Category - alternative economics

Where is the Church of England’s heart invested?

Jonathan Bartley and Simon Barrow — Fri, 22 May 2009 16:39:25 +0100

The Church of England has recently lost £1.3 billion through its investments in shares and property. Yet it still has huge assets as well as large responsibilities. This paper looks at some of the difficulties and contradictions of the Church's investment and finance policy, particularly the dislocation of financial decision making from integral mission and economic justice, which is both practically and theologically deficient. Acknowledging both the good intentions towards ethical practice and the constraints imposed by the legal and Established framework of the C of E, the paper argues that for Christian churches, economics needs to be re-located in the subversive and alternative calling of a Gospel community in an unjust world. It suggests there are many positive ways forward. The paper is authored by Jonathan Bartley and Simon Barrow.

staff writers

Churches confer on responses to the economic crisis

agency reporter — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 00:45:23 +0000

Christian leaders and thinkers came together at Methodist Church House in London this week to talk about how the Churches could make a positive contribution to tackling the economic crisis.

Why the Government should help Woolworths, Jeremy Vine Show, BBC Radio 2

Press Office — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 14:03:55 +0000

Ekklesia's director Jonathan Bartley argues that the Government should intervene to help Woolworths

Take a pay cut to save a colleague’s job? You must be joking - Sunday Times, 26 October 2008

Press Office — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 17:21:47 +0000

Rosie Millard is proud to be selfish and argues against Ekklesia's proposals, set out on the Jeremy Vine Show, for a more co-operative way of structuring companies.

Believable finance

Simon Barrow — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 07:56:48 +0100

Ekklesia's briefing on faith and economy has been updated again to include the latest material appearing on the site about the global credit crunch.

Alternatives to redundancy, Jeremy Vine Show, 15 October 2008

Press Office — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 18:11:56 +0100

Jonathan Bartley puts forward proposals for alternative co-operative structures to sur

The Christians who can't handle money, George Pitcher, Daily Telegraph, 26 September 2008

staff writers — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 18:49:11 +0100

George Pitcher responds to Ekklesia's revelations about the Church of England's investment strategies, and proposals for an alternative investment strategy.

Live simply and invest differently, says new UK partnership

staff writers — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 08:53:53 +0000

The UK wing of the global social investment initiative Oikocredit has teamed up with the Livesimply campaign to promote a shared vision for social justice. Oikocredit provides vital loans to creative but impoverished communities.

UK boost for Oikocredit global social investment initiative

staff writers — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 09:59:44 +0000

Oikocredit, a global member-based social investment co-operative which makes small loans to hundreds of vital development projects, has expressed hope that it will "really take off" in the UK after receiving its first major contribution.