Back to business. I’ve been having a quiet few days on the blog what with Holy Week and the joy of the resurrection to cope with.
Over that time, I’ve noticed a few articles appearing online which are well worth taking note of.
Firstly, the report which was headlined in the Sunday Times which was a survey of where the churches are. It is something of a tradition of the Sunday Times to carry surveys saying that the church is in trouble over the Easter weekend.
There’s a report about this one over on the Reuters site and it is worth looking at, together with some more analysis linked to over at Thinking Anglicans. Perhaps the least newsworthy item is that 76 % of Scots think the Church of England is out of touch. Well, you don’t say.
However, there’s things that are worth thinking about. The Sunday Times interpreted it all as meaning that there is a lack of moral leadership coming from the churches and that people are trusting clergy less. (Whether clergy are trusting the laity more or less is perhaps a much more interesting question).
Then over in the Spectator there is a rather depressing account of what it was like for Ysenda Maxtone Graham to go to a rural church for an Easter Day. It is worth a read even though you won’t like it. No, it is worth a read because you won’t like it. Before you click on the link, recite a bit of Burns a few times over. “O would some power the giftie gie us to see ourselves as others see us.”
Then, rather more positively but just a troubling is Andrew Brown’s very thoughtful piece on the Guardian website: How do churches get new bums on seats? Get rid of the boring old ones.
Really interesting analysis of why church-planting has worked for some people – because it produces the commitment in younger people that is needed to make the church swing which they are unlikely to throw at churches that are struggling which are full of older people wanting things not to change.
Now, the string that ties these three pieces of work together is a hunch that the two things which affect whether or not someone new will come back to a church and give it a go are firstly what happens there on a Sunday and secondly how they feel about those who are there on a Sunday. (And it is worth pondering for a moment which might be easier to change).
Now, is there any way we can talk about that? Does it fit neatly with the mission discourse of the Scottish Episcopal Church at the moment? I’m not so sure, but I rather think it matters that we find some way of having that conversation.
What do you think?
I’m definitely inclined to agree with Hannah’s comments as to the importance of the laity and their training. I was Priest-in-Charge of a group of CofE churches that had obviously had problems attracting worshipers according to the registers. It didn’t take me long to discover that a huge percentage of the PCC had a ‘them and us’ attitude. Gossip had it that they were known as the ‘Mafia’ by former priests! After only two months in post I realised that mission was not on the agenda at all and preserving the ‘status quo’ definitely was. Deadly dull was fine. It didn’t seem important to make immediate changes to the liturgy because I wouldn’t at that stage have had a clue who I was making changes for. Over a few months I was able to speak to key local groups such as schools, healthcare workers, youth workers, probation officers, care homes, parish council etc and they were very vocal about what they thought the churches should offer. It was what they told me we did badly that I understood – providing a holy, relaxed and welcoming environment for starters.
The sadness is I had to work quite subversively in those days as did many. I had a bit of luck in that the then PCC was not particularly interested in ministry to young people and a regular Friday Parents and Toddlers service was largely ignored as was an older group of children meeting at the Vicarage for Burgers n’ Bibles. The mothers – occasional fathers -who attended the short Friday service and bun fight afterwards set the agenda with their children as the weeks passed. There also seemed to be a notion that only PCC members were enablers and others should stay out of serving the liturgical roles. I always remember one particularly gifted mother telling me that she took her toddlers to several groups but she never felt as supported in them as she did in ours – she understood the spiritual dimension that was grace at work. This group grew very quickly once I wrote to all those parents who had children baptised in the previous three years. The sticky bit was when the Sunday worshippers suddenly found themselves invaded by unusual people! Tatoos and Doc Martins and No 1 haircuts were a bit of a culture shock. The parents then began inviting their single friends and one of the churches could have been described as inclusive. Slowly and surely ‘The Mafia’ became outnumbered and this released several PCC members who offered significant help. My gift was in recalling just how uncomfortable I had felt as a mother with children who should be seen and not heard and also someone who was unhappy inviting friends into a hostile atmosphere. I was often stuck with a ‘red face’ and one vocal son regularly and loudly proclaiming ‘When we going Mummy’! I wanted to go too. What was lovely was observing the natural liturgical gifts flowing into the community with a little training for the newcomers. They needed a lot less direction than the die hards. Visiting certain PCC members homes was an eye opener too. Plenty of ‘who dunnit’s and travel guides and homes and gardens books on their shelves but a pretty obvious gap as far as theology goes.
After a few months it was possible to make changes to the Sunday liturgy and to even make space for precious moments of silence. It was not the 1wk old to 40’s that could be heard in these moments!
Another priest who was having problems attracting younger – 20’s to 40’s – members was advised to turn up for one of our Friday services. She was shocked that we got away with the liturgy. It was not a way out liturgy at all – just very pared down. Her first comment was that she would be unable able to get it past her PCC. I am afraid I suggested that it might be better not to try. I would have been unable to get it past MU members at that time. One of the first things I did was stop Baptism’s taking place outside the Sunday Eucharists, except in very exceptional circumstances. They had previously taken place without the worshipping community! – with a hideous ‘add on’ mentality and a ‘get rid of these 50-100 strangers quick’ attitude. All very odd considering the churches had been used for training placements for ordinands. I hate to tell you that this sort of culture is still quite prevalent in many a CofE parish today as priests may be too worn down (or lazy) to attend courses, take risks, organise groups and discern gifts. It is only when the outsiders become insiders that we are able to foster a wide variety of vocations. During my time at theological college there was perhaps too much kudos attached to priests who nurtured priests. There have been many changes regarding training opportunities since but I still hear of churches who put up as much opposition as possible until a Bishop, Archdeacon or lay training officer reads them their fortune.
None of these scenarios are aided by the present exclusive attitude of many of our leaders right now.