BARCLAY'S CLOSE BRANCH EARLY AFTER CHRISTIANS PLAN PEACEFUL PROTEST

had this yesterday, make my day and send me a relevent photo, had some nice Sikh, Muslim green politics stuff posted recently and have a nice Jewish link to post soon, so any other sound religious stuff is very welcome....religion often promotes justice and ecology so good!

Barclay's Bank is facing accusations of running scared from peaceful protest after closing a central London branch in an apparent attempt to avoid an act of worship planned by Christians opposed to the government's cuts.

A group of Christians planned to peacefully enter the branch and offer biscuits to staff and customers while praying, reading the Bible and singing hymns as a witness against the injustices of the banking system. They were inspired by Jesus' protest in the Jerusalem Temple.

They arrived at the bank on Tottenham Court Road at 2.00pm on Saturday 26th March, as protests against the government's cuts were underway. But the bank was already closed, despite its usual Saturday closing time being 4.00pm.

The Christians planning to join in the worship included Chris Howson, a Church of England priest and author from Bradford, and Symon Hill, associate director of the Christian thinktank Ekklesia.

Chris Wood, one of the participants said:

"Jesus was compelled to challenge the injustice of the temple system which exploited pilgrims with excessive interest and prices. Jesus exposed the sin for all to see and showed that another way is possible.

"Today, the reckless speculation and lending by powerful banks has resulted in a devastating impact on our society, causing an economic crisis for which the poorest and most vulnerable are being made to pay through savage cuts. If Barclay's decision to close early was due to news of our plans, they are running scared of peaceful Christian worshippers".

Barclay's have faced criticism for using legal means to pay less than two percent corporation tax on their profits. The action was planned partly in solidarity with UK Uncut, a nonviolent campaigning network who point out that that cracking down on tax avoidance by wealthy corporations is one of several alternatives to cutting jobs, benefits and public services.

ENDS

Notes
The act of worship was planned by an informal grassroots group of Christians inspired by Jesus, opposed to the government's cuts agenda and committed to entirely nonviolent action to expose economic injustice and promote change.
Barclay's recently announced the payment of £3.5bn in bonuses, with average pay per employee in their investment banking division rising to £236,000.