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Towards a new spirituality for the 21st century123. We believe this to be the heart of the Catch the Vision process, and one which must begin to take priority in our agendas. Many studies now exist about the context in which we find ourselves. Commentators call our age ‘post-modern’, ‘post-Constantinian’, ‘post-Christian’ or ‘post-Christendom’. It is spoken of as ‘an age of transition’ and one recent ecumenical document speaks of these being ‘unstable times’ for the churches. All those descriptions attempt to explain a momentous change in Western European culture.
124. Stuart Murray begins his study of post-Christendom with two stories. The first is of a teenager in a London school who hears the Christmas story for the first time. He is amazed and captivated by it, and at the end of the lesson asked his teacher, ‘Why did they give the baby a swear word for his name?’ The second is of a man visiting a church in Oxford one Sunday to collect some something for his partner who runs an art work-shop in the multi-use building during the week. He arrives as the congregation is leaving and says to the minister, ‘What are all these people doing? I didn’t know churches were open on Sundays.’ (Stuart Murray: Post-Christendom, Carlisle, Patanoster, 2004, p1)
125. Large parts of our society no longer have even a residual memory of the Christian story or of the role of church in community. At Mission Council the General Secretary recalled a conversation with an uncle who was a naval CPO. “He asked me what I wanted to do, and I told him I was feeling a call to ministry. ‘People will always respect that’ he said.” In a recent book Clive Marsh, a theologian married to a Methodist minister, related a story of some parents of a friend of his ten year old son who were anxious about him going to a church youth club, ‘given what you read in the papers about the clergy being paedophiles and all that’.
126. Being Christian, being the church twenty years ago still brought with it a patina of respectability and maybe a patient smile. To-day it is a marginalised activity which people regard with a mixture of suspicion and incomprehension. This is a temporary ‘phase’, and it is hard to predict what the next generation will experience. On the one hand there is little doubt that the number of those who have no contact with the church and no knowledge of the Christian story will continue to increase. On the other, the intellectual tides are turning, and we may indeed be living in what Alister McGrath calls ‘the twilight of atheism’.
127. For the moment though our experience is not so much of exile as wilderness, and our task is to live faithfully in the wilderness. This is uncomfortable territory. Not since the early centuries has the western church been so close to the experience of the early church. We are a tiny minority in an alien land. But there is a crucial difference. We tell a story which is old, not new, which is enshrined on the walls of our art galleries and in the musical corpus of Europe. Those who have little conception of Christianity or present knowledge of the church have absorbed the legacy of the misuse of the gospel by nearly two thousand years of our ancestors in the faith – the crusades, genocide, slavery, autocracy, violence, cruelty – all in the name of Christ. It is little surprise that stress and uncertainty have become characteristics of church life.
128. Yet it is at precisely this moment in our history that we need to recall that we are part of the church universal, and that the will of God encompasses the great sweeps of Christian history. If it was part of the vocation of the Western church to carry the gospel to the ends of the earth in the missionary movement (however ambiguous that heritage now seems), then it is now part of our vocation to learn from those churches of the east and the south. They have discovered new riches in the gospel which can help sustain us. They know how to live as minorities in majority cultures. They know how to be church without the financial resources which have been such a mark of the life of the western church. Learning from the world church about sharing together in the mission of God will be a crucial mark of our spiritual journey in the next decades. We have been attempting to do this through the ‘Belonging to the world church programme’. This is not the time to pull up the drawbridge. This is the time to engage.
129. As a Steering Group we have barely dipped our toes in these waters, although we have had interesting conversations about spirituality and community regeneration, and have begun to plan a small consultation on mission, spirituality and evangelism for the autumn. We have said little about evangelism because that work is being undertaken by the Life and Witness committee, and we are delighted that their work in this area will combine with ours next year. However, we hope that this paper will help identify some of the resources which we can take with us on our journey.
130. We are convinced that the exploration of the spiritual resources available to us as we seek to be church in the strange and perturbing landscape of ‘post-Christendom’ is central to our future discipleship. That is why we believe that the United Reformed Church should embark on a reflective process which will help it articulate its understandings of spirituality (we believe that there will be more than one!), because this will provide the basis for renewal and rededication.
