Faith in the Public Space and the role of the Church

Making sense of the census was a useful workshop organised by the Greater London Presence and Engagement Network (PEN) on the new Census data and how it can help churches respond to their local context. We heard about the parish statistics that the Research & Statistics Department at Church House will be publishing based on Census 2011 and used a draft resource for stimulating discussion in parishes about the local implications arising from this data.

Following on from this workshop, The Very Revd Dr David Ison, Dean of St Paul’s Cathedral, gave this year’s PEN lecture Guardian or Gatekeeper? Faith in the Public Space and the role of the Church at St George the Martyr Parish Church, SE1. In this lecture, David reflected on his recent sabbatical research on Christian-Muslim relations together with his experiences as Dean of Bradford. 

His thinking essentially mirrored that expressed by the Queen in her address to faith leaders at Lambeth Palace in 2012 where she suggested that the Church of England, while providing an identity and spiritual dimension for its own many adherents, also "has a duty to protect the free practice of all faiths in this country" and "has created an environment for other faith communities and indeed people of no faith to live freely." An example of this in practice is the Common Good Network funded by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation within their Bradford programme. 

For more on David Ison's lecture, click here.

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The Staple Singers - If You're Ready (Come Go With Me).

Faith in the Public Space

In December 2012 the Office for National Statistics released data for religious populations from the 2011 Census. These statistics will be adjusted for parish boundaries over the next two months but you will be able to gain a basic impression of your local area from the numbers for your local authority - more stats details.

The Director of the Contextual Theology Centre posted a comment and Andy Mathews, an intern at St Peter's Bethnal Green, offered an example of how this information can be put to good Presence and Engagement use. All of which points towards a seminar afternoon, Making Sense of the Census, which the Greater London Presence & Engagement Network is arranging for Monday February 18th, 1.30 for 2pm - 4.30pm, at Trinity House, Chapel Court, Borough High Street, SE1 1HW.

Later that same day, The Very Revd Dr David Ison, Dean of St Paul’s Cathedral, will give this year’s PEN lecture Guardian or Gatekeeper? Faith in the Public Space and the role of the Church. He will be reflecting on his recent sabbatical research on Christian-Muslim relations. The lecture will be at 6.30 for 7pm on Monday, 18th February at St George the Martyr, Borough High Street, SE1 1JA.

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The Innocence Mission - Brotherhood Of Man.