Ah, a new day brings with it a new mission strategy. All the stipendiary clergy in the diocese have been sent a set of questions that will lead to the next grand plan for the diocese.
Usually, I can muster a fair amount of cynicism at these exercises. Not so with this one though. No added cynicism is needed as it tells us what the outcome will be on the first page. Presumably that means that there is no point in filling it in and sending it back.
Those preparing the survey, which contains all the usual questions, say:
We are convinced that such a strategy needs to be built upon the wisdom and experience of the Regions, truly owned by them and eventually rolled out through them. We are also convinced that the first stage involves gaining a picture of the reality of congregational life in each Region.
Not much room then in this exercise for those who think that the Regions are one of the bits of the diocesan structure which waste time and lead to a decision making process that can be dangerously profligate financially. Thinking about St Mary’s as a congregation of about 300 or so souls, the region affects only three or four of us. I do try where possible not to go to Regional Council meetings as they are bad for my health and wellbeing.
When the regions report at Diocesan Council (which holds the real financial clout in the diocese and which is often barely quorate as it needs representatives from every Region present) we hear a wearying litany of inaction and dreariness that bears no relation to the so-called Action Groups in the diocese.
It is these structures which are most in need of change in the diocese. If you want my two pennyworth (and you are reading my site, so I presume you do) then I’d want to have a look at the Bishop’s Staff Group. It needs a name change, a makeover and a couple of other people elected to it from diocesan synod to make sure people are properly represented. Give it the power to make decisions and a sense of being owned by everyone and the alarming decision making powers of the Diocesan Council could be extinguished once and for all. Make the regions free to do what they like (including ceasing to be) and inhibit them from being able to decide anything that matters and you’ll have a diocesan structure which has a chance of working well.
Later on in the preamble to the document, we are told the process which will be used to impose the outcome:
Out of these meetings, we hope to discern 7 Regional representatives who will then form a Working Party with the two of us to progress the work towards its ultimate launch in spring 2011.
I think that the terms of this review are flawed. This process hasn’t had the benefit of discussion of the Staff Group, the Chapter or the Diocesan Council and I think it might have benefitted from that. Hopefully it will be on the agenda for a conversation at the upcoming Stipendiary Clergy Conference.
Its hard to think that I’ll be enthusiastically filling in this document until and unless there is some kind of assurance that the decisions have not all been made. I’ll put it on one side and we’ll see.
Another curiosity from the document is this statement:
Bishop Gregor pledged during the episcopal election to promote a strategy of growth for this Diocese, a strategy that would encompass the many different facets of church life needing to change and grow: new ways of being the church, diocesan policy for selection and deployment of lay and ordained ministers, lay leadership, stewardship, spiritual renewal and yes, numerical growth.
I know that must be true if its been sent out to us all, but the funny thing is, that it just doesn’t sound like +Gregor. It sounds more to me like the last dying gasps of localtruelycollaborativewholeministryforthewholebodyofall
thebaptisedtotalpeopleofgod. Or whatever its called this week. (For more details see this post and its comments)
If you want to take part in the current review more than I seem to do, you can do so by downloading the questions here.
And anyway, what would you do if you held the diocesan fairy wand in your hand and were granted three diocesan wishes?
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