'Developing an Intercultural Congregation: In a Market Town’ by Julie Reid. # 224. 24/03/2026.

Out of Many, One People

Welcome. I am very grateful indeed to Julie for providing the first of what I hope to be a series on ‘Developing an Intercultural Congregation’. Amidst all the documents produced by the church, there has been a serious lack of on-the-ground case studies. I intend more stories of ‘Out of Many, One People’ to be appear in these blogs, so if your church has a story to tell please do contact me. I hope many will follow Julie’s lead.

‘Developing an Intercultural Congregation: In a Market Town’ by Julie Reid.

Preface

My name is Julie and I live in Thame, a Market Town near Oxford. I moved here with my children in the late 90s. I was born and raised in South London. My parents emigrated from Jamaica to England in 1960, and my father served in the RAF during World War II. As a child, I attended Sunday School, made a commitment to follow Jesus, but left the church after being confirmed as a teenager. I returned to faith in 1996, when I was a wife and mother. I work for the National Health Service (NHS), where I teach mathematics and English. In my free time, I enjoy reading, walking, writing, and knitting.

Summary

This case study examines the introduction of discussions and promotion of teachings on racial justice within our church through my personal experiences.

Context

Thame Church combines three parishes who serve together in the Market Town of Thame in South Oxfordshire. Our vision at Thame Church is to see our local community transformed through the radical love of Jesus. Thame has a population of 12,955 residents, 94.8% of which are from a white cultural background (from The Parish UK Network, Thame Parish 2021 Census Data).

The issue

I experienced racism in the church context. And, where I do not outline specifics here (because for the person experiencing microaggressions, repeating incidents can, in my experience, prolong the racial trauma suffered (see ‘Racial Trauma’ in the bibliography), the nature of those slights caused me to question what’s wrong about racism, why should I and my fellow parishioners care and, if I started a conversation about race with local clergy and received no response would I stay at the church? I felt a combination of hurt, anger, and deep sadness; I wondered how I would react if the clergy of my local parish, where I had worshiped for over twenty years, did not answer or provide support.

I took my concerns to God in prayer. After much deliberation, I emailed the clergy. I told them about the circumstances and suggested some changes. The email I sent in May 2024 started an ongoing conversation about how we address race at Thame Church. The dialogue resulted in me being invited to join our church’s Joint Church Council (JCC) with a focus on racial justice. I have also explored a call to vocation in ministry and started postgraduate study in Black Theology.

For me, the answer to the question, what is wrong about racism from a biblical perspective is clear: racism is unjust because it does not appreciate the truth that we are all made in the image of God, and it causes divisions amongst us. I was reassured by the vision of God’s Kingdom that includes people from all nations, as depicted in Revelations 7: 9-10:

“After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”

This future kingdom can be here and now, too, and this view inspired me to speak up, and my attitude changed from timidity to increased confidence and faith. In fact, my faith in God remained unwavering.

My faith in people, however, was affected by the experiences, and I had reservations about discussing race with individuals at church. I wanted to suggest that we have more intercultural worship in our services, but I assumed most of the congregation did not prioritise racial justice. I feared discussing race would make me seem oversensitive, angry, dismissed as irrelevant, or worse still, that I would be met with silence. I kept praying and I continued the conversation with clergy and sought inspiration from the Bible and various sources such as past notable justice campaigners. (For example, Elie Wiesel: ‘I swore never to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation. We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented’. Or Archbishop Desmond Tutu: ‘If you are neural in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor. If an elephant had his foot on the tail of the mouse and you say that you are neutral, the mouse will not appreciate your neutrality’).

Although my struggles may not be as tough as those who inspired me, I recognised that this was a significant challenge for me. On a broader scale, I was determined that we should not avoid discussions about racism in church, leaving it solely to secular society, because members of the church are part of society. As I read more about racism from a biblical perspective, I agreed with the perception that for Christians, racial injustice is an issue that is biblical, theological and moral. (Joshua Searle: ‘What’s Wrong with Racism’, in the Bible Society’s ‘Bible in Transmission’, Spring 2022).

On the question of whether we should we care about the issue, I think that even though our particular church is a predominantly white congregation, every one of us has a responsibility to consider how we represent God’s Kingdom in our churches, and how we can make bridges between our parishioners to help usher in a truly intercultural church community now and in the future.

