The Chair of the Bishops’ Conference Department of International Affairs has urged Catholics to pray for the people of Afghanistan, while pointing to the work of humanitarian organisations, and efforts to welcome refugees, as signs of hope.
Bishop Declan Lang said:
“As Christians, we are called to be people of hope, even when a situation may appear hopeless.
Today our hope can be placed in those who are working tirelessly for dialogue, justice, and peace in their country.
Our hope can be placed in the humanitarian organisations that are continuing to offer their assistance, and the efforts to welcome and protect refugees fleeing their homes.
Above all we place our hope in the Lord Jesus Christ, to whom we pray in the knowledge that he will never abandon the people of Afghanistan.”
After the Angelus on Wednesday Pope Francis called for dialogue in the country:
“I ask all of you to pray with me to the God of peace so that the clamour of weapons might cease and solutions can be found at the table of dialogue. Only thus can the battered population of that country – men, women, elderly and children – return to their own homes, and live in peace and security, in total mutual respect.”
Homily given by Bishop Nicholas Hudson at the Mass to celebrate the 104th birthday of St Oscar Romero in St George’s Cathedral, Southwark, today, Saturday 14 August.
That image we all know so well of St Oscar with blood streaming from his nose and ears is of a man transfigured, transfigured by justice. Of course, he’d seen it coming: “In El Salvador, the sky has turned red,” he had said. “Putting ourselves on the side of the poor is going to mean a lot of bloodshed.” That was on the Feast of the Transfiguration in 1977, some two and a half years before he himself made the supreme sacrifice.
THE SAME ROAD AS RUTILIO
He’d already said to Fr Cesar Jerez, Jesuit Provincial, as they visited Rome together, “When I saw Rutilio dead, I thought, if they killed him for what he was doing, it’s my job to go down that same road.” This testimony of Jerez I find particularly moving, coming as it does just months after Rutilio’s death. “Monsenor, you’ve changed,” Jerez told him as they walked along. “Everything about you has changed. What’s happened?”
The Archbishop halted and was silent: “I ask myself that same question when I’m in prayer,” he said. “It’s just that we all have our roots, you know,’ he went on. “I was born into a poor family, I’ve suffered hunger … When I went to seminary (in Rome) … I started to forget where I came from. I started creating another world … they made me bishop’s Secretary in San Miguel … then they sent me to Santiago de Maria, and I ran into extreme poverty again. Those children were dying just because of the water they were drinking, those campesinos killing themselves in the harvests … And what happened to Fr Grande … You know how much I admired him. When I saw Rutilio dead, I thought, if they killed him for what he was doing, it’s my job to go down the same road … So, yes, I changed. But I also came back home again.”
COMING HOME TO CHRIST
The figure lying dead on the floor of the Hospitalito chapel two years later is indeed the figure of a man who has come home. He’s already being received into the place prepared for him by Christ since before the beginning of time; a man of the poor who allowed himself to be transfigured by the cry of the poorest for justice. It’s surely no coincidence that it was on the Feast of the Transfiguration every year that he made some of his most heartfelt pleas for justice as Archbishop of San Salvador because this is the Feast not only of Christ’s glorification but also the Patronal feast of El Salvador. As death loomed, he was clear that he would be dying not just for the Church but for the nation: “I offer God my blood for the redemption and resurrection of the people of El Salvador … for the liberation of my people,” he said just a few days before he died.
LISTEN TO HIM
The Christ of today’s Gospel reveals to his friends what his – Christ’s – homecoming will be like too; how he too will be totally transfigured, with clothes dazzling white, whiter than any bleacher could make them. While from the cloud a voice is heard; it is the voice of the Father, saying, ‘Listen to him’.
‘Listen to him’: this was a command which St Oscar amplified continually. The last year he would be alive to celebrate the Feast of the Transfiguration, he told the people, “our duty is to listen to him … listen to the voice of the Father.” He developed the point to say, “Every year the divine transfigured One comes to challenge this people with the words, ‘What have you done with my mystery? Am I not bringing about the transfiguration of this nation?'” The Pastoral Letters written for the Feast of the Transfiguration of 1977, ’78 and ’79 contain some of his most powerful appeals for the rulers of the nation to change. That they must allow themselves too to be transfigured by justice was his conviction and deepest yearning.
