06.11.2025
Faith Communities Co–builders of the Common Good
New research highlights contribution of faith communities to Dublin’s social cohesion.
New research has identified almost 50 faith–based communities in Dublin’s North East Inner City yet the strength of this religious diversity is consistently overlooked by the city’s decision makers. The research, carried out by the Jesuit Centre for Faith and Justice (JCFJ) and ACET (AIDS Care Education and Training) Ireland, highlights the huge contribution made by faith–based communities to integration in the area but says a lack of engagement from secular authorities means their ability to serve the common good of the city is reduced.
‘Faith in the North–East Inner City – How faith–based communities help Dublin to flourish‘ was officially launched in St George and St Thomas’s Church on Cathal Brugha Street yesterday evening (Wednesday November 5). The research aimed to map and analyse the role of faith–based communities in fostering the integration of migrants, refugees and immigrants in the North East Inner City and look at how they bridge cultural, linguistic and social gaps while enriching the local community. It also aimed to identify any distinctive role faith–based communities play as mediators of integration, addressing needs that are often unmet by government or market services.
Ultimately, the project’s authors say, the research seeks to inform Dublin City Council and other stakeholders about the positive social impact of faith–based communities, ensuring their contributions are recognised and integrated into the area’s urban planning and community development efforts.
Speaking at the launch of the report, Dublin City Councillor Janet Horner, representing the Lord Mayor, said it was important to hear the voices that come out of the North East Inner City but also ensure that there are spaces for faith–based communities to meet, an issue which is highlighted by the research. She added that the report would help public bodies to understand the role of faith–based communities and said it identified action points for the City Council.
The research identified 49 faith–based communities in the North East Inner City. They are churches, mosques and meeting halls which serve those who have recently arrived and those who have lived in the area for generations. Interviews with faith leaders and members were carried out over six months.
It details six key findings. First, faith–based communities are often first ports of call for newcomers – they offer spiritual and practical help and their cultural fluency and trust make official systems easier to navigate. Secondly, these communities are multi–national and multi–generational and contribute to the identity and embeddedness in the wider community.
However, the research identifies difficulty in finding space meaning that access to secure, affordable and appropriate premises can be limited which constrains their visibility and capacity. It also points to faith–based communities’ support of public health by building trust and helping people to use health services effectively and their ministries – food banks, home visits and counselling (formal and informal) – bridge gaps in services.
The research finds that low religious literacy means that public bodies consistently overlook faith–based communities. The authors suggest that the lack knowledge and routine contact from officials mean that there is a “blindspot” between the understanding of what it means to be secular and the reality of religious diversity which must be addressed. Weak engagement means that the potential for these groups to serve the common good of the city is reduced.
Its sixth and final key finding is that faith–based communities can contribute to crisis readiness. The authors observe that during the November 2023 riots, officials struggled to reach communities that were hidden from official view. Regular relationships with faith leaders could improve preparedness and calm tensions.
One of the report’s authors Dr Kevin Hargaden of the Jesuit Centre for Faith and Justice, pointed out the observation which opens the report – that it would be difficult to walk across Dublin’s North East Inner City without passing a place of worship. But, he said, the contribution of faith–based communities is almost invisible in public policy. It was this gap that motivated their research.
“The report doesn’t make grand demands,” he said. “Instead, it offers what it calls ‘easy asks: listening, dialogue, and small, practical steps that build trust. Among the recommendations are the creation of a faith–based community register, a half–time liaison officer to keep channels open, a planning and property clinic to help with premises issues, and religious literacy training for frontline public servants. Together these form a roadmap – modest in scale, high in return – that recognises faith–based groups as partners in social inclusion, not as marginal actors. Ultimately, this project is about recognition: recognising that faith communities are not holdovers from the past, or guests in the city’s story. They are neighbours – co–builders of the common good, who help newcomers feel at home and long–term residents stay connected.”
Fellow researcher, Sophie Manaeva also of the JCFJ, explained that leaving faith–based communities out of civic planning is not just an administrative gap, but a missed opportunity. “these groups are often the first to meet newcomers, the last to give up on hard–to–reach neighbours, and the ones who keep the lights on when others have moved out. Where State services focus on the provision of a specific support, these communities differ in their human approach and concern for the person as a whole: their health, their job security, the wellbeing of their children, their knowledge of the local area. This builds a unique sense of trust that is hard to replicate. Without this integration, this community building, the State would have much more work on its plate,” she commented.
She observed that for those who are part of the faith communities the research offers overdue recognition of their contribution to the health of the city. To policy makers and those in public service, it is a reminder that inclusion happens through real relationships and faith–based communities have the potential to be key collaborators in the pursuit of shared goals for the flourishing of Dublin.
“The bigger story is that Dublin is changing, and so is faith. Faith is inextricable from Dublin’s landscape. The city we build next will need both civic leadership and moral imagination. This report is an invitation to listen, to partner, and to see one another not as opposing groups, but as co–builders of the common good,” she concluded.
You can download the full report here
Or read the executive summary here
