Steve Chalke
@SteveChalke
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Founder Oasis; schools, housing, children’s, youth & family work, local churches & lots more…Former UN Special Advisor, Canon @ Southwark Cathedral. Palace fan!
Joined September 2009
It wasn’t the rich who saved us from Covid-19. It was the low paid key workers who government asked us to clap for. Now it’s those very same people - who can’t afford to pay for their heating or weekly food bill - that the same government is prepared to throw under the bus!.
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Why does British Gas - who’s profits are up by 700% - go to the courts for warrants to break into the homes of the poorest (in the middle of a cost-of-living crisis) & then force-fit prepayment meters, which leave their customers cold & unable to cook? What drives that behaviour?.
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250 yrs ago we transported people to Australia because they were vulnerable enough to steal bread. Today we’ve decided to deport others to Rwanda because they are vulnerable enough to seek safety. How we choose to respond to the need of others IS the mark & judge of our humanity!.
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To cheer you up! This wonderful piece of church artwork is supposed to say ‘arise’!
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“The great tragedy is the lack of vocational education in schools. Not everybody is designed for the academic. I feel this has been forgotten for a long time.”. King Charles III.Speaking on BBC’s ‘The Repair Shop’.
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As the PM declares all pupils in England should study maths till they’re 18 to better equip them for the workplace, my view is we need a shake up eduction but not this. What we need is a wider, more creative curriculum; more art, music, the chance to work together & make stuff!.
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I’m a church leader, and a former UN Special Advisor on Human Trafficking. As such, not only do I endorse @JustinWelby’s comment that the govt plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda doesn’t stand “the judgment of God” but, would add, it doesn’t meet the judgement of the UN either!.
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I believe this is so important, I’m tweeting it again:. “The great tragedy is the lack of vocational education in schools. Not everybody is designed for the academic. I feel this has been forgotten for a long time.”. King Charles III.Speaking on BBC’s ‘The Repair Shop’.
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The true measure of the prosperity of any nation is not the wealth of its millionaires, but the absence of poverty, the prevalence of health, the inclusion of its education system, the care it offers to its most vulnerable members, & the equality of opportunity it extends to all.
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It wasn’t the rich who saved us from Covid. It was the low paid NHS workers that the govt first asked us to clap for, and then gave the George Cross to for their sacrificial service!. But now it’s those very key workers the same govt has turned their backs on and left to sink!.
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12 yr old thug arrested for drug running’. Why does the headline read that way? Why doesn’t it read ‘12 yr old boy rescued from drug gang’? Why does our language so often promote condemnation rather than compassion?.
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Once upon a time,.Slavery was legal.Apartheid was legal.The death penalty was legal.Imprisoning gay men was legal.Beating a child was legal. Yesterday, a high court judge said sending vulnerable asylum seekers to Rwanda is legal. Never assume that legal equals moral or ethical.
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“I took a child home today who was unwell. They’d not eaten for 2 days. I went into the home, there were 7 of them living in a 2 bedroom house, all of them unwell & hungry. I bought food for them. But we have so many families in this situation.”. A recent email from a colleague.
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“I took a child home today who was unwell. They’d not eaten for 2 days. I went into the home, there were 7 of them living in a 2 bedroom house, all of them unwell & hungry. I bought food for them for a week. But we have so many families in this situation.”. An email from a friend.
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It wasn’t the rich who saved us from Covid-19. It was the low paid key workers who the govt asked us to clap for. Now it’s those same people who can’t afford to pay for their heating or for the weekly food bill, & it’s that same govt who are prepared to throw them under the bus!.
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I say it again….Once upon a time.Slavery was legal.Apartheid was legal.The death penalty was legal.Imprisoning gay men was legal.Beating a child was legal. Now we’re told sending vulnerable asylum seekers to Rwanda is legal. Never assume that legal equals moral or ethical.
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250 yrs ago we transported people to Australia for being desperate and vulnerable enough to steal bread. Today we’ve decided to deport others to Rwanda for being desperate and vulnerable enough to seek safety on our shores. These responses say much more about us than about them!.
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Desmond Tutu's daughter Mpho is a vicar. Yesterday the CofE banned her from leading the funeral of her own godfather, because she’s married to a woman. A spokesperson acknowledged it was a ‘difficult’ decision. It wasn’t. It was a bad one driven by a lack of sensitivity & love.
