ORGANISATION of the MODERN ANGLICAN BENEFICE FOUR CHURCHES (A, B, C AND D) IN ONE BENEFICE
DIAGRAM OBSERVATIONS
6 LEVELS of CHURCH MEMBERSHIP ATTACHED or ASSOCIATED STRICTLY SPEAKING SOME PEOPLE WILL NOT BE MEMBERS BUT WILL ASSOCIATE THEMSELVES WITH A PARTICULAR CHURCH. THIS WILL EITHER BE THROUGH OCCASSIONAL OFFICES, OR THROUGH THEIR RELATIVES OR SPOUSES, AND THROUGH SEASONAL SERVICES. FRINGE THEY CONNECT WITH THE CHURCH OCCASSIONALLY AND SOMETIMES REGULARLY BUT THEY ARE LIMITED IN THEIR COMMITMENT EITHER BY CIRCUMSTANCES OR BELIEF. WHILE THEY ARE NOT GREATLY COMMITTED TO ‘THIS’ CHURCH THEY ARE UNLIKELY TO GO TO ‘THAT’ CHURCH.
AS AN ALTERNATIVE TYPE OF ORGANISATIONAL DIAGRAM THIS ONE IS USEFUL BECAUSE:
ATTACHED OR ASSOCIATED
FRINGE MEMBERS
• IT SETS LEADERSHIP IN THE CONTEXT OF THE WHOLE CHURCH AND THE WHOLE CHURCH IN THE CONTEXT OF THE WORLD • IT CONNECTS LEADERSHIP TO THE CONSITUENCY OF THE CHURCH
LEADING ON THE FRINGE
• IT SHOWS GRAPHICALLY WHAT IS PROBABLY TRUE IN REALITY, THAT PEOPLE ON THE FRINGE SPEND MORE TIME OUTSIDE THE CHURCH THAN INSIDE IT, AND PEOPLE AT THE CORE OF CHURCH LIFE SPEND MORE TIME INSIDE THAN OUTSIDE CHURCH.
‘MIDDLE of the ROAD’ MEMBERS LEADING OCCASSIONAL OFFICES
MIDDLE OF THE ROAD THEY COME REGULARLY, THEY GIVE MODESTLY, THEY SERVE INTERMITTENTY. THEY HAVE GREAT POTENTIAL, USUALLY UNTAPPED. THEY ARE MORE THAN LOOSELY CONNECTED AND SEE THE CHURCH THEY ATTEND AS THEIR ‘HOME CHURCH’.
A1 A
CORE THOSE WHO SUSTAIN THE CHURCH BY COMMITING THEIR TIME AND RESOURCES, WITHOUT WHICH THE CHURCH WOULD NOT FUNCTION. SENIOR LEADERS SOME PEOPLE IN THE CORE GROUP LEAD BOTH INFORMALLY AND UNDER DIRECTION FROM THE CHURCH’S LEADERSHIP TEAM, EVEN THOUGH THEY HOLD NO TITLED POST. THEY ARE HAPPY TO TAKE RESPONSIBILITY AND SERVE IN A RANGE OF VITAL WAYS THAT ENABLE THE MINISTRY OF THE CHURCH TO FUNCTION. LEADERSHIP TEAM / PCC THIS TEAM HAVE BEEN CHOSEN EITHER BY DIOCESAN APPOINTMENT OR BY THE CHURCH COMMUNITY TO LEAD THE CHURCH IN ITS LIFE AND MINISTRY.
A1
B
LEADING IN CREATIVITY
CHURCH ‘A’ CREATES A NEW FORM OF CHURCH ON THE EDGE OF ITS EXISTING STRUCTURES, MAYBE TO PROMOTE CHANGE IN WORSHIP STYLES, OR TO CREATE A NEW ‘PLACE’ FOR A PARTICULAR MINISTRY.
