Response to commitments

St Ethelburga's Centre for Reconciliation & Peace

Centre for Reconciliation and Peace

At St Ethelburga’s we want to contribute to all the seven commitments of the London Challenge. Through talking and working with Christians of all denominations and non Christians we believe we can deepen our understanding of what it means to be a Christian in London, whilst at the same time deepening our appreciation of those people of other faiths. Our new Tent space is ideal for this – rooted in the Christian mission of hospitality that side-steps new-ageism, it opens up the possibility of real dialogue and friendship. This is particularly relevant in London at the beginning of the 21st Century as a diverse and cosmopolitan city in which people of all faiths share the same space. As much a new kind of conversation as a new kind of space, it has caught the imagination of many of our visitors, so much so that there is even a growing movement in London of cutting edge Anglicans looking for “new ways of being Tent.”

Lent course: Meeting and embracing – a Lenten journey of reconciliation
This Lent we will host four ecumenical gatherings to explore the nature of reconciliation from different Christian perspectives. Our starting point for this journey is Psalm 85: “Mercy and truth are met together; justice and peace have kissed each other.” Each session will include a talk, time for personal reflection and a short, Taize-inspired liturgy. The course will build ecumenical partnerships with speakers and participants coming from the Metropolitan Community Church and Faithworks as well as the Anglican and Roman Catholic traditions. For more information contact

Scriptual Reasoning and FACT
Scriptural Reasoning (SR) and a new Faith and Citizenship Training (FACT), which includes SR, provide opportunities for this conversation. The Tent of Meeting is a controlling image for this work. We meet in mutual space outside our customary houses of worship and, as a group of Jews, Christians and Muslims, we study our holy texts together. The Cambridge Interfaith Programme got us going, and continues to support our work, but at St Ethelburga’s we are discovering how Scriptural Reasoning works as a civic practice for community faith leaders rather than academics. FACT additionally brings these community faith leaders together around issues of common concern. With help from London Citizens we are relearning (in the words of the London Challenge memorandum) the “difficult language of speaking truth to power”.

There are Open Days for those interested in finding our more about Scriptural Reasoning and opportunities for participation in FACT. New material is continually being posted on our website, so keep an eye on it. For more information contact

Islam in the West
This new series of events takes an experimental approach to deepening the dialogue between Muslims and non-Muslims in Britain. Moving away from traditional meeting formats, we invite maximum participation and seek to draw on our collective wisdom. Through collaborating with organisations such as Dialogue with Islam we seek a closer engagement with people of Muslim faith. For more information contact

One Earth interfaith dialogues
These dialogues bring together people from different faith backgrounds to explore, reflect and act on issues of global concern together. In particular, issues of ecology and environmental sustainability have been the major focus for these gatherings. As such, this series will seek closer engagement with people of other faiths on a pan-London basis and contribute to the environmental debate. For more information contact

For full information about what is happening at St Ethelburga’s please visit www.stethelburgas.org

Spring programme of events Download