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‘12 yr old thug arrested for drug running’ reads the headline. But if we really want to get ‘tough on the causes of crime’ why doesn’t it read ‘vulnerable & exploited 12 yr old child rescued from gang’? Why does our culture so often choose to promote condemnation over compassion?.
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Beyond Thursday, I’m not naive enough to believe we will suddenly discover a ‘magic money tree’, but I do hope for honesty, integrity, adherence to International law, an end to raiding the public purse for personal gain, and a govt led by those who care about children & families.
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If to be ‘woke’ means ‘to be alive to the insights, contexts & needs of others; to aim to be well-informed, thoughtful, compassionate, tolerant, respectful & kind, to want to make the world a better place for all people & all living things’, then sign me up for that challenge!.
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Good news! All Oasis schools will remain open throughout the heat wave. Why? We’ve thought about how to keep all our students (& staff) as cool as possible. Many of our children’s homes are small & very hot. Our parents have to work to earn. Our job is to serve all our families!.
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Free school meals for every primary school child in London from next September! What a brilliant life changing, future shaping, health creating decision from the Mayor of London! As the research already proves it works, the wise move now would be to make it a national policy!.
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Now here's a knight who we can all celebrate. Congratulations Sir Alan Bates!
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Removing free Covid tests & the requirement to self-isolate is very unwise. It’ll disrupt education, put vulnerable children at greater risk &, for parents in insecure jobs, rather than removing the protection to isolate, govt should introduce decent levels of statutory sick pay!.
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Speak up! Asylum seekers are not criminals. They are parents, sisters, brothers & children just like us - except that robbed of all hope, some are so desperate they risk all to seek safety on our shores. But beware; speaking up for ‘others’, often leaves you ‘othered’ yourself!.
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Just delivered this to @BorisJohnson @10DowningStreet for every trans and non-binary person in the UK. Loved by God and loved by us.
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Last year 44,000 teachers left the profession. 10% of the entire teaching force in England. That is not just a crisis, it is a catastrophe. The reasons- poor pay, poor conditions, lack of resources & over regulation!.
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First schools were told the key was to teach Latin, then to extend the school day and open on Saturdays. Now we hear it’s to teach everyone more maths. But what we really need is an overarching vision for inclusive education & then a long-term thoughtful plan that implements it.
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There is no mobile phones crisis in schools. Every school I know has a wise mobile phone policy in place. So talking about a ban simply uses up valuable time that should used addressing the real issues…like teacher recruitment & retention or diversity & inclusion, for instance.
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In 2020 govt asked us to clap for them; the low-paid ‘key-workers’, heroes of Covid. Yesterday they were re-labelled as part of the ‘anti-growth coalition', ‘enemies of enterprise’, simply for daring to suggest they deserved a pay-rise; either real or even in line with inflation!.
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It’s called the school to prison pipeline. Here’s how it goes. Detention, suspension, loss of hope, permanent exclusion, exploitation, criminalisation, jail. Keir Starmer says he’s determined to stop young people getting pulled into crime. And @Oasis_UK we’re planning to help!.
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So it turns out the courts were ordered to ‘rubber-stamp’ warrants for the rich power companies to break into the homes of those already unable to survive in the cold winter of the cost-of-living crisis, install pre-payment meters and leave them to freeze & starve. It’s evil!.
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“We need leaders not in love with money but in love with justice. Not in love with publicity but in love with humanity…. a time like this demands great leaders.”. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
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Some asylum claimants who arrive in the UK are now to be electronically tagged by govt. Unbelievable! To be clear, there is no such thing in law as an illegal asylum seeker, there are only asylum seekers. So treating anyone fleeing persecution as a criminal is in itself criminal!.
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As a young boy Harry watched his mother destroyed by the media, then in a replay pick on his wife. His responses are natural, fight & flight, like a time bomb that had to explode in the end. So, now both he & William need our understanding & support, rather than our condemnation.
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When a child is physically ill we understand why they can’t be in school. But the tragedy is that poor mental health too often ends up being wrongly labelled as truancy or school refusal, instead of what it actually is - a debilitating level of anxiety. We need an urgent rethink!.
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Instead of ignoring fact that young people already volunteer & then spending £2.5b a yr on a National Service scheme for 18yr olds, why not use it to lift children out of poverty, invest in schools, fix the broken care system, and put cash into our mental health & youth services?.
