The Jubilee Centre is a Christian social reform think tank [1] based in the United Kingdom which conducts research into the contemporary relevance of the biblical vision for society.
Cambridge Papers has maintained a consistently high standard of Christian reflection on contemporary issues.
— John Stott, Rector Emeritus, All Souls Church, Langham Place
The Jubilee Centre was founded in 1983 by Michael Schluter to explore the continued relevance for modern societies of the biblical social vision. Characterised by its concern for right relationships - and applied to areas as diverse as debt and the economy, criminal justice, care for the elderly, asylum and immigration, the environment, and sexual ethics - this relational agenda led to the publication in 2005 of the charity's comprehensive 'Jubilee Manifesto: a framework, agenda and strategy for Christian social reform' [2] (see Books by the Jubilee Centre, below). It also produces the quarterly Cambridge Papers, an influential collection of peer-reviewed studies on contemporary issues. [3] [4]
Inspired by the example of Christian reformers such as William Wilberforce, the Jubilee Centre's work led to the launch in 1985 of the now independent Keep Sunday Special campaign, which was instrumental in bringing about Margaret Thatcher's first and only defeat in the Commons. [5] [6] Its work later gave rise to a number of other organisations involved in social reform, including Credit Action, the Relationships Foundation and the international peace-building charity Concordis International. Most recently, it launched the informal Fair Sex Movement which "seeks to promote a greater awareness of the personal, social and economic consequences of sexual relationships". [7] A number of groups are now drawing upon the experience and expertise of the Jubilee Centre to establish similar organisations internationally in countries as diverse as Singapore, [8] Kenya, [9] and the US. [10]
The Jubilee Centre is a British registered charity (No. 288783), [11] financed by private donations.
John Charlton Polkinghorne was an English theoretical physicist, theologian, and Anglican priest. A prominent and leading voice explaining the relationship between science and religion, he was professor of mathematical physics at the University of Cambridge from 1968 to 1979, when he resigned his chair to study for the priesthood, becoming an ordained Anglican priest in 1982. He served as the president of Queens' College, Cambridge, from 1988 until 1996.
Nigel Lawson, Baron Lawson of Blaby, is a British Conservative Party politician and journalist. He was a Member of Parliament representing the constituency of Blaby from 1974 to 1992, and served in the cabinet of Margaret Thatcher from 1981 to 1989. Prior to entering the Cabinet, he served as the Financial Secretary to the Treasury from May 1979 until his promotion to Secretary of State for Energy. He was appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer in June 1983, and served until his resignation in October 1989. In both Cabinet posts, Lawson was a key proponent of Thatcher's policies of privatisation of several key industries. Lawson oversaw the sudden deregulation of financial markets in 1986, commonly referred to as the 'Big Bang', which decisively strengthened London's place as a financial capital.
The Christian Peoples Alliance (CPA) is a Christian democratic political party in the United Kingdom. The party was founded in its present form in 1999, having grown out of a cross-party advocacy group called the Movement for Christian Democracy. The first leader of the party was Ram Gidoomal; Alan Craig took over from him in 2004 and resigned in 2012, later defecting to the UK Independence Party (UKIP). He was replaced by Sidney Cordle, the party's current leader. Although the party claims to represent Christian Democracy there is little evidence that its members behave in a particularly Christian way nor that they prefer Democracy to theocracy.
Richard Douglas Harries, Baron Harries of Pentregarth, is a retired bishop of the Church of England and former British Army officer. He was the Bishop of Oxford from 1987 to 2006. From 2008 until 2012 he was the Gresham Professor of Divinity.
The Evangelical Alliance (EA) is an evangelical Christian organisation based in the UK. Founded in 1846, the activities of the Evangelical Alliance aim to promote evangelical Christian beliefs in government, media and society. The Evangelical Alliance is based in London, with offices in Cardiff, Glasgow and Belfast. It is a member of the World Evangelical Alliance and also its founding member.
Universities and Colleges Christian Fellowship (UCCF) is a UK-based charity that was founded in 1928 as the Inter-Varsity Fellowship of Evangelical Unions. UCCF's dual aims are:
David Stuart Sheppard, Baron Sheppard of Liverpool was a Church of England Bishop of Liverpool who played cricket for Sussex and England in his youth. Sheppard remains the only ordained minister to have played Test cricket, though others such as Tom Killick were ordained after playing Tests.
