We’re pleased that the Southlands Methodist Trust was able to support research culminating in this report by our University of Roehampton colleagues Dr Clare Watkins and Dr James Butler. Find out more at the launch event, May 25th, 2023, 11.30, online and in person. Contact James for details.
At the heart of this project is a question of the place of friendship and practice within ecumenical work between Methodists and Catholics, particularly the kind of work that takes place in extra-ecclesial settings, such as social action. The project set out to ask whether there was something particular about the way Methodists and Catholics work together in social action; what operant and espoused theologies of ecumenism were present in the lived practice of working together; and whether these working relationships had something to offer the wider ecumenical conversations.
James reflects on the report:
What were some perspectives or content that didn’t make it into the final report that you felt were important?
We had some really interesting reflections on the role of key individuals in enabling the work and how they became nodes in the relational networks. There were also reflections on the physical divides within communities (roads, railways, walls, boundaries) meaning that people live parallel lives. This was connected to issues of justice which we also didn’t cover in much depth in the report where wider questions need to be asked about who it benefits keeping people in their different groups and identifies when actually they have a lot in common. Another thing which would be good to develop further is some of the reflections on how people came to be involved in ecumenical work and the different stories and account which might help others to see the value of getting involved.
What are your reflections on the process – what went well, what you would do differently?
As we reflected in the report it was not always easy to get people to engage with our research question. As we have engaged in new projects we have taken a different line focusing even more on their questions and what they would like to get out of the research and finding the ways our research interests might connect with those things.
What have you learned from others – either co-collaborators or respondents – that nuanced or changed your own view (or not)?
Personally, I found meeting many of the participants in the research to be one of the highlights. Their commitment and passion for their work was inspiring. I’m much more interested in engaging with people in ecumenical contexts and interested in their different perspectives because of the careful listening and the visiting of different projects in this work.
What comes next for your research or for the topic in general?
Our next piece of research builds on some of the insights developed around the significance of working at the margins – margins of the church as an organisation, margins socio-economically etc. – and seeing how people learn, grow and develop in faith. You can find out more here.
Read or download the full report: A Shared Mission for Justice: Catholics and Methodists working Together in Social Action. A report of research in the UK, 2019-2022
.