Fewer Bishops - more clergy?

There is a big debate in the press at the moment about suffragan bishops and this debate has drifted down to daily mail reading church members. The argument being put forward is that we have too many bishops and they cost too much. If we got rid of all the extra suffragan and assistant bishops we would have more clergy. I decided to look at the numbers to see what would happen if we followed the sage advice being offered...

Point 0ne: There are 77 suffragan and assistant bishops in the Church of England. If we got rid of them all, we would save a small amount of money, which would be nice, but money isn't the big issue when it comes to appointments.

Point two: The big issue about clergy appointments is the number of clergy available to appoint. It takes at least five years to train a vicar and we are not training new full-time clergy as quickly as the baby-boomers are retiring. According to figures that I have heard, we will have lost another 20% of full-time clergy by 2013 due to retirement. This means we will 2730 fewer clergy in 2013 than there were in 2000 when I started work in Milton Keynes. That's an overall drop of 29%. This is not policy, it's demographics.

Point three: Our suffragan and assistant bishops are very busy and are probably working too hard. In theory, their work could be taken on by a team of clergy who share their responsibilities, but this means taking more time from the local church. Assuming that four vicars could do the work of one bishop by giving 25% of their time to the role - which is probably unrealistic - we could cover their work, but this would result in more stress for local clergy and less time for parochial work.

Conclusion: Yes, we could sack suffragan bishops. This would provide 77 extra vicars - which would not quite replace the 2730 we're loosing because of "natural wastage". We would also increase the stress of at least 308 clergy and loose at least 77 vicars worth of time for the local church...

These are just the numbers. If you think it makes sense, that's up to you.

Bishop Alan gets a blog award!

Bishop Alan produces a wonderful blog through which he pours out his thoughts for all the world. It's always a great read and is one of the few I check on a regular basis - after all it's nice to know what the Bishop is up to...

He's been given an award for blogging - one of those wonderful "pass it on" awards where you have to give the same award to five of your favourites... If you want to see who he's nominated, check out Scribble, Scribble, Mr Gibbon.

"Better than Church?"

During the past few weeks I've been reflecting on the link between blogging and church. This has partly been sparked off by conversations with people in churches that I've visited who were asking for new ways to create networks and share information. I've also been monitoring my visitor numbers and was struck that the daily chart of unique visitors looks remarkable similar to the attendance record at St Laurence in Slough - the church I looked after for eighteen months as a curate. The only difference is that the visitors are daily rather than weekly, but there is the same pattern of community - roughly 20 to 40 each "event" with occasional spikes of 60 0r 70 on special occassions....

A friend of mine (who is probably reading this) also commented that reading the blog was "better than going to church" - which I do take as a compliment, but it does raise some interesting questions. To what extent can the blogsphere provide opportunities to "be" church?

A few years ago, I was quite interested in the idea of on-line church and a few of us began to think about how to do it. We started with cell church methodology and looked at ways to do this. I even bought the "cybercell" url (and still own it). When the diocese put money into cutting edge ministries and launched iChurch I was seriously tempted to apply for the job (which unfortunatley was part-time). It's been interesting to watch iChurch develop in similar directions to CyberCell - which never got off the ground because I didn't have enough time to invest in it...

In the meantime the web has moved on and we now have (through various web 2.0 innovations) the joy of Facebook, blogging, wikis and ediatble sites like Webjammer. Facebook (and other social networking sites) have been brilliant for creating a sense of community with people who you don't see every day - and with people you see a lot too! Blogging has proven a really interesting tool for people like me who have lots of people they want to communicate with - but may only see every few months or so... It's also had important spin offs in terms of accountability, deeper discussion and every-extending community. I began this blog in June 2007 as an attempt to record what I did workwise as an attempt to monitor and assess my working patterns. It's now a valuable tool for personal reflection, conversation and community. I may only give it a few minutes each day but these are never wasted minutes...

In the meantime I do have some questions about blogging and "being church". Is blogging a personal project - emerging out of what a person is? Is blogging a mission project - a conscious attempt to achieve something? Is Christian blogging is a fresh expression - a way of being church which is accesible to those who don't currently attend trad church? Is it ever simply a way of being church - a way of exercising our call to be Christian community?

