Here is the latest update from the Greater London Presence & Engagement Network:
PEN work and events
We are just putting together the promised resource pack. This has become a CD-ROM rather than a folder of papers. It updates the pack given out at our 1st June launch and is being sent to clergy in all four of our sponsoring Dioceses with the intention that every parish will have access to at least one copy. So for lay colleagues who would like one please let me know or badger your nearest incumbent and make sure they make good use of it please. (Those in Southwark Diocese will receive theirs through the monthly clergy mailing.)
Living with other faiths: to help those who would like to familiarise themselves with this material or get pointers on how to put together a course that a fits particular context, there is a training morning on Thursday 11th February in the Chapter Room at Southwark Cathedral (very central for transport, right next to London Bridge). Starting prompt at 10 am until 12 noon (with a midway coffee break), the session will be lead by the author of the material, The Revd Jonathan Evens. There will be a £5 charge payable on the day. Please let me know if you are hoping to attend.
Jonathan is also leading a five week course using the material as part of the Diocese of Chelmsford Lent and Eastertide School 2010 on five Fridays in Lent (February 26th, March 5th, 12th, 19th & 26th); 10am until 12 noon, The Chapter House, Chelmsford. The five week course costs £15 and can be booked through Liz Watson at the Chelmsford Diocesan office. Email lwatson@chelmsford.anglican.org or telephone 01245 294400. (This is module Lent 13 of the CCS course.) The Revd Angus Ritchie (Director of the Contextual Theology Centre) is running the course for five Mondays in Eastertide (April 19th & 26th, May 10th, 17th & 24th). ; 7.30 – 9.30pm, University of East London Stratford Campus. Cost and booking as above. (This is module Easter 4 of the CCS course.)
Also using these materials but slightly differently, Churches Together in Balham and Upper Tooting Lent course will run five Wednesdays in Lent (February 24th, March 3rd, 10th, 17th & 24th)7.30 – 9.00 pm at St Mary’s Church Balham High Road. (Balham station and Northern line underground are close by) please let The Revd Wilma Roest vicar@stmarybalham.org.uk, or myself, know if you plan to attend. The course is being led by PEN Coordinator, Susanne Mitchell and local church members.
Learning and Growing: this one of the series of Autumn seminars was postponed. In the next few weeks I will be in touch with “providers” about their latest courses and materials to put on something late Spring early summer. I would welcome suggestions as to what you would find helpful by way of an event to encourage the practice of Christian Learning and Growing and developing confidence in being able to explain our faith to others.
A recommendation: I recently met with Jane Winter and David Grimwood of Zedakah. Zedakah (http://www.zedakah.org.uk/) is a faith based work consultancy which provides a range of services to support individuals and local community groups through the processes of project planning and management. Staff have considerable experience of Christian based social justice, community ministry and consultancy. I will be adding details to the website soon but if you are thinking of embarking on a project why not take a look at what they can offer by way of support.
Other news and events
The Three Faiths Forum is looking for an education officer for Christianity, interns, and volunteer speakers for their workshops in schools and colleges. Training is given for speakers in dialogue skills and public speaking. Ideally they want volunteers under 30. Details about this and the education office post are on their website: http://www.threefaithsforum.org.uk/.
The Just Share Lectures continue at St Mary-le-Bow Church, Cheapside. Wednesday 27th January at 6.05pm ‘The City of God and the City’ The Revd Canon Dr Nicholas Sagovsky, Canon Theologian at Westminster Abbey.
Jewels in His Crown Day Conference Saturday 23rd January 9.45am – 1.00pm Which Way the UK Asian Church? Which models are working in London? At St Peter’s Church, Vere Street, London W1G 0DQ. Details of their national conference in June 2010 will be added to the PEN website soon.
The Christian Interfaith Practitioners' Association will be holding their Annual Consultation from the 18-20 May 2010 at Luther King House, Manchester. Face to Face and Side by Side: Who is in? Who is Out? www.cipa-uk.com for more details.
Community Mission a partnership between Tearfund and Livability (formerly Shaftesbury Society) are hosting Mission in multi-faith communities on 10 March in central London. The day is facilitated by Richard Sudworth, author of Distinctly Welcoming. Richard also runs a community project in a diverse part of Birmingham. The day will focus on evangelism in a multi-faith context and how to maintain a distinctive Christian approach. It is £20/person including lunch. To book, contact Jill Clark or phone 020 7452 2018.
