The 'Return of Christianity to England?'

As someone who has done church on estates since the last century the news that the Church of England (CofE) has a 'new vision' to put a church on every estate caused extremely mixed emotions and the assumption that, like the Curate's Egg, not all of it would be bad!

My cynical side came from the awareness that + Phillip North's (who is a really nice chap) former church on an estate in hartlepool was recently closed. Add to the scale pan an ongoing conversation with someone from another diocese to mine over the reality where they are of clergy not being relapsed because of the lack of money. Top it off with the track record the CofE has had in removing much of the effective church presence in the difficult places by contraction and amalgamation and you'll see that perhaps the cynical streak may have some realism behind it.

Having said that this is the Curate's egg, there must be something to commend it; something that brings joy. Which there is, for at last the poorer and tougher places - 'urban estate church' is a metaphor for 'rough' places - are being thought about. The idea of those resident in large estates getting some form of help to establish and lead these new churches is great for these will essentially be what Ray Oldenburg (R. Oldenburg, 1989, The Great Good Place, Marlow & Co, New York) called 'Third places'.

For those for whom this is a new term, Oldenburg identified three places where life is lived out:
Home (the first place),
Work (the second place) and,
Social/Community (the Third Place) where community is discovered or created and maintained.

Interestingly, the third places identified by Odenburg and by this 'New Vision' just happen to be Community centres, cafés and schools (to which we can add pubs, bookshops, games shops), and more besides. This what Pioneer Missioners and others have been doing for some time under the label 'missional'

Now it's not rocket science to observe that where community is built crime rates change, truancy and other issues are also addressed and people begin to become part of a positive, supportive and cohesive reality. Local congregations were the foundations of the Church (read the book of Acts) and I think I'd have to take Philip North to task when he says that, "Big cultural problems can't be solved," by these ecclesial communities - I am certain that they can (doesn't it say something about renewal and transformation in the Bible?).

“The vision is a thriving, loving Christian church on every single large estate. “  Hallelujah!

He continues with, "It's not a building but church as community of people."     Wasn't it always?

Well it all sounds very positive and the promise of some being trained to lead churches with the potential that some might even be ordained. Wow, it's all very first century Church - and that has to be good.

There are already people out there who are calling for us to examine the estate churches with a view to (and I quote) 'develop and new theological understanding, new models and theological language'. This is a load of complete and utter tosh for the very last thing is 'new' theology!!

The CofE is promising to train those leading these new estate churches, something which includes the possibility of ordination. The leaders will naturally emerge from their church communities - we need to facilitate and recognise these leaders -  if that is what ordination will be then it's more 1AD Church and that's good. It's not rocket science to discover that local people are the best evangelists and church planters.

Blimey have none of the pointy hats read O'Donovan's 'Christianity Rediscovered' or Freiere's 'Pedagogy of the Oppressed'? Of course the locals lead the locals better, they just need to have their own Rosetta Stone handed to them - inculturation, that's the key.

At last as desperation begins to bite, the CofE is doing what it should have been always doing: Looking too provide Church for those who are not Church in the places where Church is not but the people are. Blimey - we've been doing this with Fresh Expressions and Mission Shaped Ministry (and Introduction) courses.

Stories of people changed when the find Church because they feel safe, but surely the reality is that people are changed when the find Church because the meet Jesus and are changed by the indwelling of God's Holy Spirit. Bath and Bread - Blood of Christ - nothing we've done separating us from the love of God: This is what it's about.

Great that this 'New Vision' is potentially, "Going to every place, including places that many people don’t go to, like estates"

I applauded the damning self-indictment: “A church which abandons poor areas is not the church of Jesus Christ." Always good when the people in charge get to realise that.

But what of the years the locusts have eaten?

I know God can restore them, but we still have the same bishops and senior clergy who have closed churches, ignored the poor ("If you can't pay you can't have!"), covered up or turned a blind eye to acts of abuse and the like.

As Ric Thorpe so rightly says regarding Council estates: “Council estates are places that are sometimes cut off from the rest of a parish."

