Justice - a characteristic of God


God is a God of Justice. Justice is not a programme or a project, but justice is the very nature of God whom we seek to emulate. So, we don’t do justice – we live justice. To live and breathe justice is a life-changing decision.

One primary way in which justice is lived out in our lives and in our organisations is through acts of advocacy, lobbying and campaigning. But what exactly do we mean by these terms?

Advocacy: Public support for or recommendation of a particular cause or policy
- The act of pleading / arguing for, supporting or recommending a cause or course of action
- Advocacy seeks to ensure that people, especially those who are most vulnerable in society are able to:

1. Have their voice heard on issues important and relevant to them

2. Have their views genuinely considered, especially with regards to decisions made about their lives

3. Defend their rights as well as take responsibility for their role in society

- Advocacy aims to enable people to engage and express their views and concerns and thus a large part of advocacy is:
 Ensuring access to information
 Raising awareness
 Exploring choices and options

Campaigning: Working in a united, organised and active way towards achieving a specified goal
- A campaign can be made up of one or a series of activities that seek to achieve a certain goal
- The activities tend to be dynamic, energetic and focused, with clear time frames

Lobbying: is an activity that seeks to influence for a particular issue (usually someone with authority, or who legislates, makes policies)
- Lobbying is an integral part of campaigning where the goal requires structural, policy or legislative change to ensure achievement.

Note: even when a policy is made that the campaign sought to achieve, implementation of the policy may require significant further campaigning. This is where holding authorities to account for their commitment and for the policies they have agreed to requires persistent and consistent effort.

For  an example of an integrated response that brought about change, see Amanda Jackson's article on The Fulani, the Senator and the Mosquito.

Implication for Micah
As we think about these definitions and consider the future planning of Micah, may I invite you to apply this into your own contexts? If we preach a gospel of transformation, we need to show evidence of what transformation looks like!

Whatever we advocate, lobby or campaign for, we must ensure we are living it out. In doing so, we reflect God's character of justice.

Sheryl Haw
International Director

In for the long haul?


This blog was written by Joel Edwards, International Director of Micah Challenge.

Two weeks ago a friend was in the middle of an important explanation to her young niece, who promptly ran off to play with her siblings. At least, she explained, this case wasn't so bad: sometimes they ran off before they got the answer to the question they had actually asked!  And my friend isn't a boring person. 

It's not just child's play. Grown ups often find it hard to stay focused and many of us get impatient waiting for the microwave. We hate things dragging out. Wikipedia suggests that transient attention span can be as short as 8 seconds whilst selective sustained attention may vary between 10 to 40 minutes. As we are increasingly aware, our fast-moving, rapid response, instant culture is collapsing history into short decades and so much of what we do is motivated by short term gratification.  And of course this also applies in doing the right thing.

Are you still with me?!

It's another reason why popular advocacy is changing its nature. The rapid response approach of initiatives such as Avaaz and Change.org which have swept so many of us into popular response has been great news precisely because these campaigns often identify emotive and short term issues to tackle. And that's great news for advocacy and the people or issues involved.

But it's not the whole story and the truth of the matter is that so much of the great movements which have changed the course of history have been long and embattled initiatives.

It's a lesson we have been learning in our own experiments with Christian advocacy. When we launched the exposed campaign in October 2012 we had our sights firmly set on the G20 in November 2014.  But we began to learn that a campaign sustained over more than a few months really is hard work for most of us.  Indeed some of our most able partners felt that a two year campaign was unsustainable - which may be true for many of us.

The fact is we are quick to revere the Suffragettes, Wilberforce, Shaftesbury, Ghandi or M. L. King Jnr., but we are not keen to emulate them. But from time to time news emerges of simple heroes and heroines who fought tirelessly for many years for friends or family members and eventually came out as victors for justice.

Long term advocacy is a biblical idea which appears in one of the most powerful examples of righteous endurance. It's the story of an unjust judge who eventually gave way to the lobbying of a widow - not because she was powerful but because she was persistent (Luke18).

It's a calling to tenacity which we must not forget because we can never speak up for too long for those who need it, and because God is a deliverer who is in it for the long haul.

