[OccupySheffield] Winter Carnival Proposal

[rachel mariner]

Hi Everyone:

Just to say that the Winter Carnival proposal Tina sent out a couple weeks
ago is getting more refined - I have attached the latest draft to the end
of  this e-mail.  Please could you take a look at it and see if it is
something you would like to do?

The idea, to tell you the truth, is that the kind of moral reform of civic
society that Occupy seeks to accomplish (more moral governments, more moral
markets) is squarely within the remit of the Church of England.  Frankly,
these guys should be helping you.  I know that there are issues with
religion and whatnot, but this proposal is a way to try to get people of
faith and people of good faith to stand up and be counted with you, because
you want the same things.  It is also a way to get you to state what you
want - if you see the proposal, after the sacred texts are read out,
whatever they may be, about virtue or accountability or good stewardship of
the earth, the next thing that happens is that the Occupy presence at the
meeting speaks to everyone about what it sees and wants:  about the
failings of that virtue in our modern society and what we might be able to
do to change that.

This is hard to conceptualize for some people, because why hold hands with
the church, right?  But allies are allies, and truth is truth, and I think
there is an enormous potential to discover commonality between the stiffest
vicar and the wildest Anon.  Both want justice, right?

If you are at all interested in this proposal, let us know, because there
are people on the Winter Carnival Committee in London who would like to
help hook you up with a place or a reader as you want and need.  Of course
this hasn't been signed off on by all members of the Winter Carnival
committee yet.  You know how that rolls.

I believe justice is possible.

Yours

Rachel Mariner
Winter Carnival Committee




Revised Winter Carnival Proposal
put forth by the Winter Carnival Working Group


We recognize and respect the essential differences between people of faith,
people of no faith tradition (who are people of good faith) and the
Occupation.

We embrace, however, our commonality and believe it to be more important
than our differences.

We are united in our fervent desire for justice, and united in
understanding that the Occupy movement presents an opportunity (an
unimaginably great opportunity) to bring the best desires of our hearts
into this world.

We understand that there are deep moral failings in our governments and
markets.

We recognize that these moral failings are as a result of choices some
humans have made.

We want to make more moral choices.

We therefore want to remind ourselves of our moral traditions.  And we must
learn anew what they mean for today.

For these reasons, we have named ten weekends throughout the dark cold
winter and ten virtues, or values:

Tolerance [diversity?  respect? love.  I think this one should be called
love?],
Generosity [could rename charity?],
Temperance [prudence?],
Accountability,
Courage, [Fortitude]
Equality,
Liberation [could rename freedom? or Liberty? ; )]
The environment/Stewardship/Green/Environmental
Democracy
Justice


Ten sacred ideas.  On those ten weekends, the Church of England and the
Occupation will meet to discuss the sacred texts and modern failings of
these virtues.  The proposed format can be replicated any place, any
synagogue, temple, mosque, church, town hall, living room,or school.  It
can be modified.

Format:

1.   If the [summit/meeting] is in the evening, a Candelit procession to
the meeting place for the town or neighbourhood.

2.  Once in the meeting place, the format is

a.  Reading from Sacred Texts by people to whom the text is sacred or
important (Koran, Bible, Pagan writings) (music could be offered instead of
a reading, or a short film).  Readers are asked to bring the members of
their community if they are in one.  It is essential that at least two
communities or faith traditions participate here, as the point is to engage
with others.  (With respect for our differences and an eye on our
commonality, to engage with others.)


b.  The vision of Occupy:  how the virtue under discussion informs the
Initial Statement, and ideas for making the UK (whether it is our
governments, our markets or ourselves) more reflect this virtue.

c.  A public discussion - This could be comments and questions, or it could
take the form of a general assembly, and people could identify the
commonality between a and b enough to vote assent to proposals.

3.  Anything else is in the discretion of the locality.  If people want to
have an ancillary arts festival based on that weekend’s virtue, then they
can.  If they want to organize a big party or a potluck, they can.  If
schoolteachers want to teach the virtue that week, they can.



We propose the following schedule:

January 21-22 Tolerance [diversity?  respect? love.  I think this one
should be called love?],
January 28-29 Generosity [could rename charity?],
February 4-5 Temperance [prudence?],
February 11-12 Accountability,
February 18-19 Courage, [Fortitude]
February 25-26 Equality,
March 3-4 Liberation [could rename freedom? or Liberty? ; )]
March 10-11 The environment/Stewardship/Green/Environmental
March 17-18 Democracy
March 24-25 Justice


On Tue, Nov 29, 2011 at 3:00 AM, tina bakolitsa <tina.bakolitsa at gmail.com>wrote:

