21st January 2026

At Swakopmund in Namibia, once a German colony, there is a historic steam locomotive abandoned there in 1895 and known to the locals as Martin Luther because “Here I stand, I can go no further”.

I am writing this in the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. At least in England the churches stance about any further moves towards structural unity seems to resemble the steam locomotive.

In the 1970s there were hopes for unity among the Protestant denominations. The Congregational Churches and the Presbyterians in England did unite but Methodist/Church of England plans were twice rejected by the Church of England mostly over the validity of clergy ordination and we Baptists did not risk talking to anyone. Yes, there are local united congregations which do show a way forward but there are not many.

We still talk casually as if our denomination is the best one and that ideally everyone would belong it. You still hear remarks like “Oh yes, she’s a Christian but she’s a Methodist”.  The speaker clearly feels that it would be much better if the woman were not a Methodist but was “one of us”, whoever “us” is for the speaker. The person under discussion is a Christian AND a Methodist.

We have no right when praying for unity or discussing our church’s view of worship or church government to assume that our way is at all points the correct way. We must not just pray that God will get everyone to agree with us! We are praying that God will show us the way “that they may all be one, just as you, Father are in me and I in you…” (John 17. 21).

Margaret Clements