Passing the faith on: Honouring our communities across generations
Carol Stewart calls on the Black Church to take steps to encourage people to worship intergenerationally and give people of all ages opportunities to lead, serve and share
The Black Church was once a place where multiple generations gathered, worshipped, learned and supported one another. If we truly want to honour the legacy of the Windrush Generation, we must intentionally rebuild intergenerational communities where everyone belongs and everyone contributes.
The Windrush Generation was very much family focused and, for many of that generation, the whole family regularly went to church. With the theme of ‘Honouring Our Communities’ for Black History Month this year, now is a good time to pause and reflect on how much the Black Church is reflective of an intergenerational community.
The Black Pentecostal Church community appears to be divided between churches that remain very much ‘old school’ – with ageing congregations and dwindling numbers of young people – and those that are attracting young people in their droves but for which, once you pass 50, you become invisible. Across the Black Church, there are differing experiences. Some congregations have struggled to retain the younger generations, while others have successfully struck the right balance, creating environments where children, young people, adults and older members all feel they belong, feel connected and feel valued.
The Black Pentecostal Church helped provide the Windrush Generation with a sense of belonging when they were excluded from mainstream churches. With that generation now ageing, how intergenerational is the Black Pentecostal Church now? An intergenerational church is about more than bringing people of different ages together to sit in the same building on a Sunday morning. It is about creating opportunities for generations to learn from one another and building meaningful relationships that enable faith to be passed from one generation to the next. How to strengthen those bonds is the challenge every church now has to face.
Older members bring wisdom, resilience and lived experience of God’s faithfulness through difficult times. Younger members bring fresh perspectives, energy and new ways of engaging with the world. When generations become disconnected, the whole church loses something of its richness and strength.
For many of us, our faith journey was shaped by parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, Sunday school teachers, youth leaders or church elders who invested their time in us. They prayed for us, encouraged us and modelled what it meant to follow Christ. Today’s younger generation needs that same investment, just as older members need to know that their wisdom, experience and contribution are still valued.
The Church is meant to reflect the family, bringing together people from different generations. Should we not therefore strive to make our churches more intentionally intergenerational? Families thrive when different generations value and learn from one another. The same principle applies to the Church.
The Windrush Generation built churches that became places of refuge, identity and belonging when wider society often excluded them. Honouring their legacy means more than celebrating their sacrifices once a year. It means ensuring our churches remain places where generations worship together, learn from one another and serve side by side.
The challenge is that society has become increasingly age-segregated. Children, young people, working-age adults and older people often live, socialise and engage in separate spaces. These divisions can unintentionally find their way into church life, too. Differences in worship style, communication preferences and cultural expectations can create barriers between generations when there is little opportunity for meaningful interaction.
Building an intergenerational church requires intentionality. It means making space for older and younger people to serve together, pray together and learn from one another. It means valuing testimony as much as innovation, experience as much as enthusiasm. It also means creating leadership opportunities that draw on the gifts of every generation, rather than focusing exclusively on either youth or seniority. It may even mean challenging some of our assumptions about who has something valuable to contribute.
The churches established by the Windrush Generation were never just places of worship. They were places where practical support, friendship, mentoring and belonging could be found. They functioned as extended families for many people navigating the challenges of life in Britain. As we honour their legacy, perhaps we should ask ourselves whether our churches still provide that same sense of family across the generations.
In a culture that often separates people by age, the Church has an opportunity to model something different. As Psalm 145:4 reminds us: ‘One generation shall praise thy works to another, and shall declare thy mighty acts.’ Perhaps the greatest way we can honour our communities is by ensuring that the generations remain connected, so that faith, wisdom and hope continue to be passed on.
CAROL STEWART
Award-winning executive coach, coaching psychologist and founder of www.aboundingsolutions.com. Follow on LinkedIn
NB: Main image contains AI generated models