NOTE: For sometimes, read more often than not!

Remember how Jesus walked on water

Overall I am made very happy that this 'New Vision' is being paraded and have a few things I need to resolve in my head so the voices rising from my own passions and madness are quelled:

i. This a great potential initiative - its exactly what we were doing in the pentecostal church over thirty years ago and it worked well then in the communities of faith we engaged with and supported in the tough places. So we are thirty years behind them - what can we learn from them and the Fresh Expressions folk? A hint: it's not bung all your money into Pioneers and hope they will rescue us!

ii. The establishment of worshipping communities in fellowship with each other and the wider ecumenical world and the collegiality and disciplinary structures are essential if we are to bring about a holy, loving, and life-giving Church. John Wimber struggled with this, the Pentecostal church struggled with it - so how are we not going to struggle?

iii. What of the various covenants and mutual commitments we Anglicans have made? I see and hear nothing ecumenical in any of the conversations, media stories and other utterances. Are we looking to build Church or the CofE? There is a difference!

iv. There's nothing new here other than the fact That Philip North has got Justin and others excited about doing what we should always have been doing!

v. Bishop's Mission Orders have been with us for ages and yet I've not heard of homogeneous or other forms of church coming out of them.

If they do, why haven't they pushed and publicised anything?

Who is going to own the new entities that will be springing up on an estate somewhere near you?
Will it be the same person running the church that's ignored those people and their patch of earth?

How will the established churches fare when these new 'Third Place' churches thrive and not only see growth but also see transfer growth? How will the incumbent of St Willyballs on the shelf cope when they see their sheep stray in a church near them?

vi. Prayer. I haven't seen a single thing that speaks of Prayer (or Jesus come to that, or the power of God's Holy Spirit).

I have so many more thoughts and questions and yet the timer has pinged and fifteen minutes of scribble has not come to an end. I hope this proves helpful to those who might stumble across it. It's not meant to be negative - it's an honest entry to this, for the discussions will last probably as long as the 'New venture' (a colleague gives it three years before the next 'New Vision' arrives).

I'm less cynical and pray that it is the Lord building this house with us - may it truly be so.

Feel free to challenge, educate (hope you've lots of time for that one), dialogue, explain and excite me with this. I am so very up for it but need more than a sideshow and fireworks.

Pax

An early wake up call

I'm sure many of us have moments when we are woken up by a burning issue. That moment when the ship is grazed by an iceberg and the jolt causes our eyes to open as the captive thoughts rush onto the deck to chatter and look into the darkness and the perils it contains.

This, once more, is my lot today and I find myself thinking about madness and the lack of sound and consistent care for those troubled by it; about estate churches and the wide division between rhetoric and reality; of the plight of the Church and the many proclaimed successes which, to those outside, look very much like a bankrupt corner store rearranging the few remaining goods on the shelf in the hope it will attract new customers!

Today is set aside to be a 'Day of Intercession and Thanksgiving for the Missionary Work of the Church'. As someone who is engaged with things missional I see this as a day when we pray for those engaged in missionary work here at home and further afield. There are mission fields and unevangelised peoples to be engaged with on our own doorsteps as well as many hours journeying across the seas and landscapes to far flung places.  With this in mind perhaps today and the call to prayer might become the spur we need to make us become more aware and intelligent in our prayer .

And having discovered the needs and prayed for them, is this enough?

Shouldn't the prayers we offer up be accompanied by the sleeves being rolled up as the virtual bags are packed and the journey into strange and foreign lands just a few minutes up the road is made?

One of the biggest frustrations I have comes in the shape of those who want to fill the Church with people they have made in their own image. People who live as they live and hold on to the same values and lifestyles as them.

I struggle with people who talk of 'bringing back' the lost. A statement which largely (and often blithely) ignores the reality that the majority of those in our villages, towns and cities have never previously been 'here' (meaning in this context Church or church - local or universal) so how can they return to a place they have never been?

How often do we pass the needs before us without seeing them or the people who own them?

