YOUTH MINISTRY & ISLAMOPHOBIA
By Tim Fawssett, CEO of inter-faith charity The Feast
The situation in the Middle East has loomed large over recent months. The rise of IS has drawn worldwide headlines and military action from the West. But what impact has the ‘Islamic State’ had on Christian-Muslim relations in the UK? How should Christians respond?
It is quite understandable that someone who has never tasted chocolate might say that it isn’t nice. Look at it: it’s brown, goes mushy all over your fingers and comes from something that looks like coffee beans - and they taste terrible! But when you taste it you might find it amazing.
It seems to me that this is similar to how many Christians feel towards Muslims. We follow the news of devastating events in Muslim countries, hear rumours of their plans to take over schools or force us to eat Halal food, but the reality is we have never met one! So do we really know what they are like? It is our privilege at The Feast to help young Christians meet Muslim peers. And to their surprise, they do not find monsters but people who breathe and think and feel and laugh and have many of the same questions about life we do.
My reflection is that the Muslim community is reeling from Trojan Horse, Rotherham and everything in the Middle East. The reality is that within the UK, a small number of people have done wrong but a whole community are plastered with the consequences. For example, Trojan Horse was a school governance failing, not a concerted Islamic assault on education, but the reaction of the government, media and wider public made it seem that all Muslims were guilty.
The young people we work with seem to be fairly immune to these challenges and enthusiastic about finding a new way to connect. Sadly, the Muslim world does exactly the same as us. They follow their own news, hear their own rumours and worry about these wars brought against Islamic lands by the West, and conclude that they know all about what Christians are like. Many of them think we are monsters.
I am not here to defend Islam or say that all Muslims are perfect. They have real challenges, both in the UK and around the world, which are only made worse by alienation and cold shoulders. In fact some of my Muslim friends have told me they feel alone, hated and tired of the fight.
Where are we going to stand today? Are we going to stay in our Christian ghetto or learn how to befriend the Muslim?
YOUNG PEOPLE & POLITICS
By Jamie Cutteridge, Premier Youthwork
‘Young people aren’t engaged with politics,’ we’re told. Yet the recent turnout in the Scottish Referendum suggests otherwise – young people are switched on and passionate about things that impact their lives. Perhaps the problem is that so much of our party political system doesn’t strike a chord with young people.
For the first time in any British election or referendum, 16 and 17 year-olds were allowed to vote and they did so in droves. This was quickly followed by Labour Party leader Ed Miliband repeating his pledge to bring the voting age down to 16 should his party win the next election. Miliband aimed much of his speech towards young voters, even setting up an Instagram account to show how much importance he places on engaging with them.
Here’s the thing: this generation of young people are apathetic about party politics but remarkably politically active, through campaigns, boycotts and protests. They feel betrayed by Westminster, especially following Nick Clegg and the Liberal Democrat’s reversal on their pledge not to raise tuition.
If we want young people to engage politically, we need to give them something to engage with. Young people aren’t going to get fired up about choosing between similar choices from the same old parties; this isn’t just a problem with young people, political engagement across the board is down because the ‘choice’ isn’t seen as having any difference. It wasn’t just young people who turned out to vote in Scotland - turnout was up across the board. When people are offered a real choice, something they’re passionate about (one way or another), they turn up and turn out to vote.
Those of us who work with young people know how passionate they are. It’s time for those involved in political decision-making to realise that, and offer young people a genuine choice.
SCOTLAND DECIDES
By Tara Devlin, Chair of SCYWF (Scottish Christian Youth Work Forum)
You can’t have failed to notice the Scottish Referendum last month. The nation’s decision about its continued part in the United Kingdom dominated the whole of September, and while the vote ended with the status quo remaining, the debate is far from over.
One of the most exciting aspects of the campaign was the level of discussion it created, in all quarters of society. 16 and 17 year-olds were allowed to vote for the first time and were engaged in a debate about the future of their country and so both young and old, at bus stops and in schools, in cafes and workplaces, were talking about the issues. The economy, the NHS, currency, pensions, nuclear weapons and business were all hot topics of debate. At times the arguments became heated as both sides passionately made their feelings heard. Social media was ablaze with articles being shared and comments being made. As someone who was an undecided voter, the thing that concerned me the most was the divisive nature of some elements of the debate and the potential harm that might cause for the future, regardless of the result.
There was a sense of wanting to build a fairer land, a country where the poor would not be dependent on food-banks, where the elderly would be cared for and the marginalised given a voice. We talked of justice, equality and hope.
On the Sunday night following the vote I was thinking about the national conversation that had taken place and it struck me that people were not talking about man-made values, but about values of the kingdom of God. People are hungering and thirsting for righteousness and they don’t even know it. The young people of this nation have a real sense of the kind of society they want to live in and the values they hold dear.
The question, ‘Should Scotland be an independent country?’ has been filling my mind for the last few months. It has now been replaced by the question, ‘What does it look like for me to show Scotland (at least my little part of it) where they can find this kingdom they are longing for?’
