Hello! My name is Erin and I am one of the new JPIT interns for the 2026/27 season. I am so excited to begin working for an organisation whose work flows from its faith in Christ and a belief that justice is both practical and spiritual.
Lord, you alone are my portion and my cup; you make my lot secure. The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance. Psalm 16:5-6
I have found myself reflecting on this verse a lot over these past few months, as I prepared to move to London from Northern Ireland and start a new season which is both exciting and daunting. It captures how I feel about my walk with God – full of gratitude for God’s faithfulness and joy for the path God has led me along.
But I think it also has something to say that speaks beyond my own relationship with the Lord. Poverty, injustice, displacement, conflict, and inequality can often make it difficult to see the goodness in God’s creation. For so many people, the reality they experience is far removed from the ‘pleasant places’ described in the Psalm.
However, I have always believed in a God of justice. A God that does not just fix problems but restores dignity, joy and wholeness!
This belief led me to study International Development at university and by the end of my three years in Brighton, I believed more than ever that faith is not an optional layer in justice work, but the very heart of it.
My interests increasingly centred on migration and the ways in which we understand, categorise and govern human mobility. Exploring the Eurocentric underpinnings of many migration policies and practices, led me to consider what migration might look like when viewed through a decolonial lens. Challenging systems, borders, policies and places that shape people’s experiences of belonging and identity.
One of JPIT’s six hopes is a desire to see a society that welcomes the stranger. I think this is a particularly important calling in the current political landscape. With conversations about borders, asylum, and belonging often shaped by fear rather than welcome. I believe the Christian faith gives us an opportunity to offer a different narrative – one of radical love and hospitality.
I am a bit of a nerd when it comes to academics, but truly nothing taught me more about activism, campaigning, and injustice than when I got practically involved!
At university, I led Just Love Sussex for two years alongside my best friend. Just Love helped me to discover what it means to do justice the Jesus way, which came as something of a surprise to this Northern Irish Presbyterian! One of my Just Love highlights was helping lead our ethical banking campaign, calling on our university to divest in banks implicated in climate injustice and human rights abuses. The campaign culminated in a successful student referendum and ethical banking becoming official Students’ Union policy. The experience taught me that meaningful change rarely happens alone, we need to build coalition and listen well.
Through Just Love, I also got involved in volunteering at the Whitehawk Foodbank. Through our weekly café space, I developed friendships with many of the clients and as we journeyed through life together, I learnt so much about the systemic injustices that were daily realities for many people in Whitehawk. I became involved and interned for the campaigns team, attending Trussell’s National Lobby Day at Westminster, alongside engaging in more community-based campaigns. Whitehawk stirred a passion for community organising, grassroots activism, and deepened my conviction that justice is most powerful when it is shaped by those closest to the issues.
I am really excited to see what this year has in store and look forward to helping mobilise the Methodist, Baptist, and United Reformed Churches around justice issues, exploring how we can work together across our differences. I’m grateful for the opportunity to be part of JPIT and excited to see what God might do through us over the coming year.