18 March 2010

BISHOP John led a candlelit vigil on an Oxford estate as part of a national campaign calling for an end to violence against children.
 

The event took place after a Growing Up Without Violence Roadshow at The Church of the Holy Family on Blackbird Leys.
It was part of a national campaign organised by Churches for Non-Violence, (CNNV) that is calling for an end to corporal punishment. CNNV is working wih the Mothers’ Union, and the NSPCC, who have provided roadshow resources. Local dignitaries and politicians attended the event.
Bishop John said: “I’m very pleased to be identified with the roadshow. It seems to me crazy that violence against an adult can be the reason for a criminal charge but that violence against children is perfectly acceptable.
“The need for so called ‘discipline’ is a poor excuse. Children are our most precious and vulnerable resource for the future wellbeing of society, and violence should play no part in their lives.”
The Revd Roger Burne, of Holy Family, said: “It was great that the roadshow came to Blackbird Leys, to a place where there is a real community.
“The vigil in the evening was really good. There were a mix of congregation members and people involved in community work in Blackbird Leys, people from CMS and other organisations. The church is just outside the main shops so we were standing outside, where we were visible to the community.
“Bishop John spoke very movingly about his own family and his grandchildren. He also spoke on the scriptural basis for not being violent towards children. Whatever the the Old Testament might say, Jesus’s attitude to children is very clear. Bishop John explained that very gently but very directly.”
The national roadshow tour marks the end of the United Nations Decade for a Culture of Non-Violence towards Children.