The new St John’s inclusion team was commissioned at an informal evening service in
September, then briefly introduced in a couple of morning services, starting with the
“Inclusion Sunday” service on 29th September.
What does it mean for St John’s to be inclusive? You might have seen copies of this poster displayed at St John’s and in the weekly email bulletins. It contains a shortened version of a statement by the Inclusive Church network, which St John’s joined last year: “We believe in inclusive church – a church which celebrates and affirms every person and does not
discriminate.”
Jesus told his disciples they should love one another, just as he loved them. And he loved unconditionally, accepting and loving people as they were, so we should do the same. So we don’t discriminate. No one at St John’s should be excluded unreasonably from anything we do or treated unfairly in any way - for example, because they have a disability or are considered too old, or they’re gay, or because of their ethnicity, or their theological opinions, and so on.
To celebrate and affirm every person includes making everyone welcome at our services and other events, especially visitors and anyone needing more support, and helping visitors to feel they could belong here if they so choose. There might also be further ways in which people could be supported and encouraged.
The role of the inclusion team is to help ensure that St John’s is as inclusive as we can be. Inclusivity is a responsibility of all of us in the congregation who agree with inclusion (and many would say St John’s has been inclusive for a long time), but the team makes this their business. We do this by helping to ensure people are made welcome, particularly anyone wanting support, and by keeping an eye on arrangements at St John’s to help ensure they’re inclusive – all as described above. Each member of the team focuses especially on one or two aspects that match their knowledge – such as disability, for example.
You can find out more on the St John’s website (see stjohnsredhill.org.uk/inclusive-church) and Inclusive Church website (at inclusive-church.org). You can also contact the inclusion team with any questions or comments by email at inclusivechurch@stjohnsredhill.org.uk, as listed in Pews News, or by getting in touch via the Parish Office.
Alistair Smith
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