I re-read the report From Lament to Action (FLTA). The report, commissioned by the Archbishop’s Anti-Racism Taskforce in 2021, recommended changes in five priority areas: participation, governance, training, education, and young people to take action on racial injustices. I also read the report reviewing what each diocese has done since the publication of FLTA, Progress on Racial Justice Across the Church of England Dioceses by the Committee for Minority Ethnic Anglican Concerns (CMEAC). I found out what the Diocese of Oxford was doing to address racial justice. I also watched a debate from the St Pauls Cathedral Adult Learning series in which author Rev Ben Lindsay, singer and rapper Guvna B, Bishop Rosemarie Mallet and author Chine McDonald give an excellent overview of the issues faced by people from different ethnic backgrounds attending predominantly white majority churches (‘Black Experience in White Majority Churches’ 2019, Bing videos). By considering the issue from a biblical and practical perspective, I devised a series of actions.

What steps did I take?

1. I spoke up; I talked about my lived experiences of racism with the clergy and my small group.

2. I educated myself and others on current terms used to talk about race. (The terminology used in contemporary discussions about race has evolved and I found some of it confusing). For instance, I sent information to clergy that defined terms such as ‘microaggressions’^, not assuming that everyone knew them (Isha Sadiq, ‘Ew Group’, Racial Microaggressions: Definitions, Examples, and Practical Actions).

3. I raised the profile of issues to do with Black history nationally and locally with the clergy. For instance, I alerted the clergy to the fact that we have a Black war hero buried in our church graveyard: Lieutenant John Henry Smythe, who was instrumental in brining the Empire Windrush to the UK. Our local museum has established a permanent display about him, and I hope this will encourage more people to visit the church. It is essential for us to understand both the details of this brave man’s story and the location of his final resting place. (The Incredible Story of Lieutenant John Henry Smythe, dir. by blackhistorywalks).

4. I sought training and resources. In our diocese, we have a Racial Justice Officer and a centre for intercultural mission. The Intercultural Church Hub, located at St. Paul’s Church in Slough, provides resources and guidance to church communities looking to incorporate more intercultural elements into their worship services. The Hub publishes a journal on intercultural mission. It was in reading the Oxford Journal of Intercultural Mission (Issue 2: Summer 2023) that I first discovered the work of John Root.

5. I joined our church’s Joint Church Council with a remit to lead on issues of racial justice. (The individual Parochial Church Councils (PCCs) of three local Anglican churches, which manage the day-to-day running of the churches, formed a joint unit). Already, I have discussed racial justice with members of the congregation, signposted resources, and raised awareness about potential small group resources we could use in our church.

6. I suggested we include prayers about racial justice in our Intercessions on the day commemorating Racial Justice Sunday.

7. I invited a speaker with experience in intercultural church settings to outline a theological basis for Thame Church’s consideration of racial justice. John Root, a retired Anglican vicar with a background in planting intercultural church communities in London, agreed to speak with me and our Team vicar, Andy. We recorded an interview together. Both Andy and John encouraged me to get involved in the project. Initially, I was reluctant because I didn’t want to be seen as the spokesperson for the few people from ethnic minorities within our congregation. However, I ultimately agreed, and together we developed questions that were relevant to Thame Church and our context. These questions included: ‘Why does people coming from different ethnic backgrounds matter to Christians?’ and ‘How should we respond’?

8. I recommended a small group resource which emphasises welcoming people from diverse backgrounds. The Experiences of Welcome discipleship resource from the Diocese of Leicester is a six-week course which is designed to help individuals and groups reflect on how we welcome others who are from different ethnic background.

How have the steps been received?

Small group leaders have been open and positive about discussing this topic. We plan to show the interview during an upcoming service focused on racial justice. Afterward, we will introduce the small group resource for both individual and group use. In the meantime, we have shared information about the intercultural church in the weekly email sent to congregation members for their pre-reading about the issue. (‘Symptoms of Institutional Racism in the Church of England’, The Oxford Journal for Intercultural Mission, no. 2). Feedback from using the resources included suggestions for more multicultural events in our church, including food, and hearing about the experiences of people born in Britain who have cultural heritages from other countries or non-white ethnicities. I was pleasantly surprised to receive the comments and recommendations, and I hope to build on these first steps to introduce more intercultural opportunities into our church services.

What have I learned?

1. It is always important to speak out against injustice. The more I reflect on my past silence, the more I feel compelled to take action. The Bible recognizes ethnicity and diversity as part of God’s plan from Genesis to Revelation. Racial injustices ignore the fact that we are all made in God’s image, leading to disunity. As Christians, we need to challenge this.

