Faith in the big society questioned at public meeting

Can the ‘big society’ work in a climate of cuts? Will deprivation lead to radicalisation? Will there be enough volunteers? These were some of the questions raised at a public meeting to explore the role of faith within the big society, hosted at the Town Hall by the Borough’s Multi-Faith Partnership.

The event was opened by the Mayor of Rochdale, Councillor Alan Godson and speakers included Simon Danczuk MP, Martin Miller of the Diocese of Manchester and Abdul Rauf, Manager of Building Bridges, Pendle.

Mayor Godson said the Big Society, like faith, is an ‘intangible concept.’

Mr Danczuk praised the work of the faith communities, their contribution to the life of the borough and their place within civic pride. He also highlighted the fact that that there were no riots in Rochdale and the success of containing the EDL demonstration was partly due to the contribution by, and cohesion within, the faith communities.

Mr Miller from the Diocese of Manchester said some people see the big society as a Trojan Horse for the cuts. He noted that it is the values from within the faiths which motivate people to volunteer. He quoted figures for the contribution that faith based social action makes. However, he cautioned that there may not be the reserves out there to fill the gaps.

He said: “How can we deliver the big society with the infrastructure contracting? It is like asking the Israelites to make bricks without straw. We want to be partners but we need the dangers to be listened to. We should reserve the right to say no.”

The Islamic perspective was brought by Abdul Rauf who also talked about the social action which stems from faith and how this is rooted within Islamic scripture. He warned about current changes which are excluding faith based representatives from being part of decision making processes in some areas.

The meeting was chaired by Imam Irfan Chishti MBE, Chair of the Multi-Faith Partnership who asked “Are we a victim of our own motivation? We hope and pray that we can make a difference.”