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Never measure the prosperity of a nation by its number of millionaires. What really matters is the absence of poverty, the prevalence of health, the inclusion of its education system, the care of its most vulnerable members, and the equality of opportunity it extends to all.
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From now, we’re opening ‘Living Rooms’, using our schools, churches & community centres in the neighbourhoods we serve, to support anyone who can’t afford to heat their home or prepare a hot meal. Living Rooms like this one where everyone gets a chance for some fun & free supper.
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“The great tragedy is the lack of vocational education in schools. Not everybody is designed for the academic. I feel this has been forgotten for a long time.” . King Charles III . Me too!!!.
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When we get out of this - let’s remember it wasn’t the footballers who saved us - it was the low paid cleaners, nurses, grocery, food and transport workers. So here’s a proposal: All essential workers should earn at least a living wage and should have any student loans cancelled.
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‘12 yr old thug arrested for drug running’. Why does the headline read that way? Why doesn’t it read ‘12 yr old boy rescued from drug gang’?.Why does our language so often promote condemnation rather than compassion?.@Oasis_UK is planning to change that!
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Yesterday it was my joy to officiate at the marriage of my friends Ben & Jakob. What a wonderful day. The gentle tide of inclusion is washing up the beach & the stubborn sandcastle of resistance is being slowly overwhelmed, because God is defined by love, therefore love will win!
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If to be ‘woke’ means “to be alive to the insights, contexts & needs of others; to aim to be well-informed, thoughtful, compassionate, tolerant, respectful & kind, to want to make the world a better place for all people & all living things”, then sign me up for that challenge!.
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If to be ‘woke’ means to be awake, alive to the insights, contexts & needs of others; to aim to be well-informed, thoughtful, compassionate, tolerant, respectful & kind; to want to make the world a better place for all people & all living things, sign me up for that challenge!.
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40% of new teachers leave the profession within their first 5 years. They arrive with a passion to nurture children - but leave because of the overwhelming task they face & the lack of investment in schools over the last decade crushes them. It’s time to invest our children.
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When a child is physically ill we understand why they can’t be in school. But the tragedy is that poor mental health too often ends up being wrongly labelled as truancy or school refusal, instead of what it actually is - a debilitating level of anxiety. We need an urgent rethink!.
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I’m proud to be labelled ‘woke’ - the old English word meaning to be ‘awake’, to be alert & aware, alive & attentive. So sign me up to the daily challenge of aiming to live thoughtfully and respectfully, as we work together to create a more compassionate, just and generous world!.
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A cheeky proposal: rather than trying to bend our children to fit the education system, why not bend the education system around the needs, gifts and skills of our children.
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Just last week, at a school holiday activity club that also provided food, after eating the hot dog he was given, one little boy politely asked if he could take something home for his brother who was hungry too. How many children are waking up desperately hungry today?.
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Ofsted is ‘inadequate’. It’s a tragedy it has taken Ruth Perry’s death to bring this to public attention. I know of many wonderful, dedicated, frontline teaching staff who have been traumatised by thoughtless inspections. It is time to revolutionise this broken & failing system.
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I’m a Christian; my faith inspires me every day. But God isn’t a Christian, a Jew, a Muslim, a Hindu or a Sikh. God is the great includer, the lover of all humanity, regardless of belief, race, ethnicity, age, ability, disability, status, gender, sexuality or gender orientation.
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Longer school days, shorter holidays? What’s really required is a properly funded, long term strategy for education which rethinks the curriculum around the strengths, skills and needs of the individual child instead of forcing them into a one-size-fits all straitjacket.
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64% of young people considering gender transition are bullied in Britain’s schools; 80% have self-harmed; 40% have attempted to take their own life. Thank you @BBCr4today for interviewing me this morning around this vital safeguarding responsibly for every school.
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God is not a Christian, a Jew, a Muslim, a Hindu, a Buddhist, a Sikh or an atheist. The way I see it, God is the lover of all humanity, regardless of belief, race, ethnicity, age, ability, disability, status, gender, sexuality or gender orientation. The real question is, are we!.
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"I would not worship a God who is homophobic and that is how deeply I feel about this. I am as passionate about this [the UN-backed campaign to promote LGBT+ rights] as I ever was about apartheid. For me, it is at the same level." . Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
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I’m not a Trump fan. I support the orderly protest march planned for London against his policies. But to float a 20ft ‘Trump Baby’ blimp, depicting him as smartphone-wielding, nappy-wearing infant is to sink to his level of vitriol & disrespect. I think it belittles us, not him.