Internships

Internships


Internships are a great way for young people to explore different professional opportunities, learn practical skills and contribute to the mission of the organisations with whom they work.

Below are some examples of internships available around the Network.

Paz y Esperanza - We Walk Latino (Andemos Latino)

12 January - 20 December

Paz y Esperanza (Peace and Hope) are seeking youth aged 20-30 years old to undertake a six week internship program  in Peru, Bolivia or Ecuador. Take this opportunity to contribute to programs reaching the poor and vulnerable of your community.

Details can be found here (in Spanish).

World Relief

With offices in 15 countries and 24 U.S. locations, interning with World Relief is a great way to gain a deeper understanding of relief and development work, and to explore the possibility of future employment. For over 60 years, our calling has been to equip churches around the world to Stand for the Vulnerable.

For all current intern opportunities at World Relief, click here.

Malaysian Care

Malaysian Care has internships available for interested and suitable students, providing hands-on experience in social work ministries. You’ll be part of a movement of change and making a big impact on the lives of porr and marginalised in Malaysia.

More information and an application form can be found here.

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Does your organisation have an internship program? Let us know by emailing coordinator@micahnetwork.org.

Developing Excellence Forum 2014

Accord Network


The Accord Network is hosting the Developing Excellence Forum 2014 in Colorado Springs, CO, USA on November 4th-6th.

There is a choice of Summits within the Forum featuring themes including:

- Grassroots Advocacy
- Relief
- Integral Mission and Leadership; and

- Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH),

We encourage leaders, practitioners and academics alike to consider this as an opportunity to learn, network and be challenged as you hear from expert speakers and share with peers from your sector and beyond.

All of the details and the registration form are available through the Accord Network website here

Micah Network Events

The Micah Summit

Micah Challenge, the World Evangelical Alliance and Micah Network invite you to join us in New York for a time of reflection, celebration and exploration for the future.

Across three days, December 7th - 9th, we will come together to celebrate the achievements of Micah Challenge, and look forward to the launch of the new Micah as we enter 2015.

The program is available here.

You can register by clicking here.


Courage for Change: transforming church, transforming community

Lahore, Pakistan
January 13th - 15th, 2015

How does the Gospel provide us with courage to transform ourselves, our churches and our organisations to be more effective responders to the needs of our world?

How would a truly integrated response to the Gospel be reflected in our communities?

Join us at this event to explore these questions and more.


Micah Triennial Global Consultation:
Integral Mission and Shalom: Justice, Peace and Joy

Dates: September 14th - 18th, 2015
Lcoation: Lima, Peru

CALL FOR PAPERS

We are looking for ideas, reflections and case studies from across the geographic and sectoral diversity of the Network. We call for practitioner/theologians and theologian/practitioners alike to submit their papers in response to the theme: Integral Mission and Shalom: justice, peace and joy.

Please send papers to coordinator@micahnetwork.org.

Risky Compassion

Risky Compassion


Risky Compassion is a series of stories, insights and reflections from Dr Ash Barker’s twelve years immersed in Bangkok’s largest slum with his family. From this extreme context, he explores the story of the Good Samaritan and teases out life’s risky questions and implications for each of us. Ash brilliantly identifies those qualities that can enable you to go deeper in life – no matter where you live.

We highly recommend this book as both a challenging and encouraging read for all. Find out more by clicking here.

Integral Discipleship


Here are a number of interesting presentations that may inspire and challenge us:

Jayakumar Christian:

Part One: Tension between Hope and Grief

Part Two: Delivering the Best for the Poor

Miroslav Volf: Life Worth Living

Elaine Storkey; Domestic Violence - presentations with Restored

Part One

Part Two

NT Wright: Discussion: What Gods Do We Believe in Now?

Ruth Padilla DeBorst: Interview regarding Holistic Mission and Social Justice.

Membership Contribution Reminder

 

We have now entered the final quarter of the year and we ask that ALL MEMBERS who have not yet made their annual membership contribution to the Network do so THIS MONTH.

Your contribution is crucial for the facilitation of our events, networking and sharing opportunities, and is hugely appreciated. To view the guidelines for your contribution amount, and to complete payment, please click here.