Clergy need to think about this!

This past week in "The Guardian" Newspaper here in the UK was an editorial printed where a recently survey was conducted; it was based upon faith, and for the first time ever, the vast majority of people in the UK regard themselves as "non-Religious"! The figure was 54%. I was actually suprised that it was not higher! The reason behind this not being higher is as a result of influx of East Europeans,who on the whole still practise their faith as Roman Catholics or Orthodox members. The number of Muslims are on the increase,so this has added to this, a good reason for concern by clergy,especially in cities such as London, where the non-white, non-British born are the majority!
If anyone ever visits a church in this country, regards of its Denomination, they will find it pretty empty.Some churches can accomplish 50+ worshippers, while others do not see this, other than at Christmas & Easter! One movement that has occured over the years, has got the different Denominations,mainly Anglican,Methodist & Baptist; of giving Priests & Ministers the responsibility of more than one church, some as many as eight!! This allows them to pay one salary, but obviously the congregations suffer, not have clergy always available.While we move into a time when money saving ideas have to be considered, the idea of using volunteers:Licensed Lay Readers,Permanent deacons, SSM,Volunteering Pastoral Assistants,etc... when the only cost is their training.In the non-conformist world, these are God-sent as there is no theological objections to them leading any kind of service, including the normal "cultural" ones! For Roman Catholics & Anglicans, they have caused a rod for their own back, where "clergy" are still in charge! But when a building sits in a community, where there is a service once a week or less & even then gets only a handful attending,no baptisms, a few weddings, and just the odd the funeral;how viable is this? You can argue that there is an ethical responibility to have the church available for the community, even if that community does not actually attend! While I recognise that here in the UK there is a Christian heritage that needs to exist, these historic churches are now costly to keep up when very few attend.If they were ruins, the church would not hesitate to hand them over "English Heritage" who have the resources,volunteers & connections to use them correctly.Time to do a practical survey of these buildings,but more importantly, you cannot blame society or lack of community for empty pews, but lay the blame at the clergy themselves,who for many take the attitude of doing little,which includes, no website, no Internet access,no upkeep of the building & grounds,pastoral visits being conducted by laity if at all & yet set up some moral standards when permitting weddings,getting most couples running to the nearest Registrar's office where they do not get robbed of £300!!
The time has come where clergy need to supply their own housing, car,etc... & if this does not help, increase the part-timers & reduce the fulltime unless they can support a congregation who financially support the church & the pastoral work is there! They all like to blames others, but it is their own fault!

New Leader

It is sad fact of life, especially, here in the UK and more likely to occur in England, that prejudice rears its ugly head. An article appeared in today's Guardian newspaper hinting at this in their article concerning Religion and Culture in the UK.
In the past few decades political leaders have refrained from expressing their Religious position due to fear of loosing votes. It is a known fact, that in this growing secular society that we live in, faith is kept to yourself out of fear of loosing important votes! Unlike the US, there is no "Christian Vote" or "Jewish Vote" to be won. This maybe a good thing, as it prevents leaders advertising their faith to win people over. But the flip side of this, when leaders do express their thoughts, the secular press turn on them, but they also do the same for those who profess no faith at all.The hypocrisy of the media is outstanding: declare yourself a Christian and they question you, declare yourself an Atheist and they do like wise; no wonder, we live in a society when we keep matters of faith a secret!
Once again, those who declare themselves as Christians in any form, are seen as some out-dated wacky individual who is not to be trusted and believed to have such Right-Wing views, that never can you have an opportunity to express what you believe.For those in any form of ministry, this leads to pastoral complications and leaves people vulnerable with the danger of becoming isolated, and in danger of seeking solace in another direction which is not always safe.It is the role of the clergy to reconnect with their community, not just their congregation whom they represent, but where they live, to let them know who they are, where they are and their availability to the general unchurched! Many clergy do not see themselves as missionaries, but, many now, if their existence is important to them, now have to be.Not in some thousands of miles away in a Jungle very few people have heard of, but right there in your own community, for if you do not, the politicians and the media will.It is time to start the rescue mission!!

Pope's Visit to the UK

The media here are so move on from till dropping the odd hint or two about how well the visit went. Many though the media was too much, giving you the opinion, that every time you turn on your telly, there he was! But for me, there was the odd day, that I actually missed the latest adventure of "Benny". The Pope is interesting for most of us as he is a Head of State as well as a Religious Leader, especially as that Church: The Roman Catholic Church is the largest group of Christians in the world. Many in the Religious press as well as the secular stated the idea that the visit has managed the image of the Roman catholic church being seen as the ones responsible a massive cover up of child abuse a generation ago, to now as a saintly group who are holding out their hand to the Lost of the world, especially the poor! The question though sticks in my mind; if there was no a large number of people from East European countries such as Poland who boast a large number of Roman catholics and therefore swelling the pews of most the churches here in the UK, would the Papal visit actually have taken place? I think the answer is no, but those loyal Roman Catholics it was important, but sadly all of it was overshadowed by the £25 tickets charged to attend one of the Masses that took place and even then, it was limited to the dedicated few at parish level.
I am on the other hand very pleased as a Protestant, that the Pope met all the Religious Leaders in this country: Anglican,Methodist,URC/Presbyterian,Baptist,Jewish & Muslim as well as many others. Now we wait to see the final outcome of this visit, but one thing is for sure; no Catholic reformation will occur with an attend to turn back the clocks of history as some have suggested, instead, I believe a true Ecumenical Pope has finally arrived who listens to his own adherents as well as everyone else in the world.

Our Journey

We are all on a journey,but many of never realise it! God in his nature,created us with the desire to seek,and we if we "seek the God,all will be given to you". Many of us, experience the cultural experience of "Religion" in our locality.Those who live experience can feel the Church of England presence,in the Scotland you can feel that of the Church of Scotland & in Ireland you sense the Roman Catholic culture.In Wales despite being a country that has more Presbyterians, than anywhere else, it is the Baptists that has successful had a presence. It is not limited to the UK,as this follows across most of Europe,some are more Roman Catholic,while others have followed a "Protestant" route,Presbyterian or Lutheran.
But is this faith based or culture based? So many times I have met people who are convinced that ALL of Ireland are Roman Catholic! But especially in the north,where there are considerable numbers of Presbyterians.
So are we to accept our cultural faith or will God open up a door to move on,as part of the journey we are on? What is involved & how do we know when God is directing us? Many people decide that what is going on within the structure of their denomination is not acceptable;therefore,many will opt out & keep on the road that God has put us on.

John Henry Newman, a stalward of Anglicanism eventually because a Roman Catholic,but not without heartache. This is the experience of many,so is it right or not to put ourselves through this pain? Many compare it to a divorce; if you stay that is causing you pain,it is better to be where you will be happy,so a church home is the same! It is a painful journey,but God loves us & want the best for us so we can become "whole".