Matt Newman recently completed a three-month internship with JRS UK as part of his studies at Brigham Young University (BYU) in the United States. During his placement, he worked across the Communications and Practical Support Teams, supporting refugee friends, coordinating donations and contributing to JRS UK’s communications. Here, he reflects on what he learned about accompaniment, faith and the people seeking sanctuary he met along the way.
Over the course of my three-month internship with Jesuit Refugee Service UK, I’ve been given the wonderful opportunity to learn about the breadth of JRS’s work and contribute to it in many ways.
I’ve seen countless acts of love and joy here, both from the staff at JRS UK and the refugee friends we accompany.
During my time here, I’ve supported both the Communication and Practical Support Teams. I’ve helped run the Shop, where refugee friends can pick up food, clothing, and other essential items according to their own needs. The Shop model, co-designed with refugee friends, honours the dignity and autonomy of refugee friends and allows them to decide what they would like to wear and use.
I’ve also coordinated the donations that make this possible, worked on improving our data and collecting statistics, and contributed to JRS UK’s communications work. I’ve also taken part in advocacy and community events, including a Refugee Week prayer vigil outside the Home Office.
More than any of that, what I’ve learnt most from are conversations with our friends, who, without exception, have shown me incredible kindness, humour, and hope. More than anything, they want to live normal lives, and JRS UK helps them achieve that.
JRS UK supports people who have been denied asylum support from the Home Office, regardless of race, religion or national origin. At the same time, JRS UK is a Jesuit organisation. That Jesuit purpose is not present in proselytising or anything of that sort, but in the Christlike love that guides all that JRS UK does.
I am not a Jesuit, but I have seen how the Jesuit ethos of finding God in all things and serving all those in need is ingrained in everything that happens here. The refugee friends we accompany are all children of God, deeply loved by Him, and therefore we should love them, too. It has shown me that faith at JRS UK is expressed through everyday acts of service and accompaniment.
More than anything else, I’ve learned how important our own humanity is in this area of work.
During the prayer vigil outside the Home Office during Refugee Week, Bishop Paul McAleenan summarised this idea well. Reflecting on the thousands of people who have attempted to cross the English Channel in search of sanctuary and protection, he reminded us how easily individual people can disappear behind numbers.
As a student studying statistics and political science, it’s easy to get lost in abstract numbers. But behind every number is someone God loves dearly, trying to live a normal life. JRS UK gave me the opportunity to help our friends, one by one, but also to learn from and be helped by our friends, one by one.
It’s been a great joy to represent Brigham Young University (BYU) here in London, to serve others as Christ would, and to learn so much at the same time. I’ve gained new perspectives and a stronger conviction to help anyone seeking asylum in their journey to find safety.
My time at JRS UK has reminded me that behind the statistics and political debates about asylum are individual people seeking safety, dignity and the chance to live a normal life. That is something I will carry with me into my studies, my future work and the way I respond to people seeking sanctuary.
Stand with people seeking sanctuary
Matt’s experience is one example of how spending time alongside refugee friends can change the way we understand asylum — seeing people and their stories beyond the statistics.
There are many ways you can be part of the JRS community and stand alongside people seeking sanctuary:
Volunteer with us:
Our volunteers are an important part of the JRS community, supporting refugee friends in different ways and helping us create a space of welcome and accompaniment.
Find out more about volunteering with JRS UK →
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Your donations help JRS UK continue to accompany, serve and advocate alongside people seeking sanctuary, providing practical support while standing with people through the challenges they face.
Stay connected
Keep up with JRS UK’s work, hear from refugee friends and our community, and discover more ways to stand alongside people seeking sanctuary.