Contextual Theology Centre event for the Week of prayer for Christian Unity. Thursday 21st January, 7.30-9pm at St Paul's Church, Shadwell E1 Christian Unity - for a Change Hear the Revd Ric Thorpe (St Paul's , Shadwell), Capt Nick Coke (Stepney Salvation Army), Sr Una McCreesh (Ursuline Sisters) and Pastor Wayne Brown (NT Church of God) speak about the impact of community organising on their congregations and neighbourhoods.
And still with a Social Justice theme Insidegovernment Tackling Race Inequality: Improving Opportunity, Strengthening Society on Tuesday 23rd February, Central London, 09:00 - 14:00 more details at http://insidegovernment.msgfocus.com/c/1iK09ym24tI4QrFOZ).
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Curtis Mayfield - Keep On Keeping On.
Showing posts with label sudworth. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sudworth. Show all posts
Wednesday, 27 January 2010
Thursday, 24 September 2009
Of orthodox heretics & pirates
There is a fascinating debate currently underway in the blogosphere on the use that Kester Brewin and Peter Rollins make of the metaphor of 'new heretics' in their attempt to shake the Church out of the bind in which it finds itself. Richard Sudworth initiated the debate at Distinctly Welcoming with the post here which led to comments from Kester Brewin and a substantive post from Peter Rollins on his blog. Richard Sudworth has then responded here and Rollins has made a further response here.
What interests me most in this debate is the dialectical basis of Brewin and Rollins' argument i.e. that transgressing the Law or Orthodoxy (as a criminal or heretic) may not simply be an exercise in law breaking for its own ends but may draw out how the Law or Orthodoxy itself is a transgression. Brewin and Rollins argue therefore for the existence of dual or shadow stories and their work on dialectics highlights this as a key but under-appreciated issue for our understanding of the Christian faith and our use of the Bible.
Slavoj Žižek, on whose work Rollins draws significantly, writes in The Monstrosity of Christ of all stories being dual and containing their own counter story whether told or untold. He cites Ernest Hemingway’s Killers as one example of this phenonemon. Killers is a short story which in ten terse pages details the arrival in town of two assassins and the resigned acquiescence of their target – the Swede – to his fate. As Žižek points out this story as told begs the untold tale
behind the enigma of the Swede’s calmness in the face of death. That story is not told by Hemingway, nevertheless we are aware that it must exist and are compelled to imagine what it might be.
When Rollins unpacks Brewin's suggestion that the Somali pirate’s activities may help us to rethink global geopolitics and articulate an alternative vision of where the real problems lie, he is making use of the same argument. He is arguing that there is more than one story at play in the situation surrounding the Somali pirates and that the Western Global Capitalist story:
"in which there is an ‘apolitical’ (conservative politics hidden as such) concentration on subjective violence (the violence done directly by the pirates – kidnapping, beatings, killings etc.) ... masks the political question that these Somali Pirates force us to ask. Yes they are often brutal and violent, but by stealing ships full of Tanks (bound for Kenya) and luxury goods (made often under horrific conditions) we need to go further and make the (non-symmetrical) connection between the subjective violence of the pirates (which should be condemned) and the objective violence of the system that they are directly attacking."
Rollins, through his use of the metaphor of the orthodox heretic, has applied this to the fundamentalist strand of the Church, for example in the post to be found here. Interestingly, it was within conservative Evangelical churches that I first observed this phenomenon, although at the time I would have lacked an explanation for what I was observing.
What I saw however was ministers imposing ethical requirements on members of their congregation in an absolutist fashion i.e. people were told, for example, that their relationships (boyfriend/girlfriend, new relationship following divorce etc.) were opposed to the witness of scripture and that they, therefore, were on the edge of rebelling against God and his word. These warnings were ostensibly given out of love for the individuals; the stated intent was to draw such people back into relationship with God. However, faced with the stark black and white choice between relationship with God and relationship with their chosen partner several of these people left the Church and as far as was known abandoned their faith. The minister's who had issued the warnings then justified their action in terms of the insincerity of the faith of those that had left.
These incidents were not simply about 'heavy shepherding' or hypocrisy on the part of either the ministers or congregation members involved rather they revealed that a dual narrative was in play when these incidents occurred. Actions that were intended to strengthen faith had the effect of undermining it and actions which were intended as loving were perceived by those receiving them as lacking in love. The publicly stated story of loving restoration also had a shadow story which was understood to be conform or leave. It was the shadow story which was understood or felt by those who left to be the real story, in contrast to the story as publicly stated.
