Mission Network News

New Bishop of Sheffield

It's really marvellous news that Steven Croft, Archbishops' Missioner and Team Leader of Fresh Expressions, is to be the next Bishop of Sheffield. I'm sure the prayers of all of us will be with Steve and Ann as they prepare to move to Sheffield in 2009 and as Steve takes up this new responsibility.

Sheffield Diocese have this:

No.10 Downing Street announced this week the appointment of The Revd Dr Steven John Lindsey Croft, currently Archbishops' Missioner and Leader of the Fresh Expressions team, as the next Bishop of Sheffield.

Dr Croft, 51, succeeds Bishop Jack, who retired earlier this year.

Dr. Croft will be consecrated as bishop by the Archbishop of York in the New Year and is expected to be enthroned in the Cathedral in the spring.

Steven is married to Ann and they have four grown up children, Paul (24), Andrew (22), Amy (20) and Sarah (18).

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. Rowan Williams, said this morning: “I am delighted about this significant appointment, and I wish Steve every blessing for his ministry in Sheffield. 

The Archbishop of York, Dr. John Sentamu, in a joint statement with Dr Williams said: “The outstanding work he has done as Archbishops' Missioner over the last four years has put the Fresh Expressions initiative very firmly on the map”.

Bishop Cyril today welcomed the appointment on behalf of the Diocese of Sheffield: "The waiting is over. The prayerful process has produced a man of deep faith and commitment who I am sure will lead the Diocese through its next stage of outreach and mission with real vigour and enthusiasm".

Dr. Croft said today: “I am honoured to be invited to become Bishop of Sheffield and to follow in the footsteps of Bishop Jack Nicholls.  Ann and I are looking forward enormously to moving back to Yorkshire.  I will have a great deal to learn about South Yorkshire, about the life of the church here and about being a bishop. 

He added: “I intend to spend my first months in the diocese listening to what is happening in the many different communities of Rotherham, Sheffield, Doncaster, Goole and Barnsley and everything in between.  I’ll be spending time getting to know clergy and parishes but also, I hope, working alongside different people in the community to see South Yorkshire from different points of view."

Statistics show increased ordinations, vocations and giving

New Church of England statistics published this week show increases in the number of clergy being trained and ordained. They also show increases in the amount parishioners are donating towards the mission of the Church. The figures confirm the changing patterns of church attendance, published earlier this year.

For more details see the C of E press release at http://www.cofe.anglican.org/news/pr8008.html

Better sex

This is just one of the many really good reasons to get married according to our new weddings website; see  http://www.yourchurchwedding.org/. 

On the website we commend "The Case for Marriage" by Linda Waite & Maggie Gallagher.

"Linda Waite and Maggie Gallagher have written a truly revolutionary book. Amassing powerful resources of data and theory, they attack the current anti-marriage conventional wisdom and devastate it. Married people are healthier, happier, more productive, and enjoy better sex. On reflection one wonders how anyone could have possibly thought otherwise. Future discussion of marriage and family will not be able to ignore this work..."
-Reverend Andrew M. Greeley, priest, sociologist, and bestselling author

A couple of newspapers have picked up this story, and over the last couple of days Paul has been earning his wages by exploring with journalists the theology around good sex.  If you must know more, see for example  http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/67770/Church-of-England-tells-couples-to-have-more-sex-

GfE Consultation 2009 - Proclamation in a post-modern context

A date for your diary from Jim Currin of GfE (Churches Together in England's Group for Evangelisation). Jim writes:

Thursday 7th May 2009 in London

Please make a note of this advance notice of date for our GfE Annual Consultation.

Aimed at national and regional network people, we shall look at ‘Proclamation in a Post Modern Context’.

Building on one of the current GfE key concerns, the day will explore new words, ways and language for sharing the good news of Jesus.

The day will aim to bring key people together: please make a note to join us. More details will follow in due course.

HOPE 08 update

From Fritha Wheeler at the HOPE office.

Hello there!

As you already know, Hope08 was set up to be a catalyst – to encourage and inspire churches to do mission in word and action. Not for one week, not even for just a year but for as long as there are people that need to be reached.

