bmchackney

Hackney has been one of the most important areas for the settlement of black people in Britain since the Second World War. The Windrush Generation (a ship from Jamaica which docked in 1948) began to settle in Hackney and Black Majority Churches (BMCs) quickly followed. (We should not forget, however, that there was a black Christian presence in Hackney long before that, for example the radical black leader Celestine Edwards who preached in Victoria Park)

This early period of settlement and its Christian dimension is ably described by Ira V. Brooks, a pastor in the New Testament Church of God who was the minister of the church on Cricketfield Road in two books "Where do we go from here?" "Another Gentleman to the Ministry"[1]. Brooks set up the Ebenezer Bible Institute in his church, the principle of which for some years was Joel Edwards now a nationally known figure as the former director of the Evangelical Alliance. This was a period of steady growth for BMC churches in Hackney – Brooks’ New Testament Church of God grew from 42 members in 1958 to 153 members in 1980.

The picture Brooks paints is one which typifies the experience of Caribbean settlers -- a positive can-do attitude struggling with the realities of racism and finding a foothold in a new culture, but Brooks also illustrates how Christian faith was central to surviving this challenge and thriving in a new country.

The church is the most fitting source for providing leaders because of its principles and its moral concern... the church cannot rule out its social responsibility... I believe in self-help. The local authorities should help people like ourselves to help ourselves. When we begin to help ourselves, it would be a great blessing if I could get a little more assistance from government.

The chapter titles of his autobiography give a good indication of the issues which he and the church faced

Brooks was also an important figure in beginning to bring the BMC churches into the mainstream of the church and civil society, although his retirement to Jamaica in the 1980s deprived the churches of one of its most eloquent interpreters. Some of the older Caribbean churches in Hackney have now gone through their initial period of growth and are having to reorganise for a new era, but there have been no shortage of new churches and new leaders to carry forward the legacy. Examples of these older churches include Shiloh Pentecostal in Ashwin Street, Dalston. Hackney Pentecostal Apostolic Church , also in Dalston and the Latter Rain Outpouring Revival in Hoxton. These churches have the advantage of having been able to acquire old church buildings -- before they were turned into luxury flats!

All these churches are part of what is called the Pentecostal movement. This has deep roots, particularly going back to Methodism in the 18th century but its starting point is often seen as the Azusa street revival in Los Angeles in 1906. At this time people experienced the phenomenon known as "Speaking in tongues" as described in the Bible and this provoked a remarkable expansion of evangelical Christianity which, at least in its early days, was marked by a remarkable multiculturalism. Since then Pentecostalism has spread throughout the world, it is a Bible based form of evangelical Christianity which emphasises the same experience of the Holy Spirit as that described in the Bible -- speaking in tongues, prophecies and miraculous healing. Most BMC churches are pentecostal but this is not necessarily the case -- the Evangelical Reformed Church in Lauriston Road would be an example.

There is another strand of BMCs which arrived in Hackney later than the Caribbean Pentecostalists, these are the so-called African Independent Churches who are most familiar through their use of white garments (although they are not used by all African independent churches). The most widespread of these are the Cherubim and Seraphim Churches and the Celestial Church of Christ. The Christ Apostolic Church have similar roots but are more like pentecostal churches. The African Independent Churches have a similar emphasis on the Holy Spirit and its manifestation in prophecy and healing but they have also incorporated aspects of African culture into their practices. This has made them controversial -- some reject them as heretical whilst others welcome them as a genuinely African Christianity. There are also some similar Caribbean churches which emphasise their African roots such as Spiritual Baptists (there are obvious similarities with Rastafarianism but, again, different people view this in different ways). There is, for instance, a Trinitarian Spiritual Baptist Church just over the border in Islington -- the name is a clear indication that this church wants to position itself within mainstream Christianity (for whom the Trinity is a, if not the, central doctrine). The names of churches often give an important indication of what they consider to be important -- the use of the word International, for instance, would be an indication that the church doesn't see itself as being exclusively for black people.

Despite these differences people from the Caribbean and Africa had a not dissimilar experience of coming to England

When I came to Britain I experienced rejection and loneliness from both church and society. We thought Britain was a heavenly country because everyone would be a Christian, but instead many of us suffered loneliness because we were used to a communal lifestyle. I gathered people together on Saturday evenings and so began my voluntary social and welfare ministry. In 1968 we introduced prayer and in 1970 decided to start worshipping on a Sunday. The church was registered as a charity in 1975

These are the words of Father Abiola a pioneer of African Independent Churches in Britain. People often emphasise the rejection that black people experienced from churches as the cause of the growth of BMCs but this is only half the story. Of equal importance was the church traditions which black people brought to Britain -- BMCs are not merely a reaction to racism, they are a genuine expression of black culture in their own right.

