London’s churches reflect the multicultural nature of a world city. Among Grace Baptist churches in inner London, there is a strong Caribbean, African and Latino presence, in contrast to churches in provincial towns and villages. Ministry has to be consciously cross-cultural, understanding a range of cultures and relating the gospel to each of them in one church.
Who will pastor such churches? Across London and the Home Counties, Grace Baptist churches have pastors who come from Nigeria, Zimbabwe, India, Mexico, and Brazil. They are also seeing people from several European nations coming to the UK to train for ministry. This mix of cultural backgrounds is enriching local churches.
It has been seen as a virtue that pastors should be trained for ministry while also serving part-time in a local church. A number of churches in the association have a ‘pastor-in-training’, who already has some ministry experience and who is training part-time on the Cornhill Training Course or at London Seminary. Working in churches alongside other elders, they are able to grow their ministry gifts while connecting their theological studies with pastoral life.
