Racism and Churches in Ireland

By VOX Editor Ruth Garvey-Williams

We’re LIVE now with our in-depth online survey, a new all-island piece of research led by VOX magazine and the Irish Inter-Church Meeting supported by Evangelical Alliance Ireland, Evangelical Alliance Northern Ireland and Tearfund Ireland.

We want to deepen our understanding of the experience of and attitudes towards racism and discrimination in churches in Ireland. We explore the potential for unity, integration and inclusion and examine how the church can lead the way in tackling racial injustice. The survey is anonymous and we hope to gather views from all Christians across the island of Ireland. We estimate it will take you about 10- 15 minutes to complete. Take it now or read down for further information.

At VOX magazine, we’ve always been passionate about giving voice to Christians in Ireland.  That has often involved carrying out high-quality and wide-ranging independent research on matters relating to the Church.  We want to consider the unique issues, perspectives and challenges for Christians on this island (rather than quoting research carried out in England or America).  

Our major VOX research into Young Adults (2015) and Women and the Church 2018 produced important findings from across the full spectrum of mainstream denominations as well as independent, migrant and emerging church networks in Ireland.  

When we began considering our next major research project at the beginning of 2020, one recurring theme came to the fore.  How can we understand the experiences of ethnic minorities? And what are the attitudes of church communities towards newcomers in our congregations and our communities?   

Our early discussions were brought into sharper focus by the pandemic as concerns arose about Direct Provision and the impact of Covid on migrant communities such as those employed in meat factories.  After discussions with many groups across the island, we discovered this was also a priority for the Irish Inter-Church Meeting (irishchurches.org), and we formed a partnership to launch the research .  

Damian Jackson, Programme Officer of the Irish Council of Churches and Irish Inter-Church Meeting says: “… as churches we need to respond to racism, discrimination and exclusion in Ireland, and in order to do that effectively and with authenticity, we need to begin by looking at ourselves. 

We believe that every person is a bearer of God’s image and that part of our calling to love our neighbour requires us to have concern for barriers to belonging and flourishing in our churches.

“We hope that this research will reveal the ways in which our church cultures, habits and practices need to change to enable that flourishing and inclusion while shedding the light of Christ onto the attitudes and biases in our hearts.”

Evangelical Alliance National Director, Nick Park, said, “Ireland’s experience with immigration and race is unique. The role of the Christian Church is also different from most other countries. While slogans and sound bites from other contexts and societies have obviously resonated with many, we need to develop an authentic Christ-like approach that will help us to celebrate and value one another. I consider this research project to be invaluable for those of us who want to be part of the solution rather than part of the problem.

“We have an incredible opportunity for the Church to be a powerful voice of grace and unity.”