20/06/2026
June 20th is World Refugee Day, set by the United Nations to honour the strength and courage of people who have been forced to flee their home country to escape conflict or persecution. On this day, we at Hinde Street would like to affirm our commitment to being a place of welcome for all.
Here is an excerpt from a prayer by Ashkan Rezaei, Lancaster:
"Loving God,
You know all our hardships and especially for those who have to flee war and injustice.
You don’t give up on us, even when we let you down.
Thank you for all those people who welcome us, as strangers, into their lives.
Thank you for kindness and hospitality.
Thank you for new homes and new friends.
We ask you to take care of all the loved ones we have left behind. Amen"
You can find the full prayer and other resources on the Methodist GB website here: https://www.methodist.org.uk/action/refugees/
You can also find a briefing on the subject of refugees and the asylum system on the The Joint Public Issues Team website here: https://jpit.uk/asylum-briefing
A briefing from the Joint Public Issues Team Who is a refugee? The definition of a refugee according to the 1951 United Nations Refugee Convention is:“A person who owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group o...