New World Outlook - Summer 2017 - Open - 12

12 N E W W O R L D O U T L O O K . O R G

Methodism has Multicultural Life
about 50,000 con- Some in our congregation face
gregants-5,000 tough challenges-finding employin the Republic ment, housing, and a place to learn
of Ireland and English. The church is a great re45,000 in Northern source to help them find their feet.
Ireland, UK. Most One way we do this is through the
members in the Friday Friendship Lunch, a two-hour
Republic of Ireland lunch to which all are welcome. The
are not of typical table is open to all kinds of converIrish ancestry.
sation as we share a bowl of soup
M e m b e r s h i p and bread together. Friendships are
of the Blanchards- developed through conversation.
town Methodist
On Sundays after worship, we
Church reflects its share tea and coffee, chatting
diverse commu- about our daily lives and asking
nity, mainly young about families back home. During
families with chil- the Christmas and Easter seasons
Blanchardstown Methodist Church storefront in Dublin, Ireland.
PHOTO: ALBERT WAKILI
dren and teenag- we celebrate one another's culers. The church tures, sharing food from our various
The boom brought rapid change sponsors Sunday school, a youth countries. I can try Irish chicken
in Irish society-politically, economi- group, a discussion group, a Friend- diane, Filipino sinigang, Ghanaian
cally, and socially, and a big change ship Lunch, and women's and men's fufu, Indian biryana, Ugandan chain the country's demographic make- groups. It is ably served by a pastor, patti, and Polish chocolate all in
up. New immigrants from Eastern stewards, and a church council with one meal!
Every Friday evening youth
Europe, Africa, and Asia began to membership from at least four conchange the racial, ethnic, and reli- tinents. This models for the commu- group meets. Our door is open to
gious profile of most communities. nity and the nation at large what it all young people in the community
Yet, over the same period, levels of means to work, live, and worship to- regardless of their background. We
participation in church life declined gether as people from different plac- offer biblical teaching and relational
ministry in a community-centered
dramatically. Many people in the es around the world.
Republic of Ireland claim to be Roman
Catholic, but they do not practice
the faith. Scandals involving sexual
abuse by priests and the discovery of
human remains buried under the site
of a former institution for unmarried
mothers, run by the Sisters of the
Bon Secours in Tuam, Galway, have
turned some away from the church.
While aging and shrinking congregations may be a reality in some traditional denominations, this is by no
means the full picture. The migration of people from other parts of the
world to Ireland has made a significant impact on the church and on Irish
Christianity in general. The migrants Albert Wakili on an outing with younger members of the youth group of Blanchardstown
are eager to share their vibrant faith, Methodist Church.
resulting in explosive growth. Irish PHOTO: COURTESY ALBERT WAKILI

http://www.newworldoutlook.org

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of New World Outlook - Summer 2017 - Open