JUDGMENT, LIGHT, LISTENING, FOLLOWING, GLORY
So central is the Transfiguration story to our faith that it’s found in all three of the Synoptic Gospels. The sum of these accounts amounts to a significant number of elements. These different elements St Oscar uses to explain what is happening to the people: judgment, light, listening, following, clothing, glory.
Yes, judgment, as he explains in the most developed of his four Pastorals, the third Pastoral, for the Feast of the Transfiguration in 1978. There he explains that the words of Jesus, “Don’t tell anyone what you have seen until the Son of Man has risen from the dead”, indeed refer to judgment, to how the humbled shall be glorified and rise with the Son of Man while at the same time all creation witnesses the humiliation experienced by the Servant of Yahweh.
LIGHT
Judgment. And light. I wonder if you’ve ever noticed how often St Oscar speaks of light.
From the Transfiguration specifically he draws the image of the light radiating from Christ needing now to be carried by the Church to shine on the lives of all men and women across the nation. “The Church is a lamp that must shed light; and it must involve itself in concrete realities in order to enlighten those who are pilgrims on this earth,” he writes in 1978. The obligation to shine this light on concrete realities is something he takes to himself as early as November 1977 when he preaches a homily which condemns a new law allowing the detention of suspects for participation in a forbidden activity. He says, “in the light of God’s word, I … have the right and the duty to cast light on this event in our land”.
In another place he suggests that “the illumined face of Christ is like a pilgrim’s compass showing them they are on the right path.” I like the fact that he’s clear the light of Christ is a light needing to shine on Christians of every class and state of life – that no one should consider themselves exempt, in other words, not least the poor. Even the poor must scrutinise their lives in the light of the Gospel. For poverty isn’t just about lacking things, he says; it’s a call to be grateful, grateful for the little you have.
CLOTHED WITH CHRIST
And, of course, for those privileged with riches and status, walking in the light of Christ means sharing and influencing. Listening and then following, in other words. If all the followers of Christ would do this, he is saying, then they would reflect the light of the transfigured one. They would reflect Christ’s glory.
Because they will have put on Christ, as St Paul would put it. St Oscar says as much on the Feast of the Transfiguration in 1978: “Those who will one day be the holy people of the Most High … are a people close to Christ; we could almost say they are Christ’s clothing.”
But how to put on Christ exactly? By “denouncing every lie, every injustice, every sin,” he says. By being “the voice of the voiceless, and defender of the rights of the poor, a promoter of every just aspiration for liberation.” Clothing yourself in justice, in other words, he is saying. And these are words at which our own hearts should thrill as we seek to fathom this mystery for ourselves: that at its heart is a call for us to “(denounce) every lie, every injustice, every sin”; to be “the voice of the voiceless, and defender of the rights of the poor, a promoter of every just aspiration for liberation.”
DUAL PURPOSE
Of course, in showing himself transfigured, Jesus had a dual purpose. He wished to prepare his friends, so as to give them hope when they saw him suffer; he wished too to show how they would also be changed themselves. This dual purpose is confirmed, as we shall hear, by the Preface for the Feast, when it says, “he revealed his glory … (so) that the scandal of the Cross might be removed from the hearts of his disciples and that he might show how in the Body of the whole Church is to be fulfilled what so wonderfully shone forth first in its Head.” But the force of St Oscar’s reflection on Transfiguration is that the process of our own changing needs to begin in the here and now.
We heard St Oscar tell Fr Jerez he knew he had changed. What the Archbishop probably didn’t realise was just how much he’d changed, that he was transfigured already to some degree by justice. Fr Jon Sobrino gives us a touching glimpse of that transformation when he tells us, “in the cathedral (Romero) was transfigured …. By nature he was rather shy. But in the cathedral he was transfigured.”
