For a Time Such as This: The Church as Witness

 

HeartEdge is proud to partner the CEEP Network in their 2021 Digital Annual Conference 'For a Time Such as This: The Church as Witness', March 2 - 5, 2021. We're going to be there with lots of
@HeartEdge_ info, a Gathering of US partners and Sam Wells and Azariah France-Williams in conversation.

Information and registration at https://www.ceepnetwork.org/2021-conference-online/.

From COVID-19 to economic anxiety to the racial reckoning taking place across our Church, in our nation and around the world, we are witnessing change, challenge, and opportunity unlike any other time in our lives. In this historic and defining time, the CEEP Network is excited to announce we will gather on-line to bear witness together at the 2021 Annual Conference.

The CEEP Network is honored to present the most influential thought leaders in the Church today to share their wisdom and insights with you:

• The Most Reverend Michael Curry, Presiding Bishop, The Episcopal Church: The Most Reverend Michael Curry was installed the 27th Presiding Bishop and Primate of The Episcopal Church on November 1, 2015. He is the Chief Pastor and serves as President and Chief Executive Officer and is the Chair of the Executive Council of The Episcopal Church.
• Carey Kelly, Consultant and Former CEEP Network Board President: Cary Kelly has spent the majority of her career to working with non-profit organizations and churches. She focuses on helping these organizations effectively promote their mission through bold visioning and board governance practices. She also has served as a certified leadership coach to priests and executives with a focus on building self-mastery and effective leadership practices. Cary has served as consultant and board president for the Consortium of Endowed Episcopal Parishes and chaired their search for a new executive director.
• Catherine Meeks, PhD, Executive Director, Absalom Jones Center for Racial Healing: Dr. Catherine Meeks is executive director of the Absalom Jones Center for Racial Healing. Prior to the center’s opening, she chaired its precursor, Beloved Community: Commission for Dismantling Racism for the Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta.
• Darren Walker, President, The Ford Foundation: Darren Walker is president of the Ford Foundation, a $13 billion international social justice philanthropy. His is co-founder and chair of the President’s Council on Disability Inclusion in Philanthropy.
• The Reverend Kathleen Walker, Missioner for Black Ministries, Diocese of North Carolina: Reverend Kathleen (Kathy) Walker joined the bishop’s staff in February 2020 to focus on the contributions and vitality of historically Black congregations by helping to weave their diversity into a closer bond of inclusion with other parishes and with the diocese. The goal is to ensure all predominantly Black congregations have the best opportunity to make the fullest use possible of the resources of their parishes, partnerships, and diocese.
• The Most Reverend and Right Honorable Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury: The Most Reverend and Right Honorable Justin Welby became the Archbishop of Canterbury in 2013. He was previously Bishop of Durham, Dean of Liverpool Cathedral, and a Canon of Coventry Cathedral, where he worked extensively in the field of reconciliation. Archbishop Welby has three main priorities for his ministry — Evangelism and Witness, Prayer and the Renewal of Religious life, and Reconciliation. He is a member of the High-Level Advisory Board on Mediation for the United Nations. He is the author of Reimagining Britain and Dethroning Mammon, both published by Bloomsbury.
• The Reverend Dr. Sam Wells, Vicar, St. Martin-in-the-Fields: Reverend Dr. Sam Wells has been Vicar of St Martin-in-the-Fields since 2012. He has served as a parish priest for 20 years — ten of those in urban priority areas. He also spent seven years in North Carolina, where he was Dean of Duke University Chapel. Dr. Wells is a Visiting Professor of Christian Ethics at King’s College. He is a regular contributor to Thought for the Day on BBC Radio 4’s Today program. He has published 35 books, including works on Christian ethics, mission, ministry, scripture, liturgy, and preaching.
• The Reverend Azariah France-Williams: Azariah France-Williams has over a decade of experience within the Church of England and has been a pioneer priest at Ascension Church in Manchester since the summer of 2020. The role is strongly supported by the HeartEdge network and is a new initiative to stimulate the work and worship of the church, embedded within its community.

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Buddy Miller - There's A Higher Power.