2. Personal lived experience is valuable. While I may not be an expert on issues of race, my personal experiences can contribute to positive change within our church.

3. To be confident with faith, prayer and a willingness to persevere. I am growing in confidence and can overcome my fears about how others may perceive my contributions and actively engage in making changes in our church.

4. I need more allies, from both within the congregation and beyond, who are passionate about making our churches more intercultural.

Julie Reid, 2025

Bibliography

Anti Racism Taskforce, From Lament to Action (Church of England, 2021) <https://www.churchofengland.org/sites/default/files/2021-04/FromLamentToAction-report.pdf>

Joshua T., Searle, ‘What’s Wrong with Racism?’ <https://www.biblesociety.org.uk/content/explore_the_bible/bible_in_transmission/files/2022_spring/What_is_wrong_with_racism.pdf> [accessed 6 March 2025]

Oxford Essential Quotations (Oxford University Press, 2017) <https://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/acref/9780191843730.001.0001/q-oro-ed5-00016497#:~:text=If%20you%20are%20neutral%20in%20situations%20of%20injustice%2C,surprised%20at%20the%20people%20we%20find%20in%20heaven.>

Progress on Racial Justice Across the Church of England Dioceses (Committee for Minority Ethnic Anglican Concerns (CMEAC), together with the Racial Justice Commission and the Racial Justice Unit) <https://www.churchofengland.org/sites/default/files/2024-06/progress-on-racial-justice-across-the-church-of-england-dioceses.pdf>

‘Racial Trauma’, Racial Trauma: What Therapy Can Help with Racial Trauma <https://www.bacp.co.uk/about-therapy/what-therapy-can-help-with/racial-trauma/> [accessed 14 March 2025]

Sadiq, Isha, ‘Ew Group’, Racial Microaggressions: Definitions, Examples, and Practical Actions<https://theewgroup.com/blog/racial-microaggressions-definition-examples-actions/#:~:text=Racial%20microaggressions%20are%20defined%20as%20patterned%20behaviours%20by,%E2%80%93%20usually%20Black%2C%20Asian%2C%20and%20Minority%20Ethnic%20individuals.> [accessed 6 March 2025]

‘Symptoms of Institutional Racism in the Church of England’, The Oxford Journal for Intercultural Mission, no. 2 (2024), pp. 9–12

The Incredible Story of Lieutenant John Henry Smythe, dir. by blackhistorywalks.

The Parish UK Network, ‘Thame Parish 2021 Census Data’ <https://thame.parish.uk/census/> [accessed 6 March 2025]

Unknown, ‘Elie Wiesel Quotes on Silence’ <https://www.azquotes.com/author/15626-Elie_Wiesel/tag/silence> [accessed 6 March 2025]

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Add Ons

Looking for a Sermon and Group series post Easter or post Pentecost? Then take a look at the ‘Birth of the Multi-Ethnic Church’ material of five sessions based on the Acts of the Apostles, available at blog # 64.

Intercultural Leadership Forum organised by the Evangelical Alliance One People Commission meet on Friday 22^nd May from 11am to 3pm at their offices in Islington. Further details from Alice Collins at a.collins@eauk.org

Reflecting on Scripture – Psalm 133: A song of ascents. Of David.

¹ How good and pleasant it is
when God’s people live together in unity!

² It is like precious oil poured on the head,
running down on the beard,
running down on Aaron’s beard,
down on the collar of his robe.
³ It is as if the dew of Hermon
were falling on Mount Zion.
For there the Lord bestows his blessing,
even life forevermore.

We can all sense what is ‘good’ – so we talk of ‘good’ food, ‘good’ music - those things that are rich and appropriate and fulfilling. Unity between Christians (especially of different ethnicities) has that sense of being ‘good’ and right.

I am quite fastidious – I wouldn’t have felt good about being drenched with oil as Aaron was. But for him the oil was a sure sign that he was anointed, called and equipped by God for a special task. Unity ‘anoints’ the church; it assures us of God’s calling and presence with us as we minister for him in ethnically diverse societies.

In sweltering hot countries ‘hill stations’ are cooler places to go for refreshment. Unity is like cooling mountain top dew that refreshes those who serve God in ‘hot’ and tiring situations. When God’s people from very different backgrounds share a deep heart unity, there God’s blessing and favour is known – that carries through into eternity.

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