Christian Concern For Our Nation - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Christian Concern is the trading name of CCFON Ltd, a Christian

Christian

A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...

organisation in the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

which seeks to introduce a 'Christian voice' into law, the media and Government. It was formerly part of the Lawyers' Christian Fellowship.

History

The organisation was founded in 2004, initially as part of The Lawyers' Christian Fellowship's Public Policy Unit, to lobby Parliament where it was felt that Christians may be adversely affected by, or may have ethical concerns about, proposed legislation.

It was incorporated

Incorporation (business)

Incorporation is the forming of a new corporation . The corporation may be a business, a non-profit organisation, sports club, or a government of a new city or town...

as an independent body, CCFON Ltd (Christian Concern For Our Nation), on 24 June 2008, after the Channel 4

Channel 4

Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...

documentary In God's Name, and was headed by Andrea Minichiello Williams, who left the leadership team of the LCF. She was accompanied by Mark Mullins, who retired from the LCF National Council to provide her with support. In October 2010, Christian Concern For Our Nation shortened its operating name to Christian Concern.

Structure

Christian Concern was established as a not-for-profit limited company

Limited company

A limited company is a company in which the liability of the members or subscribers of the company is limited to what they have invested or guaranteed to the company. Limited companies may be limited by shares or by guarantee. And the former of these, a limited company limited by shares, may be...

, CCFON Ltd. It does not possess charitable status because it lobbies politically.
Williams is also a director of the Christian Legal Centre

Christian Legal Centre

The Christian Legal Centre is a legal organization which was set up in December 2007 to provide legal support for Christians in the United Kingdom and lobby on their behalf.-Notable cases:...

Ltd (CLC). Although this is a separate legal entity, a number of employees, contractors and volunteers who work for CCFON Ltd also work for CLC, sharing office space and other resources.

Notable campaigns

In 2005 and early 2006, the group campaigned alongside other Christian bodies to stop the Religious Hatred Bill. Although they failed to prevent the bill becoming law, it was passed only after amendments in the House of Lords. Christian Concern claimed this as a victory stating that, whilst they "would still prefer that the law was removed from the statute books", the bill, in its amended form, "allays almost all the fears which we have talked about over the past months".

In 2006 and 2007 they opposed segments of the Sexual Orientation Regulations, organising a rally outside Parliament and a petition which gained over 10,000 signatures, on the grounds that the new law would "discriminate heavily" against Christians. From autumn 2007 they highlighted concerns over some clauses in the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill

Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008

The Bill's discussion in Parliament did not permit time to debate whether it should extend abortion rights under the Abortion Act 1967 to also cover Northern Ireland...

, organising a demonstration outside Parliament in January 2008. Both Bills subsequently passed reading in the House of Commons without amendment.

In 2007, they supported Lydia Playfoot, a schoolgirl who had been instructed to remove a sexual abstinence ring

Silver Ring Thing

Silver Ring Thing is a virginity pledge program which encourages teens and young adults to remain celibate until marriage. It is based in the United States and was until 2005 funded by the U.S. federal government...

in school because it contravened her school's uniform policy. Miss Playfoot took her case to the High Court of Justice

High Court of Justice

The High Court of Justice is, together with the Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, one of the Senior Courts of England and Wales...

alleging her rights human had been violated under the European Convention on Human Rights

European Convention on Human Rights

The Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms is an international treaty to protect human rights and fundamental freedoms in Europe. Drafted in 1950 by the then newly formed Council of Europe, the convention entered into force on 3 September 1953...

, but the High Court found against her, awarding her school £12,000 costs.

Also in 2007, they supported foster parents who had refused to sign a new contract drawn up to implement the Sexual Orientation Regulations.

In 2010, Christian Concern promoted a campaign entitled "Not Ashamed", drawing attention to instances where Christians believed themselves to have been marginalised at work or in public life. The campaign was backed by George Carey

George Carey

George Leonard Carey, Baron Carey of Clifton PC, FKC is a former Archbishop of Canterbury, holding the office from 1991 to 2002. He was the first modern holder of the office not to have attended Oxford or Cambridge University...

, and secured wide media coverage on its official launch in December 2010. However, another Christian think tank, Ekklesia

Ekklesia (think tank)

Ekklesia is an independent, not-for-profit British think tank which examines the role of religion in public life and advocates transformative theological ideas and solutions. Jonathan Bartley is the founder and co-director....

, said that there was "no evidence" of systematic discrimination.

Controversy

The Channel 4 documentary In God's Name, which aired on 19 May 2008, examined the growing influence of Christian evangelical movements in the UK and was critical of the group (then part of LCF), presenting it as part of a Christian fundamentalist

Fundamentalist Christianity

Christian fundamentalism, also known as Fundamentalist Christianity, or Fundamentalism, arose out of British and American Protestantism in the late 19th century and early 20th century among evangelical Christians...

network.

In particular, the programme highlighted the involvement of the LCF in lobbying

Lobbying

Lobbying is the act of attempting to influence decisions made by officials in the government, most often legislators or members of regulatory agencies. Lobbying is done by various people or groups, from private-sector individuals or corporations, fellow legislators or government officials, or...

the British Government on issues such as abortion

Abortion

Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...

, gay rights and the enforcing of laws relating to blasphemy

Blasphemy

Blasphemy is irreverence towards religious or holy persons or things. Some countries have laws to punish blasphemy, while others have laws to give recourse to those who are offended by blasphemy...

. Investigative journalist David Modell followed the activities of Andrea Minichiello Williams, and included footage of her meetings with Conservative politicians Norman Tebbit

Norman Tebbit

Norman Beresford Tebbit, Baron Tebbit, CH, PC , is a British politician. A member of the Conservative Party, he served in the Cabinet from 1981 to 1987 as Secretary of State for Employment...

and Nadine Dorries

Nadine Dorries

Nadine Vanessa Dorries is a British Conservative Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Mid Bedfordshire since 2005. She has been involved in parliamentary attempts to change the laws on abortion....

, both of whom have worked with the LCF to influence policy on matters where they had a common agenda.

In the programme Williams expressed a number of views on camera, stating that she believes that the earth is only 4000 years old

Young Earth creationism

Young Earth creationism is the religious belief that Heavens, Earth, and all life on Earth were created by direct acts of the Abrahamic God during a relatively short period, sometime between 5,700 and 10,000 years ago...

, that Islam

Islam

Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...

is a false religion, and that children raised in same sex families

LGBT parenting

LGBT parenting refers to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people parenting one or more children. This includes children raised by same-sex couples , children raised by single LGBT parents, and children raised by an opposite-sex couple where at least one partner is LGBT.LGBT people can...

will not finish school, will become drug dependent and grow up to be gender confused.

Barrister, Mark Mullins, who left LCF with Williams, and who is listed on the CCFON website as a 'Public Policy Adviser', was reprimanded by the Bar Council

Bar council

A bar council , in a Commonwealth country and in the Republic of Ireland, the Bar Council of Ireland is a professional body that regulates the profession of barristers together with the King's Inns. Solicitors are generally regulated by the Law society....

in July 2006, after he refused to represent a gay client.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.

History

Structure

Notable campaigns

Controversy

See also

External links