> Dear Occupiers,
>
>
> If you were at the conference in London on 19-20 Nov, you might have heard
> of the Winter Carnival proposal.
>
> This is a vision of a way to expand the Occupy movement beyond the tents
> and into the general population, using the natural alliance the Occupy
> Movement has with churches.
>
> This alliance is not one of belief, but one of urgent goals: economic and
> social justice, true democracy and caring for the weakest in our society.
>
> It's a vision of growing the movement to truly encompass the 99%, of
> people coming together this winter and lighting their dark streets,
> walking shoulder to shoulder and acknowledging their common desire for a
> more just world for themselves and their children.
>
> This vision involves a Winter Carnival – a local event held at the
> Cathedral by and for the Occupation and any allies who come forward. One
> part of the Winter Carnival may be a visit from a “Touring Occupation” originating
> in London. Alternatively, since we don't want this event to be
> London-centric, we can imagine simultaneous carnivals taking place in
> different cities in parallel each with its own candlelit walk (see
> attached).
>
> One important part may be a debate held inside the Cathedral.  In 1647,
> the Levellers held debates at Putney Cathedral to determine what course
> the people of the UK wanted the country to take – apart from the monarchy and
> the existing government. What do we want and how do we get there?
>
> The time has come to have that dialogue anew.
>
> For both the church (any church - the Church Universal) and the Occupy
> movement, the goal here is outreach.  The idea is that any organization
> would be welcome to participate, from local green parties and activists
> like UK Uncut to churches and faith groups of all descriptions who share
> our vision and goals.  The idea is that we stand together and celebrate the
> fact that the ideas of the Occupation are already beginning to triumph.
>  But
>
> we need to truly reach the 99%. We want to start that process of outreach
> by walking in the streets with all our allies, lighting the darkness of
> winter with candles, by engaging, teaching, listening and learning.
>
> At this point, we visualise the Winter Carnival as a nation-wide event (or
> rather series of events), starting January 7th and continuing over eight or
> more weekends. We have made no provisions involving Ireland but are
> including the Irish occupations in this mail because during our last
> gathering, at least one of you (Occupy Cork) appeared to express some
> interest.
>
> Would you be interested in working together with us to bring a Winter
> Carnival to your city?  It would be work, but it is the kind of work and
> organizing that can be done by supporters who are not able to camp.
>
> Attached is a proposal for you to consider and perhaps bring to your
> General Assembly or outside supporter. Note this is an idea in
> development - a very powerful idea that could really bring the movement
> forward - but it has not yet been approved by the General Assembly at St.
> Paul’s, Finsbury Square or Bank of Ideas. We'll be bringing it to the
> attention of Occupy London's first joint general assembly (OLSX/OLFS/BoI)
> this Friday.
>
> We have made first contacts with around 22 bishops in the UK on the
> subject and may have contacted one near you.
>
> Please let us know if you would like to be involved in an outreach project like
> this with us, if you have any other suggestions or even if you simply want
> to know who we contacted near you and whether they have responded.
>
> We'd like to leave you with the Occupier's Prayer, presented to us at a
> lunchtime assembly at OLSX about ten days ago. This was from a man who came
> up to the microphone to ask if he could celebrate his 90th(!) birthday on
> the site. The GA unanimously agreed.
>
> He then proceeded to read the prayer he had composed for the Occupy
> movement (see attached). We felt that his words captured all the points
> made in the Occupy London statement but translated into a
> spiritual/religious text.
>
> For those who can't read the text from the pictures, here it is reproduced:
>
> *Occupier's Prayer*
>
> LORD, make me an instrument of Thy power to combat evil;
> Where there is sabotage of Thy creation; Let me strive to safeguard it.
> Where greed seeks to destroy our moral heritage; Let me be first to oppose
> it.
> Where power and money combine to undermine our community life;
> Let me hasten to affirm the supremacy of love of neighbour.
> Where there is passivity and conformism to powers of darkness;
> Give me courage to radiate the light of truth.
>
> DIVINE MASTER, grant that I may not so much seek to live a quiet life as
> to join with others to    enhance life, not so much to grab as to give, not
> to evade my social duty as to shoulder it, and not to fear power as
> valiantly to strive with others that it shall serve worthy ends; for it is
> in striving to act with love that we affirm love, in devoting ourselves to
> noble causes that we are redeemed, and in giving ourselves utterly to the
> wellbeing of our neighbours, to the service of truth, beauty and the joy of
> Thy creation, we rise to the life immortal. Amen.
>
>
> Kind regards
>
>
> Winter Carnival Committee
> Contact
> Rachel Mariner On behalf of the Outreach Working Group (
> outreach at occupylsx.org) and Multifaith and Belief Working Group of Occupy
> London  * <rachelmariner at gmail.com>rachelmariner at gmail.com * 01223243006
> * 46 Fendon Road Cambridge CB1 7RT * 07960907937
>
>
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