Remembering the past – looking to the future

Almost 4,000 Christians gathered in London on Saturday 24th March as part of the Church’s nationwide response to the Bicentenary of the Act for the Abolition of the Slave Trade.

This landmark anniversary would, according to the General Synod in February 2006, provide “unprecedented opportunities to acknowledge the Church’s complicity in the Slave Trade and tell anew the Christian story of creation and redemption”. The Church of England’s Committee for Minority Ethnic Anglican Concerns, chaired by the Revd Rose Hudson-Wilkin, designed the Walk of Witness to do just that – offer a focus for remembering the lives of many Africans lost on slave ships and through hard labour, and also an event that might help shape future strides towards justice and reconciliation.

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, commented in the event programme: “By joining the Walk of Witness you have embarked on a pilgrimage that is a public witness to the Gospel. In our act of repentance, we will reflect on the past and pledge ourselves to make a new beginning by the grace of God – showing the world something of the transforming power of the Resurrection.”

Joining the Archbishop of Canterbury were the Archbishops of York, Dr John Sentamu; the West Indies, the Most Revd Drexel Gomez; and the Archbishop of West Africa, the Most Revd Dr Justice Akrofi, alongside leaders from other Churches, civic leaders and representatives of foreign governments. They headed the walk, which began in the heart of Whitehall – where Wilberforce and the other abolitionists conducted much of their campaign against the Transatlantic Slave Trade. The other leg, led by Bishops from the Diocese of Southwark, began at Holy Trinity Clapham, Wilberforce’s church and home of the ‘Clapham Sect’ – a group closely associated with the abolitionists.

The two groups converged at Kennington Park, where an Act of Worship – including prayer, drama, dance, music and reflections by the Archbishops of Canterbury and York – gave the gathered walkers an opportunity to acknowledge the legacies of the slave trade and to commit to the ongoing fight to tackle modern-day forms of slavery. Extracts from the event were televised across the world.

The Revd David Bishop, the Bishop of Oxford’s Adviser on Renewal, concludes: “The Walk of Witness was a very good example of a ‘cause’ which brought Christians of differing theological persuasions together: There were evangelicals inspired by the fact it was Wilberforce’s conversion which has enabled him to persevere for so long… there were human rights activists who would support modern efforts to end slavery; there were large numbers of black people anxious that the disadvantages of some ethnic groups should be addressed; and there were many white people like myself who just wanted to apologise for the unspeakable treatment of Africans by our forefathers, and for the fact that it has taken so long to wake up to the enormity of the slave trade.”

The routes of the two walks are now designated as Heritage Trails, for those keen to explore more of the history of the relationship between the Church – and the wider UK – with the Slave Trade. Resources to support self-guided walks along the trail will be included in a schools pack, scheduled for release at the end of 2007. The pack will also include footage from the day in the form of a DVD, along with lesson plans and material for use in assemblies.

 To register your interest in receiving more details about this pack, email cmeac.enquiries@c-of-e.org.uk. The Making Our Mark website (www.makingourmark.org.uk) includes the programme of the day's event and a wide range of photographs from the day.