An overarching vision for the Church?

Some one recently asked me what my vision for the Church in the next 15-20 years was. It is interesting thinking about such things which are normally the purview of bishops, but perhaps should be in focus for us all, even if we might be dead and gone to glory before the vision is achieved! I waffled a bit, knowing what I wanted to say, but having too severe a headache to be coherent at that point. After rest and migraine tablets, my answer is:

Centred on Christ, in 15-20 years, the Church will be

Growing in depth of love for God and other people, in discipleship, and in numbers,

Giving financially, and in using our God-given gifts to serve the purpose of God (‘if everyone does a little, no-one has to do a lot!’)

Gathered, and going out in the power of the Spirit: gathered in worship and koinonia, and going out in love and service to communities: local, national and global.

Some people might feel that this leaves out a great deal, but for me, as a minister, as Paul Avis says in his recent book Ministry shaped by mission, all ministry is engaged with the missio dei, even leading worship, preaching the Word of God, and pastoral care. So my vision for the church has mission written right at its heart, and just like a stick of rock, every 'bite' needs to reveal the message!

In future blogs, I hope to look at some strategic steps to achieve such an ambitious goal, while recognising that these will differ from place to place and context to context.

Roman archeology and theology

Our younger daughter Claire is a primary school teacher. Julian and I, together with Claire and Simon, our son-in-law, had a week this month staying in Frascati to visit nearby Rome to help inform Claire's teaching about the Romans in history and RE . The highlight of the visit, for me, wasn't the Catacombs (though I thought it would be), or the Coliseum and other Roman ruins and remains (sites where many people died make me feel physically sick, so I didn't hang about for long there!), but the Vatican. We had a wonderful guide called Vincenzo, who shepherded his large group of touristi with grace and godliness, making our visit a gospel experience. Speaking to us through his throat mike and our headphones, he patiently and gently led us through the courtyard of the pines, the Vatican museum, the Sistine chapel, and into St Peter's. Here, almost at the end of our tour, he showed us a large sculptured tomb above a door, made of three different kinds of marble, in contrasting colours. Under the deep, carved folds, we could just make out the carving of a skeleton. He told us that this represented death, and that the doorway signified that death is not the end, but simply the doorway to the future, and life in eternity, life in all its fullness, if you had faith in Christ. I'm pretty sure that there were quite a number of people in our large party who were not Catholics, and who weren't Christians at all, and I realised that this could be a moment of conviction for some of them, so I was praying pretty hard. I hope the visit was even more special for them than it was for me.

Go Vincenzo!