 

The stories from this year are stunning. Relationships between churches are being strengthened and… people are becoming Christians! But it’s not just about 2008. This is about what has changed and it’s about what’s next – it’s about being united and relevant church for longer than twelve months.

 

With this in mind, we’d love to know what you’re planning to do at the end of this year. Will you be stopping everything, or are you looking at repeating and developing some of the things you’ve tried out?

 

If you are then please let us know about it. And if you’re not still let us know about it! We want to provide you with the best possible resources and we can only do that with your feedback.

Contact details are at www.hope08.com

 

To help you know what other people are saying, here are some quotes:

 

Becky Coster, Bedford.

’It has been a good year and we're pleased with where we have got to.  From the outset, I had high expectations for the year and looking back, it's has been more about small steps than grand gestures but they are things that can be built on.  The churches in the Bedford area have worked together much more than ever before.  We've attempted things we haven't in the past.  So it has shown us that more is possible.

The biggest event of the year was a RE:ACT fun day which was hugely successful. Without Hope08 this would never have happened’

 

Jackie Follett, St. Albans

 

‘We deliberately didn’t call this year hope08 but "Hope For St.Albans" because we knew we wanted to do this long term.’

 

It's encouraging stuff and there's lots more - do get in touch!
 

Yours,

 

Fritha

Bishops' Mission Orders - who's first?

Several dioceses are now exploring Bishops' Mission Orders for their fresh expressions of church. We would very much like to know which diocese wins, or has won, the race to be the first in the Church of England with a BMO legally in place. As we understand it Exeter is a front runner - appropriately since their Bishop was closely involved in the legal drafting process. But your diocese may have pipped them to the post. If so, do let us know. There's no legal requirement to inform the national church of BMOs as they come on-stream, but it will help us enormously if we can have an up-to-date database.

Tailor made communications training: 2009 programme now online

Suzanne Gray is a valued colleague in Church House. working on the Weddings Project and also on delivering our communications training programmes. Please share news of these excellent courses as widely as you can where you are, and have a look at the programmes for yourself too.

Suzanne writes:

The 2009 "Tailor made communications" training programme has gone online at www.commstraining.cofe.anglican.org 

Our training is tailor made to help you make the most of modern media to get your message across. So whether it's getting to grips with the internet, radio or TV interviews, promoting the local church or giving your public speaking an audit, we have the insights and experience that will help.

More details are available at www.commstraining.cofe.anglican.org or by ringing me on 020 7898 1465.

Focus on Older People Information Bulletin

Exploring evangelism, spiritual needs and fresh expressions of church among older people.

Download the latest bulletin from Sheffield Centre's Michael Collyer.

Download IBULL25.pdf

Contemplative Fire

Here's the latest info from Philip Roderick and the Contemplative Fire team.

Philip writes:

1    I attach a copy of Burning Bush, our occasional newsletter for Contemplative Fire.  As we seek to share the story of our call and community, could I encourage you to read this and send it on to those in your own network, wherever they are in the world, who could be interested in this community of Christ at the edge as we take shape. Download burning_bush_no_8.pdf

 

2    Tessa Holland, priest in the diocese of Chichester and regional leader of Contemplative Fire there, is involved with me on two significant projects that emerge from our membership of Round Table 5, which deals with the contemplative and sacramental dimensions of the national Fresh Expressions Initiative.  The first of these is the National Pilgrimage to Coventry Cathedral on Monday 8 December with Archbishop Rowan Williams.  Registrations for this are now being received and details can be found on http://www.freshexpressions.org.uk//standard.asp?id=3790&cachefixer

 

Secondly, Tessa and I are co-writing an article outlining the vision and practice of Contemplative Fire in a forthcoming book on the emerging church from the contemplative and catholic traditions.  The book, to be published by SCM-Canterbury press this coming May, includes a chapter by Archbishop Rowan and is to be entitled 'Ancient Faith: Future Mission' with editors Steven Croft, Ian Mobsby and Aaron Kennedy. 