CORE MEMBERS
LEADING IN PIONEERING
R LEADER O I N S E S
B1
LEADING THE LEADERS LEADERSHIP TEAM & PCC
B1
LEADING IN DISCIPLESHIP
MIDDLE of the ROAD MEMBERSHIP
C
SMALL GROUP LEARNING
LEADING the LEVELS THERE ARE INNUMERABLE REASONS WHY CHURCHES ARE POPULATED BY PEOPLE WITH DIFFERENT LEVELS OF COMMITMENT. EACH CHURCH HAS ITS OWN SPECIFIC FACTORS AFFECTING COMMITMENT, FROM MEMBERS’ AGE, LIFESTYLE,OR WORK PRESSURES, TO THE CHURCH’S LOCATION, DEMOGRAPHICS, CHURCHMANSHIP, QUALITY OF LEADERSHIP AND EVEN HISTORY.
D
THE LEADERSHIP FUNCTION IS TO REALISE AND RESPOND TO THE DIFFERENT NEEDS OF EACH PERSON AT WHATEVER LEVEL THEY CHOOSE TO COMMIT TO THE CHURCH IN ORDER TO ‘PRESENT EVERYONE MATURE IN CHRIST’.
CHURCH ‘B’ CREATES A NEW FORM OF CHURCH OUTSIDE THE EXISTING BENEFICE STRUCTURES ESPECIALLY FOR UNCHURCHED OR UNCONNECTED PEOPLE; MAYBE IT’S FOCUSED ON A PARTICULAR OUTREACH OR MINISTRY TO ONE SECTOR OF SOCIETY.
C1
LEADING THE MAJORITY IN WORSHIP, WORD AND ACTION
ATTACHED OR ASSOCIATED
NON-RELIGIOUS PEOPLE OUTSIDE THE CHURCH MAKE OCCASSIONAL VISITS FOR OCCASSIONAL OFFICES AND FESTIVALS
R
LEADING OUTSIDE THE CHURCH
CLERGY & STAFF DEPLOYMENT Green Team role such as mission enabler and evangelist. Lay or ordained, appointed to the team to serve all churches in encouraging mission opportunities
TO HELP EACH PERSON GROW THEIR FAITH AND THEREBY CREATE AN ENVIRONMENT THAT ALLOWS MINISTRY IN THE BENEFICE TO FLOURISH WILL REQUIRE A RANGE OF LEADERSHIP SKILLS AND GOOD TEAM MANAGMENT.
Red A non-ordained (lay) team member of sufficient maturity and experience to act as ‘focal point’ for a paritular church within the team
Light Blue Team clergy person associated with a particular church as a ‘focal person’ for a time period as required. This could include SSM, OLM or full time. Some churches may not have their own dedicated clergy person, in this case Church ‘D’.
LEADING OUTSIDE THE CHURCH
THE BACKGROUND IS .... THE WORLD OUTSIDE THE CHURCH
Leighton Carr © 2013
C1
CHURCH ‘C’ HAS A VISION TO EXPAND A GROWING MINISTRY, FOR EXAMPLE A LOCAL CHOIR, AND CHURCH ‘D’ HAS BETTER FACILITIES TO ALLOW THE MINISTRY TO GROW TO THE NEXT LEVEL WHEN THE MODERN BENEFICE WORKS WELL AS A TEAM THEN THE TRADITIONAL REISISTANCE OF OWNERSHIP - OF BUILDINGS, OF PEOPLE, AND OF MINISTRIES - BREAKs DOWN TO ALLOW CHURCHES TO ACT AND WORK AS ONE CHURCH IN AN AREA.
Orange Team role, such as youth worker, appointed to the team to serve all churches in the benefice
R Dark Blue Team clergy person unattached to one particular church but serving all churches. Again, ministtry status - SSM etc - is not the deciding factor in appointment. More important is fulfilment of the overall strategy for the benefice. The Rector may be one of these clergy (’R’)
Yellow Fresh Expressions expert, possibly pioneer, working with the mission enabler to form new communities within the orbit of the benefice
Brown The churches are served by a more efficient centralised administative staff.
Purple The Teaching team, lay readers and others with appropriate skills and experience to develop discipleship expressed in mature living.