Address by the Rt Revd Peter Selby As part of Fforestfach Colloquium VII When Rabbi Julia Neuberger answers the question, ‘How does antisemitism feel?’ with the one word ‘Uncomfortable’, it dates her careful and concerned explanation of the phenomenon as before October 2023 when rocket boosters were put under all (...)
Continue Reading →Address by Graham Edwards As part of Fforestfach Colloquium VII As I have the opportunity, I would like to express my gratitude to you, Brian, both for arranging these colloquia, which I find both fascinating and spiritually nourishing, and for your mentorship over the last twenty years, for which I (...)
Continue Reading →Address by Rabbi Benjy Morgan As part of Fforestfach Colloquium VII I was born in New York to British parents who happened to be living there at the time. By what seemed little more than an accident of birth, I became an American citizen with an American passport. To me, (...)
Continue Reading →Address given by Rabbi S.F. Zimmerman [1] As part of Fforestfach Colloquium VII My Lords, ladies and gentlemen, thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak with you today. I speak not only as a Rabbi, and not only as a member of the Jewish community, but as someone (...)
Continue Reading →By David Miller Fforestfach Colloquium VI I want to begin with a thought experiment proposed by the Australian philosopher Peter Singer in a much-cited article from the 1970s.[1] Singer asks the reader to imagine walking past a shallow pond and seeing a small child who has fallen in and (...)
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By Daniel Johnson Fforestfach Colloquium VI In British political debate, it has not been customary for the past century or so to cite scriptural texts, let alone embark on their exegesis, in order to clinch an argument. Any politician or journalist who tried to do so would quickly discover (...)
Continue Reading →By Nick Spencer [1] Fforestfach Colloquium VI The topic of what (if any) responsibilities we as a nation owe to others – refugees, immigrants, other nations, etc – is never settled. But, of late, it has been particularly unsettled. Moreover, it is one that Christians are seriously (and increasingly?) (...)
Continue Reading →The Role of Business in Social Welfare James Perry I started my career working for a great Quaker business, Cadbury Ltd. As a trainee I was fascinated by what made the business tick, and so I became friendly with the in-house librarians. Their role was to curate the organisational memory (...)
Continue Reading →Welfare and the Common Good Maurice Glasman First, it is always an honour to be invited by Lord Griffiths to anything and I always try to accept. He has been a true friend to me since I entered the House of Lords; that is a rare gift to be given (...)
Continue Reading →A Welfare Society Brian Griffiths The welfare state A market economy can be a harsh reality for those who work in it. A fall in the world price of a commodity can lead to the closure of a business. A new technology can make jobs redundant. A financial crisis in (...)
Continue Reading →Moral Questions Richard Turnbull Introduction Poverty is a scar on humanity. Samuel Johnson, a high Tory, claimed in 1770 that ‘decent provision for the poor is the true test of civilization.’[1] For R. H. Tawney, a socialist, there is nothing that ‘reveals the true character of a social philosophy more (...)
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