131. We wish first to draw attention to some resources which already exist which can form an agreed framework for that reflection, then we wish to point to three areas of our life where we are being challenged to live out our priorities – multiculturalism, campaigning to alleviate poverty, and becoming a learning church.
a) Resources132. The Reformed tradition is remarkably rich in spiritual resources. Ours is a tradition which grew from the attentive study of Scripture, proclaimed from the pulpit, read and studied in the home. It is a tradition of involvement, in which each person is recognised as one of God’s gifted ones, able (and expected) to contribute to the discernment of the mind of Christ and the ministry of the church. That is what Church Meeting once was. It is a tradition of experience, reading the signs of the Spirit’s presence in both the movement of the heart and the affairs of the nations. It is a tradition of prayer, both free and liturgical, drawing from many wells, including the evangelical, the charismatic and the Celtic. It is a tradition born in persecution, innately aware of the tools needed for pitching tents in an alien wilderness. It knows about mutuality, accountability to each other in Christ, and building one another up in faith, hope and love; Congregationalism outlawed isolationism and independency; presbyterianism was forged from togetherness; the Churches of Christ cherished itineracy (and hence mutual belonging). It knows about activism, for Reformed spirituality has always been fascinated by the dynamism of God, by God’s grace and activity. We have always been reaching towards the new Jerusalem. It is a theologically vibrant tradition, resonant with statements of faith, including our own. We would draw attention particularly to The Statement of Faith (both the 1972 version and the 1997 version – pp A2-A6 of The Manual) and The Nature, Faith and Order of the United Reformed Church (Rejoice and Sing 761) as significant documents, rich with spiritual potential.
133. In more recent times, ecumenical commitment has taught us generosity of spirit, and an energising openness to receive the gifts of the Spirit from diverse places. As one speaker said at Mission Council, ‘we are so insignificant, we can just get on with being the church catholic, and that is a huge gift.’
134. We need to celebrate what God has given us, for God’s bounty has been wonderful. All that needs reclaiming because there is much there that can help us as we journey on to God’s future. God is calling us, and he is calling us to become something new, but what we become will be partly shaped by who and what we are now.
135. If being Reformed lends a wide context to our spirituality, the declarations of Assembly in the past five years offer us both a sense of direction and three significant statements about policy and direction.
1. The five marks of mission136. In 1999 we adopted the five marks of mission as a summary of our missionary intent. The ‘marks’ have an interesting ecumenical history. They were first agreed by the Lambeth Conference and then endorsed by CTE in 1997. They therefore represent ‘common ground’ with our ecumenical partners:
2. The three ecumenical principles137. In 2001 three ecumenical principles received the blessing of Assembly. They set out our understanding of what it means to be ecumenically committed:
3. The Catch the Vision prayer138. In 2004 Assembly endorsed the prayer which was inspired by the broad vision statement which appeared at the start of the CTV process
…we seek to be Christ’s people, transformed by the gospel announcing good news to the poor proclaiming freedom for those in prisons of wealth, poverty, disease and disorder committed to making a difference to the world’s kingdoms as we live Christ’s kingdom.
139. As the Catch the vision process deepens, those three statements can be the foundations for a continuing conversation about mission and spirituality. They speak about the kind of people and the sort of church that we know we are called to be. We hope they will inform our discussions about our priorities and our spirituality.
Living out the vision..140. One of the church’s committees, the Committee for Racial Justice and Multicultural Ministry, and one of its programmes, Commitment for Life, have begun the work of reflecting on what that might mean for us.
b) a multi-cultural church141. Our Church’s response to God’s call involves seeking new ways of being church, becoming more consciously and intentionally mission focused, embracing a new spirituality for the 21st century that rejoices in the diversity of God’s rainbow people, and a renewed commitment to the Unity of the Body of Christ.
