Our Purpose:
CVVUK supporters are encouraged to promote the benefits of a vegetarian/vegan diet within the church and in their dealings with other Christians. A vegetarian/vegan diet dramatically reduces cruelty and violence towards God's creatures but also reduces the disastrous effects a carnivorous diet is having on the environment. A vegetarian/vegan diet will also release food for the hungry (reducing the threat of future conflicts) and improve the health of our bodies, the temple of the Holy Spirit. With such high Christian ideals it should be easy but as we all know, flesh eating is still a contentious issue within the Church and the world generally. We all become very frustrated when leaflets we place on the church table or notice board, mysteriously get covered up or removed, even when we have permission from the vicar to place them there.
Theology.
CVVUK believe that there are two basic truths that the Church must honestly address:
a) That God's love is indivisible and embraces all of His creation.
b) That Christians should therefore reflect God's image of love, compassion and mercy to all sentient creatures.
Many Church resolutions, proclamations and publications already proclaim the above. CVVUK believe that the best way forward will be to implement existing Church theology to authenticate our message. A message that proclaims that meat production is not only violent and cruel to God's other creatures but also unhealthy for humankind and the planet.
Our personal approach.
As Vegans and Vegetarians we should not have to justify a cruelty-free, non-violent lifestyle to the followers of the 'Prince of Peace'. However, many Christians will try to negate our arguments and sweep away our humanitarian and compassionate considerations by quoting isolated passages from the Bible which appear to favour a meat-eating diet. CVVUK believe this was not God's intention, and that we are evolving, and through science and, we trust, higher moral values, we are all becoming far more sensitive to the suffering of humans, irrespective of race or creed, and the plight of animals, especially in factory farms where we inflict a cruel life and a cruel and violent death on billions of God's creatures each year.
We should, however, avoid being confrontational; confrontation will only close minds. Our purpose should be to respectfully inform Christians of the advantages of a vegetarian/vegan diet, and then allow the Holy Spirit to use the seeds that we have sown, according to His will. When we are challenged by people quoting isolated passages from the Bible, our response should be based on the faith of Christ; whose Father was a God of love, compassion, justice and mercy. As Pope John Paul once stated ‘Any interpretation of the Bible that contradicts a rational understanding of God's goodness and mercy is incorrect’.
Supporters
On return of your supporters form you will receive the CVVUK newsletter - normally electronically (which aims to come out a few times a year) and be notified of meetings and special events.
There is no fee. Donations to help cover costs, especially of posted material, will be gratefully received.
Both active and non-active supporters are important to us, the greater our number, the greater our influence in the local church and community. We need to raise awareness of the benefits of a plant-based diet, a diet God gave humankind and all other creatures in his perfect world; the garden of Eden (Genesis 1 :29 & 30) and his future Peaceable Kingdom (Isaiah 11 :6 to 9).
CVVUK supporters are encouraged to promote the benefits of a vegetarian/vegan diet within the church and in their dealings with other Christians. A vegetarian/vegan diet dramatically reduces cruelty and violence towards God's creatures but also reduces the disastrous effects a carnivorous diet is having on the environment. A vegetarian/vegan diet will also release food for the hungry (reducing the threat of future conflicts) and improve the health of our bodies, the temple of the Holy Spirit. With such high Christian ideals it should be easy but as we all know, flesh eating is still a contentious issue within the Church and the world generally. We all become very frustrated when leaflets we place on the church table or notice board, mysteriously get covered up or removed, even when we have permission from the vicar to place them there.
Theology.
CVVUK believe that there are two basic truths that the Church must honestly address:
a) That God's love is indivisible and embraces all of His creation.
b) That Christians should therefore reflect God's image of love, compassion and mercy to all sentient creatures.
Many Church resolutions, proclamations and publications already proclaim the above. CVVUK believe that the best way forward will be to implement existing Church theology to authenticate our message. A message that proclaims that meat production is not only violent and cruel to God's other creatures but also unhealthy for humankind and the planet.
Our personal approach.
As Vegans and Vegetarians we should not have to justify a cruelty-free, non-violent lifestyle to the followers of the 'Prince of Peace'. However, many Christians will try to negate our arguments and sweep away our humanitarian and compassionate considerations by quoting isolated passages from the Bible which appear to favour a meat-eating diet. CVVUK believe this was not God's intention, and that we are evolving, and through science and, we trust, higher moral values, we are all becoming far more sensitive to the suffering of humans, irrespective of race or creed, and the plight of animals, especially in factory farms where we inflict a cruel life and a cruel and violent death on billions of God's creatures each year.
We should, however, avoid being confrontational; confrontation will only close minds. Our purpose should be to respectfully inform Christians of the advantages of a vegetarian/vegan diet, and then allow the Holy Spirit to use the seeds that we have sown, according to His will. When we are challenged by people quoting isolated passages from the Bible, our response should be based on the faith of Christ; whose Father was a God of love, compassion, justice and mercy. As Pope John Paul once stated ‘Any interpretation of the Bible that contradicts a rational understanding of God's goodness and mercy is incorrect’.
Supporters
On return of your supporters form you will receive the CVVUK newsletter - normally electronically (which aims to come out a few times a year) and be notified of meetings and special events.
There is no fee. Donations to help cover costs, especially of posted material, will be gratefully received.
Both active and non-active supporters are important to us, the greater our number, the greater our influence in the local church and community. We need to raise awareness of the benefits of a plant-based diet, a diet God gave humankind and all other creatures in his perfect world; the garden of Eden (Genesis 1 :29 & 30) and his future Peaceable Kingdom (Isaiah 11 :6 to 9).