I have been very encouraged by the response to my longer article Justice, Empowerment & Faith: the Future Direction of Christian Social Action. It has been read by over 4000 people so far and I have had a pile of emails and messages with lots of support and agreement as well as plenty of thoughtful critique and wise suggestions.
One of the three key points in the article, is the importance of empowering people to overcome the challenges they face. The organisation I work for, Hope into Action, has this principle right at its heart.
Professional excellence & spiritual passion
We exist to empower local churches to house people affected by homelessness. And our frontline staff who work with our tenants are called Empowerment Workers. A key part of their role is to ensure a strong connection between our professional support and the friendship and community of the church. We believe in combining professional excellence and spiritual passion.
At Hope into Action’s conference last year, I shared the quote you can see pictured above from one of our tenants in my talk:
“My Empowerment Worker didn’t just give me a ladder to help me get out of the situation, she showed me how to build my own staircase.”
It sums up our mission. Empowering people to find answers to their challenges and making their own steps towards a better life.
Conference on 7th March
The Hope into Action Annual Conference is for anyone who believes that the Christian faith can make a lasting difference to the homelessness and poverty that ruins lives and scars our country.
It is for church leaders and community activists. Its for professionals and volunteers. Its for those interested in investing money in social housing. Its for those at the heart of the Hope into Action network and for those who hardly know us at all. Basically, its for anyone interested in how the Christian faith changes lives.
Natalie Williams is our Keynote speaker, author and CEO of the Jubilee+ network. Natalie grew up in relative poverty in the seaside town of Hastings. She is the co-author of four books, including The Myth of the Undeserving Poor (2014), Invisible Divides (2022) and the forthcoming ‘Tis Mercy All: the power of mercy in a polarised world (coming June 2024).
Workshops
In addition, we have brilliant workshops led by great people such as Corin Pilling of Sanctuary Mental Health Ministries, Philip Powell of Tearfund, Alistair Doxat-Purser from Faithworks, Kat Osborn of Safe Families, Simon Dwight from DLUHC’s Rough Sleeping Initiative, Matt and Sam Parfitt from Grace Enterprises, Alex Gyasi from Highway of Holiness Church/Night Shelter, plus the incredibly talented choir leader and musician, Sam Chaplin. Plus many more…
It is going to be a great day and it would be great to have you join us. Watch this short video which gives a taste of the event:
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