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Gillian Keegan, we welcome you the Education Secretary. You’re the 5th person to hold this role this year! So our question is. Will you get to know us? Will you invest in the future of the children in our care? Will you fight for the wonderful, passionate people who teach them?.
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“I would love to be having a front page of The Telegraph with a plane taking off to Rwanda. That’s my dream. That’s my obsession.”. Suella Braverman. “I have a dream that…the heat of oppression will be transformed into an oasis of freedom & justice.”. Martin Luther King Jr.
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Why does the UK press report a headline that reads, ‘12 year old thug arrested by police for drug dealing’ rather than ‘12 year old boy rescued by police from drug gang’?. It’s time to rethink our cultural assumptions!.
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Meet Adria & Edwin - both members of Oasis Church Waterloo. Yesterday I had the joy of officiating at their marriage! A beautiful celebration filled with love, tears of happiness and such a depth of spirituality! ‘Let no one seek to separate those who God has brought together.’
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My dear friend Camila Batmanghelidjh has died today. I’ll forever be grateful for her wisdom & depth of love for children. Equally, for all she contributed to my understanding as well as to Oasis since 2015 & the untimely, unjust closure of Kids Company. With endless thanks🙏
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“Integrity is doing the right thing even when no one is watching.”. C.S. Lewis.
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"I would not worship a God who is homophobic and that is how deeply I feel about this. I am as passionate about this [the UN-backed campaign to promote LGBT+ rights] as I ever was about apartheid. For me, it is at the same level." . The late, great Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
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Why does the UK press report a headline that says, ‘12 year old thug arrested by police for drug dealing’ instead of ‘12 year old boy rescued by police from drug gang’?. It’s time to rethink our cultural assumptions!.
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British Gas has just posted a profit of £3.3bn for 2022, more than triple 2021! Which makes it even more shocking that at the very same time it obtained court warrants to force-fit prepayment meters, leaving their poorest customers freezing & unable to cook. Why is this possible?.
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God is not a Christian, a Jew, a Muslim, a Hindu, a Buddhist or a Sikh. The way I see it, the good news is that God is the lover of all humanity, regardless of belief, race, ethnicity, age, ability, disability, status, gender, sexuality or gender orientation.
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Never measure the prosperity of a nation by its number of millionaires. What really matters is the absence of poverty, the prevalence of health, the inclusion of its education system, the care of its most vulnerable members, and the equality of opportunity it extends to all.
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Why does the UK press report a headline that says, ‘12 year old thug arrested by police for drug dealing’ instead of ‘12 year old boy rescued by police from drug gang’?. It’s time to rethink our cultural assumptions!.
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We were once told the Bible is very clear; the earth is flat, slavery is legitimate, leadership is male, divorce equals exclusion, the earth is only 6,000yrs old etc. Now those immature readings of scripture have been dumped. So why do some still use it to exclude LGBT+ people?.
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As the Arcadia empire - including Topshop, Burton and Dorothy Perkins - faces collapse, and puts 13,000 jobs and families at risk, let’s remind ourselves that people do not go hungry because we can’t meet the needs of the poor. People go hungry because we can’t satisfy the rich.
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Why is it that when the economy thrives it’s always the rich who earn the bonus and take the credit for their leadership, but when the economy crashes it turns out to be the already hard pressed workers and their families who are forced to pay?.
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The average cost of energy for an Oasis Primary School was £26k a yr. Now, inc’ govt help, it’s 89k; an unfunded gap of £63k. But someone earning £1m a yr will be £55k better off; so if they chose to trickle-down, they could cover almost the whole gap for one school on their own.
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When a child is physically ill we understand why they can’t be in school. But the tragedy is that poor mental health so often ends up wrongly labelled as ‘truancy’ or ‘school refusal’, instead of what it actually is - a debilitating level of anxiety. It’s high time for a rethink!.
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The Prime Minister, then the Chancellor, said he couldn't find the money to fund the Covid Education Mental Health Recovery plan. But now, as the same children turn 18 he's got the cash to make them join the military, or volunteer at weekends to overcome their 'social deficit'.
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"When the last tree is cut down, the last fish eaten and the last stream poisoned, you will realize that you cannot eat money.". Cree Indian Prophecy.
