Kairos Nesletter 1998 October

Newsletter

KAIROS UK

October 1998

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European Kairos Document

The Churches Commission on Mission (CCOM) is organising a seminar with Ulrich Duchrow entitled Is there a Kairos for Europe? It will be held on Thursday 5th November at Inter-Church House, 35-41 Lower Marsh, London from 12.30 to 4.00. An open invitation is extended to all in the Kairos network. If you would like to attend, please write to Florence Magwanyata, CCOM, 35-41 Lower Marsh, London SE1 7RL informing her that you will be coming. There is a charge of £5 if you require lunch. If you do not require lunch the meeting begins at 1.15 pm.

The programme for the seminar will involve a presentation from Ulrich and then a response from four people. This will stimulate more discussion and it is hoped that some specific actions will be agreed.

One of the ideas that is being explored is the possibility of a Consultation in the spring of next year which will bring together decision makers in churches and agencies and community representatives. The purpose would be to build an alliance which will develop a plan of action appropriate for Britain. If you are unable to attend but have ideas about what you think is an appropriate way for people in Britain to respond please let us know.

Brussels Kairos Event 1999

The Kairos Europa network is organising a gathering in Brussels which will provide the opportunity to gather the experiences of different parts of the Kairos movement and dialogue with decision makers in the European Union. The event will involve the following components:

Thursday and Friday October 21 and 22 Consultation on Alternatives to Structural

Adjustment Programmes

Saturday October 23 Street Festival

Sunday and Monday October 24 and 25 Consultation on Community alternatives and experiences

Tuesday October 26 Hearing

Wednesday October 27 International Co-ordinating Group

During the next few months Kairos groups in Britain will be considering ways in which they might contribute to this event.

Alternatives to Structural Adjustment Programmes (ASAP)

A consultation was held in Frankfurt October 15-18 for groups in Europe which are working on alternatives to SAPs. Kairos Europa is linked with KASA, a German ecumenical service for advocacy work on Southern Africa in this initiative. Links with groups in Southern Africa and the Caribbean give this process an international approach. One of the specific aims of the campaign is to engage with the the EU on discussions about the future of the Lome convention.

Communal Alliances

The next meeting of groups working as Communal Alliances takes place in Frankfurt from November 14th - 15th. The theme will be A New Movement for the Future of our Cities.

This is an opportunity for those working on Agenda 21 projects or other projects which are designed to renew the cities. Further information can be obtained from the Grassroots office.

Building Plural Communities

A preliminary meeting was held in Luton October 16-18 between Grassroots and Sarah and Francois from Sweden. Sarah works as a psychologist and Francois is a political refugee from Ivory Coast. They are both very enthusiastic about the project and will help to facilitate the first meeting which will be held in December or January. Enthusiastic responses have now been received from Sweden, Germany and Holland and there is also interest from Spain. Several communities in Britain are interested and the Corrymeela community in Northern Ireland will also be involved. The first part of the project will involve exchanges between two communities to share experiences but it is hoped to hold a Festival in Augst 1999 in Luton which will provide an opportunity for all the groups to celebrate their experiences. This will be an event that will be open to everyone and further information will be circulated in due course.

Decision Making in Kairos UK

At present Grassroots acts as the co-ordinator for Kairos UK. This is done by informal consultations and using any meetings that can be funded from other sources. The last opportunity for such a consultation was during the Cardiff meeting. It is anticipated that other consultations will take place during the Building Plural Communities project and it is hoped that a Kairos UK consultation can be held during the Festival in Luton next year. A statement of accounts for Kairos UK is attached to this Newsletter. The only income is money received from A Soul for Europe for Building Plural Communities. It is unlikely that funds will be found purely for sustaining a network unless they are raised from the groups themselves. Groups already contribute significantly to the cost of all activities. It may be possible to identify other specific pieces of work that could be undertaken by Kairos and apply for funding.

Kairos Europa is in the process of reviewing its work programme and funding applications so further information will be shared about that in due course.

Priorities identified by Kairos UK groups in Cardiff

Were you there? That was a kairos moment: the right time to take crucial decisions. The groups of the network shared their areas of interest and work. The result was that Kairos UK appeared in a picture that included several areas of action and concern within a particular common sense of co-operation in the struggle.

i) Europe and Building Plural Communities: Ecumenism, Interfaith work, Policy and Asylum Seekers.

ii) Social Issues and Action: Economic and social exclusion, Anti-racism, Community and Social services.

ii) Alternatives: Paid and Unpaid work, Prejudice Reduction, LETs. Beyond the programme of action the group affirmed the importance of the experience of inner city life and ministry.