In the 19th century, the activist Clapham Sect, under William Wilberforce's leadership, demonstrated the profound impact of unity over uniformity in their successful campaign against the slave trade and slavery in the British Empire. Their approach, characterized by a blend of unique talents, steadfast purpose, and a shared moral vision, offers timeless lessons for us in the Faith & Literacy Collective.

The Clapham Sect's unity was not born of uniformity; rather, their ability to bring together a wide array of skills, backgrounds, and resources toward a common goal marked their success. Similarly, our Faith & Literacy Collective's mission is served not by a monolithic approach but by its members' rich, varied contributions. Educators, community leaders, faith figures, and volunteers each possess unique insights and capabilities that, when united, can address the complex roots of childhood illiteracy. This diversity ensures that strategies are not only comprehensive but also adaptable to the needs of different communities.

Like the Clapham Sect, which utilized a range of strategies from legislative change to public awareness campaigns, our Faith & Literacy Collective must resist the lure of a one-size-fits-all solution to literacy. The issue of illiteracy, intertwined with socioeconomic disparities and access to resources, demands a multifaceted response. By prioritizing strategic engagement that leverages the diverse platforms and skills within the Collective, the movement can create a more resonant and effective campaign for change.

The perseverance shown by the Clapham Sect, enduring through decades of setbacks, underscores the importance of resilience in social reform. This endurance is made possible not just by a shared vision but by the flexibility and creativity that come from a coalition of diverse contributors. For us apart of the Faith & Literacy Collective, this means cultivating a culture of persistence, where different approaches can be tried, tested, and refined over time, ensuring the movement can adapt and continue in the face of challenges.

Central to the Clapham Sect's identity was their Christian faith, which provided a moral and motivational foundation for their activism. We similarly draw on faith as a unifying force, not to impose uniformity of belief or practice but to inspire a collective commitment to justice and service. This shared foundation enriches the movement, providing a sense of purpose and a common language for collaboration among participants.

In embracing the principle of unity over uniformity, we can channel the Clapham Sect's enduring legacy into the fight against childhood illiteracy. We highly recommend this reading from the Trinity Forum to learn more about William Wilberforce’s story!

We are a vibrant movement fueled by a shared belief in the transformative power of education, anchored in faith.

We are excited to introduce our Faith & Literacy Collective on substack, our community's central online gathering space. This digital platform is where can exchange ideas, provide updates & resources, foster collaboration, and ignite inspiration within one another.

Our vision is clear: we refuse to navigate this mission alone. Together, we can make a tangible difference in the literacy outcomes of our respective communities. Through mutual support, idea-sharing, collaboration, and connection, we empower each other to enact meaningful change.

You’re already on this mission with us, but we invite you to join us here on substack so we can remain connected. We will be providing both “free” and “paid” subscription models. “Free” articles & resources will be our public facing newsletters that you can share with friends and our paid section (lowest pricing model substack allows) will help pay for administrative fees and allow more “F&L collective specific” information to be shared. Feel free to email Lucy and info@teachakidtoread.com with any questions.

In the ninth century there lived two brothers named Cyril and Methodius. These were devout Christian men, full of faith and given the gift of education.

They were born in Thessalonica, which today is in Northern Greece. They became monks and scholars, dedicating themselves to the work of the church. In time, they were revered for their minds and were appointed as educators in many disciplines including theology and philosophy.

In those days, to the north of Greece, the lands were populated with illiterate tribes in the areas today known as the Balkans and Eastern Europe. These brothers in many ways were the best the early church had to offer. Already accomplished and well regarded, they took their passion, their innovation, and their intellects and became missionaries to these “uneducated” lands to the North.

And what did they do? They did what the people of God always seem to do. They listened to these foreign people.

They learned their languages.

They did the long, difficult work of creating an alphabet to capture the unique sounds and syntax of their new home. Responding to all they heard and learned, they wrote the Glagolitic alphabet, which became the written form of the Old Slavonic language, which was first used to translate the Bible into that local tongue so all could read it.

Today, that alphabet is called Cyrillic and it is used in fifty languages, the bond of cultures and the script of schools.

They made it possible for nations and generations to read.

These missionaries, Cyril and Methodius, were the literacy fathers of nations and thustoday are patron saints of Europe.

This short story is but one of thousands from the history of the Christian church.

One would be hard pressed to find a force more passionate and impactful upon the creation, promotion, and proliferation of READING than the Christian church.

Just think about it.

This movement, called the Church, began in schools called synagogues, arranged around the reading from the scrolls and later, the letters of the apostles.

Fueled by the incarnational example of the Word, the Church immediately transitioned their ministry from Aramaic to the common-tongue Greek, then it was taken to all the known world and contextualized into each language.

The Church became the keeper of libraries. The desert mothers and fathers were the teachers of the first centuries. Through the Middle Ages, monasteries housed the schools and the scholars.