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Just been on @GMB. Huge thanks to them for the welcome and for the promotion! (Take a good look at the caption they gave me)!
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I’ve noticed that when we provide food and support for those who are poor, we’re applauded and told we’re compassionate and thoughtful. But when we talk about why the poor are poor, we’re told that we’re naive, that they’re lazy and they should take responsibility for themselves.
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To be ‘woke’ literally means to be ‘awake’, to be alert & aware. It’s the root of the old English word. Used today it also implies being alive & attentive, thoughtful & respectful, as we work to create a more compassionate, just & generous world. Count me in for that challenge!.
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It wasn’t the rich who saved us from Covid-19. It was the low paid key workers who the government asked us to clap for. Now it’s those very same people who can’t afford to pay their heating or weekly food bills, and it’s that same government who are leaving them to drown in debt!.
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Refugees are mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, children, with all the same dreams & ambitions as me, except that war, oppression & tyranny have robbed them of all hope. ‘Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me’, said Jesus.
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The prosperity of a nation should be measured not by the number of millionaires, but by the absence of poverty, the prevalence of health, the inclusion of its education system, the care it offers to its most vulnerable members, and the equality of opportunity it extends to all.
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Courage doesn't always roar. Sometimes courage is just that little voice in the morning that whispers, 'It's a new day, I'll try again’.
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As a Canon of the C of E I’m saddened by its stand against LGBT marriages & Civil Partnerships which, in my view is shortsighted both biblically & pastorally. I believe in marriage - in making a life-long commitment to another. That’s why I officiate at same-sex marriages.
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For I was hungry and you gave me food,.I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, .I was a stranger and you welcomed me…Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me. Jesus in Matthew’s Gospel chapter 25.
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Conversion Therapy is abuse. It must be banned for EVERYONE - for LGB+T people!.
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Gandhi’s list of ‘Seven Social Sins’, published back in 1925. Of course, it is all different now:. Wealth without work.Pleasure without conscience.Knowledge without character.Commerce without morality.Science without humanity.Religion without sacrifice.Politics without principle.
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Martin Luther King Jr. takes the knee as he prays before one of the civil rights marches from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama in 1965. This is about strength and courage not about subjugation and subordination, or about The Game of Thrones.
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Asylum seekers are mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers & children with the same hopes & ambitions as us - except they’ve been caught up into a global refugee crisis on an unprecedented scale. The UK govt plan to send some to Rwanda might be ‘lawful’, but it’s immoral & unethical!.
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Whenever a country chooses to cut back on its educational investment, it pays a very heavy price. Eventually it will be forced to pay far more than it was originally attempting to save, as it tries to cope with the longterm social & economic fallout of its own shortsightedness.
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We clapped & cheered for them each Thursday when we thought we’d struggle to survive without their support. Now they need our support, because without it they are struggling to survive on the salaries they are forced to live on. I support the Junior Doctors.
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I’m proud to be labelled ‘woke’, to reclaim the old English word meaning to be ‘awake’ - alert, aware, alive & attentive. So sign me up to the daily challenge of aiming to live thoughtfully & respectfully, as we work together to create a more compassionate, just & generous world!.
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It’s an odd idea that the best way to keep a tree healthy is to fertilise a few of its leaves rather than its roots. It’s an odd idea that the best way to create equity in society is to feed those already bloated at the top of the system rather than care for the ordinary people.
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Instead of backing Tory deputy chair, Lee Anderson, for claiming asylum seekers should “f*** off” to France if they don’t like being housed on the Bibby Stockholm barge, perhaps Downing St should disassociate itself from his language & attitude and set an example worth following.
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Full marks for the tax U-turn! No marks for the lack of empathy with the ordinary working people!.Why? Because, in the climb-down Kwasi Kwarteng said it was clear the 45p tax rate had become a ‘distraction’! That’s the problem. It was never a ‘distraction’, it was a disgrace.
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If ‘woke’ means ‘to be alive to the insights, contexts & needs of others; to aim to be well-informed, thoughtful, compassionate, tolerant, respectful & kind, to want to make the world a better place for all people & all living things’, then more woke is what we need right now!.
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COVID19 does not treat the rich and poor equally. It is not the great leveller. It magnifies inequality. Those in lowpaid frontline jobs are more at risk; they are more exposed. The lockdown is harder on those who live in cramped tower blocks, their mental health is more at risk.
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