglican Church
Having young Anglicans arrange and run their own camps could be the answer to an ageing Church population, according to a Japanese bishop.
Bishop of Kobe The Rt Revd Andrew Yatuka Nakamura, told ACNS that his diocese is seeing more young people going on to ordained ministry, which goes against the general trend in Nippon Sei Ko Kai (the Anglican Communion in Japan).
“We’re likely facing the same problem as other provinces of the Anglican Communion; an age problem,” he said, “and a lack of young people and children in the church. The congregation is generally 60 to 70 years of age.”
Bishop Nakamura explained that Christians in Japan are only one per cent of the population. He said that NSKK is caught in a vicious circle in which few young people are attracted to Anglican Churches because they see few young people already there.
One solution that’s meeting with some success is youth camps. “Every year we have a youth camp that young people plan themselves,” he said. “The chaplain only oversees their plans and students help to run the camp. This year we had 100 young people attending between 12 to 18 years of age.”
The popularity of such gatherings is important not least because it appears to be attracting more young Anglicans to full-time ordained ministry.
“The shortage of clergy [in NSKK] is a serious issue. Young people don’t think that church work is not an attractive life choice. Fortunately in my diocese the number of ordinands is growing because we hold the youth camps every year. As a result many young people feel they want to share their faith with others, and some want to become priests.”
The absence of priests will be particularly felt in a country that is still struggling with the impact of the earthquake-tsunami-nuclear disaster that befell the country in 2011.
Through its Let Us Walk Together projects, NSKK has been meeting the physical and spiritual needs of those affected by the disaster; including those too poor to move out of irradiated areas.
The Bishop said that, to assist NSKK clergy while the Church does both its post-disaster and its regular Church work, 20 priests from the Anglican Church of Korea have come over to Japan.
These valued colleagues learned Japanese for a year before travelling to the island nation to assist NSKK. The hope is that, in time, sufficient new priests will be found locally.
Southern Africa Anglicans honour synodsman killed in Nairobi
Silence was observed at the opening service of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa (ACSA) Provincial Synod yestrday, for the Cape Town businessman killed in last month’s terrorist attacks at Nairobi’s Westgate Mall.
The Most Revd Dr Thabo Makgoba, Archbishop of Cape Town, invited the 300 Synod members and guests to observe a time of silence in remembrance of Mr James Thomas, who was due to have attended the Synod meeting as a delegate of the Diocese of Cape Town. He asked for prayers for Mr Thomas’ widow Colleen and family, as the funeral is held on 2 October.
Throughout the meeting of Synod, Mr Thomas’ empty place will be marked by his name plate, flowers and a candle.
The Synod also observed silence in memory of former Archbishop Philip Russell who died in July. Archbishop Emeritus Russell headed the Anglican Church of Southern Africa from 1980 to 1986. Archbishop Makgoba described him as a ‘passionate, compassionate, unsung hero’ of his Church.