In the fifteenth century, Guttenberg invented the printing press partially in response to the need for Bibles and religious materials. The proliferation of the printed word accelerated the Reformation and led to a revival of literacy.

Missionaries, like Cyril and Methodius, continued this sacred work time and again into forgotten lands. In more recent times, one Christian organization, called Wycliffe Bible Translators, exists to !develop alphabets, help preliterate people learn to read and write . . .by developing written languages, the organization is helping to save lost and dying languages.” They have been involved in language creation and translation in 2,500 languages where they have then provided the Bible and ongoing literacy programs.

In American history, almost every small town began with a church that also served as a school at its center. Within the “parish model” of churches, even in big cities, every neighborhood had a parish church which was responsible for a parish school, schools that existed to serve EVERY child within the parish. Many of these schools are still in service today.

Most of the great American universities began as Christian missions and many still have a chapel at the center of their campuses.

Sunday school was initially created as the only place for impoverished people to learn to read.

I have been asked time and again, “Why should the church get involved in the literacy business?”

I ask you, “When did the church STOP being THE LEADER of the literacy business?”

Let’s lead again.

Rev. Roy Chang is the founder and executive director of School Connect WA. Roy served as the Lead Pastor of Seattle Chinese Alliance Church for almost 20 years before leaving to launch School Connect WA. The nonprofit convenes the 60+ school-church partnerships in Seattle Public Schools and creates academic intervention after-school programs that close opportunity gaps for elementary students furthest from educational justice.

Karen Vogelsang currently serves as the Executive Director of ARISE2Read after spending 15 years in the classroom, serving children in 1^st - 4^th grades in under-resourced communities in Memphis. Karen is the 2015 Tennessee Teacher of the Year and believes that literacy is the key to success in every community! Her heart's desire is for children to be literate citizens, feel valued, and realize their God-given potential. 

“The Campaign’s starting point is really about disrupting generational poverty.  

And the earliest and best predictor for whether and to what extent kids are going to succeed in school and life; one of the best predictors we have is third-grade reading proficiency.”

The feeling in the room was so palpable that you would of thought that we were going to rename our collective, “Disrupting Generational Poverty.” 

Together we are learning about how struggling school children are the BEST opportunity for God’s people to be with the “least of these,” just as Jesus commanded us to do. Because we must see early childhood literacy as a JUSTICE issue.

When we say “disrupting generational poverty,” we mean several vitally important ideas.  

One is that injustice, oppression and poverty, without intervention, quickly become generational.  The pain, lack of opportunity and limitation are passed from parents to children.  We believe this is why the LORD instructed Moses to include mechanisms like the Year of Jubilee into the Torah Law to forgive all debts and redistribute opportunity (Leviticus 25).  In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus echos the Jubilee spirit when he began his ministry with the words:

“The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
    because he has anointed me
    to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
    and recovery of sight for the blind,
to set the oppressed free,

    to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

Luke 4:18-19

Two, justice always requires disruption.  It necessitates benevolent and courageous action.  This is why Jesus was daily willing to shake up society by touching, valuing and elevating the forgotten, marginalized, isolated and rejected.  In Mark’s Gospel, chapter one, Jesus begins his ministry by compassionately visiting, touching, affirming and bringing healing to a leper (and many others).

Three, disrupting poverty is not about deifying wealth, it is about equity, opportunity and  esteem.  This is why Jesus equated the Gospel of the Kingdom with feeding, clothing and “inviting in” (Matthew 25:35-36.)  It is why Isaiah quotes the LORD with these words:

“See, I will create new heavens and a new earth…

Those who build the houses will also dwell in them;

those who plant the vineyards will eat their fruit.

No longer will they build houses and others live in them,

or plant and others eat.”

Isaiah 65:17, 22-23

The question is, do God’s People want to practice the “new heavens/new earth” now?  In the twenty-first century, Isaiah’s vision of opportunity and esteem requires closing the education gap.  

Our Collective Fellow, Sultan Cole reminds us that in John 17 Jesus prays that we should be one. In other words UNITE for the common good around literacy.

Here's a little acronym that Sultan inspired us with around the world U.N.I.T.E.

U - Understanding your community's need.

N - Networking Faith-based and Literacy Advocates

I - Integrating our gifts and talents

T - Trusting the Lord through active prayer

E - Engaging the unchurched with compassionate and demonstrative gospel expressions.

It is a wonder that there is so much “alone-ness” in this work (and in life more broadly.)  However, this collective stands in defiance to isolation.  We live for one another, to support one another, to resource one another and ultimately, to multiply our efforts in order to bring justice to our children.

Remember what Ron of The Campaign said:

EARLY CHILDHOOD LITERACY: one of the Best Predictors for Disrupting Generational Poverty.

#disruptingpoverty #preventativejustice #FaithAndLiteracyCollective