Alister Edgar McGrath is a Northern Irish theologian, Anglican priest, intellectual historian, scientist, Christian apologist, and public intellectual. He currently holds the Andreas Idreos Professorship in Science and Religion in the Faculty of Theology and Religion, and is a fellow of Harris Manchester College at the University of Oxford, and is Professor of Divinity at Gresham College. He was previously Professor of Theology, Ministry, and Education at King's College London and Head of the Centre for Theology, Religion and Culture, Professor of Historical Theology at the University of Oxford, and was principal of Wycliffe Hall, Oxford, until 2005.
Nicholas Thomas Wright, known as N. T. Wright or Tom Wright, is an English New Testament scholar, Pauline theologian and Anglican bishop. He was the bishop of Durham from 2003 to 2010. He then became research professor of New Testament and Early Christianity at St Mary's College in the University of St Andrews in Scotland until 2019, when he became a senior research fellow at Wycliffe Hall at the University of Oxford.
The Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge (SPCK) is a UK-based Christian charity. Founded in 1698 by Thomas Bray, it has worked for over 300 years to increase awareness of the Christian faith in the UK and across the world.
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Roy Clements is a British author and former Christian minister. He was a leading figure within Britain's Evangelical Christian movement for more than two decades until in 1999 he left his wife, resigned from his pastoral ministry and revealed that he is gay.
Theo Hobson is a British theologian. He was educated at St Paul's School in London; he read English literature at the University of York, then theology at the University of Cambridge, where he was a member of Hughes Hall. He focused on the strongest voices of the Protestant tradition: Martin Luther, Søren Kierkegaard, and Karl Barth. His PhD thesis became the basis of his first book, The Rhetorical Word: Protestant Theology and the Rhetoric of Authority (2002), a study of the role of authoritative rhetoric in Protestantism.
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Dr Michael Schluter CBE, is "a social thinker, social entrepreneur and founder of Britain's Relationships Foundation." After his Ph.D. from Cornell University (USA), he worked as an applied economist with the Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), and in assignments for the World Bank. With colleagues, he has founded many different organisations in different fields of endeavour. He is currently President and CEO of Relational Peacebuilding Initiatives. Currently, In recognition of his public service, he was appointed CBE by the Queen in the New Year Honours List 2009.
According to the Jubilee Centre, a Christian-based social reform organisation...
This is probably the second best book I've ever read.
an academic paper published by a leading Christian think-tank.
The Jubilee Centre Winter School (was) a seminal, life changing experience ... various publications, including the internationally well-known Cambridge Papers
The Parliamentary battle over the 1985/6 Shops Bill, designed to relax most of Britain's Sunday Trading laws, was the biggest defeat ever suffered by the Thatcher govern- ment: although the government had an absolute majority of 139 it was defeated by 14 votes. Christian lobby groups, such as the Cambridge- based Keep Sunday Special Campaign played a key role, alongside the trade unions and other opponents, in achieving this result.
He launched the Keep Sunday Special campaign against the deregulation of Sunday trading in 1985, causing Margaret Thatcher's only defeat in Parliament.
The Fair Sex Movement is calling for a public consultation on the Government’s controversial proposals to make sex and relationship education a statutory requirement for children five years old and over in all England's schools.
Under the joint partnership between SHALOM SINGAPORE and THE JUBILEE CENTRE in Cambridge, UK
In Kenya, a group of Christians under Professor Peter Kimuyu’s leadership has recently come together to establish a body similar to the Jubilee Centre.
the Christian research centre is planning to expand its international network into such places as Singapore, Kenya, Holland and the USA.
Alistair Burt, the Conservative frontbencher, is one of three MPs from each of the main parties to have contributed to a new book called Votewise Now!
In his soon to be published book Just Sex?, Guy Brandon of the Jubilee Centre in Cambridge claims that it is the failure to respect persons, as made in God's image, which is at the heart of our social and personal malaise.
Christianity, Climate Change and Sustainable Living is a groundbreaking new book looking at a Christian response to climate change.