Racial Justice Sunday was observed last Sunday, 8th February.  Here we highlight how three of our chaplaincies spent the day.  The first is from the chaplaincy in Warsaw, Poland, with a reflection from Tom Nolan (Churchwarden) following a pastoral visit from Bishop Robert:

It was a pleasure to celebrate Racial Justice Sunday with Bishop Robert and his wife Helen whilst they were visiting Warsaw on a pastoral visit.  Bishop Robert preached on reaffirming our baptismal identity and our commitment to doing justice and living in peace with our neighbours.

The Warsaw Chaplaincy is a community shaped by difference.  We gather as Christians from many nations, cultures, and languages, and that diversity is not incidental to our life together – it is part of our calling.  Racial Justice Sunday offers a moment in the Church’s year to pause, pray, and pay attention to how well we are living into that calling.

Diversity is the beauty of God’s creation.

By belonging to a race, I belong to God – created in the image of God

The Revd Kasta Dip, Chaplain, Warsaw & Kyiv

This day matters and it is good news we celebrate this.  It creates space for honesty, for listening, and for naming truths that are often uncomfortable.  Yet it also reminds us that justice cannot be contained within a single service or Sunday.  If racial justice is part of the Gospel – I am passionate that it is – then it must be woven into the ordinary fabric of our discipleship.  It is not an occasional focus, but an everyday practice.

At its heart, Racial Justice Sunday draws us back to Jesus’ command to love our neighbour.  That love is never abstract.  It asks us to notice who is overlooked, whose voices are missing, and who carries burdens the rest of us do not have to bear.  Love of neighbour demands more than goodwill; it calls for attention, courage, and a willingness to change.  It requires us to confront not only individual prejudice, but also the patterns and structures that quietly privilege some while diminishing others.

The Scriptures root this call in memory and humility.  God instructs Israel to treat the foreigner not as an outsider, but as one of their own, reminding them that they too once depended on the welcome of others.  Justice grows where we remember that none of us stands apart from grace.  It falters when we forget how easily fear and self-interest distort our vision.

The Church is not immune to these distortions.  Many of us, particularly those who benefit from racial privilege, may move through the world without noticing the daily indignities others endure.  Learning to see differently often begins with listening – to stories that unsettle us, challenge our assumptions, and expose truths we did not have to face before.  This kind of listening is slow, sometimes painful, and deeply spiritual.  It invites repentance, not as shame, but as transformation.

Christian faith is formed in relationship.  As Paul reminds us, we belong to one another so completely that suffering, and joy are shared realities.  Racial injustice is therefore not someone else’s issue; it is a wound in the Body of Christ.  When any part of that body is harmed, the whole is diminished.

The Eucharist offers us a pattern for this way of life.  We come to the table not as hosts in control, but as guests who receive what we could never provide for ourselves.  Christ’s hospitality reshapes our understanding of neighbour – not as someone to be managed or assimilated, but as someone to be honoured and loved.

Racial Justice Sunday is an invitation to recommit ourselves to this way of living.  It is a beginning, not a conclusion.  The deeper work continues in our conversations, our leadership, our welcome, and our willingness to stand alongside one another day by day.  Justice, like love, must be practised — patiently, faithfully, and together.

The chaplaincy in St George's Church Lisbon and St Paul's Church Estoril marked Racial Justice Sunday with a prayer for Racial Justice Sunday written by the whole community at St George's Church:

Father, you created each one of us in your own image.
Yet yours is a world made glorious by its rich diversity.
This we sometimes misunderstand, sometimes fear.
Give us the patience to build on what unites us, to celebrate our differences and to learn from them.
Grant us the wisdom to recognise your Church, beyond the walls of a building,
reaching out across all communities, countries and cultures.
Give us the courage to offer refuge to those in need, to challenge prejudice and seek justice for all.
Help us see that you created us in your image.
Neighbour or stranger, always our brother or sister. Amen

A few of them also recorded this Psalm together with Rev Iain Bendrey:

Rev Alison Heal, Assistant Curate at the chaplaincy of All Saints, Luxembourg, describes how they approached Racial Justice Sunday:

Recognising that we are all one in the Kingdom of God, everyone in the congregation was given an All Saints Passport. Inside were several questions which people could ponder, and reply to, if they chose. The passports could be taken home for prayer and reflection, or handed in. Here are the questions. What would you answer?

• One great thing I wish people knew about my culture is:
• One thing I wish people understood about what it means to be me is:
• One thing I wish people would ask about my struggles is:
• One way my culture could bless All Saints is:
• One way All Saints could pray for me is:

 

 

Resources to encourage ongoing conversations around racial justice can be found here: Racial Justice Resouces for Chaplaincies