During October to December 2023 St Mary’s hosted the exhibition ‘Resolved to Serve’. Commissioned by the Diocese of Oxford, this portrait exhibition celebrates Black culture and its influence in the Church today. Beginning in Black History Month, featuring black African and Caribbean clergy in the Diocese of Oxford, Resolved to Serve tells their inspiring stories of faith and resilience. These stories are particularly poignant at this time as the UK marks the 75th anniversary year of the arrival of the Empire Windrush on our shores.
The exhibition was curated by The Reverend Polly Falconer, UKME Development Enabler in the Diocese of Oxford, (Polly spoke powerfully at a recent Sunday Forum at the University Church, on the subject of racial justice) and the Right Reverend Dr Tim Wambunya, Vicar of St Paul's Church, Slough, and Honorary Assistant Bishop for the Diocese of Oxford. The exhibition includes photography by Emma Thompson.