Synod 2021, Social Justice, and Advocacy

From Rev Dr John Squires
NSW & ACT Synod 2021 Member
Presbytery Minister - Wellbeing

Our Synod has been meeting during this last week, with sessions online on Wednesday evening and Saturday morning. One of the reports that was received and discussed came from the Advocacy Team within the Social Justice Forum.
 
A commitment to social justice has been part and parcel of the Uniting Church since we formed in 1977—and, indeed, this was the commitment of each of the three denominations which joined to form the UCA. 
 
You can read the commitment the church made in this area in the 1977 Statement to the Nation, issued in 1977, at https://assembly.uca.org.au/resources/introduction/item/134-statement-to-the-nation-inaugural-assembly-june-1977and the subsequent 1988 Statement to the Nation, focussed on indigenous issues, at https://assembly.uca.org.au/resources/introduction/item/133-statement-to-the-nation-australian-bicentennial-year-1988
 
The Social Justice Forum (SJF) is one way the tradition of prophetic ministry and social justice advocacy continues within the Synod of NSW and the ACT. The Forum was established in 2009 to strengthen collaboration and encourage capacity building in community advocacy through campaigns and training. It’s made up of senior leaders within the Synod and its community services agencies. 
 
The work of the SJF is supported by the Uniting Advocacy Team within the Mission, Communities and Social Impact directorate of Uniting (formerly UnitingCare). The team is led by Head of Advocacy Emma Maiden. It includes advocacy on climate and environment campaigns - you can visit the Uniting Earth Web site for more information on these.
 
Alongside action on climate, their are four main campaign priorities:

• Fair Treatment campaign for drug law and policy reform;
• Uniting Affordable Housing campaign;
• Give Hope: Uniting for Asylum Seekers campaign; and
• Climate and environment campaigns led by our Uniting Earth Advocates. 

You can click on the hyperlinks to learn more about each of these campaigns.
 
There are also social media sites for news and live updates about all of our campaigns, where you can join in on the discussion:

• Follow Give Hope on Facebook
• Follow Social Justice Forum on Facebook
• Follow Social Justice Forum on Twitter
• Follow Give Hope on Twitter

 

 
If you would like to subscribe to the regular e-news sent by the Social Justice Forum, the link is at https://form.123formbuilder.com/1536033?wwwNgRedir
 
John Squires, Synod member