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2024-03-31-accounts

Report and Financial Statements For the Year Ended 31 March 2024

Charity number 1202312

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Charity Name: Ezra Centre for Christian Thought Charity number: 1202312 Registered Office: Derry House 30 High Street Standon Herts SG11 1LA Trustees: Robert Smith Graeme Leach Sarah-Jane Bentley Otto Jacobsson Bart DeVries (resigned 15 March 2024) Senior Management: Dr Joseph Boot Chief Executive Officer Bankers: Lloyds Bank PLC, Westminster House, Epona House, Pheonix Way, Swansea SA7 9HG Solicitors: Camerons Solicitors LLP, 27A Harley Place, London, W1G 8LZ

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Our Aims and Objectives

Our charity’s purposes as set out in the objects contained in its constitution, which shall be carried out for the public benefit, (in accordance with our statement of faith appended to this report), are the advancement of the Christian faith, in particular but not exclusively by:

Ensuring our work delivers our aims

Our intention is to review our aims, objectives and activities each year. This review concentrates on the 12 months immediately following the establishment of the charity. The review looks at the success of our activities and the benefits they have brought to the people we are set up to help.

Review of activities for 2023/2024

CEO’s Report

Ministry Report: 2023/2024

During our first year of operation (March 2023-March 2024), Ezra Centre for Christian Though (ECCT) has engaged widely and effectively in the work of advancing, explaining and articulating the teachings of the Christian faith in a variety of settings and through various media in the UK and Europe. This included planning and executing our first annual Mission of God conference, co-hosted with an aligned Christian organisation.

Mission of God Conference 2023:

We were pleased to host our first full day conference in Daventry at the Mercure Hotel. We had about 200 delegates and addressed the topic of the importance of developing a robust Christian world and life view in the UK churches and learning to articulate biblical Christianity to the wider culture. Four speakers lectured on the day including a Christian lawyer, a theologian, an economist and our CEO, Dr Joseph Boot. One of the speakers, Graeme Leach is a Fellow of the Ezra Centre.

We were able to sell our books and provide both digital and print resources for the delegates. We are looking forward to hosting our second conference in the autumn of 2024.

Keynotes for Other Conferences

The ECCT provided keynote speaking/lecturing for several multi-day major conferences in the UK and Europe during our first year. These included:

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Educational Events and Debates

We were also able to provide lectures and addresses at various educational institutions and events during our first year. These included:

Preaching at UK Churches

We were also able to preach at a number of churches during our first year of ministry as time and calendar allowed. These included special services at:

Digital and Print Resources

As well as the in-person lecturing and speaking around the country we were able to do the following by way of providing digital and print resources:

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Trustees’ Report

The charity was registered on 14 March 2023. Since its approval as a charity, the trustees have concentrated their efforts in putting in place procedures and practices that will enable the charity to achieve its objectives moving forwards.

Policies

As part of their commitment to good governance, the trustees have prepared and agreed the following policies:

Banking and finances

The trustees were not in a position to actively seek donations until the charity’s banking arrangements were in place. After some initial difficulties, the trustees were able to secure banking facilities through Lloyds Bank and the account is now open.

Income and expenditure

With banking secured towards the end of the financial year, the charity received its first donations totalling £4095 and receipts for its activities of £691. These donations were received from within the UK and none were secured through professional fundraisers or grants from any third parties.

There was no expenditure in its first year’s activity, so the bank balance stood at £4,786 at the end of the accounting period. No trustee received any income or expenses during this period.

None of the funds are restricted and, beyond the cash held, the charity had no assets or liabilities at the end of the accounting period.

Serious Incidents

The trustees are aware of no serious incidents arising in relation to the charity.

Declarations:

The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above.

Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees

Signature(s)

Robert Smith

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Date 10 July 2024

Appendix A

EZRA CENTRE FOR CHRISTIAN THOUGHT

Statement of Faith

The Ezra Centre for Christian Thought upholds the apostolic Christian faith, once for all delivered to the saints (Jude 1:3), as faithfully summarized in the foundational Ecumenical Creeds of the patristic church (Apostles', Nicene, Athanasian and the definition of Chalcedon), which we unequivocally believe represent the biblical, historic, orthodox and catholic faith.

