In Depth:  diversity

faith and life

Debbie Dickson

One of the joys of arriving for our Sunday morning service is seeing who is on the welcome team. It is, I think, a feeling which reflects the growing cultural and ethnic diversity in our churches; for sure, there will be a mix, but where might the welcomers be from? Hong Kong? The UK? Nigeria? Iran? India?

Firstly, this growing diversity means we have the potential to reach a wider variety of people unfamiliar with the church or the Christian faith. This is reflected in my own experience when, a few years back, some Hong Kong Christians invited a neighbour – who was not a Christian – to a Chinese New Year party organised by my church. Though not a believer, he was an excellent calligrapher and kindly made decorations for the party – red banners of Bible verses in Chinese characters. Many others have found a warm welcome which has been instrumental in their wanting to know about Christ.

Jason Roach

There was a glint in his eye. I couldn’t quite tell if it was a tear or a smile. He grinned, put his coffee down on the table and said: “As a teenager, it was the most special thing about church every Sunday.”

We’d been talking about life on estate churches.

Kay Morgan-Gurr

I’m often asked if the children and young people I work alongside have the capacity for faith. Others question why my colleagues and I continue to teach because, quote: “Why bother if they will never understand?"

Many times, these questions come from evangelical circles.

bridging cultural divides

Jason Roach

In my experience, eating fish and chips at the seaside can be a life threatening experience. Not because of the quality of the fish and chips, but because of the flocks of birds trying to eat it at the same time.

On one memorable trip, I was in the process of trying to rescue my daughter's meal from a veracious seagull, when its partner in crime took the opportunity to swipe mine. I think they must have enjoyed it, because a few minutes later they deposited most of what they had digested on my head. In His wisdom, the Lord has ordained that trips to the beach would remind me of that old adage: birds of a feather, flock together.

bridging cultural divides

Jason Roach

A common concern around welcoming people from different cultures into the local church is that it is impossible for introverts. I remember one person saying, 'I find it hard enough to speak to my friends, let alone to strangers!'

It’s part of a bigger fear among Christians that we just don’t have what it takes to reach out to those who are different from us. What do we do when we want to communicate across cultural differences, but the bar just seems too high?

bridging cultural divides

Jason Roach

'I gave them my freedom (bus) pass and scribbled down the address of the church on the back of a receipt! Praying that they'd come along today.'

If I could have raised one eyebrow I would have. As it was, I simply smiled. It seemed risky... He had only met Araz, Dilvan and Genc* - the three Kurdish men that he spoke of - the day before. They had been housed in a local hotel while their Asylum claims were processed.