142. The Racial Justice & Multicultural Ministry Committee welcomes this vision with much rejoicing for it is for us a re-articulation of the vision of multicultural ministry and what it means to be a multicultural church. In re-visioning what it means to be church in the 21st century, our committee is clear that a community of faith, a church that is truly multicultural is central to that vision. And we rejoice that Catch the Vision has reaffirmed for us the centrality of the vision of multicultural ministry for the new millennium. Welcoming new ways of being church, rejoicing in diversity as God’s gift, a passion for mission, commitment to ecumenism, building God’s kingdom and making a difference in a broken world - they are characteristics of a multicultural church.
143. We urge the United Reformed Church to take seriously the vision of Multicultural Ministry and to be more intentional about developing churches that are truly multicultural. The vision of Multicultural Ministry is for a Christian community in which:
144. Multicultural Ministry involves all people across the boundaries of their various cultures. It involves deeper engagement and mutual impact and transformation between individuals and groups of different cultures. It should be an integral part of the life of the whole Church, enriching every aspect of it, as new opportunities for mission grow. It is about God’s diverse human family, living together, equally belonging, with a new spirituality and a new way of being where we can trust, forgive, practice active hospitality, share resources willingly and justly, affirm our interdependency, and belonging to one another right here in the United Reformed Church. It is about unity without uniformity. Empowerment and support for minority ethnic groups is not a means for distancing the whole Church from the needs and struggles of our brothers and sisters in Christ. Living and witnessing multiculturally is a necessity for the whole Church and includes every member.
145. A multicultural church is not a new phenomenon for the followers of Christ. Rather, it is our Christian tradition and heritage. The first century church was diverse and multicultural. From a small congregation of 120 that gathered in an upstairs room, faced with the challenge of living Christ’s vision of a house of prayer for all the nations, grew a congregation of thousands consisting of Jews from every nation living in Jerusalem. The Christian Church was multicultural and multilingual from the beginning. So, in becoming a multicultural Church we are reclaiming who we truly are called to be as a community of Christ’s followers. The painful yet wonderful emergence of a multicultural church is vividly recounted all through the book of Acts and graphically illustrated in the letters of Paul. All along, the motive force for the embracing of diversity in the growing church is none other than the very Spirit of God. So, the call to mutual acceptance and sharing in a culturally diverse community is not an optional extra, but the very heart of the Christian calling, the treasured gift of the Spirit of Christ for us all.
146.The United Reformed Church is ethnically and culturally diverse, as indeed is Britain itself. We are becoming increasing multi-ethnic and multicultural in our membership. URC minority ethnic and multicultural churches are vital and thriving, a point of growth amidst the general malaise of decline. (David Cornick in Inside Out, CWM Magazine, June 2003, Issue 34, p.10) They remind us that the world church is right here with us and that we have the opportunity to learn from and share with the world church right here in our midst. There is also a rapid increase in the number of migrant groups using our church premises throughout the UK for fellowship and worship. (as figures from the Racial Justice and Multicultural Ministry 2004 survey of the URC strongly suggest)
147. For many years throughout London and in many other towns and cities local URC congregations have been grappling with the opportunities and challenges of building just and caring multicultural faith and worship communities. Many congregations have remained focussed on specific migrant communities as they explore how best to sustain both unity and diversity within the body of Christ. Their experiences are a rich resource for the Church and their journeys are testimonies to the wonder of multicultural ministry. The ongoing challenges they face reflect the rich complexity of the multicultural journey that God’s spirit invites us all to share. It needs to be emphasised that our vision is not for one particular model of multicultural ministry, or even a fixed menu of models. We pray that new ways of releasing the joys and challenges of multicultural ministry may constantly emerge and be welcomed by the whole Church, even when they bend and challenge our existing models and structures. Let us listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches.
