Mission Shaped Church, has become a new mantra for the Church of England in the 21st century. Mantras are good to a point, but we have to keep asking ourselves what does it mean. What does a Mission Shaped Church look like? In between wrestling with the important questions of women bishops, sexuality, and of course pensions, I hope this new Synod will take time to ask itself what are we doing as a Synod, to help the Church of England be more mission shaped in the years ahead. The Pastoral and Dioceses Measure is an important part of this, what Archbishop Rowan calls a “principled loosening of our structures”.
Church Army stands ready to help in that debate, ready to engage with the Church in that debate, and committed to helping the Church be more effective, more relevant, more mission shaped and I hope more fun!
As I take on this new job, I am excited, inspired and encouraged by the work that our evangelists are doing up and down this country in helping Church be more mission shaped.
The Bus Project is based in Ellesmere Port in Chester Diocese. It is run by Rob Barker. I met Rob some weeks ago, he is full of enthusiasm and passion for the young people he works with, many of whom have found a living faith in Christ. With his old London double-decker bus re-fitted with a café, complete with TVs and DVD players, Rob and his team of volunteers from the local church make contact with young people in a variety of situations within the Diocese of Chester. He drives all round the big housing estates meeting kids who would never have any connection with the church. The bus hosts a coffee bar upstairs and is often the centre of the work. For it is here that the building of relationships takes place, where trust and acceptance is paramount.
In Cardiff, the Amber Project is working with young people who self harm, over 100 teenagers receive support, they have groups to discuss, they have theatre workshops to act out their feelings, and art and craft to help express their feelings creatively. I met a young woman called Kath, who simply said without the Amber project she would not be alive.
I could add Streetreach in Belfast; over 1000 teenagers out and about serving the people of Belfast, I could add Mike Reeder and his pioneering work with the elderly in Sheffield, I could add John O’Neill in NI working with hundreds of schools, complete with his 2 puppet camels, Englebert and Humperdink, and establishing outreach to bikers. I could tell you about Sue working in a northern English city with prostitutes, I could tell you about our work with refugees and alcoholics, I could add our work in communities up and down the land, I could tell you about Malt Cross in Nottingham reaching those spilling onto the streets from pubs and clubs. Story after story, about bringing people to a place where they meet the real, exciting, dynamic, passionate, radical, amazing, wonderful, dangerous, radical loving Jesus.
Archbishop Rowan says mission is what happens when we find out what God is already up to in the world and join in ! I hope we as a Synod take time to listen to God, and work out what God is up to in his world. Together, our task is to bring the unchanging message of an unchanging God to our fast changing culture.To find out more about Church Army, our website is www.churcharmy.org.uk or call us on 020 8309 3519.
Mark Russell
Chief Executive, The Church Army