The reality of dual narratives in our lives and practices is, it seems to me, something that we are often fearful of admitting within the Church. Instead we often speak and act as though there is only one story, one interpretation of scripture, and one 'pure' motivation for our actions and practices. Brewin and Rollins are among those challenging the naivity and, sometime, hypocrises of this position and, therefore, they receive flak from those with vested interests to defend.
However, there has been for some time an understanding and application of dialectics to biblical criticism and study. For me, the work of Walter Brueggemann stands out in this regard; in particular his suggestion that the Old Testament evidences both a core and counter testimony which are in dialogue with each other which the content and form of scripture. My posts on this and related issues can be found here.
Brueggemann's work is widely appreciated within Evangelicalism as well as elsewhere within the Church, yet it seems that while we can accept a theory of dialectics in relation to our reading of scripture we have yet to fully appreciate or engage with the implications for the way in which we understand ourselves and our ministries. It is on this ground that Brewin and Rollins challenge us and a key part of their challenge, which we often resist, is to acknowledge the existence of dual or shadow stories in our lives and ministries.
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16 Horsepower - Black Soul Choir.
What interests me most in this debate is the dialectical basis of Brewin and Rollins' argument i.e. that transgressing the Law or Orthodoxy (as a criminal or heretic) may not simply be an exercise in law breaking for its own ends but may draw out how the Law or Orthodoxy itself is a transgression. Brewin and Rollins argue therefore for the existence of dual or shadow stories and their work on dialectics highlights this as a key but under-appreciated issue for our understanding of the Christian faith and our use of the Bible.
Slavoj Žižek, on whose work Rollins draws significantly, writes in The Monstrosity of Christ of all stories being dual and containing their own counter story whether told or untold. He cites Ernest Hemingway’s Killers as one example of this phenonemon. Killers is a short story which in ten terse pages details the arrival in town of two assassins and the resigned acquiescence of their target – the Swede – to his fate. As Žižek points out this story as told begs the untold tale
behind the enigma of the Swede’s calmness in the face of death. That story is not told by Hemingway, nevertheless we are aware that it must exist and are compelled to imagine what it might be.
When Rollins unpacks Brewin's suggestion that the Somali pirate’s activities may help us to rethink global geopolitics and articulate an alternative vision of where the real problems lie, he is making use of the same argument. He is arguing that there is more than one story at play in the situation surrounding the Somali pirates and that the Western Global Capitalist story:
"in which there is an ‘apolitical’ (conservative politics hidden as such) concentration on subjective violence (the violence done directly by the pirates – kidnapping, beatings, killings etc.) ... masks the political question that these Somali Pirates force us to ask. Yes they are often brutal and violent, but by stealing ships full of Tanks (bound for Kenya) and luxury goods (made often under horrific conditions) we need to go further and make the (non-symmetrical) connection between the subjective violence of the pirates (which should be condemned) and the objective violence of the system that they are directly attacking."
Rollins, through his use of the metaphor of the orthodox heretic, has applied this to the fundamentalist strand of the Church, for example in the post to be found here. Interestingly, it was within conservative Evangelical churches that I first observed this phenomenon, although at the time I would have lacked an explanation for what I was observing.
What I saw however was ministers imposing ethical requirements on members of their congregation in an absolutist fashion i.e. people were told, for example, that their relationships (boyfriend/girlfriend, new relationship following divorce etc.) were opposed to the witness of scripture and that they, therefore, were on the edge of rebelling against God and his word. These warnings were ostensibly given out of love for the individuals; the stated intent was to draw such people back into relationship with God. However, faced with the stark black and white choice between relationship with God and relationship with their chosen partner several of these people left the Church and as far as was known abandoned their faith. The minister's who had issued the warnings then justified their action in terms of the insincerity of the faith of those that had left.
These incidents were not simply about 'heavy shepherding' or hypocrisy on the part of either the ministers or congregation members involved rather they revealed that a dual narrative was in play when these incidents occurred. Actions that were intended to strengthen faith had the effect of undermining it and actions which were intended as loving were perceived by those receiving them as lacking in love. The publicly stated story of loving restoration also had a shadow story which was understood to be conform or leave. It was the shadow story which was understood or felt by those who left to be the real story, in contrast to the story as publicly stated.
