Taking Greenbelt home - Making hope for the year ahead
Someone at the festival wrote on the tablecloth: ‘One day church will be more Greenbelt as we take it home with us.’
GREENBELT, the annual celebration of art, activism and belief, has been a place of hope for LGBTQIA+ people for many of its 50+ years.
On the last evening of this year’s festival, around 60 people gathered for an event co-hosted by the Open Table Network (OTN), OUT@Greenbelt (the festival’s LGBTQ+ volunteer team), and Inclusive Church.
In a venue fittingly called The Table, with cabaret seating, live music, and plenty of space for conversation, Hope-making around an open table was a chance to pause, reflect, and share stories of hope before the festival drew to a close.
Chantal from Inclusive Church, Dave from OUT@Greenbelt and Kieran from Open Table Network introducing the evening.
The idea for the event came from Greenbelt’s Creative Director, Paul Northrup, who suggested a space where LGBTQIA+ people could relax and adjust to life beyond the festival. This year’s festival theme, Hope in the making, gave us the perfect invitation to explore three simple questions together:
How does Greenbelt give you hope?
What was your highlight this year?
What will keep you hopeful until next year?
Kieran Bohan, OTN’s Director, welcomed everyone and introduced the partner organisations and the live music performers. Them There Cowboys, a gloriously non-binary country and western trio, set the tone with joy and energy, punctuating conversations with songs that were playful and powerful.
Participants were encouraged to write or draw their responses on paper banqueting roll covering each table, so we could capture their reflections.
Them There Cowboys, a queer country music trio from Leeds, performed an acoustic set while we reflected on how Greenbelt and other communities give us hope.
How does Greenbelt give you hope?
Kieran from Open Table introduced the first question, which sparked responses showing just how deeply Greenbelt matters to LGBTQIA+ Christians and allies:
‘Freedom to express authenticity.’
‘Greenbelt reminds me I’m not alone as a trans Christian.’
‘All parts of you are welcome. Come as you are, affirmed as you are.’
‘A vision of what the church could and should be.’
‘It’s the queerest space you’ll find outside Pride anywhere.’
One participant added:
‘Somewhere I can hold my partner’s hand and feel safe.’
Another wrote simply:
‘Everyone welcome. No judgment. Spaciousness.’
For many, the festival was not just a break from the pressures of daily life but a glimpse of what a truly inclusive community of faith could look like.
What was your highlight this year?
Participants wrote or drew on paper banqueting roll covering each table, so we could capture their reflections.
When David Warren, co-ordinator of the OUT@Greenbelt volunteer team introduced this question, the variety of responses was striking - from profound moments of worship to playful encounters and everyday joys:
The OUT@Greenbelt Eucharist, described as ‘a very special service of Holy Communion for LGBTQIA+ people and our friends, where you don't need to hide from yourself, each other or God’ was named again and again: ‘There’s nothing like it.’ So was the Glitter Ball, a disco of ‘LGBTQ pop anthems, cult queer classics, iconic dance grooves and future sounds’.
Queer & Hymns, a new event blending worship songs and secular pop anthems, was described as ‘heavenly - you didn’t need to separate your love of disco from the holy.’
One participant celebrated another OUT@Greenbelt event: ‘80 people at the trans and non-binary meetup. A defiant act of unity in the face of adversity.’
Poetry and reflection from former OTN patron Padraig Ó Tuama’s ‘Poetry Unbound’ interview with poet Marie Howe deeply moved many.
Another former OTN patron, Rachel Mann, got an honorable mention for her interview with Victoria McCloud, the UK’s first - and so far only - openly trans High Court judge: ‘solidarity of audience with trans judge and Rachel Mann.’
Simple pleasures were also treasured: fish curry and paella, stargazing, and conversations in the Jesus Arms beer tent!
As one person put it: ‘Meeting new friends, with others who get me - I fit in here.’
What will keep you hopeful until next year?
Participants wrote or drew on paper banqueting roll covering each table, so we could capture their reflections.
Looking ahead, Chantal Noppen, National Coordinator of Inclusive Church, invited people to consider other oases which sustain them. Participants spoke of faith, community, and resilience:
‘My church community - but I’d like more specific Christian community.’
‘Knowing like-minded people are out there.’
‘Prayers for Greenbelt and its flourishing.’
‘One day church will be more Greenbelt as we take it home with us.’
One quoted a lyric from festival headliner Kate Rusby: ‘Tomorrow is not today again.’
Some found hope in activism: ‘Hopefully politicians will make sensible laws, not hate-filled ones.’
Others in everyday faithfulness: ‘Volunteering at my local foodbank.’
For many, it was the simple act of connection that sustained them: ‘Keeping in touch with Greenbelt friends.’
Looking ahead
As the evening closed, Chantal reminded those present of the Inclusive Church directory which lists around 1,000 churches across the country which have committed to the Inclusive Church statement to be ‘a church which celebrates and affirms every person and does not discriminate’.
Kieran added that the Open Table Network now includes 39 communities across England and Wales, with three more starting this year. Alongside what one participant called ‘Networks of solidarity’ with our partner organisations - Inclusive Church, Quest, Two:23, House of Rainbow, and many others - OTN continues to nurture communities of sanctuary and strength.
Kieran also invited people to the upcoming LGBTQIA+ Christian retreat, Refuge & Strength, co-hosted with Quest this November. The theme is inspired by Psalm 46:1:
‘God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in times of distress.’
The evening closed with a Diversity Blessing from this year’s OUT Eucharist:
May the God who created a world of diversity and vibrancy,
go with us as we embrace life in all its fullness.
May the Son who teaches us to care for stranger and foreigners,
go with us as we try to be good neighbors in our communities.
May the Spirit who breaks down our barriers and celebrates community,
go with us as we find the courage to create a place of welcome for all.