How often do we sigh, shrug and toss the pleas from missions organisations and actions groups?

How often do we pass a needy person (and I don't mean those begging on our streets) and mumble, "Be well, be blessed," and move on thinking that our prayer, platitudes and complacency will find favour with the God we claim to worship?

Overseas
So today please stop and think about those who leave the comforts of home to take the Gospel to other lands and cultures. Pray for them, their families and the task before them. Pray for their safety, for provision and for an open door for the work they undertake. Pray for wisdom in all they do and in those they encounter. Perhaps you could send something (a fiver would do) to support an organisation or a missionary family or project.

Home
Have a look at the needs of this nation of ours and pray for those who are still 'far off' and for those who seek to make Jesus, the Christ, known.

Pray for those in the well-off places; those who have so much they cannot see the poverty they live in.

Pray for those in the poorer places. Places where benefits are the norm and jobs, family life, prevailing attitudes and marginalisation are an everyday reality.

Pray for those who minister in the estates and in the rural areas (which are just different estates from those we think of). Think about the issues of the places we might be happy not to live or visit and pray for the residents and those who minister to them.

Church
Pray for the leaders of the churches of our land that they might have integrity and passion to create, maintain, and encourage those who 'do the stuff' in the difficult places in their own places of influence.

Every church building should be the centre of missionary work - every Christian should be committed to those who are far off whether they be 'leavers' who might be encouraged to return or those who have never been part of Church.

Lord, the kingdom of God is always near,
The Church always stands but one generation from extinction 
And those who are 'far off' are so often just a fingertip away.

We pray for all who take up the challenge to make You known in the world of ours;
For the missions organisations who by their actions seek to make a difference;
For those who minister in our estates and inner-city places;
For those who minister in the real places where pressures are hidden in the beauty of nature.

We pray for those who engage in the mission field of the workplace:
For those who travel to foreign ands to make real the Gospel of love;
For those whose kind act and time given will tell of a God who cares.
Motivate, educate, and enthuse us to be hearts and doers of the word.

We ask this in Jesus' glorious name. Amen

The Church of England - the Estate we're not in!

Today I was so very blessed by a service in a gem of an estate church in Hartlepool. St Mark’s church  (Clavering Road) lies at one end of a parade.  Being Christ the King (and us being up in the Northeast to think about and reflect on Fresh Expressions at the National FE Conference) we found ourselves in this little place of worship swelling the congregation to something a little shy of twenty warm and living bodies. The Sermon was competently delivered; the Eucharist done with respect and reverence; the welcome was warm and encouraging. The place was a gem and a blessing! After the service we were invited to fellowship with the regulars.

I have to say that in my travels I have experienced so many woeful expression of church which have left me saddened, unfed and, to be honest, totally depressed as the theology, liturgy and welcome was pretty poor. But St Marks was something so very different from what I have come to regard as the norm'!

At first glance it didn't look like a church - after all there's no spire and, as you can see from the image above, the yellow signage draws the eye such that you might be forgiven for thinking it's part of the shop. But on closer inspection you soon get to see that it's something a little different from the other two places on this small parade of shops. 

One serves the community by selling beers, wines and spirits, the second offers the  community the staples of life and the third, St Mark's, offers the community that surrounds it the word of God, the inspiration of the Holy Spirit and a place of Welcome, a meeting place for the community: the older folk, the parents and the children.

Looking at the geography of the estate. St Mark's and St John Vianney (RC) are well placed to make real a Christian presence in this quite sprawling housing  development and proclaim the Gospel of Christ. There's also the Central Methodist 'Estate Church' outside of this map to the Southeast. 

Here was something that had a heartbeat and yet there was something of sadness about the place. The person preaching spoke of the death of a minister and spoke of the thirty years this faithful little congregation had ministered to the people around them and the fact that this would soon end too. This stopped me in my tracks and the words of the Bishop of Burnley, the Rt Revd Philip North, warning that the Church of England was “complicit in the abandonment of the poor,” and the fact that the decline of support for the estate churches and the poorer areas would undoubtedly grow unless we took note of this and engaged in the placed where 'Jesus is not to be found' (my emphasis) continue to decline unless the bishops, diocesan staff and parish priests acted to redress this.

