PastoralLetteroftheBishopofNottinghamappointedtobereadatallMasses

celebratedontheFifthSundayofEasterSaturday23/Sunday24April2016

DearbrothersandsistersinChrist,

‘JustasIhavelovedyou,youalsomustloveoneanother.Bythisloveyouhaveforoneanother,everyonewillknowthatyouaremydisciples.’(John13:34-35)

Lovingothers,asChristlovesus,istheveryheartofChristiandiscipleship,and

itwastheexampleofloveinactionthatledtotheamazinggrowthoftheChurchinherearliestdays.DailylifeintheRomanEmpire,inwhichJesusandtheApostleslived,wasoftenharshandbrutal,andsociologistshavediscoveredthatitwasprimarilythemore caring and humaneway of life of the early Christians,whichmade such animpressionuponthewidersociety,thatattractedmanypeopletoChristianity.Itwasthe Christian love and fellowship that was extended to the vulnerable, children,slaves,foreignersandthesick,andtherespectshowntowomen,thatledtomanybecomingChristians.Christianselflessness inthefaceofplaguesandsickness,andthepractical careChristians showed toeachother,werecompelling factorswhichdrewmanypeopletofaithinJesusChrist.

TheChurch recognisesandupholds thedignityofeveryhumanperson,and

invites us to create and maintain a safe environment for everyone, respondingsensitivelyandcompassionatelytotheneedsofothers,especiallychildrenandadultsatrisk.Internationally,theCatholicChurchisoneoftheworld’sbiggestprovidersofeducation,healthcareandsocialservices-runningschoolsandhospitalsinsomeofthemostdeprivedpartsoftheworld.Locally,thesafeguardingofthewelfareofourchildrenandofadultsatriskisadutyincumbentonallofus.Wecanallplayourpart

in showing care and concern, not only for the more vulnerable members of ourparishesbutalsoforthoseinourwidercommunity.

OnthisSafeguardingSunday,Iwouldlike,especially,tothankthemembersofour Safeguarding Commission, our Safeguarding Co-ordinator and all our parishSafeguardingRepresentativesfortheirgoodworkonbehalfofallofus.Theyhaveaparticularroletoplayinhelpingtoensurethatallwhoexerciseministrywithchildrenandadultsatriskhaveappropriatetrainingandsupport,sothattheyinturncancareforthosewhomtheyserve.Justasinourfamiliesweshouldnurtureandcareforoneanother,soweshoulddothesameinthefamilyofGod,theChurch,andthereforeIamgratefulforeverythingeachofyoudoes.

Today,IalsowanttospeakaboutanotheraspectoftheChurch’sdutytohelpsafeguardallpeoplewhomaybeatrisk.HumanTraffickingisdefinedbytheUnitedNations as ‘the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt ofpersons,bymeansofthreat,useofforceorothermeansofcoercion,ofabduction,offraud,ofdeception,ofabuseofpower[…]orofreceivingandgivingofpaymenttoapersonhavingcontroloveranotherperson,forthepurposeofexploitation’.Itnowranksasthesecondmostprofitableworldwidecriminalenterprise,aftertheillegalarmstrade.TheInternationalLabourOrganisationestimatesthat2.4millionpeopleare trafficked globally, at any given time, with annual profits generated fromtraffickinginhumanbeingsbeingashighas£17billion.TheUKisadestinationcountryfor human trafficking, and victims come here from countries such as Albania,Vietnam,Nigeria,Romania,Poland,Eritrea,China,Slovakia,andSudan.

It is easy to think that human trafficking, that this kind ofmodern slavery,happenselsewhere,butnotwhereIlive.Letmetellyouabout‘Maria’.Thatisnotherreal name, but I shall call her ‘Maria’. She is a vulnerable young woman in hertwenties.Shewasbornwithacleftpalate,whichaffectedherspeech,andshehassignificant learning difficulties. In January last year, police called at an address inNottingham.Inside,theyfound‘Maria’.Shewasmalnourished,frail,verydistressed,andappearedtobeinpain.Itwaslaterdiscoveredthatshehadafracturedribandwrist, as well as bruising, as a result of regular beatings. The only clothes shepossessedwerethoseshewaswearing:athinvest,tracksuittop,andapairofmen’sjeansheldupbyashoelaceinplaceofabelt;nosocks,justtrainers.

