Black clergy in the Church of England: Towards a Sense of Belonging

A book written by Ericcson T. Mapfumo shares the experiences of ordinands and Black clergy of the Church of England (CofE).

Black clergy in the Church of England: Towards a Sense of Belonging explores the increasing number of Black ordinands (trainees) from African and Caribbean heritages who are choosing a ministerial pathway in the Anglican Communion and the insights they have to bring from their places of origin.

Revd Dr Ericcson T. Mapfumo, is a member of the team of Faith Advisers and Chaplains at the University of Huddersfield based in the Jo Cox More in Common Centre. As a post-colonial scholar, he is interested in issues around social justice and those on the margins of society.

A lived experience

His book explores some of the issues and challenges faced in the Church of England, providing a lived experience of the Black clergy.

Ericcson commented, “l wrote this book for myself initially, as l was trying to put into words some of the challenges and experiences l was going through. With time l felt the need to include the voices of many people to help build the resilience of those in the minority. The book uses the Church of England as a laboratory to experiment and to test concepts, but it can be applied across many different organisations.

“One of the things l have learnt since writing the book is the idea of psychological safety and it has taken a lot of courage for me to write in an atmosphere where l felt that l did not have a voice. I was able to speak from my own experience, but also share the experience of other Black clergy, and bring attention to some of the challenges that they may be facing.”