The Goth Eucharist has been part of the Greenbelt family for many years, celebrating communion at midnight on Saturday.
The happy-in-black sheep of the Greenbelt family, we are a diverse group of Christians from the Goth/Alternative community coming from all over the UK and from various traditions. We have a love of God and share a passion to provide a safe space for Alternatives to meet and build one another up. We offer Holy Ground where the curious can genuinely encounter God through our culture in a welcoming, inclusive way that promotes unity and understanding.
An inclusive event, promoting acceptance and welcome while challenging assumptions and offering other options, thoughts and perspectives.
The Rev Caroline Beckett is a veteran of Greenbelt and the Goth Eucharist, with the wind in her dreadlocks and grass between her toes, 57 varieties of church-ship swimming in her brain and passion for God and building a welcoming community. A former secondary school teacher, incurable optimist, alternative and one of nature’s volunteers, Caroline is currently ordained in the Church of England, chairing Colchester Foodbank and the nascent Colchester branch of Citizens UK and loving being remarried after widowhood. Amateur poet, liturgist and theologian, she is equally at home on silent retreat, up a tree, behind an altar, on the floor with the kids or in the thick of social action. She has a penchant for thinking sideways and bashing problems together to create solutions and she believes that alternative communities offer a unique perspective well worth sharing. With the new addition of a Goth/Alternative all-age daytime service this year, she hopes to reach alternative families and anyone of any age who is curious and wants to explore instead of guessing the ‘right answers’.
Also on the team….
Paul Cudby, the vicar of Tanworth in Arden and one of the founding team for the Goth Eucharist back in 2002. He is active in the Forest Church movement and had his first book, The Shaken Path, about understanding modern Paganism, published in 2017.
Michael Beckett, self-described as ‘the one wearing black’, who has been a local councillor, Baptist deacon, charity worker with Mind, Mencap, CAB, the Mennonite Trust and Colchester Foodbank and even a parliamentary candidate and has for many years found a spiritual home at Greenbelt.
Glyn and Emma Moreton, founders of Kasama, a physical and online community that seeks to create safe spaces for people of all paths and none to explore spirituality. They drum a lot at festivals and also trade as The Henna & Hat Lady.
Andi and Sheena, stalwarts of the Greenbelt stewarding team, are a familiar and welcome sight around the festival. They, along with the Rev Alex and Kat Gowing-Cumber have been part of the Goth Eucharist team for many years.
Dave Bull is a Christian Industrial Cyber Goth who emigrated from Wales to England in 2003 to get married and he and his wife have two children. He’s a youth worker by trade and in his church plays classical and folk fiddle and, among many other interests, loves listening to and composing music.