POSSESSED BY GOD
Many, many years before, St Oscar had written, while writing his dissertation, “In recent days … the Lord has inspired in me a great desire for holiness. I’ve been thinking of how far a soul can ascend if it lets itself be possessed entirely by God.” Well, it was a long road – but one which would allow him to say, as journey’s end was at last coming into view, that martyrdom was a grace which he knew he didn’t merit but that, if God accepted the sacrifice of his life, his prayer would be that his death be offered for the liberation of his people and a testimony of hope in the future. He was saying, in other words, that, in spite of his fear, he accepted. He accepted that to “be possessed entirely by God” meant he too must take the same road now as Rutilio Grande, Alfonso Navarro, Octavio Ortiz, and so many other martyrs, to walk faithfully and humbly and in the footsteps of his Lord and theirs; and allow himself to be fully transfigured by justice. Would that we allowed ourselves to be possessed even a tenth as much!
Chris Carling gave this reflection during the Young Christian Climate Network relay walkers service in Westminster Cathedral on Friday:
Daniel 3:57-81, 88-89
Song of the Three Young Men in the Furnace
That Canticle from Daniel sums up how God calls us to cooperate with creation to bless the Lord, to give glory and eternal praise to him. This is what God meant when in Genesis he gave dominion over the earth – not that we dominate or destroy the planet but that we care for creation, we till this earth.
However, humanity has sinned, we have turned away from God and we need conversion; ecological conversion. Like our constant spiritual conversion, this is a process not an event, it will last a lifetime. And it is always the work of the Holy Spirit.
In Romans 5:20 we are told ‘where sin increased, grace overflowed all the more’. Right now humanity’s sin against creation and against our creator is indeed increasing. The canticle proclaims ‘Ice and Snow, bless the Lord’ yet we are melting the ice caps and the glaciers retreat. ‘Seas and Rivers, bless the Lord’, yet we fill the waters with plastic. ‘Everything that grows on earth, bless the Lord’ and we cut down the rainforests. Our sin is increasing, but we do not despair because we are Christian and we have hope. We know that grace will overflow.
Grace is indeed already overflowing in this relay and in the YCCN. Young people filled with the Holy Spirit coming together at this ‘decade defining’ moment to share the call to care for creation. Already 300 miles in, they have touched hundreds of communities by their presence, and countless more by their prayer. Grace is overflowing.
That same grace is overflowing in the young Catholics represented here from CAFOD, CARITAS, Jesuit Missions and others. Knowing, like the YCCN, that climate change affects the world’s poorest, they are helping those most affected by the current crisis to take action. CAFOD are doing excellent work lobbying parliament: already 100 MPs have met with Catholic parishes and Christian groups through their ‘parliament in your parish’ initiative. They are also running key petitions to our Prime Minister and Chancellor. Jesuit Missions are taking practical action such as by supporting reforestation efforts by communities in Madagascar. The Holy Spirit is moving in these groups as they respond to the call for ecological conversion.
Our Pope, at 84 may not be young, but he is a wise prophet on this question. This man filled with the Holy Spirit is reaching millions. His encyclical, Laudato Si’ – Praise Be – a letter to the whole world, written six years ago, is becoming ever more relevant by the day. This Diocese of Westminster has heard his call and has just committed to seeking carbon neutrality by 2030. We know the Pope’s voice matters: at COP 21 his words moved nations and were key to the agreement there. We pray, his health permitting, he can come to Glasgow and move nations again.
Because this call to ecological conversion needs to spread. Thinking of our government, it is perhaps easy to despair; new oil fields being considered off the Shetlands, a second private jet for ministers. Yet there is hope, hope in this conference in Glasgow, hope that grace will overflow. Our government, our Prime Minister -married in this very chapel a few months ago- the delegates, we pray they are filled with the Holy Spirit at COP and hear the call to ecological conversion.