These are interesting questions and I'd like to look at them using the criteria I often use with churches and groups - based on Acts 2:

Opportunity to engage with the word: I don't think I often use my blog to quote scripture or attempt to do bible teaching (it wouldn't feel hugely appropriate), but I am aware that I (and many other Christian bloggers) do use blogging to comment on contemporary issues. In many ways I feel that public blogging encourages us to conect real life with faith and scriptures - in a way that may not always seem appropriate in a church service. Blogging is the 21st century equivalent of discussing life with a newspaper in one hand and the bible in the other. And it is a discussion with opportunity for comments and continuing discussion - unlike traditional "preaching".

Mutually Supportive Relationships: These do seem to be developing and growing through things like Facebook and I love following some of the strands of conversation and comment that follow updates and photos. It's also been great to continue to feel connected to some of our young people as they head off on their university adventures. Bloggong does provide some opportunity for this and I loved one of Tim Leeson's recent entries about his Dad. The problem is that blogging can be more of a spectator sport - although mutual reading of blogs can be a powerful tool for community. I have wondered from time to time if we could create a group of "covenanted bloggers" who would commit to read each others blogs on a regular basis and comment - this would be one way of creating an on-line cell group. The blogs could be password protected if people wanted to keep their thoughts to themself. Church should be a mutually supportive, learning community - this is very hard on Sunday morning, but easy to do on-line.

Breaking Bread together: Hard to do on-line but iChurch and others do manage online worship. On the other hand there is something in the concept of the Christian Eucharist which is about taking the ordinary things of life and allowing God to transform them in the context of our community. Our online lives may not involve a litoral process of breaking bread and pouring out wine but they can provide us with opportunities to link ordinary life with God's reality - our online lives can have a sacramental element in some way...

Time and Space for prayer: Prayer usually begins with knowledge. Only when I am expossed to issues or needs am I driven to pray. Only when I begin to see things from God's point of view do I know what to pray for. The joy of reading other people's blogs, or reading facebook updates, is that I have a new mechanism for this. I am also able to post information on my blog that (I hope) will be picked up by other people who will join me in prayer. In fact, I think I often finish a blog entry by inviting people to pray for particular individuals or situations. Observant readers will have spotted a "please pray for" widget in the side bar. I'm not sure if anyone every notices it, but it seems like the right thing to do. Scripture Union also has a prayer application - which is very clever but I've never really got into it.

Helping one another to see God at work in the world: This is another joy of blogging and Facebook, Not only can I tell people what God's been doing in my life, I can also see it in others. I've never been a great fan of formal "testimonies" since I think they can become formulaic or self-obsesed, but I love reading some of the things that people write about their lives or churches. These have been some of the most moving experiences I've had over the past year and I'm thankful for those who've had the courage to psot their stories, images and experiences. They have enriched my journey and have been sources of real wisdom and wonder.

Members share who they have and what they are with one another: As I've already said, I think this does happen through blogs and facebook updates in a way that is very challenging in a Sunday morning "seeker sensitive" service. Many of us know it can happen well through cells or small groups, but it's proven really hard to help people set aside time for this. Online community, however, happens in its own time and seems more sustainable - in today's frantic world.

Chruch members have an opportunity to give to those in need: Mission is the purpose of church but I am aware that this is not neccesarily a priority in blogging - although many of us do use up megabytes of personal space talking about it. On the other hand it is possible to give to good causes on-line, although this can feel like an impersonal financial transaction. I'm more impressed by some of the Facebook innovations which I would love to promote. Superbadger is a fab idea that Tearfund have set up. It's basically a mechanism for co-ordinating online campaigns equivalent to the postcards that many of us send. Only last night I received a Superbadger request to "badger" the government not to give up their commitment to dealing with climate change even though the economy is in crisis. I was able to send off a quick message in seconds that the relevant minister will have received before his meeting today. I think this is absolutely brilliant and I really recomend that you check this application out if you use Facebook. There are a few other clever devices that people have cooked up - including Lil Green Patch which generates money from sponsors to buy up acres of amazonian rain forest for conservation. OUr on-line endevours can actually make a difference in the real world!

Meeting together for worship, prayer and celebration: Well... possibly... certainly there are around twent repeat visitors on my blog each day and Facebook speaks for itself...

Experiencing Growth as a result of God's grace: This is a fairly subjective thing although I do feel that I have been growing as a result of my blogging experiment. It's been a great way of creating a personal journal which has helped me to reflect on my life and connect my thoughts with others. In a more objective way I think it would be correct to say that our collective expereiments with blogging, Facebook, etc... have mushroomed and become steadily more significant. Is this a sign of God at work?