Now when +Phillip said this (and he heads up the CofE estate church committee and is on the executive of the National Estate Churches Network) there was much nodding and agreement - so what's going on here I wondered? How, and why is this being allowed to happen?

Imaging my surprise when I mentioned +Phillip's word to the people I was drinking tea with as it transpired that  +Phillip began his ministry in this very church (along with one other who also ended up with a pointy hat!)!!!

Let me quote +Phillip further:
“The simple and hard truth is that, in the poorest parts of the country, we are withdrawing preachers. We are seeing the slow and steady withdrawal of church life from those communities where the poorest people in our nation live.” He cited attendance figures - the proportion of people who attend an Anglican church in England was 1.7 per cent, but on estates just 0.8 per cent - and spending: 

“Nationally, we spend £8 per head of population on ministry. In some rural areas, that figure rises to £24 per head. On the estates, we spend just £5 per head — by far the lowest. The poorer you are, the less the Church values you.” 

I am saddened and disappointed to have come across this closure. I understand that it doesn't fit in with the deanery plan and undoubtedly the local purple shirt has approved the closure too - but what of those who will not find themselves able to make the journey to a new fellowship?

What of those families the Church of England is abandoning? Are we hoping the RC church or the methodists of some other fellowship or denomination will spring up to take up the challenge?

The Bible tells us that one side of a story sounds good until we hear the other side.

What I do know is that in 1960 multiple beneficed Parishes (MBP) accounted for some 17% of the incumbent bent posts - today this number is 71%. Perhaps this is the case here and what we see is the church rationalising the workload of the incumbent. Perhaps it's about Parish Share and St Mark's is one of those who having little is seeing what it has taken away (amazing how many people don't understand the stewardship and commitment to the Master in the parable of the talents, isn't it?).


But how very sad that +Phillip, championing the plight of the estate church and the poor, has the place where his words and fine sacramental ministry touched lives, thrown onto the fire :-(

Somehow feels like a bit of a disgraceful situation to me - I wonder whether this has made the local press like so many of the 'good publicity' projects that abound has? Will there be a note from the CofE in the local paper wishing the people of that area well as they close this work?

I can only sign this as saddened of Tamworth

The light shines in the darkness and it has not been overcome!

Blessed are the poor: Urban poverty and the Church

Recently I visited a parish on the very edge of a city centre and was treated to a tour of the features and facilities within its boundaries. We started at a splendid church hall with many rooms and a variety of posters and notices advertising Bridge and Canasta and the like. From there we went on to see the parish itself, row upon row of fine Edwardian and Victorian mansions boasting marvellous front lawns and palatial entrances.

As my host drove me round pointing out the homes of the notable residents, the celebrities and the ennobled I found myself reflecting upon how different it was from the estate church setting I work and reside in. My thoughts were then interrupted as my host pointed out a junction and pointedly explained how we had reached the boundary. 'That side of the road,' they said, 'is social housing. We don't have anything to do with them!" Point made, we drove on, more names bandied about as being residents, until we came to another junction and again we stopped and I was informed that this was another boundary. 'That road,' they said, pointing at what looked no different to the rest through my uneducated eyes, 'Used to be a lovely road, but now it's full of (voice dropping a little) of Asians!' The rest of the journey was much of the same, I was shown where the 'difficult parish' abutted their little piece of heaven and told stories of the great and good who were members of the paradise on earth that was theirs. 

Over lunch (not beans on toast by the way!) one of the parishioners told me how they'd be interested in any ideas I had to reach into their community. 'We want to bring in people like us, were not interested in doing stuff in the poorer bits,' they said, 'After all, what we want is to get the numbers back up so we can continue to enjoy everything we always have. We're not looking at the sort of mission you've been talking about!'