Conversion too is a theme on this great Feast of the Transfiguration. I resonate especially with St Peter who, on seeing our Lord transfigured ‘brilliantly white’ before him on the mountain turned to Jesus and said: ‘Rabbi … it is wonderful for us to be here; so let us make three tents, one for you, one for Moses, one for Elijah’. It seems he wanted to stay in the presence of our transfigured Lord.
It too is wonderful for us to see the Lord transfigured on this relay. To see him transfigured in each other, hope transfigured in young Christians responding to the call for ecological conversion. For those lucky enough to have taken this relay into the city or who will take it out again, it is wonderful to see our Lord transfigured in creation. I think of the beauty of Devon and Cornwall and the walkers who will cross the Pennines before eventually reaching the Northumberland Coast. It is indeed wonderful to be here with our transfigured Lord.
However like St Peter, we too must come down from the mountain. He went on to experience his own journey of conversion. Denying our Lord three times during the passion, before experiencing the grace and mercy of the resurrection. He lived his vocation taking the Gospel, the Good news, the message of conversion to the ends of his world, to Antioch and Rome.
As we come away from this relay, how will we respond to the call to spread the message of ecological conversion? How will we cooperate with creation to give glory and eternal praise to God? As humanity’s sin against creation and against our creator increases, how will grace overflow in us?
Chris Carling is a Communications Volunteer with Westminster Justice and Peace Commission. He has recently completed a European Social and Political Studies BA at University College London.
Members of the Young Christian Climate Network (YCCN), on pilgrimage from June’s G7 in Cornwall to November’s COP26 in Glasgow, had a great welcome from churches in and around London while passing through these past few days. Services and meetings at St Paul’s Cathedral – where they were greeted by Anglican Bishop John Sentamu – St John’s Waterloo, Lambeth Palace, Wesley’s Chapel, St Martin in the Fields and St James Piccadilly included a gathering for action, prayer, and reflection in Westminster Cathedral.
As around 100 people gathered in the piazza of Westminster Cathedral on Friday afternoon, waiting to go in, the line ups for photos demonstrated both Catholic and ecumenical support for the pilgrimage. Four Westminster Diocesan priests attended, including the current Chair of Westminster Justice and Peace, Fr Dominic Robinson SJ, and former one, Fr Joe Ryan. Alongside the YCCN banners there was Westminster Justice and Peace, CAFOD, Caritas, Pax Christi, Jesuit Mission, Columban JPIC, and ARocha. “What do we want? Climate justice!” echoed round Victoria.
When we walked down to the Lady Chapel we saw that the YCCN boat had been set up on the altar. The relay is accompanied along the whole route by this boat whose sail bears fabrics from climate threatened places – pointing to the hundreds of millions of people whose lives are threatened by sea level rise, cyclones, and other climate related disasters. It sat well alongside the chapel’s decoration where above the altar is the Tree of Life (the Cross) and from it gushes fountains of living water; its branches produce vines and refuge for birds and other living creatures.
Colette Joyce of Westminster Justice and Peace welcomed the congregation, followed by testimonies from Florence, Sophie and Naomi, three of the walkers. They explained the reasons for the relay. Pilgrims are calling on the government to meet and exceed their own climate finance commitments, reinstate the original aid budget and to cancel the debts of poor countries. The pilgrims also seek to raise awareness of COP26 and urged participants to spread the word “to look out for us and we would like as many people to join us as possible”. They were clapped as they stepped down amidst an animated and joyful spirit in the very chapel where Prime Minister Boris Johnson – the primary target for climate lobbying – was married at the end of May.
After a prayer of thanks, taken from the song of the three young men in the furnace in the Book of Daniel, a reflection on “ecological conversion” was given by Chris Carling, a student and Westminster Justice and Peace volunteer. He felt the ecological conversion called for in Laudati Si’ is a process that lasts a lifetime. Despite such challenges as the melting ice caps and polluting the oceans with plastic, “grace will overflow with YCCN”. Then a reflection from Pope Francis calling on each person to “be a guardian of our common home,” and protect all God’s creation, including other species.
We said together the final prayer from CAFOD:
“Inspire us to care for the environment:
to help rebuild lives and communities;
to share in the griefs and anxieties, joys and hopes of all your people,
so that all your creation may flourish. Amen.