 

3     Toronto visit.  Should you have any connections in Canada, especially in Toronto, just to let you know that I am hoping to seed a Contemplative Fire presence there and, to that end, am leading an Advent retreat entitled 'Holy Waiting, Holy Longing - Advent with Contemplative Fire' on 4 and 5 December.  Earlier in that same week, I shall be working with potential Contemplative Fire small group catalysts/facilitators/leaders to equip them with the norms, values and processes involved in our work.  If you have someone in mind, please let me know and I will attach a leaflet outlining the workshop/retreat. 

 

May you be blessed in all your inward and outward journeys.

 

Philip

Mission Development Funding - report

The Church Commissioners have produced an excellent report on the use, and the principles behind the use, of Parish Mission Funding/Mission Development Funding since 2002. 

The introduction by Professor Peter Johnson is vital reading.

All diocesan mission staff will be receiving a copy in the post from the Commissioners' Policy Unit. Diocesan Secretaries will also have received copies for themselves, Bishops' Council members and others.

The report is also available for download here: http://www.cofe.anglican.org/about/churchcommissioners/missionandministry/mdfreport.pdf

Please read this one, and discuss how this funding is used, and what the priorities are and should be in your diocese, with your diocesan colleagues as and where appropriate.

BBC director-general on faith, morality and the media

Here are details, and the full text and podcast, of "Faith, morality and the media", Mark Thompson's Theos lecture on broadcasting and religion

Full text: Download MarkThompsonSpeech.doc

In his speech, Mr Thompson said that the relationship between religion and the media was important "because, quite simply, religion is back. It's not just in the news, but often leads the news." The assumption when he joined the BBC back in 1979, that the decline and marginalization of religion was a straightforward corollary of modernism and was inevitable, was in the process of being disproven, he added.

For more go to
 http://www.theosthinktank.co.uk/DG_defends_Beeb's_record_on_religion_in_Theos_lecture.aspx?ArticleID=2590&PageID=14&RefPageID=5

You can't sue God

You may or may not be glad to know the following (from the Daily Telegraph:  http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/3212596/You-cannot-sue-God...-he-has-no-known-address.html)

An American politician's attempt to sue God has been thrown out of court after a judge ruled the suit could not be served because the Almighty has an unlisted address.

Ernie Chambers, a Nebraska state senator, sought a "permanent injunction" that ordered God to stop causing "widespread death, destruction and terrorisation of millions upon millions of the Earth's inhabitants".

The suit listed examples of God's wrath including "fearsome floods, horrendous hurricanes, earthquakes, plagues, famine, genocidal wars, birth defects, terrifying tornadoes and the like".

It identified the defendant, said to be "also known by various aliases, titles, names, designations" as "present in all places at the same time" and "the admitted perpetrator of the deleterious acts complained of herein".

The suit also claimed the "defendant" has "manifested neither compassion nor remorse, proclaiming that Defendant 'will laugh' when calamity comes".

Mr Chambers, of Omaha, has said he filed the lawsuit not because of any conflict with God but to make the point that everyone should access to the courts. It was response to proposals to prohibit the filing of lawsuits deemed too frivolous to be heard.

The senator argued that laws should not restrict lawsuits and the courts should be open to all. "The Constitution requires that the courthouse doors be open, so you cannot prohibit the filing of suits," he said after he filed his suit last September. "Anyone can sue anyone they choose, even God." He also argued that because of God's omnipresence, "the defendant is personally present in Douglas County (Nebraska)."

But Marlon Polk, Douglas County district court judge, ruled that under state law, a plaintiff must have access to the defendant and be able to serve papers on him or her for a lawsuit to go ahead.

"Given that this court finds that there can never be service effectuated on the named defendant this action will be dismissed with prejudice," the judge wrote.

Mr Chambers, 71, Nebraska's longest serving state senator who has been dubbed "defender of the downtrodden" and the "maverick of Omaha", disagreed with the judge's ruling.

"The court itself acknowledges the existence of God," he said. "A consequence of that acknowledgment is a recognition of God's omniscience."

Therefore, "since God knows everything, God has notice of this lawsuit", he added.

The senator, an independent, has served a record 38 years in the Nebraska Legislature and will not return next year because of term limits. According to the Associated Press, the self-proclaimed agnostic skips morning prayers during the legislative session and often criticises Christians

He has 30 days to decide whether to appeal the ruling.

