The Call - Spring 2018

LIFE TO THE FULL IN HULL 24 hours in the life of UK people in mission

LIVING LA VIDA LOCAL

EXTRAORDINARY ORDINANDS

THE TOP FOUR MISSION MYTHS

A new chapter in Latin America, and meet our local partners

Pioneer ordinands talk calling, training and next steps

Pull-out poster and new Bible study resource

T HE CALL IN ACTIO N

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CHURCHMISSIO NSO CI E TY.ORG

THE CALL – SPRING 2018

ISSUE 8 | SPRING 2018

The Call

The call in action

Welcome to The Call, produced quarterly

by Church Mission Society.

The Call is a platform for global voices in mission. In these pages you will get to know people from around the world who are joining in God’s mission in a variety of ways. By sharing their stories, insights and reflections, our goal is to give you hope that God is still at work in our world and to inspire you to put your own mission call into action, if not with Church Mission Society then with someone – but preferably with Church Mission Society.

In this edition

04

MISSION NEWS

24

GREEN DREAMS

07

WORLD VIEWS

30

MISSION ISSUES

11

COVER STORY

32

NEW MISSION PARTNERS

18

WHAT IS MISSION?

35

What God is doing through your prayerful support

Eyewitness reports of God at work in Madagascar, Asia and Malta

A 24-hour glimpse into the work of Anna and Chris Hembury in Hull

Pull-out poster of mission myths, and find out about new CMS resources

Planting Cedars of Hope in Lebanon

Two views on the theology and practicalities of risk in mission

Meet new people in mission heading for the Middle East

HOW TO...

put women in their rightful place in mission

... and much more churchmissionsociety.org 2

CHURCH MISSIO N SO CIETY

WELCOME

MONUMENTAL

VISION PHILIP MOUNSTEPHEN EXECUTIVE LEADER

W

Church Mission Society Watlington Road, Oxford, OX4 6BZ T: +44 (0)1865 787400 E: info@churchmissionsociety.org churchmissionsociety.org

/churchmissionsociety @cmsmission

If you have any comments about The Call, please contact the editor: the.call@churchmissionsociety.org Church Mission Society is a mission community acknowledged by the Church of England Registered Company No.6985330 and Registered Charity No.1131655 (England & Wales) and SC047163 (Scotland). Also part of CMS: The South American Mission Society, Registered Company No 65048 and Registered Charity No. 221328 (England & Wales); The Church Mission Society Trust, Registered Charity number 1131655-1 (previously 220297).

Registered and principal offices of all above entities: Watlington Road, Oxford, OX4 6BZ.

hen you cross the border into DR Congo everything seems to run out. There’s no more tarmac, no more mains electricity, no water supply except what is pumped from the ground. That was my first impression on travelling to DRC late last November with Steve Burgess, CMS regional manager for Africa, and Karobia Njogu of our sister organisation CMS-Africa.

Crossing the border itself, we were told, would not be a piece of cake. We were met by a Congolese colleague from the Diocese of Aru who took our passports and went off to no fewer than three different offices to get the necessary approval, each time leaving us in the car. So far so good – but it was the last place, we were told, that would be the hardest. Yet when we got there, on the outskirts of Aru, we were welcomed as honoured guests by a gentleman who, significantly, had a Bible on his desk.

But it wasn’t just his faith that opened the door for us. It was also evident that the local diocese, and its inspirational bishop, Titre Ande, are held in the very highest regard, and we were shortly to discover why.

We were in Congo to meet the bishops and archbishop of the Province de l’Eglise Anglicaine du Congo and to consider how we might best support Archbishop Masimango as he develops a strategic plan for the province.

We had a very productive meeting. But in Aru there was much else to see that bore eloquent testimony both to the Church’s past history and to Bishop Ande’s entrepreneurial

vision and energy here in the present. Interestingly much of that was enshrined in an unusual medium – sculpture.

Outside the cathedral there’s a painted statue of an evangelist holding a Bible in his hand, gesturing towards the cathedral.

It’s not a statue of a white missionary, but of someone black.

