Movement 100

Wow! One hundred issues and almost three decades of continuous publication. Not bad for a
student magazine. craeme Burk gets us in a party mood...
Confessions Of A
Movement Fan
I promise-this is the only article
I you'll get about our lOOth issue in
tf'u body of the magazine proper.
I Honest and truly. We (the editorial
"we", that is) wanted to keep the
retrospecting to the special section in
the middle and devote the slightlyreduced
contents of the "regular" issue
to continuing what the magazine has
done well for 26 years. Still, we
thought we'd break this rule-and the
longstanding rule against having an
editorial in Movement-just this once.
First, a personal confession: l've
always been something of a fan of
Movement. I became hooked on the
magazine the first time I read it as a
fledgling SCMer in Canada at the start
of this decade. I loved the intelligent
commentary on Christianity and political
issues, the gentle sense of (British)
humour that pervaded everything, the
depth of analysis and the clarity of prose.
At the time I was editing the
Canadian SCM's magazine, All Things
New and I decided I wanted to make it
"more like Movement". And so I learned
desktop publishing, I regularly filched
ideas and graphics, and I started
corresponding with a succession of
editors, eventually writing for the
magazine and co-proucing a resource by
both SCMs, (Raging ln The Streetswhich
is still available from SCM).
I was thrilled when, last year, I was
asked to ediL Movement. lt was like
getting the call to join a premiership
division team. Unfortunately, due to the
exigencies of lifb and the Home Office,
l've only able to do it for a year. But I'm
proud of the three per cent of the first
10O issues I got to do. And l've learned,
from both editing the magazine and
having the dubious honour of reading
the full, unabridged "canon" for this
issue, that we (the Movement-supporting
"we") have so much to be proud of.
It's not often that a magazine makes it
to its 100th issue; even less often that a
student magazine lasts over a quarter of a
century-even less a student magazine
for an organisation that has been through
as many changes as SCM. But
Movement has managed to achieve this,
and that achievement should be lauded.
The saying is true-only by comprehending
where we have come from will
we understand where we are headed.
Movement has been, over the past 26
years, a newsletter. a
radical theological
magazine, a current
affairs journal, an inhouse
student
publication, an arts
magazine and,
sometimes, all of
the above! While
the manner of
student involvement
has
changed,
Movement has
always provided
a space for
students
-
reflecting the
journeys of a
group of
students who
have evolved
and changed
over what
has been
perhaps the most significant
three decades in this century. lt has
shown how they have reflected on the
world around them, and the Christianity
they believe in.
Of course l'm a fan of Movement.
Most editors are.(Given the limited
scope for remuneration, we have to do
it because we love the magazine!) And I
know from my conversations (and from
SCM's recent survey of readers) that
many of you, the readers, are fans of
Movement as well. You care about this
magazine and have supported it through
thick and thin. And this issue is as
much a celebration of your support for
the magazine over the years as it is for
the magazine itself .
Movement has survived two serious
threats on its continued existence, but
movcfncnt 1
it may not always be this way. As
budgetary resources recede, projects like
Movement -which technically constitute
a "loss" in SCM's budget (as most
evangelism tends to)-will become
threatened again. The SCM is working
hard to prevent that from happening, by
finding new ways to distribute Movement
among its primary readership, students,
and asking alumnae and
friends who
enjoy reading
the magazine
FIII to subscribe
to it. You, as
readers, can do
your part by
helping us build
effective distribution
networks
for the magazine,
and by continuing
to give us
feedback-as you
always haveabout
how you
feel about
Movement.
Movement has
long been a symbol of
SCM at its finest. lt is
perhaps one of the
best publications
produced by an SCM
worldwide. Movement's ability to inspire
loyalty from people like me-who live
thousands of miles away from Britain-and
from those of you who have had it as a
regular part of your university career (and
onwards), is proof of Movement's value as
a talking point on issues, and as a space
to question beliefs, values and so-called
cultural norms in an open-minded way.
I hope people will indulge us if we
engage a bit of a party in print. lt's likely
the only opportunity we'll use until the
200th issue which. God willing, will
come out in 2Q32. l'm looking forward to
it already; but then again, l'm a fan. fil
Graeme Burk has been editor of
Movement for 1998.