Fulcrum Reflection on "Mission-Shaped Church"

John Clark, our previous boss at Church House and a co-author of "Mission-shaped church", sends this interesting article by Jody Stowell which is also available on the Fulcrum website (http://www.fulcrum-anglican.org.uk/). Some of the arguments may seem familiar, but it's a clear exposition and well worth a read.

Download jody_stowell_essay_1008.rtf

Jody Stowell is a theology student at Spurgeon's College, which trains Baptists for ministry and mission. She, however, is an Anglican, and soon to begin training for ordained ministry in the Church of England. She is also a self-confessed internet junkie and can be found commenting about most things on her own blog www.radical-evanglical.blogspot.com. Jody is on the Fulcrum leadership team

Conference - Catholicity, Ecclesiology and the Mission of the Church of England

St Stephen's House are hosting this one in January - I very much hope some of us will be able to attend.

More at www.ssho.ox.ac.uk/ecclesiology

Here's the full flyer: Download SiteAsPDF.pdf

Some details from the organiser, Fr Andrew Davison:

The Church  of  England  finds  itself  at  a  decisive moment.  Just  as  the  tensions which 

tear at  the  fabric of  the Anglican Communion are being  replicated close at hand,  it 

faces  pressing questions of  its own: not  least,  the place of  the Church  in  public  life, 

and the willingness of the public to find a place in the life of the Church. The mood of 

the  Church  is  low  and  yet,  within  theology,  there  has  been  an  unprecedented 

acknowledgement  over  the  last  century  of  the  significance  of  the  Church. 

Theologians of all traditions have come to stress the communal dimension of salvation 

and the centrality of incorporation into the body of Christ.  

 

After  the  Lambeth  Conference  the  question  is  asked  ‘where  is  the  Church  going?’ 

Returning to the Church will address this question by first asking a deeper one: ‘what 

is  the Church?’  It  seeks  to  revive  ecclesiology;  to  bring  the  renewed  confidence  in 

the Church found within theology into the life and practices of the Church of England, 

for the renewal of parish life, education, spirituality and ecumenism.  

 

Returning to the Church seeks to reconnect with the traditions of the past as the basis 

for  an  openness  to  future  renewal.  It  will  value  orthodoxy  and  open-mindedness. 

Through papers, panels and discussions it will address: 

 

    Lay vocation and education 

    Social Justice, Politics and the Church in Public Life 

    The Organisation of the Church 

    The Anglican Communion and Ecumenism 

    Doctrine and Liturgy in the Church of England 

    Religious Life and Movements 

 

The  conference  is  chiefly  focused  upon  the  Church  of  England,  but  with  the 

conviction  that  its mission and  identity are only  truly  to be understood as part of  the 

universal Church. Here  too, attention  to  theology  is helpful: at  the end of a century 

that  saw  ecumenism  born  and  then  wane,  one  of  its  most  striking  successes  is  in 

academic theology, which is now a thoroughly ecumenical endeavour. In the face of 

divisions among catholic-minded Anglicans, the conference is for all who identify the 

roots and future of the Church in its catholicity.

Cell UK Leadership Link

Laurence Singlehurst over at Cell UK has this:

Dear Friends 

I am writing to send you our latest Leadership Link letter which is written by my good friend Rich Wilson.

Download leadership_link_oct_08.pdf

I also wanted to take this opportunity to make you aware of an exciting new conference day being hosted at Manor Park Christian Centre, East London on Saturday 15 November.  David Foster over the last six years has brought his missionary heart and experience to building a church using the cell model. This is an urban and truly multi-cultural area in one of the highest concentration of Muslims, Hindus and Sikhs in the UK. In this time the congregation has increased from less than 120 to over 300 regular members of the MPCC’s church family.

During this cell day David will host a track looking at how he has used the cell principles in this urban multi-cultural context and what practical principles and strategies he has implemented which have helped contribute to his church’s growth.

