Fit Together
I attended in order to have my Commission restored, having had to resign it when I was Ordained in 2002. To cut a long story short the Church Army has recently decided to make the move to become a Mission Community that welcomes Ordained evangelists. It has opened its doors wider than that, to include people who would like to be associated at different levels of commitment to the Community - but, anyway, it now includes me as a 'Commissioned' member. Hooray.
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| Commissioning Cross |
I was only there for part of the Gathering - Tues afternoon to Wed eve - but it was an encouraging 24 hours. I've met up with former CA colleagues - some of whom I haven't seen for 20+ years - we've worshipped, listened to lectures from Graham Tomlin, heard presentations from some evangelists on their work (more in a moment*), discussed the recent changes within CA (not everyone is happy), watched Bayern Munich beat Barcelona 4-nil, and soaked up the sun whilst wandering around the gardens at The Hayes.
(*) If you have a stereotype image of what an evangelist does - or looks like - forget it! We heard from a deaf colleague who works entirely within the deaf community - her signed presentation was fascinating! We heard from Colin Brown, a CA evangelist working among the artistic community in Falmouth - using his own art and theirs to talk about spirituality and the revelation of God in creation (Romans 1). We heard from one of the apprentices on the Explore team - the Gap Year program - who has been playing football with kids on a 'no-go' estate, and getting to know them.
In conversation with others around the dinner table and in the corridors, it seems that Church Army is still largely doing what it has always done, in working with those who are on the margins of society and isolated because of poverty, lack of opportunity, addiction - 'the least, the last and the lost' - and being creative about bringing the good news of Jesus to these people and the communities where they live.There are great stories of lives and situations being transformed.
I had to complete a form recently which asked a question along the lines of 'What do you think will best contribute to the church's future health and vitality?' I waffled about getting our priorities in order and looking outwards to a world in need of the gospel, rather than looking inwards at our differences.
The Church Army Mission Community offers a good model for that approach. In talking to individual CA evangelists you pick up that we represent the whole breadth of churchmanship, and come from different parts of a wide theological spectrum. There were clearly differences of opinion as we talked around the dining table and in small groups about some of the issues that divide the church today. However, we were united in the task of being involved in God mission to the world, in taking the great commission seriously in being the church for the sake of the world, in wanting to please God and proclaim Christ. It was positive, uplifting and inspiring stuff.
Perhaps the prayer that we used as we prepared for the Gathering is a good prayer for the wider church:
O God who makes all things new,restore and revive us as we gather in your name;make us fit to serve a world that is longing for Good News,fit to serve each other with encouragement and care,fit to serve the Saviour with glad hearts and high hopes,so that together, we and the whole of Church Armymay bring joy to the risen Christ. AmenIt's a great joy to be welcomed back into the Church Army Community, and I look forward to drawing on their resources to enhance my own ministry, and supporting the work of CA in whatever ways I can.
I celebrated my return to the fold by calling into my parents on the way home and joining them for a drink at the fabulous Coopers Tavern in Burton on Trent! 
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