Christian Aid's swing dance with a difference

|PIC1|Christian Aid is Christianity in action

God's heart for the poor is revealed throughout scripture. And so is the mandate to care for the vulnerable and to speak up for the silenced. Everything Christian Aid does comes back to this responsibility. Christian Aid was founded in 1945 as the churches response to the refugee crisis in Europe. Today, our work in more than 50 countries and our campaigning activities in Britain and Ireland are still firmly rooted in Christianity. We are the churches agency; uniting people across the globe from all denominations and networks in prayer and service.

But to be world-changers, we know we need to motivate others. Christians are called to be 'salt and light' in the world - to live out the gospel and affect the whole of society. That's why Christian Aid advertises to the general public, works with other organisations, and urges political leaders to change their policies.

Christian Aid is not about converting people. But, it is about mission. During Christian Aid Week alone, 300,000 people take faith beyond the church to inspire others to work for change.

Christian Aid puts God's heart for people first

There is no one who isn't made in God's image; no place beyond the reach of love and justice.

Jesus ministered outside of accepted social barriers; he healed people, regardless of their beliefs. He celebrated the life-giving actions of the good Samaritan. Christian Aid follows this example - we, too, are unafraid to get involved in complicated places.

Places like Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories. As the churches' agency, we represent people with many different perspectives on the Holy Land. But our first priority has to be the needs of all people affected by the ongoing conflict there. We've received some criticism for this, but we're not afraid of that. People come first.

This pure focus also inspires who we work with. We have many church partners, but we also work with people outside the church. We want to be able to reach places that desperately need help. And these may be places where there are no church partners, or where non-Christian organisations can make a bigger impact.

Is there anyone, or any place, which God would not want us to reach out to? We don't think so.

Christian Aid is a voice for the poor - even if that means getting political

Responding to people in need is vital. But we believe that God does not want the world to be this way. So we campaign to change the underlying structures that make and keep people poor.

This doesn't mean getting involved in party politics, but it does mean challenging the people who have the power to change things. Christian Aid doesn't try to hide its anger when the poor are exploited. The values of justice, peace and love must challenge the world's values. They must also challenge our own values - prompting us to re-examine how our own lifestyles affect others.

Christian Aid trusts and empowers the world's poorest communities
Working in partnership is central to Christian Aid's approach because we want to empower poor communities to help themselves. We don't carry out development work overseas ourselves, nor do we send supplies abroad. Instead we work with more than 600 locally based partner organisations in almost 60 countries.

We make our biggest impact by working through trusted partners. And because we don't give funds to governments, we avoid corrupt regimes. With more than 60 years' experience in supporting partners, we also add significant value to the money we give by sharing our development expertise.

Christian Aid has a vision of a world without poverty
Our world is scarred by greed, suffering and injustice. But our faith gives us the hope of a renewed world. And so we really believe we can end poverty.

History tells us that huge change is possible. Our past achievements on reducing poor countries' debt and helping thousands of poor communities to have a better future also tell us that change is possible.

'Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.'

Pentecost Festival
On the Friday and Saturday evenings during Pentecost Festival we invite you to swing down to St Johns, Waterloo for the hottest dance in London. Sizzling live sounds will make you Lindy Hop, Jitterbug, Boogie Woogie, or however you like to move. Need to learn some steps? No problem. We'll have a brilliant dance demo to show you how to swing the night away.

This is a swing dance with a difference because the Big Heat Swing Dance is also about global warming. We'll have a special 'intermission discussion' about climate change issues that all of us, and especially the world's poor, are facing today. We'll take a few minutes to think about how we can engage positively with the issues and make our voices heard so we can help those in developing countries already suffering the effects of global warming.

There will be fairtrade juice cocktails to refresh you and the best dressed dancers get a free drink! Join us to dance, dance, dance upon injustice!

During the Saturday you must come and join our fun day and learn more about what Christian Aid is doing to tackle climate change among some of the poorest communities around the world. There will be fantastic street theatre, a brilliant climate change exhibition, barmy roving polar bears, completely free literature, crazy inflatable and outsize games, and a special opportunity to support Christian Aid's climate change campaign. Fun for everyone and it's all free!