Commerce, Compassion, Culture, Congregation … It’s All Church!

 

 

Commerce, Compassion, Culture, Congregation … It’s All Church! was the first HeartEdge national conference held over two days at St Martin-in-the-Fields and Lambeth Palace.

In our view commerce, compassion, culture and congregation are essential and are all church! +Paul Bayes, David Ellis, Paul Goodliff, Rosemarie Mallett, Ann Morisy, Ben Quash, Anthony Reddie, Miranda Thelfall-Holmes, Maeve Sherlock, ++Justin Welby, Sam Wells and Lucy Winkett were just some of those who helped us explore these themes.

The HeartEdge two day intensive provided theology, ideas, resources, plus time to make connections, find encouragements and enjoy jazz.

Contributions to the programme from St Martin’s included a Great Sacred Music with St Martin’s Voices featuring the hymns and poetry of Robert Bridges, a wonderfully reflective Bread for the World Eucharist led by the Nazareth Community, and Jazz in the Café with The Fabulations.

There was lots of comment on social media about the conference which gives a flavour of the content and people’s reactions. This included:

• The first HeartEdge Conference coming to an end at Lambeth Palace - a fantastic two days. Thank you to the St Martin’s team for organising it! It has been energising!
• What an absolutely jam-packed, inspiring, wonderful couple of days at the HeartEdge conference!
• Day 2 of the HeartEdge conference was fantastic. Thank you to Lambeth Palace for your hospitality. Great to hear from, among others, Lucy Winkett, Sam Wells, Rosemarie Mallet, Anthony Reddie, Paul Bayes, Miranda Threllfall-Holmes. Oh, and Justin Welby!
• Spent two good days at the HeartEdge conference - came away thinking about sacred music, Jesus’ body parts and this Table, and what it might mean to see the church as guest not host.
• Hospitality; host vs guest; margins vs centre; engaging with communities.
• Great to be at the HeartEdge annual conference today at Lambeth Palace. Inspiring mix of denominations coming together, with wise words on celebrating success from Justin Welby.
• This afternoon Paul Bayes & co are talking real life for many, not just in North West.
• Really amazing speech and presentation by Paul Bayes and the Liverpool team at the HeartEdge conference! Really challenging and engaging stuff.
• The Bishop of Liverpool Paul Bayes (a Bradford lad) gave a brilliant talk this afternoon at the HeartEdge conference. He may have single-handedly persuaded me to the merits of Episcopacy lol. Ok, not quite, but he was brilliant.
• It's going to take a few days to process all the information! Then there's the small task of sharing all we experienced with our church! Thanks to St Martin’s and Lambeth Palace for the amazing welcome!

Our thanks to everyone at St Martin’s, in HeartEdge and among our contributors who made the conference such a special experience with great organisation, wonderful content, many new connections made and a significant development in our aim to create a new movement for renewal in the broad church.

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All My Hope On God Is Founded.

HeartEdge conference - Commerce, Compassion, Culture, Congregation … It's All Church!

Commerce, Compassion, Culture, Congregation … It's All Church!

Commerce, Compassion, Culture, Congregation are essential – in our view it’s all church! This September attend the HeartEdge two day intensive – theology, ideas, resources, plus time to make connections, find encouragements and Jazz!

12 & 13 September 2018 - Day 1 at St Martin-in-the-Fields. Day 2 at Lambeth Palace.

Contributors include:

• Rt Revd Paul Bayes
• Ann Morisy
• Professor Ben Quash
• Revd Dr. Paul Goodliff
• Professor Anthony Reddie
• Russell Rook
• Baroness Sherlock
• Most Revd and Rt Hon Justin Welby
• Revd Dr Sam Wells
• Revd Lucy Winkett

Programme includes:

• Bread for the World
• For Good: The Church & the Future of Welfare
• Great Sacred Music
• Live Jazz

Programme: Day 1 at St Martin-in-the-Fields begins from 10.00 am and includes an evening Eucharist followed by live Jazz. Day 2 at Lambeth Palace begins from 9.30 am, with conference close at 3.30 pm.

