Jubilee Centre

Last updated

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.

Contents

About the Jubilee Centre

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.

Books by the Jubilee Centre

See also

Related Research Articles

John Polkinghorne Physicist and priest

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 British conservative politician

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.

Christian Peoples Alliance British political party

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 Harries, Baron Harries of Pentregarth

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:

  1. To advance the evangelical Christian faith amongst students, graduates and former members of universities; and
  2. To promote biblical scholarship and research.
David Sheppard English cleric and cricketer (1929–2005)

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 McGrath Northern Irish priest and academic

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.

N. T. Wright Anglican bishop

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.

Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge UK-based Christian charity

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.

Tearfund is an international Christian relief and development agency based in Teddington, UK. It currently works in around 50 countries, with a primary focus on supporting those in poverty and providing disaster relief for disadvantaged communities.

Sermon on the Mound Address by Margaret Thatcher, 21 May 1988

The "Sermon on the Mound" is the name given by the Scottish press to an address made by British prime minister Margaret Thatcher to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland on Saturday, 21 May 1988. This speech, which laid out the relationship between her religious and her political thinking, proved highly controversial.

Kenneth Leech, also known as Ken Leech, was an English Anglican priest and Christian socialist in the Anglo-Catholic tradition.

Christianity in Singapore

Christians in Singapore constitute 18.9% of the country's population. In 2020, about 37.1% of the country's Christians identified as Catholic and 62.9% as 'Other Christians'.

Keith Ward British philosopher, theologian, priest and scholar

Keith Ward is an English philosopher, and theologian. He is a fellow of the British Academy and a priest of the Church of England. He was a canon of Christ Church, Oxford, until 2003. Comparative theology and the relationship between science and religion are two of his main topics of interest.

Roy Clements

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.

John Pritchard (bishop)

John Lawrence Pritchard is a Church of England bishop. He was the Bishop of Oxford from 2007 to 2014. He is in the Open Evangelical tradition.

Elaine Storkey is an English philosopher, sociologist, and theologian. She is known for her lecturing, writing and broadcasting.

Michael Schluter (economist) British social entrepreneur

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.

References

  1. ↑ Midgley, Carol (29 January 2008). "Experts say marriage isn't so important now". The Times. London. Retrieved 30 May 2008. According to the Jubilee Centre, a Christian-based social reform organisation...
  2. ↑ "Jubilee Manifesto". UK Christian Bookshops Directory: Christian Book Reviews. Retrieved 6 June 2008. This is probably the second best book I've ever read.
  3. ↑ Gledhill, Ruth (3 October 2008). "Christian group calls for a Christian university in Britain". The Times. London. Retrieved 3 October 2008. an academic paper published by a leading Christian think-tank.
  4. ↑ "The Jubilee Centre Winter School, January 2007". Potton Vineyard Church. Archived from the original on 4 October 2011. Retrieved 30 May 2008. The Jubilee Centre Winter School (was) a seminal, life changing experience ... various publications, including the internationally well-known Cambridge Papers
  5. ↑ Richter, Philip (1994). "Seven Days' Trading Make One Weak? The Sunday Trading Issue as an Index of Secularization". The British Journal of Sociology. The British Journal of Sociology, Vol. 45, No. 3 (Sep., 1994), pp. 333-348. 45 (3): 333–348. doi:10.2307/591652. JSTOR   591652. 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.
  6. ↑ "Social campaigner appointed MBE (sic)". BBC News. 31 December 2008. Retrieved 7 January 2009. He launched the Keep Sunday Special campaign against the deregulation of Sunday trading in 1985, causing Margaret Thatcher's only defeat in Parliament.
  7. ↑ "Movement demands consultation on compulsory sex ed for five-year-olds". Christian Today. Retrieved 15 April 2009. 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.
  8. ↑ "Building a School". Shalom Singapore. Archived from the original on 3 January 2008. Retrieved 30 May 2008. Under the joint partnership between SHALOM SINGAPORE and THE JUBILEE CENTRE in Cambridge, UK
  9. ↑ "Finding a biblical framework for Christian social engagement". Christian Today. Retrieved 18 June 2008. 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.
  10. ↑ "New director for Jubilee Centre". Christian Today. Retrieved 30 May 2008. the Christian research centre is planning to expand its international network into such places as Singapore, Kenya, Holland and the USA.
  11. ↑ "Extract from the Central Register of Charities: Jubilee Centre". The Charity Commission for England and Wales. Retrieved 30 May 2008.
  12. ↑ "Alistair Burt outlines why he thinks Christians should vote Conservative". ConservativeHome. Retrieved 21 September 2009. 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!
  13. ↑ Nazir-Ali, Michael (20 December 2008). "In bad times, we need the Good News". The Sunday Telegraph. London. Retrieved 21 December 2008. 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.
  14. ↑ Spencer, Nick; White, Robert (8 February 2008). "Extract: Christianity, Climate Change and Sustainable Living". The Times. London. Retrieved 6 June 2008.
  15. ↑ "Tearfund supports new book on climate change and sustainable living". Tearfund. Archived from the original on 31 May 2008. Retrieved 6 June 2008. Christianity, Climate Change and Sustainable Living is a groundbreaking new book looking at a Christian response to climate change.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.