Last year, we launched Living God's Future Now, an online festival of theology and practice. We hosted workshops, webinars, spaces to gather and share ideas, lecture series, and more. This year, we're continuing our programming with a new theme — humbler church, Bigger God.
HeartEdge is fundamentally about a recognition of the activity of the Holy Spirit beyond and outside the church, and about a church that flourishes when it seeks to catch up with what the Spirit is already doing in the world. There was a time when church meant a group that believed it could control access to God – access that only happened in its language on its terms. But God is bigger than that, and the church needs to be humbler than that. Kingdom churches anticipate the way things are with God forever – a culture of creativity, mercy, discovery and grace – and are grateful for the ways God renews the church through those it has despised, rejected, or ignored.
We hope this reflects the lessons we've learnt from the past year: still trying to live God's future now, re-imagining our faith and our calling as a Church in a changing world. Thank you for joining us for the journey — we can't wait to see what this year brings.
Church History course: Augustine towers over us all – 19:45 (GMT) Monday 14th March. Register at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/church-history-course-tickets-280175220627. This course provides an introduction to and an overview of church history. If we are to see a humbler Church and a bigger God, we need to deal with the history of the Church to understand where we are now, and why? Ruth Gouldbourne has been a Baptist minister for more than 30 years, ministering in churches in Bedford, London and Cheadle Hulme, as well as being a tutor at Bristol Baptist College. An Associate Fellow of Spurgeon's College, she is also Senior Research Fellow of IBTSC Amsterdam, and a Research Fellow of Bristol Baptist College.
Sermon Preparation with Sally Hitchiner and Sam Wells - 16:30 (GMT) Tuesday 15th March, livestreamed here. Sam Wells and Sally Hitchiner discuss Sunday's readings and offer practical tips on preaching.
Community of Practitioners workshop - 16:00 (GMT) Wednesday 16th March, Zoom meeting. Email jonathan.evens@smitf.org to register. This is a space for practitioners, lay and ordained, to reflect on theology and practice. Each week, we alternate between 'Wonderings' and discussion of a work of theology. Book to be read is ‘Improvisation’ by Sam Wells. 'Wonderings' help us to reflect and pray on what has stood out for each of us in the last week. Newcomers are very welcome.
Faith in the time of the ‘new normal’: Session two - Living in the tension: 17th March 7:15pm. Register at https://form.jotform.com/212773252401043. A series of Lenten conversations hosted by The Queen’s Foundation for Ecumenical Theological Education. This series aims to help congregations and house groups reflect on how Christians may understand the changes we’ve been through as a society, and the new ‘place’ we may be entering. It will draw on and introduce participants to resources from the tradition and offer them some tools for reflection to carry forward towards Easter. Sessions will take place on Thursday evenings during Lent and will be streamed live from the Queen's chapel to groups gathered online. Resources will be provided for the weeks where there are no hosted sessions.
Shut In Shut Out Shut Up: Disability & Church: Intersectionality- Mental Health: Friday 18th March, 16:30 GMT. Register here at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/shut-in-shut-out-shut-up-tickets-275653155007. Intersectionality is a way of describing how social categories (eg disability, race) combine to create overlapping systems of discrimination or disadvantage. In this 4th series of Shut In, Shut Out, Shut Up we explore the intersectional experience of disability and neurodiversity, gender, mental health, sexuality, race and poverty. What are the key issues in the context of faith? What are our calls to the church?
Music and Liturgy for Easter: Saturday 19 March, 11:00 – 12:00 GMT, Sacred Trinity Church, Chapel Street, Salford M3 5DW. Register at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/music-and-liturgy-for-easter-tickets-275772501977. Andy Salmon (North West Co-ordinator of HeartEdge and Rector of Sacred Trinity Church) will give tips about creative liturgical resources for Easter whilst Andrew Earis (Director of Music at St Martin-in-the-Fields) and the Manchester HeartEdge Choral Scholars will share musical resources to help freshen up your Easter experience. We will be broadcasting on Zoom but people are also welcome to come in person.
Theology Group: Sunday, 20 March, 19:00 – 20:00 BST, zoom - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/theology-group-tickets-248745844517. The St Martin-in-the-Fields and HeartEdge Theology Group provides a monthly opportunity to reflect theologically on issues of today and questions of forever with Sam Wells. Each month Sam responds to questions from a member of the congregation of St Martin-in-the-Fields who also chairs the session and encourages your comments and questions. In March the chair will be Jonathan Evens, who will be exploring with Sam the extent to which we can be co-creators with God.
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Larry Norman - The Tune.
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