148. The United Reformed Church’s history of striving for racial justice is an affirmation of the fact that it is a multicultural church with membership composed of different cultures and ethnicity. Indeed the URC has a tradition of embracing diversity in its worship styles, theology, and discipleship which reflects an openness and willingness to become a truly multicultural Church. We recognise that living and witnessing multiculturally, and learning to rejoice in the rich mix of ethnic cultures that is characteristic of British life is not easy. But this is a journey the Church must make and these are mission opportunities the Church cannot afford to miss. As churches we need to consider how welcoming we are to those strangers in our midst. We need to find creative ways to welcome all people in our communities and neighbourhoods with care and hospitality. And we need to find expression for Christ’s love and welcome for all in the way our church is structured and functions if we are to be faithful to the Gospel. c) Commitment for Life(please note that these paragraphs are also Commitment for Life's report to the 2005 Assembly) 149. Commitment for Life was quick to see that Catch the Vision endorsed its work in tackling poverty and working for justice and peace in our world. Even as we shifted gear to emphasise campaigning for change, MakePovertyHistory 2005 was taking shape. 2005 is the year of big visions – ‘Catch the Vision’ and MakePovertyHistory - and they are connected. Catch the Vision is also saying to us that the church has to be relevant to issues of our times. Our churches can make a difference by campaigning for Fairtrade, for Trade Justice and MakePovertyHistory.
150. Commitment for Life is two programmes in one. It focuses our work with Christian Aid on four partners in four countries. The income for 2004 reached a new peak of £569,000 plus additional £5,000 raised specifically for the floods in Bangladesh. We rejoice in the generosity of our churches. However, Commitment for Life provides more than aid. It builds up a genuine sense of being part of the world church, providing regular news of partners and resources which can be used throughout the year. Thus, our partners in Zimbabwe have shed light on the deepening crisis in that country during the year, whilst PARC has kept us informed on developments in Gaza and the West Bank. We are keenly aware of what our solidarity and support has meant to these partners.
151. It also resources the whole church to work for justice and peace – developing both e-mail and more conventional forms of networking. That has helped us discover new synergies in the church. We work closely with the Belonging to the World Church programme because World Church partnerships offer different stories and insights on the major issues of debt, HIV/AIDS, trade liberalisation, which have had such a grievous impact on poor communities.
152. We have developed links with the Youth and Children’s work, Pilots and FURY, with the Racial Justice Advocates and with the various Synod Committees in all their diversity. We see new patterns emerging where our concern for justice and peace in the world are seen in a more holistic way. We are concerned that the UK dimension of these issues should be acknowledged too. The rising tide of poverty in the UK, immigration and asylum seekers show how the local and global are interconnected.
MakePovertyHistory153. 2005 is a unique year of opportunity to work together for lasting change for the UK Government is at the centre of global decision-making. The Prime Minister has vowed to use this chance to concentrate the world’s attention on both global poverty (with Africa as his primary focus) and the environment. After years of broken promises to the poorer nations, the moment of truth has arrived as we hold world leaders to their promises and seek to ensure a change in direction on trade policies as well as arguing for more debt relief and aid.
154. Commitment for Life agreed to resource all the churches, where possible, with information and materials for a major year of campaigning. It therefore seeks to bring as many as possible into the campaign, to provide churches with stories that show how existing trade rules have adversely affected poor communities, and to encourage churches to make this part of their life and worship this year. We hope to show that campaigning achieves results. We want;
155. In the days before MakePovertyHistory was officially launched on 28th December, the momentous Tsunami struck SE Asia. Shock waves reverberated around the world. In the weeks that followed we witnessed some of the darkest days that many can remember and our eyes were opened to the enormous, appalling poverty and insecurity in the world. We all felt connected in a unique, often personal, way. Many commented on the detectable shift in global attitude to poverty, and links were quickly made to policies about trade and debt relief. We saw a new determination to tackle poverty and Government statements suggested that the political will existed to address the root causes.
156. The connections with MakePovertyHistory were obvious. Now is the time for governments in the developed world, including Britain, to translate all their fine words into action. An historic opportunity exists to close the deep chasm between rich and poor nations. The urgency has never been greater, nor the danger, should we fail. If we fail, the word of rich countries might never be trusted again. With deeper generosity and a willingness to change ourselves, we could yet make the quantum leap to eliminate the gross injustices in our global systems and make a lasting impact on poverty.
Trade Justice157 “Do not trample on the needs of the poor” says the Lord. Global trade has consistently failed the interests of the poorest nations – those largely dependent on agriculture. These nations have heard all the promises made about reform of the Common Agricultural Policy and an end to subsidies for farmers in the EU or USA but they see their own domestic production being undercut and farmers ruined by subsidised goods dumped on their markets. As our forebearers fought against the evil of slavery, we must show our determination to overthrow economic liberalisation for poorer nations while rich nations protect their own interests through subsidies, tariffs and control over the World Trade Organisation and International Monetary Fund.
158. Poorer nations have been left facing the full consequences of a sweeping process of liberalisation (free trade and the opening up of markets). Rich countries however, have remained instransigent in key policy areas which would bring huge development benefits. They have failed to allow poorer countries access to medicine. They have refused special and differential treatment in trade. They have refused to reform the World Trade Oraganisation negotiating procedures.
159. The European Union is pushing ahead the liberalisation of trade in services, including water, while also seeking non-agricultural market access (NAMA). There is a serious danger that rich industrialised countries will soon dominate every possible area of global economic life and stifle any possibility of poor countries industrialising or even diversifying from agricultural dependence. Trade Justice – not free trade – remains a core demand of MakePovertyHistory.
Fairtrade160. The Fairtrade movement has continued to grow as people see how poor producers can trade their way out of poverty. Fairtrade establishes long-term relationships with producers, based on a commitment to building up their communities and their producer cooperatives. Kingdom values are lived out in this alternative model of trading, with the protection of people and the environment as core principles.
161. During 2004-5 almost all Synods of the United Reformed Church have passed resolutions to become Fairtrade Synods, with the support of a minimum of one third of their churches (some much higher). It is an interesting example of the Church acting as a moral community. Many feel that this should be the standard all our churches should adopt. Our Methodist colleagues are going for 70% Fairtrade compliance across their denomination. This movement has yet further to reach.
Israel/Palestine162. The United Reformed Church’s concern for peace and justice in Israel/Palestine was made clear in the high level United Reformed Church delegation led by the Deputy General Secretary, Revd Ray Adams. They met with Christian partners, the Palestinian Agricultural Relief Committees (PARC) and with Israeli, Palestinian and international peace makers in October 2004. Commitment for Life followed this up by convening a meeting of representatives from across the church to monitor the wide level of concern and action about Israel/Palestine within our churches. We continue:
163. The work done by Commitment for Life is increasingly ecumenical. We have traditionally had close ties with the Methodist Relief and Development programme but we are now also in dialogue with the Baptist Union which has launched its Just Life programme, similar to Commitment for Life. The work for Fairtrade, trade justice and MakePovertyHistory are deeply ecumenical at every level.
d) Becoming a learning church164. According to the Church Life profile, we are a people who find it easier to engage in social action than speak of our faith in Jesus. That is in part rooted in the activism of Reformed spirituality which has always been captivated by the dynamic grace of God, and sought to mirror that in a politically and socially active discipleship. However, our ancestors in the faith had a quiet confidence in, and depth of knowledge of, the gospel which simply highlights the crisis of confidence in contemporary Christianity. We need to recover our confidence and our understanding. And part of that recovery, as the Training Committee reminded Mission Council, is a commitment to becoming a ‘learning church’.
165. Jesus calls us to follow him, just as he called the first disciples. But they didn’t just follow, they called him ‘Rabbi’ (teacher), and sat at his feet to learn more of the ways of God. If they were to follow and serve, they needed to be equipped and strengthened for the task. Sitting and learning was part of that process. Our knowledge, understanding, reasoning, skills and insights (adapted to the challenges of our own aptitudes, backgrounds and interests) need development.
166. Throughout its history the Reformed tradition has valued education and learning highly, indeed, perhaps at times too highly. However, it has played its considerable part the Sunday School movement which liberated thousands from illiteracy and poverty. Throughout the world it is helped develop state education at all levels. Throughout most of its history, it placed a high premium on ‘a learned ministry’ so that the whole church’s learning could be enhanced. We believe in the ministry of all God’s people. The Training Committee believe that we need to back up our beliefs with resources, and provide for the work of a learning church. We hope that they might feel encouraged enough to further this exploration. (Resolution 49)
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Executive summary, recommendations and resolutionsEXPLANATORY PAPERS:
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