The reality of dual narratives in our lives and practices is, it seems to me, something that we are often fearful of admitting within the Church. Instead we often speak and act as though there is only one story, one interpretation of scripture, and one 'pure' motivation for our actions and practices. Brewin and Rollins are among those challenging the naivity and, sometime, hypocrises of this position and, therefore, they receive flak from those with vested interests to defend.
However, there has been for some time an understanding and application of dialectics to biblical criticism and study. For me, the work of Walter Brueggemann stands out in this regard; in particular his suggestion that the Old Testament evidences both a core and counter testimony which are in dialogue with each other which the content and form of scripture. My posts on this and related issues can be found here.
Brueggemann's work is widely appreciated within Evangelicalism as well as elsewhere within the Church, yet it seems that while we can accept a theory of dialectics in relation to our reading of scripture we have yet to fully appreciate or engage with the implications for the way in which we understand ourselves and our ministries. It is on this ground that Brewin and Rollins challenge us and a key part of their challenge, which we often resist, is to acknowledge the existence of dual or shadow stories in our lives and ministries.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
16 Horsepower - Black Soul Choir.
Thursday, 26 February 2009
The Springfield Project
Last weekend I had the opportunity to visit the excellent Springfield Project based at St. Christopher's Church which provides services to children and their families in the local community of Springfield in south east Birmingham.
On Saturday 15th November 2008, The Springfield Centre was opened by the Archbishop of Canterbury who said: "The Springfield Centre is a further example of the Church of England's Presence & Engagement programme, which emphasises the positive contribution of parish churches in multi religious neighbourhoods."
The new £2m Centre was primarily financed and built by Birmingham City Council as the home of the Springfield Children's Centre, a 'one stop shop' provision for families with children under the age of five.
The Archbishop referred to his visit to the Project in his New Year message saying: "One of the most damning things you could say about any society is that it's failing its children. That's why I was really encouraged recently to be invited to open a project in Springfield in Birmingham – a church-based initiative supporting children and their parents from across the whole community. Here the church community took the brave decision to open up their church building for work with local families and to seek funding for further buildings and resources from the local authority. What's more, they've worked throughout in close collaboration with the local mosque and have a joint programme with them for young people. There's a community with its eye unmistakeably on its real treasure."
The Springfield Project are also fortunate to have excellent Interfaith parters who contribute to the interfaith work carried out in Springfield and beyond. Their current partners are:
Duke Special - Freewheel.
On Saturday 15th November 2008, The Springfield Centre was opened by the Archbishop of Canterbury who said: "The Springfield Centre is a further example of the Church of England's Presence & Engagement programme, which emphasises the positive contribution of parish churches in multi religious neighbourhoods."
The new £2m Centre was primarily financed and built by Birmingham City Council as the home of the Springfield Children's Centre, a 'one stop shop' provision for families with children under the age of five.
The Archbishop referred to his visit to the Project in his New Year message saying: "One of the most damning things you could say about any society is that it's failing its children. That's why I was really encouraged recently to be invited to open a project in Springfield in Birmingham – a church-based initiative supporting children and their parents from across the whole community. Here the church community took the brave decision to open up their church building for work with local families and to seek funding for further buildings and resources from the local authority. What's more, they've worked throughout in close collaboration with the local mosque and have a joint programme with them for young people. There's a community with its eye unmistakeably on its real treasure."
The Springfield Project are also fortunate to have excellent Interfaith parters who contribute to the interfaith work carried out in Springfield and beyond. Their current partners are:
- Youth Encounter (see Youth Encounter website) which is run by Andrew Smith, a member of St. Christopher's Church. It is a Scripture Union project which exists to help Christian young people in Britain live out their faith amongst Muslims. This is done in two distinct ways: running Faith and Young People Events that bring together Christian and Muslim young people for dialogue; and providing training and resources to help churches equip Christian young people to live out their faith confidently and humbly amongst their Muslim friends. Youth Encounter also provides training for churches and Christian organisations working with Muslim young people.
- Faith to Faith - Richard Sudworth is a CMS mission partner with responsibility for helping churches and especially young adults in their engagement with other faiths. See Richard's website which is named 'Distinctly Welcoming' after his book of the same title.
- Toby Howarth - Interfaith Advisor to the Bishop of Birmingham: Revd. Dr. Toby Howarth is Priest in Charge at St. Christopher's Church (the home of The Springfield Project) and is also the Interfaith Advisor to the Bishop of Birmingham (Anglican Dicoese). Toby is involved in many interfaith initiatives in Birmingham and these can sometimes involve The Springfield Project.
Duke Special - Freewheel.
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