Ghanaians find home through London fellowship

Members of the Ghanaian Methodist Fellowship worship at Methodist Central Hall in London. UMNS photos by Kathleen LaCamera.

By Kathleen LaCamera*

LONDON (UMNS) - Through worship events and a social network stretching across London and beyond, the Ghanaian Methodist Fellowship is a lifeline for both the newly arrived in England and established immigrants.

Equally crucial, the fellowship helps Ghanaians find new church homes among London's 247 local Methodist churches, assisting them to integrate more fully into British life.

Ama Brehene-Ankah is the staff services manager for one of London's most exclusive hotels. She also is the senior steward for the Ghanaian Methodist Fellowship. When she came here from her West African nation more than 20 years ago, going to church on Sunday was "difficult," she recalls.

"I had some unwelcoming experiences, nothing serious, but people did not even smile at you," she told United Methodist News Service. "They would give you a look as if to say, 'What are you doing here?' ... Not even the stewards would approach me."

She persisted, however, and found her way into a Methodist mission congregation in London's Deptford area.

"I made my mind up to go. I went in and met the minister, and his wife welcomed me. The church members were quite elderly and there were only a few young people. I met a Ghanaian gentleman and a couple of West Indians. I thought, 'I'm home,'" she remembers.

Brehene-Ankah believes England has become much more of a mixed, multicultural society in the years since then. But she and other members of the fellowship know that part of finding "home" in a new country is finding a local church where you are welcomed and encouraged to get involved.

Strengthening links
Six years ago, the Methodist Church in Ghana sent the Rev. Emmanuel Aggrey-Ogoe to London to work half his time as chaplain to London's Ghanaian Methodist community and the other half time as minister to the Streatham Methodist church. The momentum for this appointment grew out of a pioneering agreement between British and Ghanaian Methodist churches keen to meet the pastoral needs of Britain's growing Ghanaian community.

An estimated 10 percent of all Methodists in the London area are from the Ghanaian community. "I came specifically to do the job of helping Ghanaian Methodists integrate into life in Britain," Aggrey-Ogoe explained.

Creating a post in which the Ghanaian chaplain also worked halftime as pastor to an ordinary church was a challenging but deliberate choice. It helped ensure that the person in this job would be knowledgeable and involved with mainstream British Methodism as well as the Ghanaian community.

Two London fellowship groups meet once a month for afternoon worship service - one at Methodist Central Hall near the Houses of Parliament and the other at St. Mark's Methodist Church in North London. Fellowship groups also have formed in Birmingham and Nottingham.

During a recent service that fell on Britain's national day for remembering military veterans, worship opened with the congregation singing both the British and Ghanaian national anthems followed by prayers offered in both Ghanaian and English.

Overcoming suspicion
According to Aggrey-Ogoe, the fellowship is important in helping Ghanaians navigate and adapt to the sometimes perplexing cultural landscape of modern British life.

"We live in a culture of suspicion. People look at you with suspicion and you must work your way to acceptance. You want to be accepted and try as much as possible to adapt to situations and the lifestyle," he said. "The fellowship is a place where people can let down their guard; there's no tension."

A typical two-hour service includes traditional Ghanaian hymns, preaching, teaching and a Sunday school for young people. Newcomers are asked to introduce themselves. Inevitably, someone in the fellowship will be from the same area of Ghana as the newcomer.

Esther Addo, a health care assessor, has lived in the United Kingdom for 20 years. A member of the Edmonton Methodist church in east London, she has been involved in the fellowship for three years. The first time she came to a service she thought, "Oh wow! This is Ghana," she said. "I really enjoy singing hymns in our own dialect. It soothes your soul."

Fifteen-year-old Yaw Adom travelled with the fellowship's choir to the European Methodist Festival in the Slovak Republic last summer. He likes the people and the relaxed family atmosphere of the fellowship but especially enjoys the fellowship Sunday school led by Vida Asamoah-Mainoo, a banker.

Her involvement with the fellowship's young people continues even after they leave her class. She recently helped one teenager find a part-time Saturday job. "Growing up in Britain, I can be the middle ground between children and young people and their parents," she explained. "I understand the U.K. and Ghana and can step in and help children and their parents understand each other."

Both the pastor and fellowship members are quick to point out that the fellowship is not a church but primarily a social network of support for an immigrant community with complex needs. Every member must commit to membership in a local Methodist church to be involved with the fellowship.

Giving a sense of belonging
Surprisingly, some of those who benefit most from the fellowship include people who have been away from Ghana for many years.

"Those who have been away from Ghana for a long, long time can seem a bit lost. They have cut themselves off from people at home but also are not integrating well here either," said Brehene-Ankah. "With the fellowship, they have a sense of belonging. We understand. We've been there. We can help."

The Rev. Stuart Jordan, one of the two chairs of the London District, is enthusiastic about what he calls the "double-pastoral system" created through the London Ghanaian Fellowship chaplaincy.

"It supports Ghanaians in local churches, helping them to be involved as fully as they can be. Alongside that, it offers particular pastoral support where a culturally specific model is appropriate."

Initially, he said, a number of local Methodist ministers were "slightly sceptical" about a local chaplain to the Ghanaian community.

"They thought the Ghanaians would be drained away from their churches. What has happened is entirely the opposite," he observed. "It's a very creative model that others might want to consider."

Brehene-Ankah confirms his observation. "Our chaplaincy is helping the British Methodist Church," she said. "When new people join us, we always find out what local church they are close to and link them up. Local churches are growing, because when Ghanaians get involved they don't just sit down. They do things."

*LaCamera is a UMNS correspondent based in England.