Extreme poverty an 'offence to God' - Church of Scotland council

In a key report to be delivered at next month's General Assembly, the Church of Scotland's World Mission Council will issue a report to next month's annual General Assembly stating that "poverty which threatens human dignity is an offence in the eyes of God".

"The scandal of poverty" forms a major focus of this year's World Mission report for the Assembly, which will meet in Edinburgh from 15 to 21 May.

The report will ask the Assembly to agree that the Church of Scotland continues to share with churches in countries afflicted by extreme poverty "the human and material resources needed to strengthen their impressive commitment to ensure that the church represents good news to the poor".

The Council's wide-ranging report goes on to affirm the 'vital role' that faith-based organisations have to play in eradicating poverty in the developing world and describes how the Church plays its part in this fight through co-operative working, including funding micro-finance schemes, with its partner churches around the world.

Its contribution also includes financial assistance. In the wake of Cyclone Sidr, the World Mission Council made a grant of £20,000 to the Church of Bangladesh to help in relief and reconstruction work. Another emergency grant of £40,000 was sent to the Presbyterian Church of East Africa to enable it to provide relief after ethnic violence broke out across Kenya after the disputed presidential elections in December.

The report will also include details of the Council's work in facilitating links between presbyteries and congregations in Scotland and their fellow Christians overseas, including exchange visits, and mutual support and assistance. The Presbytery of Lothian is one of many Church of Scotland presbyteries that have entered into a twinning arrangement, in their case with the Presbytery of the Eastern Himalayas.

Twinning has taken in a new twist in the last year, after police officer Andy Walker spent time with the Malawi Police Service. On his return to Scotland, Mr Walker arranged for sponsorship to allow two police officers to come to Scotland from Malawi to help set up a major victim support unit for victims of domestic violence and abuse.

The report gives an update on the Church of Scotland's hotel development in the northern Israeli town of Tiberius, revealing that during 2007 the hotel achieved a 67 per cent average occupancy rate against a budget of 64 per cent, of which approximately half were individuals and groups from outside of Israel. Guests included 258 pilgrim groups, including 20 were from Scotland.

The World Council also sets out its plans for the coming year to explore how it might better assist partner churches of the Kirk in parts of the globe where Christians are in a minority, and continue preparations for the centenary celebrations for the Edinburgh 1910 World Missionary Conference.