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2012 European Politics and Society Network

The European Politics and Society Network is designed to teach key Christian political and social leaders how to be salt and light through effectively communicating Christ’s character in their respective contexts. Applicants should be those who are working in areas of politics, campaigning or community action. Both seasoned campaigners and aspirant politicians will benefit from the input of leading thinkers and practitioners. This Network will be led by David Fieldsend, Charlie Hoare, and Nola Leach. The four Network sessions are broken into three parts: a lecture from a leading Christian in public life, multi-disciplinary tutor groups, and two specialist sub-networks in the fields of Politics and Law. Speaking in the main network session and sub-network sessions are Anca Bulica, Sir Jeremy Cooke, Os Guinness, Roger Kiska, David Landrum, Paul Marshall, David McIlroy Matthew Price, and Jeffrey Ventrella. Prior preparation will be set for all applicants.

NETWORK LEADERS

David Fieldsend is a co-leader of the European Politics and Society Network, and is the Manager of CARE for Europe, promoting Christian values in public policy discussion at the European Institutions concentrating on bioethics and family policy. He gained his first degree (town planning) from Newcastle University, holds a diploma in theological studies (Trinity, Bristol), and last year was awarded a European Masters degree in bioethics. He spent many years as a planning specialist in local government in the UK (including a secondment advising the Sudanese Government). He stood as a British Parliamentary Candidate in 1983 for the constituency of Falmouth-Camborne. He is married to Anne; they have three adult children and one grandson. He is a licensed Reader in the Church of England and member of the diocesan synod for Europe.

Charlie Hoare is a co-leader of the European Politics and Society Network. He received his Bachelor's degree in History at the University of Durham. After a year of working for a British Member of Parliament, he studied law before taking a Masters degree at the London School of Economics in social policy and non-profit management. Since 1998 he has worked in the International Team at Christian Action, Research & Education (CARE) where he now serves as International Director. In addition to representing CARE at the United Nations, he has helped establish a strategic global network of policy makers, academics, politicians, and diplomats at the national and regional levels. Since 2004 he has also been Deputy Director of the CARE Institute for Faith & Culture and helps direct the CARE Leadership Programme, developing and envisioning some of the brightest young graduates in Britain in policy involvement and cultural transformation. He is married to Eleanor; they have a son and two daughters.

Nola Leach is a co-leader of the European Politics and Society Network and serves as the Chief Executive of CARE (Christian Action, Research & Education), one of Europe’s leading Christian charities which provides resources and helps bring Christian insight and experience to matters of public policy and practical caring initiatives. CARE undertakes a variety of social caring and educational programmes and research. It is represented in the UK Parliaments and Assemblies, at the EU in Brussels, and at the UN in Geneva and New York. As Head of the Public Affairs team, she leads campaigns on topics such as human trafficking, Internet pornography, and the value of human life from its beginning to natural end. She has overseen the publication of Living Free, a sequel to the CARE book Searching for Intimacy – a resource designed to help those trapped in the net of Internet pornography. She is increasingly in demand as both a writer and public speaker. She has penned numerous articles, and regularly appears in the media.

NETWORK SPEAKERS

Anca Bulica was brought up and studied European Politics in Romania before completing a Masters Degree at Westminster in London and has served as CARE for Europe's Policy Officer based in Brussels for the past two years. In addition to policy work in Brussels, Anca has been working to develop CARE's resources to combat human trafficking in source countries in Central and Eastern Europe.

Jeremy Cooke was admitted as a solicitor in 1973 and later called to the Bar (Lincoln’s Inn) in 1976. He took Silk in 1990 and was made a Bencher in 2001. He acted as an Assistant Recorder between 1994-98 and as a Recorder between 1998-2001. He was appointed as a High Court Judge (Queen’s Bench Division) in 2001. He has been Vice-President of the Lawyers’ Christian Fellowship since 2003.

Os Guinness is an author and social critic. He was educated in England, receiving his undergraduate degree from the University of London and a DPhil from Oriel College, Oxford. He was a Guest Scholar at the Woodrow Wilson Center for International Studies and a Visiting Fellow at the Brookings Institution. From 1986-1989 he was the Executive Director of the Williamsburg Charter Foundation, one of the drafters of the Williamsburg Charter. He is the founder and was the Senior Fellow of the Trinity Forum and most recently was Senior Fellow of the East West Institute in New York. Some of his influential books include The Dust of Death; In Two Minds; The Gravedigger File; The American Hour; Dining with the Devil: The Megachurch Movement Flirts with Modernity; Fit Bodies, Fat Minds: Why Evangelicals Don't Think; The Call; and Time for Truth: Living Free in a World of Lies.