‘Maria’waseventuallyabletoexplainhowshehadbeenheldcaptiveatthe

house for the previous threemonths,where she had beenmade towork for thecouplewholivedtherewiththeirtwochildren.Shewas,ineffect,keptasanunpaiddomesticslave,whowasforcedtosleeponthefloorwithnobedclothes.Ifsheupsetthecoupleordidanythingtheyperceivedtobewrongshewasmadetosleepoutsidewhere thedogs slept.Notonlydid she receivenopay,but the statebenefits she

receivedwerestolenfromherandpaidintothecouple’saccount.Hermobilephonewastakenfromhertopreventhercontactinganyone,andshewasdeniedaccesstoFacebookandotherformsofsocialmedia.Shewasassaultedregularly,notonlybythecouplebutalsobyoneoftheirmalefriendswhowasaregularvisitortothehouse.All three eventually pleaded guilty to a number of charges of assault, theft, falseimprisonment,andforcedorcompulsorylabour,andweresenttoprison.ThistookplacewithinourDiocese,withinNottingham!

PopesSt JohnPaul II,Benedict,andFrancishave in recentyearscontinuallydrawn the attention of the Church and thewider society to this nowwidespreadexploitation of human beings. In May 2012, the Vatican hosted an internationalconferenceoncombatinghumantrafficking.ItwasorganisedbytheCatholicBishops’ConferenceofEngland&Wales,andbroughtCatholicsintoadialoguewithpoliceandprosecutionauthoritiesfromaroundtheworldtodevelopanewpartnershipusingtheChurch’sworld-widenetworks.Thisworkwascontinuedbyasecondinternationalconference in 2014, chaired by Cardinal Vincent Nichols, which resulted in theestablishment of the ‘Santa Marta Group’, a partnership of Bishops and lawenforcementofficialswhichnowhasmembershipinthirty-sixcountries,includingtheUnitedKingdom.ItalsometinLondon,laterthatsameyear,attheinvitationoftheBritishGovernment.

ParliamentpassedtheModernSlaveryActin2015,whichsawanAnti-Slavery

Commissionerbeingappointed inEngland&Wales.His role is tohelpensurethatmorevictimsofmodernslaveryareidentifiedandreferredforappropriatesupport,andthatthathumantraffickersandslavemastersareprosecutedandconvicted.InJune2015,‘CaritasBakhitaHouse’wasopenedinLondon;runbyreligioussisters,itprovidesshort-terminitialshelterandpastoralandpracticalhelptofemalevictimsofhumantrafficking.

So that we can begin to become more sensitive to potential victims oftraffickingandotherexploitedandvulnerableindividualslivinginourmidst,itismyintentiontoholdtrainingdaysinpartsoftheDiocesesothatwecanlearnmoreaboutwhatPopeFrancishascalled‘anopenwoundonthebodyofcontemporarysociety’.Ifyouwouldliketobeinvolvedinhelpingtoshapeadiocesanresponsetothisglobalevil,aspartofoursafeguardingcare,pleasedogetincontactwithyourparishpriestordeacon.Ifyouwouldliketofindoutmoreaboutmodernslavery,pleasegototheresourcessectionofthediocesanYearofMercywebsite:www.bemerciful.co.uk.

Aboveallelse,pleaseprayforanendtohumantraffickingandmodernslavery.

Pleasekeepmeinyourprayers,andknowthatyouandyourlovedonesareinmine.

RtRevPatrickMcKinneyBishopofNottingham

Bishop’sHouseNottingham

April2016