SCM to be Associate Partner of Centre for Theology and Justice

SCM is teaming up with the Centre for Theology and Justice, a new collaborative initiative based in Manchester that will resource justice work and theological connections between organisations across Britain.

The project has four main partners – Luther King House, Christian Aid, Church Action on Poverty and Churches Together in Britain and Ireland. SCM will be the first associate partner of the project, which was launched on Wednesday 10 May at Luther King House in Manchester. The Centre will be a space for theological reflection, and enable different people to share resources, ideas and actions.

Revd Dr Clare McBeath, a Co-Principal of Northern Baptist College and one of the coordinators of the Centre, shared her excitement for what the new network can achieve:

We are all on a journey with God towards a vision of God's kingdom of justice. The Centre for Theology and Justice seeks to respond to the questions we encounter on that journey. We do not journey alone, we journey together, sharing ideas, resources and engaging in theological reflection."

Speaking to an audience of over 160 people at the launch was also Father Augusto Zampini, an Argentine Roman Catholic priest who is currently the theological adviser to the UK aid-development agency CAFOD. Delivering the inaugural David Goodbourn lecture, ‘Is justice enough? A radical Christian response to the current humanitarian and ecological crisis’, Fr Augusto urged Christians to come together and respond to our collective responsibility to care for our planet and hear the cries of the poor.

“While we discuss the kind of just society that we seek and the rules we need, people are starving. Migrants are dying. Millions are suffering from unjust conflicts,” he said. “Jesus didn’t come to theorise about justice or the kingdom, he started with the people in front of him. This is how we can connect theology with justice.” Fr Augusto also encouraged us to increase our dialogue with people, promote ecological education, and find religious narratives that are inclusive and radical.