And that reminded me that the gospel was first brought to the (then) Belgian Congo by a Ugandan evangelist, Apolo Kivebulaya. And indeed much of the story of the worldwide spread of the gospel has not come about through the activities of western missionaries, but through the initiative of local Christians, keen to share the good news that they had received.

In the middle of a roundabout in Aru is a memorial to Pat Nickson, a CMS mission partner who worked with the diocese, and founded and led the Institut Panafricain de Santé Communitaire (IPASC, or in English the Pan-African Institute of Community Health).

Pat’s dedication, commitment and long-term service is rightly honoured. But IPASC is only one of innumerable institutions founded by Bishop Ande and the diocese, which goes a long way to explaining the warm welcome we had at the border.

The diocese provides schools, hospitals, clinics, vocational and theological education, a centre for people living with HIV, a school of dentistry, the list goes on and on.

Back in Arua in Uganda I noticed a plaque at the airfield recording the fact that it was opened by the former President (and dictator) of Congo (then Zaire) Mobutu Sese Seko. The plaque also records the title he gave himself: “Kuku Ngbendu Wa Zabanga”. The translation of this is contested, but Karobia told me it certainly could

THE CALL – SPRING 2018

mean, “the cockerel that leaves no hen untouched”. If so, it’s a chilling title. The story of Congo, from colonial times onwards, has included the most appalling rape, both metaphorical and literal, of its resources and of its people.

Contrast that with a statue we saw in preparation in Aru, to stand outside the theological institute, of one person washing another’s feet, each looking directly at the other, eye to eye. It’s a very powerful antidote to the record of Mobutu and many others like him. It’s exactly that spirit of service that we saw enshrined in the life of the Diocese of Aru. It was humbling and inspiring to see and it’s a huge privilege for us to work in partnership with them.

That statue also helped me make sense of something Bishop Ande had asked me earlier in the meeting with the bishops. “Why,” he asked, “do you use the word ‘pioneer’ so much?” The question had me stumped for a moment. I replied that I thought pioneering was an enduring mark of CMS mission, it’s one of our core values – and it’s a word we use a lot in the Church of England. His response was interesting: he had no problem with the word itself, but was very keen that we should only talk about “pioneering” in the context of serving. And quite right too!

That was really my take-home lesson from our trip. Yes, Jesus calls us to be pioneers in mission – but only the kind of pioneers who are willing to follow him, whatever the circumstances, however harsh the conditions, in humble, loving, footwashing service. May he give us grace to do just that.

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MISSION NEWS New leader for Asia-CMS

Donations (left) and the community fridge (right)

Warm welcome for community fridge Last summer Janet Holmes, a community minister responsible for pioneer ministries in Telford, Shropshire, shared with colleagues the idea of providing a community fridge in the Brookside area of the town while participating in the Make Good missional entrepreneurship course, a partnership initiative between CMS, Matryoshka Haus and the Pickwell Foundation.

The idea had come from people living in the community who were concerned about how much food is wasted in the UK. The average UK family wastes £470 a year by throwing away food and drink which could have been eaten, on top of food that is thrown away by shops and restaurants.

The community wanted to respond locally in a practical way.

The fridge, hosted in a local community centre, is a place where

anyone can put in and take out food – so supplies are donated by both individuals and local businesses, and anyone in the community can come to make use of them. The team saw the idea in London, and managed to secure some funding from the Sainsbury’s “Waste less, save more” initiative.

It seems a simple solution to the issue of food waste – yet it has caught the eye of local media, and the fridge has been featured on Midlands Today TV news and the project coordinator, Sam Smith, was interviewed by BBC Radio Shropshire.

This is part of a network of community fridges, which are described as “communal places where surplus food is shared between people in a community”, to reduce the amount of food waste going to landfill.

Asia-CMS has a new leader. On 1 January Rev Dr Chan Nam Chen took charge as executive director of Asia-CMS following a unanimous vote by the board in his favour.

Dr Chan is originally from Malaysia and was formerly district superintendent of Sabah for the Assemblies of God, Malaysia.