The pilgrimage has been very successful in drawing attention to God’s presence in the world, particularly to people and places which are the first victims of the climate crisis. Anglican ordinand Hannah Malcom based her Saturday morning Radio 4 Thought for the Day reflection on it.
The young people have travelled through Truro, Exeter, Bristol, Reading and London, being received enthusiastically and offered hospitality by churches of all denominations, and are now heading north towards Glasgow.
Colette Joyce rounded off the service by telling the pilgrims, “you are doing a tremendous job and we will follow you all the way.” More clapping!
Around 100 Young Christian Climate Network relay walkers arrived in London last Wednesday on their way from Cornwall to Glasgow for COP26. They were welcomed by faith communities – and accompanied on their trek – as they stopped for ecumenical services and actions across the capital.
Their first service of prayer for climate justice was held at the Silver Eco Church, St Paul’s Clapham, and included a talk from a local YCCN member; followed by a meal and celebration in the churchyard.
Next morning they walked to Lambeth Palace where they stopped for refreshments and a tour of the gardens. From there they went on to St Paul’s Cathedral, where they were welcomed by Archbishop John Sentamu and took part in a vigil and photo call with Christian Aid.
On Friday they gathered in Arrupe Hall in Farm Street Church for lunch and then prayers and a blessing from parish priest Fr Dominican Robinson SJ in the church, before they set off through the parks for a picture op with CAFOD partners outside Buckingham Palace.
From here they walked to Westminster Cathedral where they were welcomed and joined by more supporters, for an Ecumenical service in the Lady Chapel. Among the congregation, were Pax Christi members who had been holding a Hiroshima Day vigil in the Piazza earlier in the day.
That evening the YCCN walkers went to St Andrew’s Church Short Street London SE1 where they from Hannah Eves about YCCN’s plans for COP26 and their work on climate justice, and from Canon Giles Goddard.
On Saturday morning the group attended Morning Prayer in Wesley’s Chapel and Leysian Mission in City Road followed by tea and cakes – Watch the service here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1J5sqrtTK
On Sunday morning the walkers attended a climate-themed service at St Martin-in-the-Fields, in Trafalgar Square. Lunch was a picnic at St James’ Church Piccadilly.
The new week begins on Monday with 9am prayers at All Hallows by the Tower Church, Byward Street. All are welcome to joined the walkers as they pray for a good outcome to the talks in Glasgow, and for urgent action to combat climate change and safeguard the earth.
St James, Muswell Hill will be the last stop in London for the YCCN team before they set off for Oxford. All are welcome to join them for a climate themed service at 6pm with Wave Church. Wave Church is an inclusive space where people with and without learning disabilities can worship together. It will be inclusive informal and creative. Expect singing with Makaton signing and Bible teaching using pictures and games.
Hundreds of young people are joining the YCCN relay walk to Glasgow – either for a single leg or for a few days. If you’d like to get involved or follow them as they continue their trek to Glasgow for COP26, visit their website here: www.yccn.uk
St John Paul II first called for an “ecological conversion” in 2001 and since then the need for urgent action on climate change has become ever more apparent. The phrase was cited again by Pope Francis in Laudato Si’ (2015) and subsequently has given name to a Brighton-based environmental group. It suggests the action to tackle the climate emergency required of Christians is like our constant spiritual conversion – a process, not an event, and always the work of the Holy Spirit.
This is the experience I have had in facilitating weekly meetings on Care for Creation with Catholics from across London and South-East England, including that Brighton based group. The meetings bring together laity, religious and clergy: together this is the Church. I am inspired to hear how Christians are being moved by the Holy Spirit to take action to protect our common home, that precious gift from the Creator.
Some are far along their journey of ecological conversion and have already taken decisive action. Pope Francis has attributed a special place to religious communities who are trialling the Laudato Si’ Action Platform. This website is designed to bring together Catholics from across the world to share advice and learn how to take urgent ecological action. Some communities are examining the meaning of the vow of poverty, committing to buy and live ethically in solidarity with the world’s poor, often going as far as to live almost entirely meat free.
