Posted on: 16th July 2024

What does it mean to truly belong in a community? We all want to make sure that everybody is welcome in our churches, no matter how they may be marginalised by society based on gender, sexuality, disability, race or poverty. We usually call this being ‘inclusive’ – but lately I’ve been trying to move away from a focus on inclusion, which can often mean just ticking legal boxes to make sure everyone is able to attend if they want to. Making church inclusive and accessible can sadly feel like a burden for churches that are already struggling financially.

I’ve been trying to move instead towards a theology of belonging, a recognition of our shared humanity, all created in the image of God. Each of us brings something precious and unique to our communities and all are diminished when any one person or group are excluded. In July 2000, Hillsong released Awesome in this place, it is very much a product of its time. However, there is one section that stood out to me then and still stands out today. The bridge contains these lines,

I've found where I belong

I'm a living stone

In this house

I will grow

When we look at a wall or a building, it is quite obvious when stones or bricks are missing. In most modern buildings, stones or bricks are selected because they are all essentially identical and they are held in place using cement. The end result is often strong, It is easy to copy and replicate. Wherever you put it, it will look and feel pretty much the same. However, living in Yorkshire many of us are familiar with a very different type of wall. The dry-stone wall. There is no cement holding the stones together and no two stones are alike. Each stone is unique and has a unique place in forming the wall.

Last year my wife and I watched a dry-stone wall being repaired in the Yorkshire Dales. Each stone was picked up, examined, cleaned and placed with care. No stone was rejected or cast away. The resulting wall looked very much like other dry-stone walls I have seen while hiking, yet it was also distinct due to the different stones that it comprised of and the contours of the land it was on. For me belonging is very much like that. Each person is unique and has a place in the church.

But building a church in which everyone belongs is not easy. The man we watched rebuilding that stone wall confided that there are few people today with the skills, the patience and perseverance needed to master dry-stone walling. It is often easier and faster to simply knock it down and replace it with a modern wall or fence. Creating a church in which we truly celebrate difference is very much like this. It is hard work and takes patience and perseverance.

We also need to be able to look at each of those beautiful and unique living stones, seeing them for who they are in Christ.

Living and loving well with differences is not easy. We tend to seek out people who look, think and act like us. When left to our own devices we may need the legal legislative framework of

inclusion. However, if we look at others through the eyes of Christ, we can see past and through the differences to the shared humanity and the image of Christ within each person.

When we belong in a church or community, inclusion is no longer a costly addition, but simply part of the way we love and celebrate our differences.

By Paul Coleman, Leeds North and East Methodist Circuit