Catholic Church’s largest charity adopts Jewish community’s model
The Jewish Volunteering Network was behind the Caritas launch of the Catholic equivalent
The Catholic Church’s largest charity has adopted the Jewish community’s model for volunteering in what could be “a first” for the Jewish charity sector.
The Jewish Volunteering Network was behind the Caritas launch of the Catholic Volunteering Network on Tuesday evening in Euston, attended by senior clergy, including bishops.
It featured the launch of a new website to “match potential volunteers with volunteering opportunities and vice-versa”.
John Coleby director of Caritas Diocese of Westminster, adding he was delighted to be working with the JVN, which had “shared their knowledge, skills and experience to help us develop and progress”.
He added: “They’re coaching and mentoring us, and without their generosity and ambition, we would not be able to provide this. Our work is a concrete example of how different faith communities can share values and work together for the common good.”
The new Catholic Volunteering Service is “modelled very closely on the JVN and based on the same principles,” said JVN director Leonie Lewis, who said the launch was a landmark event in Jewish-Catholic relations.
“This could be a first in the Jewish charity sector. We believe our faiths and faith values have much in common and that we can deliver on certain programmes together that can make significant difference to our communities and particularly the wider UK community.”
Lewis also said there is “some preliminary discussion and interest from one or two Muslim-led projects to establish the Muslim Volunteering Network”.
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.