Parishes too are taking action to mobilise their communities to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and take action on climate change. There are already almost 100 Livesimply parishes in England and Wales, parishes which have received accreditation from CAFOD for their efforts to ‘live simply, in solidarity with people in poverty and sustainability with creation’. Other parishes are cooperating with councils to install solar panels or with local eco-schools to plant community orchards.
Pope Francis has inspired the whole church to take urgent action with his ever more relevant encyclical Laudato Si’. In October the Vatican will formally launch the Laudato Si’ Action Platform to give Catholics the tools to take urgent action for the planet. A month later the Pontiff will travel to Glasgow to call on world leaders at the COP26 conference to act faster.
The Spirit is also moving in the episcopacy. The bishops of the Philippines have appointed an environmental lead for every one of its 72 dioceses. In England and Wales, too, environmental leads are being appointed across the country with the task of implementing newly published environment policies. Bishop John Arnold, as lead Bishop on the environment, is piloting an approach to climate change in his own Salford Diocese led by Dr Emma Gardner and Edward De Quay, an approach which will then be modelled across the country.
Our brothers and sisters in other denominations can also inspire us to act faster as they too respond to the call of the Spirit. I think particularly of the YCCN (Young Christian Climate Network) Relay where young activists are walking from the G7 summit in Cornwall to the COP in Glasgow. Across the country, different Christian communities are welcoming these young walkers who inspire us to tackle the ecological emergency faster. Westminster Justice and Peace, alongside young people from CAFOD, CARITAS and other diocesan groups, are looking forward to hosting them this week on behalf of London’s young Catholics.
It is easy to despair as we watch Europe flood and America burn; the climate emergency that the world’s poorest have experienced for years has finally caught up with the West. However, I am inspired by a wise Sister at one of our meetings who cited Blessed John XXIII: it is time to “throw open the windows of the Church and let the fresh air of the Spirit blow through”. I believe it is that same Spirit which is moving the Church to ecological conversion.
Thus, as we hear the call to change our lifestyles, decarbonise the Church and lobby our political leaders, my prayer is simple, just three words: Veni Creator Spiritus !
Chris Carling is a Communications Volunteer with Westminster Justice and Peace Commission. He has recently completed a European Social and Political Studies BA at University College, London.
The YCCN Relay on the steps of St Paul’s Cathedral yesterday
Two events are beings hosted on behalf of the Diocese of Westminster in Central London on 6th August to welcome the Young Christian Climate Network (YCCN) Relay, which is travelling from the G7 in Cornwall to COP26 in Glasgow.
Firstly, there is a vegan lunch at Farm Street Church, Mayfair, at 1pm, followed by a walk to Westminster Cathedral and an Ecumenical Climate Prayer Service at the Cathedral at 3.30pm. There is still time to join in!
The Young Christian Climate Network Relay, walking from the G7 in Cornwall to COP26 in Glasgow for climate justice, reaches London today. There is still time to decide to join in with one or more or the events taking place in the capital during the Relay Residency in London from 4th-9th August. Follow the links for full details. We’d love to see you!
1) The Diocese of Westminster has published a commitment to do its utmost to become carbon neutral by 2030 in its parishes and curial buildings. It has also expressed its commitment to working with schools to encourage them to follow the same path.
The Diocesan plan focuses on 4 pillars:
i) Clean Energy Sources – purchasing gas and electricity from green suppliers. ii) Investment Policy – promoting a path to decarbonisation. iii) Reducing Carbon Emissions – from energy usage in parishes and diocesan buildings. iv) Generating Clean Energy.
The announcement, made on 26th July 2021, is accompanied by more detail on the website here:
and a short, six-minute video from Cardinal Vincent encouraging every parish, school and household to play their part:
2) We welcome the Young Christian Climate Network (YCCN) Relay to Westminster Cathedral on Friday 6th August 2021 for a Climate Prayer Service at 3.30pm.