In the last 20 years there has been a new growth of BMC churches in Britain which has impacted Hackney significantly. This is the growth of mainly African pentecostal churches. The most well known of these, in Hackney, has been Kingsway International Christian Church, a so-called mega-church with many thousand members. It has now moved out of Hackney. Whilst well-known (and controversial) it is not typical. A more typical example might be the Redeemed Christian Church, a rapidly growing denomination which has a number of churches in Hackney or New Hope Ministries on Rectory Road.

These churches are not dissimilar from Caribbean pentecostal churches but apart from differences created by the different cultural backgrounds there can also be a different theological emphasis. This focuses around the so-called 'prosperity gospel[2]' -- this is particularly typical of KICC with its emphasis on making 'champions'. The teaching of these prosperity churches doesn't focus so much on heaven and life after death but rather claims that Christianity can make you successful and prosperous in this life. Many Christians find this emphasis on material prosperity disconcerting and at odds with Jesus's teaching, the media has also been suspicious and reports about the leaders of these churches and their lavish lifestyles is not uncommon. However it would be a mistake to think that all African pentecostal churches preach 'prosperity', some still have an old-style emphasis on heaven and salvation whilst others have begun to become involved more directly in social issues in the same way that we began to see with Ira Brooks. It is this latter group, such as Faithful Ministries, that are more likely to engage with local authorities and the voluntary sector, although it needs to be made clear that these are emphasises rather than neat boxes. It is not uncommon to find 'prosperity', soul saving and social engagement all within one church.

Another important dimension to BMCs is that some churches from traditional denominations have become Black Majority Churches such as Downs Rd Baptist Church. This is to say more than that congregations are majority black. There are certainly many black Christians in traditional churches who go there because they like their more traditional liturgies and theologies -- not wanting what they might call 'clap hand religion'. But some traditional churches have acquired black leadership and operate in ways which are not dissimilar from the independent BMCs. These are certainly an important voice which needs to be recognised, not least because they have a greater stability and visibility which comes from having their own building.

In more recent years we have seen the development of churches from many different nationalities, French-speaking churches have been established in Hackney for many years and there has recently been an increase in Zimbabwean Christians, as there was in Montserratian Christians after the volcano erupted.

Mention finally needs to be made of allegations of child abuse in BME churches linked to witchcraft and exorcism. This has been particularly associated with Congolese churches and funding has been made available by City Parochial Foundation to address these issues through the Churches Child Protection Advisory Service (see reports listed in References below). Whilst not wanting to avoid the issues that need to be addressed we need to recognise that sensationalist reporting can fan the flames of already existing prejudices in regard to black Christianity and militate against a moderate and rational response.

BMC churches have now spread all over Hackney -- we know of at least 85 and there are certainly more than 100 BMCs in Hackney. Although the previous history is not entirely necessary it does give a picture of the diversity and dynamism of these churches: there is no centralising organisation, there is no one viewpoint and there is no easy way to contact them all! Some progress has been made in this regard, however, by the appointment of a BMC Borough Dean[3] (Joyce Daley) to help bring the churches together and encourage partnership. To finish I will try to summarise the picture, although this does scant justice to this dynamic and changing scene which rarely stays still.

Probably the best overview of black Christian faith in Britain is Look What The Lord Has Done! by Mark Sturge published in 2005 by Scripture Union. Also worthwhile is Respect – Understanding British Caribbean Christianity by Joe Aldred ( www.joealdred.com )

Ira Brooks Another Gentleman To The Ministry is an excellent early account and particularly relevant to Hackney, although privately published and not easy to obtain. Io Smith An Ebony Cross and Philip Mohabir Building Bridges also give interesting accounts of the early Caribbean church

There is less published material on an African Christianity (it is now starting to emerge cf Chigor Chike African Christianity in Britain). Mark Sturge doesn’t really cover African Independent Churches and although there is lots of information on them in Africa there is a paucity in relationship to Britain. See my own interviews in Prophets And Prayer.

Black majority churches directory. This site aims to provide the most comprehensive listing of Black-majority, Black-led and Asian churches in the UK. www.bmcdirectory.co.uk.

[1] The manuscript was typed up by a young woman called Joy Fraser! Who is till active in the BMC churches in Hackney

[2] This is a theology which was developed in America and is particularly the associated with the so-called tele-evangelists

[3] Borough Deans are appointed in each London borough to enable the variety of Christian denominations to work together and relate to civic authorities

[4] Holiness is an emphasis on traditional moral values often suspicious of things like jewellery and the cinema