Thankful that I hadn't choked on the canapés or caught anything mission threatening from those gathered  in the place I mentioned social audits and the value of the palace that was their church hall (five rooms plus a kitchen and toilets almost as large as the building our church occupies!) was in attracting people and building relationships and left.

Laurie green in his book 'Blessed are the poor' Speaks of visiting  a parish with a view to serving his title (i.e. its first ordained job) in that place. He writes thus:

"so there we were, huddled in the back of a rather large saloon car being driven by the parish rector is surrounded by other members of his parish staff. The Rector was very keen to impress, and in many ways he had reason to be proud of his team's achievements. The parish church was extraordinarily large, and he proudly boasted that they nearly filled it with willing members every Sunday. 

He was now driving us around the rather prosperous neighbourhood and chanced to look across to the right where stood houses of distinctly lower quality than those we had viewed so far. He saw me looking more intently at them and, hoping to quell my fears, remarked:
'oh that's our council housing estate. But don't worry, I don't ever bother us.'  and on hearing that, my decision was made. I wanted to spend the rest of my ministry living in those areas that others like to ignore.'" *

So, having found a kindred spirit in the first few pages, would the restt of the book live up to expectations?

I found the book to be a wealth of theological reflection, which considering his now seminal work 'Let's do theology' (which appears in the hands of many training for ministry) should come as no surprise I guess. But add to this the insights of a man who has dedicated his ministry to working in the poorer places and ministering the love of God to those on the edges and thinking about it with the Bible aforethought and you soon realise that this is a bit of an understated gem.

This is a book in which missional thinking, good honest ministry, the Bible and theology all collide as Laurie leads us into thinking about what this part of the beatitudes ('blessed are the poor') really means in a world where they only seem to inherit being marginalised, vilified and ignored. This is an invitation for us to explore just how counter-cultural we are called to be - and it is most certainly something I would love to send to the PCC of the church I make mention of at the beginning of this blog. 

As someone blessed with living and working in an Urban priority area / Estate church I know the generosity and love, the enthusiasm for the Gospel lived out in a place where the minority are waged and everyday life is difficult. I also know that many around me in the wider community have definite views about social housing and those who have little. Those who have would like more and those who have little deserve all they get (but not my taxpayer's cash in benefits). The Rake's progress that was post-war social housing and it's demise with the 'Right to Buy' and the rise of the private sector landlords (and now housing associations who are providing a halfway house between state and private social housing) brings much fruit and many attitudes - not all of which are positive when it comes to the attitudes of the people formerly known as 'working class' towards the poor; for the poor have indeed become poorer, even amongst their own it seems.

This is no purely academic book on the poor and poverty (although the academic is present and appears correct) and it is not a quick read (200 pages requires some commitment); but it is an essential read for those looking to minister on the edges of our society. 

I have to say that, like most books with a 'theology' label, this is a book that doesn't come cheap with a price tag of £18.99 on Amazon (but under a tenner used) (AMAZON) but if you are serious about estate church and 'the poor' - which always sounds to me to be on a par with those who used to call out, 'Oh workman,' when I was a BT engineer as something just a little derogatory - then this is a book that demands shelf space.

* Introduction: page x   Blessed are the poor? Urban poverty and the church   
                                     SCM press  London    2015   ISBN 978 0 334 05365 1

Which Gospel are we reading from?

The Gospel of Christ or the gospel according to Excel?

Last week I met with someone from another diocese who I have known for some time and whose opinion and comments I trust. Their first words were, "What's happening here with the money thing?" I began to tell them about how we have been meeting to address a reduction in stipendiary clergy posts and the many meetings we, as clergy, have had. The hallmark of these meetings was the fact that we had looked at the challenge of meeting the needs of a growing population with less minister missionally rather than financially.

The reality is that we have to lose two posts incrementally by 2017 (the first of the posts will be lost in 2014).

We are looking at a church whose management principle is seeking to work on the almost Dario Fo like principle of 'can't pay - can't have'. This appears to mean that those churches which are to be found in Urban Priority Areas and seek to preach to those in urban settings and function as 'estate churches' are up the list when it comes to 'can't pay'!

