Ecclesall's 103rd Deanery Synod |
St Oswalds Millhouses | 16th October 2003 |
These notes are in no way to be construed as official minutes - they are the incomplete and highly subjective ramblings of St Marys'
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warden
This American minister (hobbies: hillwalking and real-ale) is the vicar of the combined parishes of St Oswalds Millhouses and the recently demolished St Peter's Abbeydale. He spoke about the situation as the congregations are starting to combine their forces. 'Together we're stronger' is his motto.
Part 1 was a talk by Rev Canon Sue Hope, diocesan missioner and recent preacher at St Marys. She compared mission in parish churches with 'fishing with a wide net'. For a long time, the Church has used a come on in model of mission. We are always complaining that 'they don't come'. Actually we need to be changing over to a GO model of mission.
When talking about going, she recognized that new fears arise: the C of E is good at lunch clubs and mums and toddlers meetings, but we're not so good at telling. We're (mostly) English - we worry about turning into televangelists. Sue had looked at the 'articles of enquiry' for the deanery and these revealed a wide lack of confidence about evangelism. Maybe there are things the deanery can do to address this problem?
Was she talking of the end of the parish church? Categorically, no. But there are opportunities to plant churches, and to perform discipleship outside the church building (eg retirement home ministry). You don't catch lobsters with a line, or salmon with a net.
She encouraged the deanery (as she had at St Marys) to target work with young children, pointing out that most people who become Christians later in life have heard the Gospel before the age of ten.
Part 2 was a joint talk by Rev Michael Bowie, Vicar of Norton (Australian?), and Jonathan (is he a Rev?) Dunning. Jonathan is the Pastor of Meadowhead Christian Fellowship, an independent church out near Batemoor.
Michael talked about how the diocese is looking into new patterns of 'ministry' (ie clergy) over the next 10 years, since the report into local ordained ministry came up with the answer 'no'. One thing they're investigating is 'eldership' instead of 'priesthood'. There's the possibility in this diocese that there won't be enough clergy to go around, but there might be enough money to pay people - maybe there would be a place for a 'lay minister' in each deanery or something like that. Bishop Jack was keeping a close eye on the group looking into this and kept telling them to be practical.
Then Michael and Jonathan spoke about how their churches are working together. Jonathan's has made huge efforts to work with other churches over about 10 years, but its only just beginning to bear fruit. There is now a growing friendship between these two (from very different parts of the Church), and Jonathan has been licenced by the diocese as a 'lay minister' [oxymoron?] in the CofE which has allowed him to work with a Church Army Officer. His church has bought up a supermarket on the Batemoor/Jordanthorpe estate which they are very much offering to the community.
When these estates were built (30 years or more ago) none of the mainstream churches wanted a building there.
Jonathon finished by saying that we need forgiving for not working together like this before, and saying that he thought that the future was not in uniformity, but in diversity.
Sounds boring, but actually was quite exciting (I don't get out much). The Deanery Synod has a Clergy Chair (Julian) and a Lay Chair, but this job was vacant. An Astrophysicist called Jackie Butcher (she doesn't like to describe herself as an Astronomer because people start talking about star signs) was standing but, from the floor at the last minute, there was another proposal, so we had to have an election. Ian Downing, the other candidate has been a member of Deanery and Diocesan Synods for some years and is clearly very committed to these institutions. Jackie spoke about her role as a Mum, and also as a member of the General Synod. (see later).
Jackie won the vote easily, but Ian was asked (and graciously agreed) to stand in for her if she was ever absent. Not all the laity felt that they had been given ample opportunity to propose candidates.
Which turned out not to be an election, but an unopposed suggestion. From St Marys, Giles is our Deanery Synod rep on Diocesan Synod, and Julian is on it too.
Given by Jackie Butcher, the new Lay Chair, and a member of Dore Church. I found this quite enlightening as I had always thought that PCCs feed into Deanery Synods which feed into Diocesan Synods which feed into the General Synod. It turns out that there is no way for this to happen realistically as Jackie only gets the papers for General Synod 3 weeks before the conference, so there is actually no opportunity to get views from the Deanery on whatever is to be debated. Unlike a trade union conference, Synod members do not have to represent an electorate - they are all just individual Christians voting according to their consciences.
Methodist Covenant: Apparently the CofE has agreed that Methodism is a trut church. And vice versa. Inevitably a committee has been set up to decide what to do about it. At the moment an Anglican Priest could take a service in a Methodist Church but not vice versa.
Sexuality: Wasn't debated formally, but was widely discussed outside the debates. The Synod was told to go and talk to those we disagree with.
Hinde Report: Looking at ordination training. The basic aim seems to be replace fulltime residential ordination training with part-time courses.
Someone asked how we could support Jackie. In the light of the time problem, she still thought it would be useful to be able to discuss issues with Deanery folk, particularly experts in technical fields. And we could pray for her.