OBC Community Vision:
We aim to seek transformation in Christ’s name in our local community whilst building up trust and increasing our engagement with individuals, businesses and organisations who share our desire to bring positive impact and change to the community.
Information
Recycling
As part of our commitment to the environment we have established several ways to increase recycling within the community
We have established a Recycling station in the passageway (so it is accessible when the building is closed) where various items can be recycled.
Among the items which can be currently recycled here are : soft plastics (including crisp packets) , toothcare products, contact lens packs, tablet blister packs & writing implements.
In the foyer there are opportunities to recycle used batteries and old CDs/DVDs
In the Oasis Community Garden there is a compost bin and throughout the building there are bins where paper, cardboard and plastics can be disposed of for recycling.
We’ll also look at further ways we can make the building and the way we use it more environmentally friendly – we also participate in A Rocha UK’s Ecochurch.
In 2023 we gained our SILVER Award
As a church we are connected to the Baptist Union Environment Network (BUEN) and have representation on their Midlands Steering group
We post extensively on the Oadby Baptist Church Facebook page.
Current News Items & Campaigns
Oadby Baptist Church is registered as part of Eco Church – which is run by A Rocha UK. Their vision is for churches of all denominations to care for creation as an integral part of loving their neighbours and following God faithfully.
In 2022 Oadby Baptist Church was awarded the BRONZE award, and in 2023 we were awarded a SILVER Award. The scheme looks at several aspects of church life – Worship & Teaching, Buildings, Land, Community & Global Engagement and Lifestyle.
As part of our SILVER application the Social Action CMT proposed an OBC Eco Charter, which outlines our aim to be as sustainable as we can. It was agreed at a Church Meeting in September 2023. The charter can be found here – OBC Eco Charter (Sept 23)
The recent work undertaken has included the installing of waterbutts to collect rainwater from the roof of the Oasis Centre for us in the Community Garden, the installation of cycle racks to encourage people to use their bikes when coming to OBC and the replacement of lights to either low energy or LED bulbs.
There is still much to do and work will continue to reduce our impact on our wonderful planet.
Social Action Focus Charities
Oadby Baptist Church supports 4 focus charities a year as we look to understand more about work that is going on in our community and globally and to ensure that we go beyond financial support but increase our understanding of the issues and challenges being faced by the organisations. More information on all our focus charities can be found here.
OBC is passionate about following the example of Jesus in speaking out against injustice, remembering his words found in Matthew 25:
“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.”
– Matthew 25:35-36
We believe that our faith demands that we work to show God’s love to everyone and that we not only seek to help those in need but also that we speak out against injustice and the causes of this injustice.
We therefore want to ensure that as a church we are aware of what is happening in our world, that we seek to change things through discussion and lobbying, and that we also act and get involved alongside those who are already doing great things in our community, nation and world.
We get a lot of information from the Joint Public Issues Team (JPIT) which is a great organisation made up of representatives from various UK churches (Baptist Union, Church of Scotland, the Methodist Church & the United Reformed Church). They focus on 6 issues:
