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News
Archbishop condemns the escalating violence in the Middle East General Synod discusses women bishops amongst a range of important debates Sundays suit some, but churches must look outside box, says church researcher Church says there’s always ‘Time to Pray’ – no matter how busy you are Equipping volunteer youth workers for the future ‘Start spreading the news’: Church launches live news feed Statistic of the Month: More churches are growing!
Archbishop condemns the escalating violence in the Middle East
The Archbishop of Canterbury has written to the Heads of Churches in the Lebanon, saying: “I have been alarmed at the spiral of violence, the vicious circle of attack and retaliation, that has developed over the last few days. My prayers and sympathy are with the principal victims, the innocent civilians on both sides of the border, who now live in terror and are powerless to prevent the collective suffering at the hands of Hezbollah and the Israeli military."
General Synod discusses women bishops amongst a range of important debates
The latest Group of Sessions of the General Synod took place in York in mid-July, and the Synod worked through a demanding agenda.
Over the course of two debates, Synod decided that admitting women to the episcopate in the Church of England is theologically justified, and agreed that a legislative drafting group be established with a view to preparing a range of specific options for enabling women to be consecrated as bishops whilst maintaining the highest possible degree of unity within the Church. Amongst a range of debates, Synod studied the report of the Commission on Urban Life and Faith, Faithful Cities, and also considered the first draft of plans that aim to make it easier for people to get married in church.
Sundays suit some, but churches must look outside box, says church researcher
A senior Church of England researcher has called on parishes to expand the scope of their vision, urging churches to think beyond their own walls and beyond the hours of Sunday in their attempts to engage communities with the message of the Gospel. Churchgoing today is the second in a series branded Time to Listen, which presents current research in an accessible way to help resource the Church’s mission in today’s society.
The Rev Lynda Barley, Head of Research and Statistics for the Archbishops’ Council and author of the booklet, asks: “Are we prepared to be flexible and responsive in our approach to church buildings and church services as we seek ways to respond to the widening gap between the inherited faith of the nation and its current practice, understanding and nurture of that faith?”
Church says there’s always Time to Pray – no matter how busy you are
The Church of England has unveiled a fresh resource to help time-pressured people who want to plug into its powerful grid of ordered daily prayer and reflection.
‘Time to Pray’ includes the services of Prayer During the Day and Night Prayer taken from Common Worship: Daily Prayer - the UK’s best-selling prayer book in 2005. The new compact, soft-case volume offers a user-friendly resource for praying through the week – providing a structure for reflection that means that even those with little time on their hands can grab the opportunity to ‘recharge’ for a few minutes each day.
The new book, which features classic Christian prayers from across the ages alongside a selection of short Bible readings and Psalms, forms a framework designed to complement existing schemes of Bible reading or simply 'stand alone' as a daily act of prayer.
The move comes as research highlights the demand for patterns of daily worship and reflection delivered in easy-to-use formats. Statistics from the Church of England's website show that the 'Daily Prayer' section, which includes the text of some of the Church's daily services of prayer, was accessed more than 45,000 in the first six months of this year - that's an average of 250 times a day.
Time to Pray, priced £12.99, is available from Christian bookshops including Church House Bookshop, www.chbookshop.co.uk
Equipping volunteer youth workers for the future - with flexible development framework
The Church of England has published a framework for the training and development of those who work with young people on its behalf. Equipping brings together a series of core competencies, learning outcomes and suggested evidence of assessment for those involved in youth work, and will place the Church of England in the vanguard of those organisations proactively developing training and development structures ahead of possible further legislation in this area.
It is estimated that more than 90,000 volunteers work with young people in Church-linked organisations every week, and this latest move is designed to support these volunteers as they in turn support young people on their faith journeys.
‘Start spreading the news’: Church launches live news feed
News from the Church of England is now available ‘hot off the press’ following the launch of an online news feed on the Church’s popular website, www.cofe.anglican.org.
The RSS feed, launched today, will enable those interested in the Church’s work and mission to receive live updates of the latest news from the Church – as soon as it is published. Subscribers will need to download a special ‘feed reader’ from the internet in order to receive the regular feeds.
Find out more: http://www.cofe.anglican.org/news/pr7606.html
Statistic of the Month: More churches are growing!
By Dr Peter Brierley of Christian Research
One of the findings from the 2005 English Church Census, whose main results are being published this month, was that the number of churches in England which grew between 1998 and 2005 was 34%. This is a large increase on the 21% which grew between 1989 and 1998. It is of course very good news!
Why do churches grow? Often because there is warm welcome, a friendly atmosphere, and the preaching is helpful to ‘the people in the pew’. Many growing churches have activities which reach out to their local community and attract people to the church. This is especially true of youth meetings midweek.
The key reason for growth, however, relates to the vision of the church and the strength of the leadership behind it. If a church knows what it wants to accomplish over the next two or three years, people will want to join in!
Many churches are growing among the black churches, those of other ethnic groups, larger churches, and Pentecostal and Independent churches. However, there are some growing churches in all denominations and in every county in England. Wherever you happen to be, growth is possible!
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