The service is preceded by lunch and a blessing at Farm Street Church, Mayfair, at 1pm, followed by a walk to Westminster Cathedral as part of the Relay. The route will take us through Berkeley Square, Green Park, St James Park and past Buckingham Place as a witness to climate justice and a call for action to our political and business leaders ahead of the G7 in Glasgow in November. All welcome to join us and show your support. Sign up with Eventbrite to help us know numbers in advance:
Diocese of Westminster participants at the NJPN Annual Conference 2021, Action for Life on Earth
4) The Global Catholic Climate Movement has changed its name to: Laudato Si’ Movement
“[The] name now is not a corporate label; it is a prayer… When we name the movement now, every time we name it we’re saying a prayer. Laudato Si’, praise be the Creator.”
– Cardinal Michael Czerny, Under-secretary of the Section for Migrants of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development.
Little Amal will be in Central London on 23rd October, waking up on the steps of St Paul’s Cathedral and being welcomed by many faith leaders
Little Amal took her first steps last night, 27 July, marking the start of The Walk and her 8,000km journey from the Syria-Turkey border to the UK. The 3.5m puppet of a nine-year-old Syrian refugee girl started her journey in Gaziantep, Turkey. Many streets in the ancient heart of the city were illuminated by lanterns creating a path for Little Amal to follow to reach a special concert for her at Gaziantep Castle.
The Walk continues until 3 November 2021, through Greece, Italy, France, Switzerland, Belgium and Germany before reaching its finale in Manchester. In each village, town or city she visits Little Amal will be welcomed by major new arts commissions, city-wide community performances and intimate events. All events are free and have been designed by The Walk, in collaboration with each local partner to create one of the most adventurous public artworks ever attempted. Audiences will be able to follow Little Amal’s journey online and across social media, as well as joining in with events in their local area.
Little Amal represents the millions of displaced refugee children separated from their families. Her urgent message to the world is “Don’t forget about us”. Produced by Stephen Daldry, David Lan, Tracey Seaward and Naomi Webb for Good Chance Theatre, the producers of The Jungle, in association with the Handspring Puppet Company, the creators of the War Horse puppets, and led by Artistic Director Amir Nizar Zuabi.
It takes three puppeteers to operate Little Amal; a stilt walker who also brings her face to life and one on each of her arms. There is a total team of eleven puppeteers, including two from refugee backgrounds. The puppet is crafted from moulded cane and carbon fibre.
The Walk has developed an Education Programme which will connect young people from refugee and host communities to forge bonds of friendship. The programme includes:
A 70+ page Education & Activity pack and Teachers’ Notes in six languages featuring illustrations by Syrian artist Diala Brisly. This can be downloaded from The Walk’s website: www.walkwithamal.org/education/activity-pack/ A series of free online education events for teachers and educational leaders “Make With Amal” – an online engagement programme of art activities inspired by Amal’s route.
The Walk today launches ‘City Through Their Eyes’, a new digital guide on the Bloomberg Connects app – a free digital guide to cultural organisations around the world that makes it easy to access and engage with arts and culture from mobile devices, anytime, anywhere – to elevate and celebrate the voices of refugee and migrant artists across Turkey and Europe. Drawing from the cultural richness of their homelands, artists from refugee and migrant backgrounds offer intimate and unexpected insights into the towns and cities they now call home, alongside contributions from people who have lived in these towns and cities all their lives. To coincide with Little Amal’s first steps in Gaziantep, audio guides from artists and cultural leaders across Turkey are now available exclusively on the app. As Little Amal approaches each country on her journey, a new collection guides will be added. The app also offers a suite of six exclusive interviews with the cast and creative team of The Walk.
The Walk brings together celebrated artists, major cultural institutions, community groups and humanitarian organisations as well as municipalities, civic and humanitarian organisations, faith leaders and schools. For a full list of partners please visit: www.walkwithamal.org/friends/
The Walk website contains a donation page which invites the public to help to fund Amal’s journey at £1 per step.
Diocese of Westminster Justice and Peace Commission 