Greetings to you all.
This update contains:
- A link for the Morning Service of Mindful Meditation, Music & Conversation
- A note about, and links for, the Thursday Zoom Kiitsu Kyōkai Seiza Meditation & Conversation Meeting, the next one of which takes place on February 20th at 19:30
- A reminder that the next online session for the International Association for Religious Freedom’s Free Religion Institute on Imaoka Shin’ichirō’s understanding of “Free-Religion” is on Wednesday 26th February
- A couple of links to photos shared with us by Shelagh Lewins of Sabrina’s life, and the of the memorial service in the church last Thursday
- Links to the minister’s address/podcast
- A link to denominational news (Uni-News)
- A few notices of, and links to, various Cambridge related, social-justice events sent to me last week
A link for the Morning Service of Mindful Meditation, Music & Conversation
Our regular Sunday Morning Service of Mindful Meditation, Music and Conversation starts at 10:30 and finishes at 11:30/11:40.
Should you wish to join this by Zoom, please use the following permanent link:
Join Sunday Morning Zoom Meeting
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/86882949446?pwd=kliXbdABEfbU8FjDMtNRNJ4Lr2lb5z.1
Meeting ID: 868 8294 9446
Passcode: 612407
A note about the Thursday morning/evening Zoom Kiitsu Kyōkai Seiza Meditation & Conversation Meeting
The next Kiitsu Kyōkai meeting takes place on February 20th at 19:30. For more information, please click on either of the two following links:
https://andrewjbrown.blogspot.com/p/kiitsu-kyokai.html
https://www.cambridgeunitarian.org/evening-service/
A reminder that the next online session for the International Association for Religious Freedom’s Free Religion Institute on Imaoka Shin’ichirō’s understanding of “Free-Religion” is on Wednesday 26th February
For the Zoom link and the relevant texts, please click on the following link:
https://iarf.net/free-religion-institute-first-course/
A couple of links to photos shared with us by Shelagh Lewins of Sabrina’s life, and the of the memorial service in the church last Thursday
Here is a link to the Google album of photos from the slideshow that was showing in the church:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/rj3vwWJsBS3koQD49
Here is a link to Shelagh’s photos from Sabrina’s committal and Celebration of Life:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/5ss8ThtxG4gKpZDo7
Links to the minister’s address/podcast:
The minister’s blog and podcast (which contain his weekly, Sunday “thought for the day” as well as other, occasional, pieces) can be found at the following links:
CAUTE — MAKING FOOTPRINTS NOT BLUEPRINTS
For additional national Unitarian news, please click on the following link:
Uni-news
https://us20.campaign-archive.com/home/?u=1590ea5f53cdc6fb8a17c311c&id=7bce4a21b7
A few notices of, and links to, various Cambridge related events sent to me last week
Stand up and say No: Could your group write to your MP?
In view of the recent changes the Labour Government has made to citizenship rules, the Cambridge Refugee Resettlement Campaign have written to their MP sharing why the new rules are “utterly cruel and destructive” (see attached letter for details)
The national charity Care for Calais have set up a website where we can email our MPs directly with their suggested letter (see below). If you are happy to send this as it is, follow this link (there is no opportunity to change it):
https://help.care4calais.org/page/165948/action/1
Perhaps you could circulate this link, so that MPs are flooded with protests.
If you prefer to write your own email – maybe as a mix of both these – the email addresses to send them to Cambridge MPs are:
Daniel Zeichner: daniel@danielzeichner.co.uk
Pippa Heylings: pippa.heylings.mp@parliament.uk
The email on the Care for Calais website:
As one of your constituents, I am writing to ask you to oppose the Government’s ban on refugees being granted British citizenship.
A person’s right to seek safety is not based on how they travel to the country they are seeking sanctuary in. A person’s right to asylum is based on the dangers they are escaping.
The Government has failed to offer safe routes for people to claim asylum, forcing people to take dangerous journeys to do so. This ban on citizenships further punishes members of our community whose claims of fleeing war, persecution, and danger have been upheld by our asylum system because no safe route to claim asylum was available.
Banning citizenship will create a new group of non-citizens, granted permission to stay in the UK but denied the security and safety of a permanent home.
I call on you to support EDM: Refusal of Citizenship to Refugees Who Have Made Irregular Crossings, tabled by Nadia Whittome MP and demand the ban on citizenship is lifted.
Yours sincerely.
–o0o–
This film showing might be something you could organise in your community, to raise awareness of how lives are being affected by hostile policies.
The production company behind the award-winning BAFTA-longlisted documentary Hostile (2022), which details the UK’s ‘hostile environment’ immigration policies and its impact on migrant communities, have been awarded funding to screen the documentary free of charge for selected universities, schools and organisations.
If you would be interested in accessing the film they’d love to hear from you: impact@galeforcefilms.co.uk
If interested, please let them know which dates would suit, and whether you would like the full 97-minute film or a 52-minute cut.
Please find some additional background on the film below, as well as the trailer here.
You can learn more about Hostile, our impact campaign, and the funding we have received on our website:
–o0o–
Contacting the Home Office
Following feedback from various places, about difficulties contacting the Home Office, the Government has put together an Asylum Central Communications Hub (ACCH) Webpage:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/how-to-email-the-asylum-central-communications-hub#overview
The page provides email templates which can be used when contacting ACCH, to ensure all the necessary information is captured to enable them to progress your query.
–o0o–
Sponsored Walking
Refugee Action are asking people to walk 30, 60 or 100 miles as part of March for Refugees. Choose your own distance and route – every step you take is a step toward a more welcoming UK. And when you raise just £10, you’ll earn a branded Refugee Action t-shirt to wear with pride as you walk for change.
You can sign up here:
https://givp.nl/register/84aFnuAM?
–o0o–
Cambridge CND
Cambridge CND has been under a process of reestablishment in Cambridge since the announcement in December 2023 of the return of nuclear bombs to the US military base at Lakenheath, just 28 miles away. Over the last 12 months we have supported protests at the gates of the base, leafleted the market square in Cambridge, written to MPs, and held two successful public meetings. Details of the most recent meeting on January 22 this year on the theme ‘Peace not War!’ can be found at:
https://www.cambridgeindependent.co.uk/news/peace-camp-at-lakenheath-to-start-in-april-cambridge-cnd-me-9402010/
Our next meeting to plan activities for the rest of 2025 will take place at 11am on Saturday 15 February in the upper room at Thrive Café, Norfolk Street, Cambridge. Do come along or write to Alan at cndcambridge@gmail.com
–o0o–
Andrew James Brown
(Days off are generally Monday and Tuesday)
Minister
Cambridge Unitarian Church
Emmanuel Road
Cambridge
CB1 1JW
07477 462 110 (Mobile)
http://www.cambridgeunitarian.org/
Blog—Caute
http://andrewjbrown.blogspot.com
Podcast—Making Footprints Not Blueprints
https://footprints.buzzsprout.com
Jiyū Shūkyō / Free Religion
https://andrewjbrown.blogspot.com/p/free-religion.html
Kiitsu Kyōkai
https://andrewjbrown.blogspot.com/p/kiitsu-kyokai.html
Seiza Meditation (Quiet Sitting)
https://andrewjbrown.blogspot.com/p/seiza-meditation.html