Scottish Catholic Observer

As the calendar turns to 2014, SCIAF is continuing to respond to two major emergency situations in the Philippines and the Middle East. The Syrian refugee crisis has been described by the United Nations as the greatest humanitarian tragedy of our time. More than 6 million people have fled their homes, with more than 2.3 million people seeking refuge in neighbouring countries, including Lebanon and Jordan, where SCIAF is supporting the work of local Caritas organisations.

In the Philippines, millions more are still dealing with the effects of Typhoon Haiyan that has devastated communities across the region. SCIAF’s partners in the Caritas Internationalis network are responding with food, clothing, shelter and emergency supplies. In both cases, long after the cameras have gone, SCIAF will continue to work with our partners on the ground, helping individuals and families rebuild for the long-term.

As with everything SCIAF does, this is only possible thanks to the generous support of individuals, families, schools and parishes across Scotland. One of the biggest opportunities for people to show their support is during our Lenten Wee Box, Big Change appeal, launching on Ash Wednesday—March 5, 2014. The well-kent Wee Box will have a fresh new look—it’s under wraps just now, so stay tuned for more—and we hope that people in the Catholic community, and the wider Scottish public, will respond enthusiastically.

In response to feedback from priests, we’ve looked again at what we offer to parishes during Lent. We’re working hard to update our database, to make sure we send only the number of Wee Boxes needed—we’re planning to send 18,000 fewer boxes to parishes and we have stripped out a lot of the extra resources we used to print and send. You will still find everything—prayers, information on our work, and fundraising ideas—on our website of course. Please do call and let us know if your parish gets too much or too little, so we can keep improving what we send.

Inspired by Pope Francis and his call for us to share our resources, rather than participating in a throwaway society, the theme of reducing waste will also be reflected in our campaigns throughout the year. Building a truly just world does mean that those of us who currently enjoy more than our fair share of the world’s resources need to think about how best to live more simply and sustainably. Early in the new year, resources will be available from SCIAF to help us all take a closer look at our daily lives and think about the differences we can make at home, in solidarity with the world’s poor.

Our campaigns to tackle the root causes of poverty will see some important milestones in 2014. Throughout the year, world governments will be assessing progress on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), agreed in the year 2000 as a plan to cut poverty and hunger by 2015. While overall levels of poverty have reduced, the poorest people have been left behind, and the United Nations must agree a new framework to follow on the work. The critical issue of climate change will also be moving back up the political agenda, as more evidence shows the impact that extreme and unpredictable weather is having on many of the poorest and most vulnerable people in the world. And in September, Scotland will go to the polls in the independence referendum. Without taking sides, SCIAF—and many of our colleagues in the network of international development organisations in Scotland—will be working to ensure that the needs of the poor are considered as part of the wider debate. Debates, discussions and events are planned throughout the year, so keep an eye out for details.

Scotland will also be welcoming the world to Glasgow in July when the Commonwealth Games take place. SCIAF has partners and projects in five Commonwealth countries, and we’ll be looking for opportunities to make connections between people and places with links to the games.

In the summer, SCIAF will be working with our friends in Mission Matters Scotland to launch an exciting ‘immersion programme’ which will give some of our supporters a chance to see first-hand the work of both organisations in developing countries. Teachers from primary and secondary schools across Scotland will join our first immersion visit, to see Scotland’s Catholic agencies working in partnership in Zambia and Ethiopia. The programme has the potential to produce some inspiring results, building lasting links of solidarity, friendship and learning between all those involved. We hope to build the programme further in 2015 and beyond.

SCIAF, Mission Matters Scotland and Justice and Peace Scotland have also been working hard together, with the support of the Bishops’ Conference, to develop Just Faith —a new tailored programme of engagement and lay formation for dioceses, helping to raise awareness and understanding of the rich tradition of Catholic social teaching. Just Faith will begin in January, building from the good work already being done in dioceses, parishes and schools. Our Holy Father, Pope Francis, is a living witness to the joy of the Gospel, and is challenging us all to live as missionary disciples, learning from the poor. We hope to take up that challenge together, and we look forward to his continuing influence and inspiration.

But as well as a year of action, 2014 is also set to be a year of preparation for SCIAF, looking forward to our 50th anniversary in 2015. Founded in a Rutherglen classroom in 1965 with a budget of just £8000, SCIAF now spends many millions each year helping some of the poorest and most vulnerable people around the world. The year 2015 will provide an opportunity to reflect on what has been achieved and thank all those who have contributed. It will also be an opportunity to look ahead, and consider what needs to be done so that in the future nobody goes to bed hungry or lives a life deprived of their dignity.

There will be many opportunities for the Catholic community and wider Scottish public to join with us during our anniversary year—and many of the preparations will start during 2014. For that reason, we are particularly interested to hear from supporters who may have personal connections to SCIAF’s history, especially from our early days, and we are on the lookout for the most creative and inventive ideas to help mark this important milestone in the life of the charity and indeed the Church in Scotland. If you’d like to get in touch, please contact me at [email protected].

SCIAF’s vision is of a just world, where everyone can ‘have life and have it to the full’ (John 10:10). So just as we have since 1965, throughout 2014—and for as long as it is needed—SCIAF will continue to be a link between people of goodwill in Scotland and our partners around the world, living and working in solidarity with communities affected by hunger, disease, war and conflict, sharing in our common struggle for human dignity.

— www.sciaf.org.uk