Roger Kiska serves as legal counsel with the Alliance Defense Fund and is based in Bratislava, Slovak Republic, where he specialises in international litigation with a focus on European law. He is developing the ADF-allied attorney network in Europe, working with allies to litigate European cases that have a potential for impacting ADF efforts in America. Before joining ADF in 2008, Kiska served as legal counsel at the European Center for Law and Justice. He earned his J.D. at Ave Maria School of Law in Ann Arbor, Michigan. He is admitted to the State Bar of Michigan and successfully completed the United Kingdom’s Solicitor’s Transfer Exam–the British equivalent of the American Bar exam.

Dave Landrum has been appointed as Director of Advocacy for the Evangelical Alliance. In this role Dave hopes to encourage Christians to articulate a confident, distinctive and dynamic message for personal and social transformation across the nation. He will also lead the public policy and theology teams at the Alliance. He was previously appointed Parliamentary Officer for the Bible Society. He grew up in Bootle, Liverpool, where he left school without any academic qualifications. After becoming a Christian nearly two decades ago, he went on to gain a first-class degree in contemporary politics and urban policy studies, before completing a doctorate in politics and policy process in education. He lives in Surrey with his wife Gill, and the couple have two grown sons.

Paul Marshall is Senior Fellow at the Hudson Institute's Center for Religious Freedom in Washington, D.C. He holds a BSc (Geology) from the University of Manchester, an MSc (Geochemistry) from the University of Western Ontario, an MPhil (Philosophy) from the Institute for Christian Studies, Toronto, and an MA and PhD (Political Science) from York University, with further studies in international human rights law at the University of Strasbourg and theology and jurisprudence at Oxford University. He has spoken on religious freedom, international relations, and radical Islam before the U.S. Congress and State Department, dozens of international governments and organisations, national news programmes, and universities. In addition to multiple articles and columns appearing in news publications like The New York Times, he has written or edited more than 20 books and booklets, including Their Blood Cries Out: The Untold Story of Christians Who Are Dying for Their Faith, the Wilbur Prize-winning Blind Spot: When Journalists Don't Get Religion, and his most recent book, Silenced: How Apostasy and Blasphemy Codes are Choking Freedom Worldwide (Oxford, 2011). 

David McIlroy is a practising barrister based in London in the UK. He holds Master’s degrees in Law from the Universities of Cambridge, UK, and Toulouse, France, and a PhD in the Theology of Law from Spurgeon’s College, University of Wales. David serves on the editorial board of Law & Justice, teaches the Mission of Justice and the Theology of Law course at Spurgeon’s College, and is a Visiting Senior Lecturer in  Banking  Law at  the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London. He is convinced that justice matters enormously to God and that He wants Christians to work hard to see justice done more and more in situations around the world. Through his books (A Biblical View of Law and Justice, A Trinitarian Theology of Law) and many articles, David seeks to deepen people’s reflections on justice and to inspire others to take up the challenge of acting justly, loving mercy, and walking humbly with God (Micah 6:8).

Matthew Price is the International Director of Lawyers Christian Fellowship (UK), having been appointed in April 2010. A qualified solicitor, he worked for almost six years with corporate law firm Slaughter and May in the city of London before serving for three years in Uganda working alongside Uganda Christian Lawyers’ Fraternity in Kampala. Serving with BMS World Mission, Matthew spent his time in Uganda, helping UCLF establish a criminal public defence programme. This programme has already offered representation to over 750 prisoners, many of whom have been remanded for significant periods before trial. He is married with three young children.

Peter Saunders was born in New Zealand and originally trained as a General Surgeon, before serving with the Africa Inland Mission in Kenya and completing two years mission training at All Nations Christian College in the UK. Since 1992 he has worked in full-time Christian ministry with Christian Medical Fellowship, a UK-based organisation with over 4,500 UK doctors and 1,000 medical student members, first as Student Secretary and since 1999 as Chief Executive. As CMF’s CEO he is involved in leadership training, teaching evangelism, apologetics and ethics, medical mission, writing, editing and media work. He was a foundation  member of the European Apologetics Network Leadership Team, is Campaign Director for Care Not Killing Alliance, and a member of the International Christian Medical and Dental Association (ICMDA) Board. Peter is married to Kirsty, also a doctor, and they have three sons Christopher, Benjamin and Jonathan. They live in St Albans, and belong to a Free Evangelical church.