Cost: Early Bird rate £69 (until 20th July 2018); then HeartEdge members rate - £79 & non-members rate - £99. Tickets include conference programme, refreshments & lunch, plus complimentary Jazz on evening of 12th September.

Registration: Book tickets at https://tickets.myiknowchurch.co.uk/gb/ODYyLTU/t

For more information: Contact Revd Jonathan Evens on 020 7766 1127 or jonathan.evens@smitf.org

HeartEdge is a growing ecumenical network of churches and other organisations which supports churches in blending their mission around congregation, compassion, culture and commerce.

‘HeartEdge feels different, in that it is practical theology, where the theology is not just a veneer, but running right through it.’ Rev Andy Goodliff, Minister of Bell Vue Baptist Church, Southend

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Great Sacred Music - I Stood On The River Of Jordan.

HeartEdge's June Mailer

HeartEdge is a growing international ecumenical network, passionate about nurturing Kingdom communities via four C’s - congregations, culture, commercial activity and compassion.

Each month in our Mailer we bring you inspiration, ideas and resource. If you haven't already,
you can subscribe - sign up here!

This month: 

• Hairdressing, community work, commissioning art and Banksy
• Food coops, Big Local and the Big Welcome - resources for welcome and collective hospitality.
• 'Power to Change' and an Aladdin's cave of resources!
• Plus John Bell on the legacy of Lizzie Lowe and going beyond inclusion, Vicky Beeching and being an inclusive church, Maggi Dawn on pilgrimage, and Walter Brueggemann on poetic imagination.

The Mailer also has information about the first HeartEdge Annual Conference 2018 - 12 & 13 September 2018: St Martin-in-the-Fields and Lambeth Palace, London.

Commerce, Compassion, Culture, Congregation are essential – in our view, it’s all church! The September two-day HeartEdge intensive includes theology, ideas, resources, plus time to linger, build connections, make plans, develop practice, find encouragement, get involved and do HeartEdge!
Programme: Including keynote speakers, workshops and panels on 'Church, Welfare and the Future', 'Start-Ups (and Keeps-Goings)', 'Digging Deeper into Mission', 'Art and the Impossible' with more to follow.

• Confirmed so far: Bishop of Liverpool Paul Bayes; urban theologian Ann Morisy; Chair in Christianity and the Arts at King's College London Ben Quash; Theologian and writer Professor Anthony Reddie; activist Russell Rook; Baroness Maeve Sherlock; Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby; Vicar of St Martin-in-the-Fields, Sam Wells; Rector of St James, Piccadilly Lucy Winkett - with more next time.
• Venue: Day 1 at St Martin-in-the-Fields, day 2 at Lambeth Palace
• Cost: Early Bird rate £69 (until 20th July 2018); then HeartEdge members rate - £79, non-members rate - £99. Tickets include conference programme, refreshments & lunch, plus complimentary Jazz on evening of 12th September.
• Registration: Book tickets here.

For latest information email Revd Jonathan Evens here or call 020 7766 1127

Additionally, our friends at New Roots have teamed up with new HeartEdge members commission4mission to create an online artists in residence programme. The New Roots Artist in Residence will be invited to profile a number of different works on the New Roots website for a month. The first Artist in Residence is commission4mission member Valerie Dean (see/).

New Roots are keen to work with artists using different visual mediums – interested in becoming a ‘New Roots Artist in Residence’? More information here. Get in touch here.

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Sister Rosetta Tharpe - This Train.

The Bridge: Exhibition launch

Last night the official launch and reception for The Bridge, a ground-breaking interfaith exhibition of premier and emerging visual artists, was held at St Martin-in-the-Fields. Speakers included: The Hon Nasser Kamel, Ambassador of Egypt, Revd Canon Paul-Gordon Chandler, Founder & President of CARAVAN, Most Revd Dr Bishop Mouneer Anis, Bishop of Egypt and Primate of Jerusalem and the Middle East, and Most Revd and Rt Hon Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury. The St Martins Voices and Sami Yusuf sang.

