The shocking statistics presented to us this month about the extent of slavery in our modern world has made me stop and think. There are thought to be 40.3 million slaves worldwide, many working in forced labour in the supply chains of brands we all know and love. However, despite the seemingly dire situation this may be, our guest speaker Phillipa, from the charity ‘Hope for Justice’, presented us with practical steps we can take to be part of the solution. This included prayer, educating ourselves and our colleagues so we can identify and refer patients who may be victims of human trafficking, understanding the national referral mechanism, understanding refugee rights and what support they are entitled to, and taking action and advocating through signing petitions and social media awareness. Our core reading encouraged us to not let ourselves become disheartened in the face of such injustice, but instead to use the tools God has equipped us with to take on this challenge. Just as Moses was called to lead his people out of slavery, we too can place our hope in the God of rescue and believe things can change when we work alongside Him.
Film club
Grow Your Own was the film of choice this month. Based on the true story of a community project in the UK that provides asylum seekers with plots on an allotment site, it follows the journey of trauma recovery, changing prejudices and highlights the harsh reality of immigration law. We discussed the necessity of such projects for those seeking asylum and how we can support their journey as they try and integrate into our communities.
Power play
This month led me to consider how the imbalance and abuse of power leads to injustice, this is illustrated by the story of Kung Sang in our film Grow Your Own. We learn how he had to flee his country with his family because he stood up to those in power who came to take away his livelihood and to develop property on his land. And then as a non-UK resident he fell even further in the hierarchy of society and became even more vulnerable to the control of the power of others.
Injustice breeds injustice. The cycle begins and ends with power play; those with it often abuse it at the expense of others, further increasing their power as they take it from others. However, we know that ‘power belongs to you, God’ (Psalm 62:11) and the ‘power’ humans believe they have, is not true power at all. Their wealth may give them a false sense of power but it is ultimately God that gives and takes away. Therefore, we can put our trust in God, and by following his way of righteousness and justice, we can break the cycle. And we can look to a day when we see the balance of power restored.