RECONILIATION WALK COMMUNITY

       Building peace through relationships

Welcome To Luton, UK

We are a missional community located in one of England’s most diverse towns. Our aim is to work with the local church in reaching out to our neighbors. Living next door to St. John the Baptist Anglican Church has given us a wonderful partnership, a local church and a missional community joining hands to serve those around us.

Our community has developed out of the lessons learned on the Reconciliation Walk. The RW called for Western Christians to come to the Middle East and to apologize for the Crusades on the 900th anniversary. One of the lessons learned on the RW was peace begins when people meet face to face. The apology for the Crusades opened doors of friendships so that ordinary people could began to really know each other without the hindrance of stereotypes.

We live in Luton in a neighborhood called Farley Hill. This neighborhood was once full of hard working families employed by the car industry and other industries located in and around Luton. At that time workers felt they could raise their families well and see their dreams fulfilled. Today with the decline of most of the industrial jobs, Farley Hill has high unemployment, extremely high levels of child poverty, high rates of heart disease and diabetes. The neighborhood is also challenged ethnically with many coming from the nations hoping to find prosperity. This area once so full of hope is discouraged by today’s problems and complexities.

Our desire is to live in this community and through our service, projects and training programs help restore hope and peace to our neighbors. Living in a missiological and incarnational community is a wonderfully rewarding challenge. Please join us in the challenge and the reward.

The Reconciliation Walk began with a journey: a literal walk across the path of thefirst crusade. This time, however, the message was not of war or division, but of peace, forgiveness, and hope. By apologising to Muslims, Jews and Orthodox Christians for the atrocities committed by those claiming to represent Jesus, doors were opened to further understanding.    Read more...