The Bridge is an East-West travelling art exhibition organised and curated by CARAVAN, an interreligious and intercultural peacebuilding NGO. It showcases the work of 47 premier contemporary visual artists from 15 countries. Each artist has submitted one original work (created specifically for the exhibition) addressing the theme. The Bridge is an unparalleled gathering of international artists focusing on what they hold in common through their cultures and creeds: Christian, Muslim and Jewish.

The Bridge is at St Martin-in-the-Fields until 31 July.

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Sami Yusuf - The Gift Of Love. 

When the boss is away ...

Last night the Archbishop of Canterbury, The Most Rev'd and Rt Hon Justin Welby preached at a service celebrating the Ascension which was broadcast live on Radio 4 from St Martin-in-the-Fields. Led by The Revd Dr Sam Wells, the service featured the Daily Service Singers and the Choir of St Martin's singing the music of GF Handel, who inaugurated the original St Martin's organ in 1727. Excerpts from Handel's 'Utrecht Te Deum' and 'Messiah' - including the Hallelujah Chorus - reflected the majesty of Jesus' Ascension into Heaven to reign as King of Kings. The Archbishop's sermon can be read by clicking here and heard by clicking here.

My Ascension Day sermon preached at St Stephen Walbrook follows and will be available shortly to listen to on the London Internet Church site:

How do we respond when the boss is away? That was the scenario for several of the parables that Jesus told, including one of the best known; the Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25. 14 - 30). In this story responsibilities are delegated to three workers, two of whom shoulder their responsibilities and develop the business so that it grows. The third, however, is so paralysed by the responsibility and the possibility of failure that he does nothing with the responsibilities that have been entrusted to him and consequently there is no development and no growth. When the boss returns the first two are rewarded and the third is sacked.

Jesus told this and other parables where the boss is absent, in order to prepare his disciples for his death, resurrection and ascension. He was the one who was going to leave and when he left them, at the point of his Ascension, he was entrusting them with the responsibility of continuing his mission and ministry in his physical absence. It has to be said that this was and is an awesome responsibility and we can readily understand why the third worker was paralysed by fear at the prospect. However, it also shows the value that Jesus saw in his disciples and sees in us. It is amazing but true that God believes in us enough to entrust us with working towards the coming of his kingdom, on earth as in heaven.

Like the third worker in the Parable of the Talents we often shy away from responsibility, although we don’t actually have that choice. Peter Rollins reminds us that ‘the famous philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre once wrote that we are “condemned to freedom”.’ For Sartre, he says, ‘this meant that we are responsible beings. However we are not merely responsible for the decisions we make ... we are also responsible for the decisions we postpone or fail to act on.’

‘This means that we are not only responsible for what we do, but also for what we don’t do. Like a poker player in the middle of a tournament, even doing nothing is an act that will help decide the direction of the game. In this way we are constantly wagering on our existence. Every move, and every failure to move, closes down an infinite range of possible worlds while opening up an entirely new range.’

The choice for Sartre ‘was not between taking responsibility or not, but rather between acknowledging our inherent responsibility or attempting to deny it.’ ‘Instead of the impotent and impossible attempt to flee our freedom Sartre encouraged us to face it, embrace it and make resolute decisions in light of it.’

Jesus’ parables and his Ascension make clear to us the reality of responsibility. The one that we think is in charge and responsible is no longer there which makes us aware of our own responsibility. As Rollins and Sartre suggest we always had that responsibility but our tendency is to avoid or deny it. Our responsibility is huge as the parable suggests that we are responsible for using all that we have for the benefit of the world. If the Boss represents God then his property is the world and we, his workers, are placed in charge of his world and given responsibility for its change and development.

How will we respond to the challenge of Jesus’ parables and his Ascension? In the story, the faithful workers are those that accept this responsibility and act on it. The unfaithful worker is the one who does nothing, who does not act. Are we faithful or unfaithful workers? Are our lives dedicated to working for the benefit of others and our world?

It is important to also note that in the parable, and following the Ascension, we have been given the resources needed for this responsibility. In the parable the Boss gave out resources (the ‘talents’) alongside responsibilities. After the Ascension, the Holy Spirit came to empower Jesus’ disciples.