Manor Park Christian Centre, Manor Park, East London  
Cell UK hosts our first Urban and Multi-cultural Cell Leaders and Coaches Training day –

Saturday 15 November 2008

The four tracks will be:
Track 1 - David Foster sharing on cell church in an urban and multi-cultural environment
Track 2 - Cell leaders and cell coaches. Laurence Singlehurst speaking on the dynamics of leading and coaching including
Core values and skills of cell leading
Cell coaches – cell coaching through understanding the DNA of cell 
Making cells missional and how the cell leader and cell coach work together for that to happen
Track 3 – Paul Hopkins - youth cells
Track 4 – Andy Kennedy - children
The cost for this day is £15 including a hot lunch and continental breakfast and it runs from 10.00am to 4.30pm (9.45am for breakfast)

Venue: Manor Park Christian Centre, East London E12 6RH

Yours for His kingdom

Laurence Singlehurst

Cell UK Ministries

Highfield Oval

Harpenden

Herts  AL5 4BX

01582 463232

www.celluk.org.uk

 

Latest York Course - John Young

John is an elder statesman of our mission network. Here's news of the latest round of his York Course material. Full details to download here: Download FHL.doc

Our new group discussion course for Lent 2009 is now available.

 

These three... Faith, Hope and Love is based on the three great qualities celebrated in 1 Corinthians 13. This famous passage begins and ends in majestic prose. But the middle paragraph is practical and demanding. St Paul’s thirteen verses take us to the heart of what it means to be a Christian.

 

Participants on the CD/audiotape:

o   Tom Wright (Bishop of Durham)

o   Abbot Christopher Jamison (Abbot of Worth)

o   Anne Atkins (Writer and broadcaster)

o   Dr David Hope introduces the course

o   Professor Frances Young (Closing Reflections)

 

The accompanying COURSE booklet - which includes questions for groups - is written by Canon John Young.

 

The 5 session titles are:

 

Session One -            Believing and Trusting

Session Two -            The Peace of God

Session Three -         Faith into Love

Session Four  -          The Greatest of these

Session Five -            All shall be well

 

Details of the new course, including biographies of the contributors, sound clips and sample pages, are available at www.yorkcourses.co.uk - or you may click on the direct link below : 

 

http://www.yorkcourses.co.uk/cgi/shop/shop.cgi?cart_id=&page=courses

 

CAN - retelling the Christmas story

From Churches Advertising Network:

Could you tell the Christmas Story in under 30 seconds?

The Church is fighting back against what they say is the rebranding of Christmas to a 'winter festival show' with a hard hitting advertising campaign.

The Churches Advertising Network is also challenging people to tell the Christmas story in under 30 seconds....and to discover the real Christmas story at their local church.

It comes as the latest research shows  just 1 in 8 of Britons have a detailed knowledge of the Nativity dropping to 7% of under 18- 24 year olds.*

CAN, an ecumenical group that includes representatives from most of the mainstream churches, is targeting youngsters in a series of radio ads in the style of  football and horse racing commentaries..

Other previous controversial campaigns include a poster depicting Jesus as the revolutionary leader Che Guevara and one suggesting that Mary was having a "bad hair day" when she discovered she was pregnant.

Chair of CAN, Francis Goodwin said: "Political correctness has gone mad when some people are afraid to use the word Christmas, or stop Nativity plays in schools, or to even use Jesus' name. It is important for the churches to fight back and re-establish in this generation the wonderful story of the Nativity. We hope youngsters will write, text, record, video, paint the Christmas story in under 30 seconds. This campaign and the competition will be a catalyst for churches to get involved all over the country. We're confident they will use this to reach out to a new generation, that often isn't being brought up with the message of hope embodied in the news of Jesus' birth at the heart of the Christmas story"

CAN is an independent ecumenical group of Christian communicators providing high quality national Christian advertising campaigns linked to major Christian festivals. This year CAN will be running a national advertising campaign through December on commercial radio to encourage more people to discover the real Christmas story at their local church. The key message for the campaign is 'be a part of the action'

The Churches Advertising Network is also issuing a challenge to people to tell the Christmas story in under 30 seconds. There's a prize of £500 for the best entry. All entries must be received before November 30. To hear the radio adverts and to find out more on the competition, please go to www.churchads.org.uk