In 2016, he obtained a PhD in Intercultural Studies from Fuller Theological Seminary in the USA, focusing on intercultural leadership effectiveness.

A seasoned practitioner, Dr Chan has been a cross-cultural church planter among different ethnic groups including an unreached people group, and later a trainer of church planting teams. He has served as the senior pastor of a large church that mobilised and sent missionaries overseas. He is also a renowned speaker in the region and passionate about raising up leaders in mission.

Dr Chan said, “The critical role for Asia-CMS is to help facilitate and forge mutual partnerships between the different parts of the church; partnerships that are less about ‘how may we help you?’ but more of ‘how can we do it together?’”

Philip Mounstephen commented: “Dr Chan brings a wealth of practical experience in cross-cultural mission, has reflected deeply upon that, and has a passion for developing effective leaders in mission.

“This is a very good fit for us in Church Mission Society. We look forward to increasingly close co-operation in mission between our two sister organisations as we press forward together in the work of the kingdom of God.”

If you would like to find out more about the Make Good missional entrepreneurship course, please contact Helen Harwood: helen. harwood@churchmissionsociety.org

Former CMS mission partner honoured by Archbishops Rev Canon Joanna Udal receives her award from Archbishop Justin Welby.

Photo courtesy of Lambeth Palace.

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The Rev Canon Joanna Udal, who served as a CMS mission partner in Sudan between 2001 and 2009, was presented with the Cross of St Augustine award by Archbishop Justin Welby at Lambeth Palace on 6 February 2018.

The Cross of St Augustine is given to honour services to the Anglican Communion, and Joanna Udal’s service as Secretary for Anglican Communion Affairs for both Justin Welby and Rowan Williams,

CHURCH MISSIO N SO CIETY

along with her time in Sudan, meant that her service was described by Lord Williams as “unparalleled”.

Picking up on her time working with the Archbishop of Sudan, the citation highlighted that, “Her long and dedicated ministry in Sudan was of immense significance.” During that time Joanna was involved in peace-building workshops, ecumenical advocacy initiatives, reviewing theological education and facilitating a national peace conference in 2008.

Lord Williams described her as “Unobtrusive and unselfish, prayerful and intelligent, she was a tower of strength for the life of the Communion, and the Anglican family owes her an immense debt.”

MISSION NEWS J working at Coca-Cola.

Rev Bisoke Balikenga has called on Anglicans all over the world to pray for peace in DR Congo.

Bisoke is the national youth coordinator of the Anglican Church of Congo, and helps to run a peace centre in Bunia, Ituri Province, to care for women and girls who have been raped during conflict.

Recently, conflict has broken out in Ituri Province in north eastern DR Congo between Lendu and Hema ethnic groups. There is a large UN peacekeeping force in Bunia to intercede between the groups, but violence has escalated. A UNHCR spokesperson stated that the UN is “gravely concerned” about the situation, with dozens of people killed, villages burned to the ground, and an increase in people being displaced by the violence.

Reviving prospects in Recife Andy and Rose Roberts, CMS mission partners at ReVive in Recife, Brazil, shared encouraging news recently about one of the girls they have been working with over the last few years. J was just 13 when she and her sister arrived at the ReVive safe house, having suffered physical abuse and neglect along with attempted sexual abuse. Both of the sisters were broken and carrying the physical scars of the abuse. The emotional and psychological scars were also apparent in their relationship with each other and with others.

J is now a confident 17 year old. Her relationship with her sister has flourished and her relationships with her wider family have strengthened, though both sisters refer to Rose as their mum. Andy and Rose comment: “This shows the extra responsibility that we and ReVive have for these girls who have spent their formative years with us – it really is us who are raising these young women. With great privilege comes great responsibility and we do feel the weight of what that entails from time to time.”

Early last year ReVive invested in a business course for J. After a few months she was one of 500 young people to apply for a job at CocaCola, who have a large factory in Recife. Coke chose 30 to work for them, including J. She now has a job in the marketing and events department, and has the opportunity to grow in the company. Andy and Rose added, “No one would have given her a chance when she arrived at ReVive, but over the years God has worked in her life and it’s a privilege to see the transformation.”

