In Christ City Church our vision is “to make a positive difference for Christ in the city of Dublin – spiritually, culturally and socially”. Spiritually, we want to see people come to know eternal life in Jesus. Culturally, we want to equip Christians to live out their faith in everyday life, being ‘salt and light’ for Christ wherever they go. And socially, we want to be a church that is caring for and protecting the poor and vulnerable in our society.
Making a positive difference socially for Christ in the city of Dublin
The last aspect of the vision of CCC is often the one that can seem to be ‘missing’ from our church activities because it is not usually directly linked to our Sunday Gatherings, City Groups, Life Groups or other CCC events. The only exception to that is twice a year when we replace our normal Central Gathering at Synge Street with a banquet for the homeless – do read this blog post to find out why – 6 reasons we do the banquet. Additionally, we are still planning on furthering our partnership with Christians Against Poverty Ireland, helping those in financial distress through money coaching and support.
Partnership, Collaboration and Support
However, much of the way we outwork the ‘social’ aspect of our vision is similar to the way we work out the ‘cultural’ aspect – through equipping and mobilising the saints towards neighbourly love and participation in existing projects in the city.
– Partnership/Collaboration. For example, over the years we have had many people volunteer at The Lighthouse – getting to know and feeding homeless people. Some people in the church have helped in a one-off or regular capacity at Tiglin. A City Group has taken time to work with Team Hope to get shoeboxes together at Christmas. I am sure there are other church members who have got involved with things that we haven’t heard about (please do get in contact if that is the case – maybe we can shine a light on the cause you are supporting).
– Support. We have a number of church members who work with organisations that are working to serve those in our city with social needs – organisations like Aoibhneas, Barnardos, Jobcare or ACET – and we look to support them in their vocation there. Additionally we have often given a financial donation to these organisations that we have a personal connection with. Again, if you’re a church member and are working for an organisation in the NGO or charitable sector please contact us).
Lena Neill – I have to be honest, I haven’t done much of or any of the hard yards that so many of the volunteers and employees of team hope do. They truly work so hard to gather, check and deliver shoe boxes to children in so many different countries. My role was helping with a bit of the advertising through photos shoots and videos. It was always really special to get to spend time with The Team Hope staff and volunteers and get a glimpse of their heart and vision for the mission. It was inspiring and encouraging to be around.
Team Hope is one of those charities that truly touches the lives of children, albeit just through a simple shoe box filled with gifts. It’s a reminder of Christs love at Christmas, and a simple way of serving others. Being a small part of Team Hope for a few years was very special for me. I suppose it meant that I could be part of encouraging people to serve the less fortunate, just as God has told us to.
If you’re interested in getting more involved in social justice projects, we recommend you contact these organisations directly and see how you can support them. A very easy and practical way to offer one-off help is to sign up (to the email, or the app) with Serve The City Ireland – and then when projects in the city come up in Dublin, you can lend a hand.
If you have any questions or ideas about how CCC can fulfil our vision to make a positive difference for the city socially then please don’t hesitate to contact us.
Resources
If you’re interested in learning more about a Christian approach to social justice and social action here are some resources that might be of interest to you
Articles
- John Stott – Christian Social Involvement
- Lausanne paper – Social Justice & The Great Commission
- Tim Keller – A biblical critique of secular justice (focussing on race)
Books
- Tim Keller – Generous Justice
- Scrivener and Schell – Come & See: a history and theology of mission (see chapters 10-11)
- Tim Chester – Good news to the poor – the gospel and social involvement