Celebrating 40 Years of Faith in the City

Faith in the City was a report that resonated with many congregants in the Church of England, and is still regarded as being a landmark publication in post-war Church/State relations. In 2025, we celebrate the fortieth anniversary of its publication. Forde and Drummond, two members of the LKC community, look forward to sharing a book that celebrates the importance and relevance of Faith in the City 40 years on.

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Faith in the City is one of the most substantial documents on welfare provision and Urban Mission & Ministry in England to have been published in the post-war period. Robert Runcie (Archbishop of Canterbury from 1980 to 1991) had instituted the Commission on Urban Priority Areas in 1983, to undertake the review that had resulted in its Autumn 1985 publication. This was partly out of a concern he had that the government's free market economic and social policies may have contributed to bringing about the inner-city riots that had broken out in some of Britain's poorest areas in 1981-82.

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Runcie was keen to know how the Church of England could best contribute to meeting some of the social challenges that the country now faced, as well as how to advise appropriate bodies on the most appropriate ways of tackling them. The Commission's core terms of reference were: 'To examine the strengths, insights, problems, and needs of the Church's life and mission in Urban Priority Areas and, as a result, to reflect the challenge which God may be making to Church and Nation: and to make recommendations to appropriate bodies.'

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At a time when the Church of England is grappling with complex issues such as safeguarding, inclusivity and managing the implications stemming from the reduced levels of religious observance and affiliation that it has been witnessing, it is important for Christians of whatever denomination to remember and reflect on the positive role that faith plays when, during tumultuous times, it speaks truth to power.

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More information about the book will be appearing shortly on the Sacristy Press web site.