The Ezra Centre for Christian Thought's teaching and writing is grounded in a reformational worldand-life-view, gratefully informed by the tradition contained in the evangelical Westminster Standards and the Three Forms of Unity (Belgic Confession, Heidelberg Catechism, and the Canons of Dort). We believe that Holy Scripture (as contained in the canonical Older and Newer Testaments) is the infallible Word of God, inerrant as originally given, constituting the final authority for the Christian's faith and life.

The Apostles' Creed (Circa 2[nd] Century AD)

I believe in God the Father Almighty; Maker of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, His only begotten Son, our Lord. He was conceived by the Holy Ghost, and born of the virgin, Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended into Hades. On the third day He rose again, ascended into Heaven, and sits at the right hand of God the Father; from thence He will come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Ghost, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting.

Nicene Creed Constantinople (AD 381)

I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible; and in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, begotten of His Father before all worlds, God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father; by whom all things were made; who, for us men and for our salvation, came down from Heaven, and was incarnate by the Holy Ghost of the virgin, Mary, and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate; He suffered and was buried; and the third day He rose again, according to the Scriptures, and ascended into Heaven, and sits on the right hand of the Father; and He shall come again, with glory, to judge both the quick and the dead; whose kingdom shall have no end. And I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Lord, and Giver of Life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son; who with the Father and the Son together is worshiped and glorified; who spoke by the Prophets. And I believe in one holy, catholic and apostolic Church; acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins; and I look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come.

Definition of Chalcedon (AD 451)

Following, then, the holy fathers, we unite in teaching all men to confess the one and same Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. This selfsame one is perfect both in deity and in humanity; truly God and truly man, with a rational soul and a body; consubstantial with the Father according to His deity, and consubstantial with us according to the humanity; like us in all respects, sin only excepted. Before the ages He was begotten of the Father, according to the deity, and in these last days, for us and for our salvation, He was born of Mary the virgin, who is God-bearer according to His humanity; one and the same Christ, Son, Lord, only-begotten, to be acknowledged in two natures; without confusing them,

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without interchanging them, without dividing them, and without separating them; the distinction of natures by no means taken away by the union, but the properties of each nature being preserved, and concurring in one Person and one subsistence; not parted or divided into two persons, but one and the same only-begotten Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, as from the beginning the prophets have declared concerning Him, and the Lord Jesus Christ Himself has taught us, and the symbol of the fathers has handed down to us.

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Ezra Centre for Christian Thought Ezra Centre for Christian Thought Ezra Centre for Christian Thought 1202312 1202312 1202312 CC16a
For the period
from		 Period start date
14-Mar-23		 To Period end date
31-Mar-24
Section A Receipts and payments
A1 Receipts Unrestricted
funds
to the nearest
£
4,095
-
-
4,095
250
441
691
4,786
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
4,786
-
-
4,786		 Restricted
funds
to the nearest £
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-		 Endowment
funds
to the nearest £
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-		 Total funds
to the nearest £
4,095
-
-
4,095
250
441
691
4,786
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
4,786		 Last year
to the nearest £
Donations 4,095 -
- -
- -
Sub total(Gross income for
AR)		 4,095 -
A2 Income from Activities.
Honorarium 250
Book sales 441 -
Sub total 691 -
Total receipts
A3 Payments
-
- -
- -
Sub total - -
A4 Asset and investment
purchases, (see table)
-
-
Sub total - -
Total payments
Net of receipts/(payments)
A5 Transfers between funds
A6 Cash funds last year end
Cash funds this year end
-
4,786 - - 4,786 -
- - - - -
- - - - -
4,786 - - 4,786 -

CCXX R1 accounts (SS)

08/07/2024

1

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Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period
Categories
Signed by one or two trustees on
behalf of all the trustees
B5 Liabilities
B3 Investment assets
B2 Other monetary assets
B1 Cash funds		 Details
Details
Details
Total cash funds
(agree balances with receipts and payments
account(s))
Details
Donations and income from activities
Signature		 Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
funds
to nearest £
to nearest £
4,876
-
-
-
-
-
4,876
-
Agreement Error
OK
Unrestricted
funds
Restricted
funds
to nearest £
to nearest £
-
-
-
-
Fund to which
asset belongs
Cost (optional)
-
-
Fund to which
liability relates
Amount due
(optional)
-
-
Print Name
Robert Smith		 Endowment
funds
to nearest £
-
-
-
-
OK
Endowment
funds
to nearest £
-
-
Current value
(optional)
-
-
When due
(optional)
Date of
approval
Robert Smith 09/07/2024

CCXX R2 accounts (SS)

08/07/2024

2

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