Dignity, Agency, Power: review by John Vincent

John Vincent hails…  

DIGNITY, AGENCY AND POWER  

Stories, prayers and reflections marking 40 years’ work of Church Action on Poverty.

This new book edited by Niall Cooper, Chris Howson and Liam Purcell is published by Wild Goose Publications at £14.99.

It is the standard reference book for progressive Christians for the 2020s and will rightly be put to use by all of us.

Poverty robs people of their dignity. So here, a wide range of different partners show how dignity, agency and power each belong together and each together, build a new vision of a new future for society in which poverty is overcome, and all have fullness of life.

The sources used are often Church Action on Poverty publications and bulletins, though each has its own author or contributor – a list of over 40 of them. The sections include:

• Prayers, hymns and liturgies
• Stories of communities and individuals in their struggles against hope and transformation through opposition and difficulty
• Poems, drama and Bible studies
• Theological reflections

Many well known names are participants, and lesser known and previously unknown writers.

Church Action on Poverty and the three editors are to be congratulated on an excellent production which will serve us all well.