At NBC, we now have a Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Action Group. The team has been meeting since March 2021 and consists of Rev David Russell, Sarah Taylor, Steve Brehm and Parmjit Moyo.
It is our aim that this page will highlight the work within the church to actively promote equality, diversity and inclusion through NBC, in meetings activities and the day to day running of the church.
NBC statement on Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
We at NBC, in our reading and understanding of the Bible, and in our discipleship of following the teaching of Jesus, declare our abhorrence of inequality and injustice. Such practices we view as sin. Sin is the poison in the hearts and minds of humanity and is the corrosive element affecting our relationships with others who are different to ourselves. We see sin as the cause of prejudice, injustice, and indifference.
The only antidote to sin is Jesus Christ, who changes hearts and lives from being selfish and divisive, to being open and loving. In his death and resurrection, and by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, we can experience a real hope for change in individual lives, and for the corporate structures which abuse, vilify, separate, and oppress.
We believe every person is of equal value. All are loved by God and in need of his salvation. Whatever tradition, skin colour, creed, gender, identity, or ability, whatever educational achievement or none, whatever social class or societal identity, NBC’s values remain the same and consistent. We aim to confront prejudice in all its guises; racism, sexism, ageism, and all forms of injustice, whether deliberate, casual, accidental or systemic.
In our day-to-day activity, our recruitment, our structures, our mission and ministry, we hold strongly to the above statements. We seek to show love, respect, and value of every individual. This is shown through our worshipping God together in unity, our reading of the Bible, and our hearing the voice of God by his Holy Spirit.
Resources
The Baptist Union and BMS World Mission both have brilliant resources and articles to expand our knowledge when it comes to EDI issues. You can find them through the links below.
BMS World Mission - Statement on Race
Baptist Union - Faith and Society Resources
Diversity
John Amaechi - BBC Bitesize Articles
John Amaechi OBE is a respected organisational psychologist, best-selling New York Times author, sought after public speaker, executive coach and CEO of APS Intelligence Ltd. In addition to being a board advisor for several FTSE100 organisations in the financial, legal and professional services, technology, publishing, engineering and retail sectors. John was recognised as one of HR’s most influential thinkers by HR Magazine and he is the first Briton to have a career in the NBA.
In the wake of the George Floyd killing and the Black Lives Matter protests, the BBC asked John for his views below are links to his Bitesize videos. They are just a few minutes long, but in both John gives his views, they are full of insight and really helpful explanations.
Not-racist v anti-racist: what’s the difference?
Chine MacDonald - God is not a white man.
Chine McDonald is a writer, speaker and broadcaster. She is director of Theos, the religion and society think-tank, and previously headed up public engagement at Christian Aid. She is the former communications director for the Evangelical Alliance. Her latest book is God Is Not a White Man (Hodder & Stoughton). She studied theology and religious studies at the University of Cambridge and is a trustee of Greenbelt Festival and Christians in Media, she also sits on a number of charity boards, including the Church & Media Network and Christians Against Poverty.
Chine is the author of ‘Am I Beautiful?’ – a book exploring body image among Christian women. Chine regularly speaks and writes on issues of race and faith. Her second book God Is Not a White Man? was published by Hodder & Stoughton in May 2021.
God is not a white man
What does it mean when God is presented as male?
What does it mean when – from our internal assumptions to our shared cultural imaginings – God is presented as white?
These are the urgent questions Chine McDonald asks in a searing look at her experience of being a Black woman in the white-majority space that is the UK church – a church that is being abandoned by Black women no longer able to grin and bear its casual racism, colonialist narratives and lack of urgency on issues of racial justice.
Part memoir, part social and theological commentary, God Is Not a White Man is a must-read for anyone troubled by a culture that insists everyone is equal in God’s sight, yet fails to confront white supremacy; a lament about the state of race and faith, and a clarion call for us all to do better.
God is not a white man is available online an as an audio-book.
Equality
Invisible Women, written by Caroline Criado Perez
Imagine a world where...
· Your phone is too big for your hand
· Your doctor prescribes a drug that is wrong for your body
· In a car accident you are 47% more likely to be injured.
If any of that sounds familiar, chances are you're a woman.
From government policy and medical research, to technology, workplaces, and the media. Invisible Women reveals how in a world built for and by men we are systematically ignoring half of the population, often with disastrous consequences. Caroline Criado Perez brings together for the first time an impressive range of case studies, stories and new research from across the world that illustrate the hidden ways in which women are forgotten, and the profound impact this has on us all.
This book is available online an as an audio-book.
Womanist Midrash, written by Wilda C, Gafney
Womanist Midrash is an in-depth and creative exploration of the well-and lesser-known women of the Hebrew Scriptures. Using her own translations, Gafney offers a midrashic interpretation of the biblical text that is rooted in the African American preaching tradition to tell the stories of a variety of female characters, many of whom are often overlooked and nameless. Gafney employs a solid understanding of womanist and feminist approaches to biblical interpretation and the sociohistorical culture of the ancient Near East. This unique and imaginative work is grounded in serious scholarship and will expand conversations about feminist and womanist biblical interpretation.
This book is available online an as an audio-book.
Inclusion
Disability and the Church: A Vision for Diversity and Inclusion
Lamar Hardwick was thirty-six years old when he found out he was on the autism spectrum.
While this revelation helped him understand and process his own experience, it also prompted a difficult re-evaluation of who he was as a person. And as a pastor, it started him on a new path of considering the way disabled people are treated in the church. Disability and the Church is a practical and theological reconsideration of the church's responsibilities to the disabled community. Too often disabled persons are pushed away from the church or made to feel unwelcome in any number of ways. As Hardwick writes, "This should not be." He insists that the good news of Jesus affirms God's image in all people, and he offers practical steps and strategies to build stronger, truly inclusive communities of faith.
Inclusive Bible Translations
There are a number of more inclusive Bible translations, but we recommend the NRSV.