BuildingBridges

NOT ‘SURVIVING’ BUT LIVING ... IN BRADFORD

“As Christians in a multi-faith, Muslim majority context, we Christians are a minority. But we are not ‘surviving’ we are living!”

These were the words of the Rev Arun John, who heads up the Bradford Inner Ring Group, an ecumenical church consortium exploring fresh possibilities of engagement in the inner city. He was speaking at the 2005 Future Church Conference today at the High Leigh conference centre in Hertfordshire.

In this challenging new situation for a church used to being the majority, Christians need to re-learn Gospel humility, to build “the church for others” and to be a living sign of hope in the lives they lead, said Arun.

He talked about how Christians in Britain can learn from Asian Christian spirituality in witnessing to Christ through building bridges of hope towards their neighbours.

Arun John has been working in Bradford for a year now, though he had contacts in the area for a number of years. He was previously working in South Africa. He is a priest of the Church of North India.

Arun’s role is being supported by the Church Mission Society. The Bradford Inner Ring Group has been linked to Building Bridges of Hope for several years.


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THE PURPOSEFUL, BUT NON-DRIVEN, LIFE

“Jesus was never ‘driven’, he was led”, declared Roy Searle of the Northumbria Community at the 2005 Future Church conference. He said that he hoped for a fresh emphasis on community, character and commitment – as a critique of, and act of resistance to, the “drivenness” of modern, consumer life.

In identifying signs and examples of a ‘new monasticism’ which is also missional, Searle (who this year is president of the Baptist Union of Great Britain) said:

• Advertising is not part of our DNA. Anonymity may not be everyone’s gift, but there is a grace for some in waiting for God to motivate and call people.

• We need the spirit of generosity – giving away what is not ours to own and control.

• God moves especially on the margins, rather than the mainstream.

• We need spirituality in the Johannine tradition of ‘come and see’. Invitation not recruitment, Emmaus rather than the Damascus Road, is the norm.

• Authenticity and transparency matter more than attempts to be ‘relevant’ that are often 30 years out of date.

• A church-without-walls arises from a mission of wandering and visiting. Spirituality is ‘wandering for the love of Christ’ and seeing serendipity as gift.

• Seek Jesus not on holy hills but on the streets.

• Contemplation, holiness, charismatic, Pentecostal, ecumenical and social justice traditions need to inform our theology and action.

• Culture has disabled people. “I can’t dance.” Yes you can. Creativity awakens humanity and gives us our life back. Ordinariness is special.

• Liturgy needs to be consciously connected with everyday life.

• Partnerships can be varied, with the liminal as well as with the traditional (in both church and non-church terms).

[Picture: A 'very young' version of Roy Searle with the Historical Music Group]

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WHY DO PEOPLE STAY?

Whereas some historic churches are finding it difficult to adapt their institutions to the rapid change of modern British life, Sanctus1 in Manchester says that what holds people together in its ‘fresh expression’ of church is an emphasis on relationships rather than structures. It is rooted in traditional Christian faith, but in a bold and experimental way. Its values are community, inclusivity, creativity and sacred space. These are the things which generate energy and dynamism, says Manchester city centre missioner Ben Edson, who is supported by the Church Amy and the local Anglican diocese.

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LARGEST EVER FUTURE CHURCH CONFERENCE GATHERS

Nearly one hundred Christians from across Britain and Ireland have been gathering today in Hertfordshire to look at the future of the church in these islands – and to find out how the concern to develop ‘fresh expressions’ of Christian community can be sustained by every-day spirituality.

The ‘Future Church’ conference is the fourth in an annual series organised by Building Bridges of Hope. BBH is an ecumenical project supported by the Churches’ Commission on Mission, part of Churches Together in Britain and Ireland.

With nearly 100 people attending, it is the largest FC event so far.

BBH brings together a range of innovative church projects, old and new, from a wide variety of Christian traditions – evangelical, Catholic, Anglican, Pentecostal and Free Church.

The aim is to share ideas about how Christian witness can be developed in communities where many have lost touch with the Christian faith, or have little understanding of it.

A major feature of Building Bridges of Hope is its pioneering work in the area of ‘mission accompaniment’ – the idea that a skilled and concerned outsider bringing a wide range of experience can help a church or group of churches to develop and implement their vision for the future.

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SANCTUS1 CONNECTS WITH THE DE-CHURCHED

Participants at the Future Church conference meeting in Hertfordshire have been hearing about (and experiencing the worship style of) Sanctus1 - an alternative Christian community based in the city centre of Manchester. The venture has been supported by ‘traditional’ churches, but it has its own distinctive life and culture, aimed particularly at connecting with the ‘de-churched’ – those who have rejected or fallen away from Christian faith, sometimes after a negative experience of the inherited church. Sanctus1, which also shares its resources more widely through a creative website, aims to provide a variety of spaces for open discussion, socialising and alternative forms of worship. Having started several years ago with just a handful, Sanctus1 currently involves some 50-60 people and 20 associates.

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