My friend and colleague told me horror stories whereby those who were comfortable and could afford their clergy were safe but those (dare I say it, where the need is) find themselves in every way becoming the poor relations.

One of the key factors promoted by our bishop is generosity and yet it appears that although this might be the desire, the reality might be somewhat different.

So where are we going? Some of the indications are that churches will be led towards clergy as sessional workers. Others will find themselves in the position whereby they exist with non-stipendiary clergy, locally ordained ministers (something I have problems with) or House for Duty (whose days I fear may also be numbered) clergy. More still will fall back on the kindness of retired clergy (who are muzzled when the grain of occasional offices appears ;-( ).

The reality is that we are looking at doing things differently and this is not a bad idea. BUT (has to be one) when we start planning our future by Excel and the balance sheet rather than the Gospel I fear for us.

My colleague told me how the plans where they were looked at contracting and not growth and this has to be wrong. If we look to downsize we look to close our doors and leave the many unsaved to the mercy of God (perhaps universalists are right in that those who failed to tell might be covered by God's grace at our failings).

Lower clergy numbers can mean a stronger and enabled and released laity and from this a flourishing Church. It provides those who have criticised clergy for inactivity with the opportunity to be, themselves, active. Sadly I feel it might also lead to yet another drop in able clergy as we lower bars and turn towards a clericalism that weakens rather than strengthens - watch this space (for we are not finished with this issue)

'Missional' means cost-cutting!

These words were thrown into the mix during an excellent discussion with my colleagues on the shape our combined ministries should take. Wearing my missioner hat I tried hard to point out the realities of the word but the problem was that the Dario Fo farce-like reality of 'can't pay - won't pay' was made all the more real by the words of some at diocesan level who baldly state that "If you can't pay then you can't have!"

There is a problem within the Church of England in that one side of the coin has churches who are able to pay are, in the main, also 'comfortable' whilst the other finds churches in Urban Priority Areas (UPAs), Estates and rural settings who struggle to exist.

Now, just in case anyone thinks that I am having a go at those churches who can pay (and this is not easy in today's economic situation), please be assured that I am not. My sending church was one who managed to pay their share with little trouble and they were also engaged in the community around them and supported a church in what for them was a UPA setting. Having money is not a sin and does not imply any lack of missionary or evangelistic, social-concern or any other zeal. It is not a sin for a church to have money or to have people who can afford to support the church (although there are some perils - but I will revisit them some other time).

There is an attitude from some that the UPA, Estate church fraternity are living a lifestyle that serves them and fails to support the central church. I have been in conversations where the 'haves' give the impression that the 'have nots' are, much like the scroungers the Daily Fascist revels in, the victims of their own folly, lifestyle or lassitude. This of course is, generally, not the case. Now I do know some congregations who have a begging-bowl mentality, but these are very few and far between.

Now Jesus never told us to go into the places that could afford us and this is the problem we face in that if those who can't afford the Gospel being preached, the pastoral and social action being present and a place of welcome and support being open are never touched then we deny the words of James' (2:9) in that we are showing partiality and the very people who are captive to so much are not to be set free because the Church isn't willing to foot the bill!

I know of churches who cannot pay their parish share and yet, despite this, have seen people come to faith in fair numbers over the past few years. So here's a few questions (answer if you dare):

How do we put a price on this?

Do we set limits on how many need to be in the congregation before we take them seriously?

If a church can't pay the share in full and yet sees one or two people a year come to Christ, is it valid? If we say 'Yes' then why aren't we willing to support it from external sources? If we say 'No', then what makes a church valid?

If a church pays its parish share but exists only for itself, is this a valid church? Who decides (and why)?

I am finding an increasingly cynical and despairing tone amongst many of the clergy and congregations I come across and yet, as I see it, the future's bright and the achievements, commitment and faith are cheering and fantastic. I see positives but the need for the words, and actions, of those who set the direction need to take these up and be consistent in following and encouraging those who do Church where it meets the world.

I look forward to your answers, experiences and considered views.

Pax