Do we recognise that each of us has much that we can give; that we are all people with talents and possessions however lacking in confidence and means we may sometimes be? We all have something we can offer, so how can we, through our lives and work, benefit and develop the world for which God has given humanity responsibility? What resources - in terms of abilities, job, income and possessions - has God given to us in order to fulfil our responsibility to benefit and develop the world?

Through his Ascension, Jesus challenges us as to whether we will be faithful or unfaithful servants? How will we respond? If we accept the responsibility we have been given, we should then pray for quiet courage to match this hour. We did not choose to be born or to live in such an age; but we ask that its problems challenge us, its discoveries exhilarate us, its injustices anger us, its possibilities inspire us and its vigour renew us for the sake of Christ’s kingdom come, on earth as in his heaven.

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G.F. Handel - Utrecht Te Deum.

Church of England: Complex structures

In a Guardian article published on Good Friday, Andrew Brown quoted Justin Welby, Bishop of Durham as saying, "The longer I go on with this, the more I realise that the Church of England is not an organisation in any recognisable sense." In the article, Welby is quoted as expanding on this statement as follows:
"Any sort of concept of top-down direction is much more complicated than it looks. Part of it is illusion: because bishops are dressed up in funny clothes, with funny hats and special sticks it's assumed that if they say to a bunch of parish clergy 'do something', they will do it. But that's not how it works and never has been. Each part of the church has its own competence."
Welby is, as Brown notes, a bishop who "worked for 12 years in the oil industry before becoming a priest, so he knows something about the outside world." What he seems to be saying is that the structure of the Church of England doesn't look or function anything like the organisations he knew before ordination.

To the extent that I understand its structures it seems to me that the Church of England combines three different structures - a network of autonomous charities (parishes) covering the entire country; a regional framework (dioceses) which primarily supports the parishes; and a central structure delivering services to both dioceses and parishes while also undertaking national initiatives for the Church as a whole.

Within these three different structures there is rarely any direct line managerial responsibility for those whose ministries are enabled by some combination of these three structures. For clergy, this has presumably stemmed from our legal status as ministers of God rather than employees of a human institution. Clergy are centrally selected and trained but are appointed by a combination of external patrons, Diocese, and parish. We require a licence from the Diocese to minister but, once this has been granted, have considerable security and autonomy in parish ministry combined with minimal supervision (this situation is changing to a limited extent as a result of common tenure). Clergy generally chair the PCC (or varient) but it is the PCC as a whole which has overall responsibility for the charity that is the parish. As a result, the parish is essentially independent of the diocese and national church, although reliant on both for ordained ministers. The overlaps and complexities of these relationships extend throughout the three different structures and mean that, as Welby notes, the usual line management arrangements do not operate in anything like the same way in the Church of England as they do in other organisations.

All this has massive implications for the future of the Church of England because it means that there is no quick or simple mechanism for making the changes which are needed to respond to the changed mission context in which we minister. For example, Transforming Presence, the strategic document issued recently by Stephen Cottrell, Bishop of Chelmsford, notes that, while deaneries have been asked to think about cutting stipendiary posts because of the ticking time bomb of clergy retirements, many deaneries have simply planned ahead on the basis of who is going to retire next. What the document doesn't acknowledge however is that, because of the complexities noted above, the Church of England has no mechanisms for doing anything else.

None of this will change quickly so, as well as thinking about possible future structural changes, we need to make the best of the structures we have and recognise that in some respects what have is a structure which is focussed on the local parish but doesn't make that structure work very effectively (partly because of the inbuilt complexities).

In his article, Andrew Brown also quoted Alan Wilson, the Bishop of Buckingham, as saying, "The church of the future may be less a civil service or conventional business, and more a movement like Alcoholics Anonymous, the ultimate locally delivered, life-changing non-profit organisation. The job of the hierarchy will be to enable this, not to represent it or control it."

But as we have said the Church of England is not structured like the civil service or conventional business and we are actually structured for local delivery. The problem is the difficulty of ensuring that the three different structures work together cohesively and changing attitudes of independence and autonomy within each of the structures which do not prioritise cohesion and collaborative working. 

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Switchfoot - Dare You To Move.