Jeffrey Ventrella serves as senior counsel and senior vice-president of strategic training for the Alliance Defense Fund at its Team Resource Center in Scottsdale, Arizona. Since joining ADF in 2000, he has headed the ADF Blackstone Legal Fellowship, a unique legal internship programme. He also leads the ADF National Litigation Academy. He earned his J.D. from the University of California’s Hastings College of the Law and has practiced law since 1985. He is a member of the Idaho State Bar and is also admitted to practice before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, the U.S. District Court for the District of Idaho, and the Bar of the U.S. Supreme Court.

NETWORK PROGRAMME

Day 1

Judicial Activism and Its Impact on Political Development
Jeremy Cooke

Increasingly judicial decisions are shaping the development of our laws and thereby impacting politics.  Drawing on his experience of the High Court of England and Wales, but also drawing on the developments at both the European Court of Human Rights at Strasbourg and European Court of Justice in Luxembourg, the speaker will help us to consider the impact of this rise in judicial activism in contemporary Europe and, especially, what affect it might have on the Christian’s interaction with the political world.

Politics Sub-Track: Reducing Trafficking by Reducing Demand - The Case for a Novel Legal Approach to Prostitution
David Fieldsend and Panel

Law Sub-Track: Corruption:  A Christian Response
Jeremy Cooke

How should we respond to the issue of corruption?  How does the Bible inform our thinking on this?

Day 2

Human Trafficking: Prevention and Cure
Anca Bulica

Human trafficking is a scourge that is destroying lives and communities in both source and recipient countries. There has been significant progress in the fields of law, politics, and education in the last year. What is the nature of CARE's involvement and how can others get involved in both practical and policy engagement to help end this appalling attach on Human Dignity?

Politics Sub-Track:  Euthanasia & Law Reform
Peter Saunders with Panel

Cultural shift throughout Europe has led to Judeo-Christian values being jettisoned and a secular humanist worldview and values ideas being increasingly imposed. This, fuelled by economic recession and demographic shift, provides a serious threat to vulnerable people (those who are disabled, elderly, sick, or unborn) through legalised euthanasia and abortion, and threatens to undermine the consciences of Christian healthcare professionals who are forced to conform as part of their public duty. These threats will increase in the coming decade and we need to be meeting them at all levels in parliament, institutions, courts, and media. This talk will examine lessons learnt in the UK context about lobbying, campaigning, and discipling Christian medical professionals towards these ends in a post-Christian democracy.

Law Sub-Track: A Theology of Law and Justice
David McIlroy

The speaker will propose a biblical framework for thinking about law and justice.

Day 3

The Centrality of Religious Freedom
Paul Marshall

Religious freedom is important in its own right, since it concerns the plight of hundreds of millions of people. But, beyond this, religious freedom is central to all other forms of freedom. It is important in economic development and the status of women, and is key to the development of democracy. Without religious freedom there can be no freedom of speech and of the press, and, ultimately, no democracy.

Politics Sub-Track: Religious Liberty
Os Guinness Interviewed by Charlie Hoare

Following Os Guinness’ talk to the Politics and Society Network in 2011 this session will provide an opportunity to discuss recent developments in European Religious Liberty. 

Law Sub-Track:  Advocating for the Christian Worldview in the Legal Sphere – Why and How
Jeff Ventrella

Day 4
 

The Redefinition of Marriage
David Landrum

The UK Prime Minister, David Cameron, has started a debate about the future of the institution of marriage. It is expected that this will involve a public consultation. What are the philosophical and theological issues involved in this debate and what the implications for society both in the UK and around the world?

Politics Sub-Track: Lobbying in Defence of Marriage
Nola Leach

The UK political institutions are beginning to respond to the debate on the future of the institution of marriage initiated by the Prime Minister, David Cameron. How are the different perspectives responding to this challenge and what will result? What are the implications for other countries in Europe?

Law Sub-Track:  Issues Facing the Christian Lawyer in 21st Century Europe
Roger Kiska

This session will present an overview of some of the current issues in European law with input from a panel of Christian lawyers from Eastern Europe.

 

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