Responding to the 1960 Sharpeville shooting, where Apartheid protesters in South Africa had been shot, St Martin-in-the-Fields vicar Austen Williams declared: ‘This isn’t a private affair in one particular place. In Algeria, in Nyasaland, in Kenya, in the whole of Africa, Christian values and Christian integrity are on trial. And we are all involved’. Williams and his congregation spoke out loudly against apartheid whilst also campaigning in support of other just causes.
Taking a Stand
With its proximity to Trafalgar Square, St Martin-in-the-Fields has been the site of many protests and counter-protests. The church has never been shy to voice its opinion on political, cultural, and social matters, frequently hosting discussions on topical issues.
Revd Dick Sheppard allowed sermons critical of the First World War to be preached in the church and included conscientious objectors alongside soldiers in his prayers.
Matters of inclusion and justice have been particularly significant to St Martin’s. It was the headquarters of the Church League for Women’s Suffrage and, in 1928, hosted a thanksgiving service when women finally achieved the vote on the same terms as men. For 15 years, the St Martin’s Disability Advisory Group (DAG) has sought to raise awareness and better resource churches to offer space for disabled people.
The church frontage, including the bells and flagpole, has been used to visually signify St Martin’s support for social movements. Each year, the Rainbow Flag is flown from the church and the Friends of Dorothy (a society for LGBT bell ringers and their friends) are invited to ring the bells of St Martin’s for London Pride.