So, following these basic criteria, there is something "church-like" going on in the blogsphere, but what kind of church is it?

Liquid Church: Pete Ward coined the phrase "liquid church" a few years ago to refer to forms of church which were fluid and not contained within traditional buildings or structures. Church happens, he says, whenever people come together and do/be it. Church on the blogspehere is a bit like this...

Fresh Expressions: Fresh expressions are forms of church created for those who are not currently members and take on forms which are appropriate to the culture of those people. I think (in a very liquid way) this happens through blogs and social networks. Those of us who "do" church in a public way on-line are continually inviting others to share the journey with us, whether they belong to a specific church or not.

Bishops of the blogsphere: Like many people I love reading bishop Alan's blog. It strikes me that this has given him a new mechanism to be a bishop. His blog entries enable him to speak out on issues that are important to the Church. He also builds links and connections, enabling us to see what's going on in the wider world/church. In a funny way, I feel more connected to my bishop now than I ever have before - and I know he reads my blog so it's a two way thing... This may not be significant to all people reading this blog, but as an anglican minister, it's fairly imporatant to me.

In conclussion, is blogging a way of being church? Well, yes, sort of... But not in the way we're used to thinking about church.

Bishop Alan

Bishop Alan was in Milton Keynes today for one of his 'deanery days'. He was able to meet a few people and spend some time with deanery chapter. He told chapter about his valuable experiences at the Lambeth Conference - see Bishop Alan's Blog for more...

Women Bishops and Collaborative Leadership

I watched some of the reports on the General Synod vote with mixed feelings. While I have no problem with the concept of women bishops, I do feel a little uncomfortable about some of the language being used.

On women bishops (as such) I am convinced the Paul has a point - in Christ there is no male or female, Jew nor Gentile, etc... And I can't see why we need to wait for universal acceptance - there are other branches of the Universal Church who don't have them - there are others that do... The same applies to other "innovations". We need to do what we think is right.

Having said all this, I am uncomfortable with the idea of women (or men) who are seeking positions where other people can "serve under" them. Is this a debate about power and status? Are there women priests out there who would like to join men at the top of the clerical pyramid? I hope not, but this was the way it was presented on TV.

The issue for me is the model of episcope we are seeking to develop. In an age when we are aiming to build collaborative leadership we need people who want to "serve with" rather than "lord over". I don't care whether our bishops are male of female, but I do care about the ministry they model.

Bishop's Barbecue

We spent much of today recovering from Thursday's run, but had a good evening at Great Missenden at the Bishop's Barbecue. Although the invitation encouraged us to meet the bishop, the best thing about this event is a chance to meet old friends. It was good to see Kay Peck - now priested - and Derek West from Slough - Valerie and Ken - and so on... A good time was had by all - and it didn't rain!
Many thanks to bishop Alan and friends for making this such a good event!

Valentine's Day

I always buy cards for the girls, but often wonder what people think when I buy three Valentine's cards. Perhaps they would really wonder if I bought them with a clerical shirt on.
This year, I noticed one high street shop sold cards addressed to "my daughter" so my worries are over!
Although this could be a day for flowers and cards and chocolates and all the rest... there'll be limited time for that in our house. I spent the morning in Great Missenden with the Bishop and the wardens from Water Eaton. It was a great meeting and we've made a lot of progress - although I do now need to attend their AGPM - on a Sunday Morning...
Back to Milton Keynes, I popped into Killkenny where I was expecting to celebrate communion. They were expecting a singer, who was half an hour late. We had a nice time chatting and singing along to old songs. I left before the real entertainment began...
So it was four pm before I even started my own work for Thursday. I'll get a bit done while the girls are out, and then it'll be time for my evening meeting...

Bishop in residence

Bishop Alan is worried about his carbon footprint, so he's decided to spend entire days in each deanery to allow people to come to him - and avoid some of the long journeys that people need to make to see him... so we had Bishop Alan in residence today. He borrowed a room in our house and did bishopy things. It was an interesting day.

This evening we had an Ecumenical Confirmation in Milton Keynes with one candidate from Watling Valley. I couldn't be there because I was at the first session of Viewpoints, our new discernment course. This seemed to go well although numbers were low. The second group starts tomorrow. I'm hopeful that this will be a really significant tool in our discipleship kit, so this is a project I'm watching very closely...