Build up, Grow up, and Show up through Science and Faith

Reverend Egla Aitkens is a Nurse Educator. She attends the New Testament Assembly Church in Tooting and currently serves as a member of the Ministry Pastoral Team.

New Testament Assembly – Tooting (NTA Tooting) stands as a beacon of hope and empowerment within the London borough of Wandsworth, where it has been serving the community since its inception in 1961. As the headquarters of the New Testament Assembly (NTA), a prominent Pentecostal church denomination with nine branches across London and the Midlands, NTA Tooting has grown into a vibrant, multi-generational church, with five generations worshipping together.

We are the proud recipients of one of this year’s Scientists in Congregations awards. As a black majority Pentecostal church, occupying these spaces is not an everyday occurrence. We therefore see this as both an opportunity and a responsibility to expand our reach and impact as it relates to faith and science. We will use the grant to develop Sunday School resources for all ages in our congregation. We will also be hosting an open day event in 2025 to feature work reflective of science and faith and provide career guidance for those considering the sciences. A congregation cultivating a richer, deeper engagement between science and faith is strategically poised to influence society positively on many levels.

Rev Egla receives a Scientists in Congregations award from Prof Diphus Chemorion, ECLAS Africa

As Christians from a black majority Pentecostal church, we have seen the reluctance of some of our people in engaging with the medical profession on particular health conditions and subsequent treatments. Some even think that to subject themselves to medical treatment is a sign of a lack of faith. We acknowledge that the reason for this is multifactorial, but we can do much as a church to educate our congregation and help them to make informed decisions that do not compromise their faith.

As the scripture says “…my people are destroyed for lack of knowledge” (Hosea 4:6).

We feel it is important that as a church we do our part to improve health awareness to reduce morbidity and mortality within our congregation. We hope to do this by enlisting the service and support of Christian scientists and healthcare providers to build and repair trust in medicine as part of God’s gift to us. We also want to use the opportunity to highlight the good advances in science that surround us today. As a nurse working in cancer clinical trials, I want to explain the concept of randomisation and help to rebuild trust in medical research among the black community. The horrors of the Tuskegee Experiment (1932-1972) have negatively impacted how we engage with the healthcare service.

We will include health education sessions about medical and research practices that some of our more mature members are not necessarily comfortable with. We will cite the example of Daniel’s wisdom when he proposed two comparative diets, in what may be the first recorded clinical trial. This is an opportunity to demystify and clarify misconceptions around some scientific advancements today. We need to understand that underrepresentation of black and ethnic minority people in clinical trials can affect how far the results can be generalised to the wider population. We have to take some responsibility for that.

Historically there has been a low uptake by our children in the sciences.

We believe that we are positioned as a church to change this narrative by helping to develop an appreciation for science through the scriptures. Sunday School provides an excellent forum to engage our young ones in the fusion of science and theology. We can encourage our children from an early age to take care of the environment. We have examples in scriptures about good farming practices. Our children can also be encouraged and supported to pursue education and careers in the sciences.

This Scientists in Congregations project is an opportunity to help our congregation and the black community to see that faith and science are not dichotomous. We will demonstrate from scriptures how God uses His word, and His work through us, to establish life as we know it today. In addition, our congregants will be better able to have healthy discussions on consultations and policies that affect us. As a church, we are determined to equip our congregation to have a voice and a presence in science and faith spaces where previously our silence by default meant consent. Imagine a church where we have subject matter experts who are culturally competent and spiritually sound to address matters of faith and science. We would see a congregation which could:

• make informed decisions about whether to have certain treatments or procedures;
• make more responsible choices about the environment and resources at their disposal;
• begin to think from an early age about careers and vocational training in the sciences;
• and make a habit of praying for the advancement of good science and the welfare of those in a scientific career, to the glory of God.

Through our project in culturally diverse south London, we hope to make ripples which will spread far and wide.