Through the “space for grace” in ReVive, J has come to know Jesus and goes along to church regularly and the local youth home group. She also helps out with the ReVive street team on a Friday handing out food and coffee to the homeless in the city.

Call to pray for DR Congo

Bisoke reported that 200 houses in a Hema village were burned before residents were killed by machete, creating “a lot of trauma among the Hema”, that some shops and petrol stations in Bunia had been closed and that there are “some young people who like to make chaos”.

Bisoke’s response to this situation is to call on the Church to respond in prayer: “Please pray. Please, we need your prayers.”

Rev Bisoke Balikenga

In time for school

The children show off their new school bags.

On the day before the start of school year, 50 children from the poorest part of Goiania, Brazil, were assured of a great start to the new school year when they received muchneeded school stationery kits.

Thanks to generous supporters, Debora and Levi Santana, who work in partnership with local churches in Goiania to serve people in poverty, raised funds to provide these bags full of school goodies just before the new academic year, which in Brazil begins in February.

The impetus for the gift came in December when Levi visited the home of Maria, who lives with her family in a community near the

THE CALL – SPRING 2018

Santanas’ office. Levi was perturbed by what he saw: “It is hard to describe how needy they and their community are. They live by a polluted river in a basic home with two rooms under an asbestos roof.”

Levi sent an email request to raise funds in December after Maria had expressed concern about not being able to buy school equipment for her children. The response to his email enabled Levi to buy 10 more kits than planned.

Debora and Levi are now exploring other ways to help two nearby communities, where in total about 100 adults and many children live, such as starting a homework club and services for single mums.

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MISSION NEWS In the saddle for CMS Church Mission Society supporter David Wilson, who is chaplain at Radley College, spent his October half term undertaking a challenging 373 km bike ride organised by Global Adventure Challenges. Along with his son, David cycled around Cuba to raise money and support the work of CMS. David described the challenge as “an opportunity of a lifetime” – though not necessarily an easy ride!

David explained that their route “took us on an incredible journey incorporating history and culture. Starting in Havana, we cycled along shimmering coastlines, past

tobacco and sugar cane fields and through thriving farming communities, where in many aspects of Cuban life, time had stood still.

Vintage Chevrolets, salsa and the occasional cocktail definitely featured highly as we pedalled through this beautiful country. We concluded our charity challenge in Santa Clara at the Che Guevara Mausoleum – a fitting end to this amazing fundraising event.”

The challenge, alongside other sponsored activities carried out by pupils at Radley College, raised £4,485.15 for the work of Catriona and Steve Bennett at Gahini Hospital in Rwanda.

Do get in touch if you’d like to tell us about fundraising activities, big or small, that you are taking part in for CMS. Contact Hannah Caroe: hannah.caroe@ churchmissionsociety.org

NEWS IN BRIEF BABY BOY FOR BISHOP JAMES You may remember Bishop James Hassan in the Nuba Mountains, Sudan, from the last issue of The Call. We were very pleased to hear that he and his wife, Nusa, had baby Andrew in January.

Please do continue to pray for the family.

NEW BIBLE STUDY RESOURCES LAUNCH We have launched a new series of Bible studies on our Resource Hub, aiming to bust some mission myths – see p. 20 for more information.

The Global Adventure Challenges cycling group in Cuba.

A new home for KISC Kathmandu International Study Centre (KISC) school in Nepal are excited to be moving to a new site between 12 and 19 February 2018, with the school opening there on 21 February. The new site is in Thecho, to the south of Kathmandu, and Dave and Debra Chislett explain the advantages over the previous site: “the site is much larger, the air is cleaner, the classrooms bigger.”

Phillipa Munday, who has served at KISC for five years, told us, “There is great excitement in the community and we look forward to this new phase in the life of the school.”

The building project began in late 2016, and the move to the

new site means that the school will now have its own purpose-built accommodation. Phillipa commented: “The new facilities will enable us to move forward with establishing an even more excellent centre of Christian education, in collaboration with a local school which is on the same site.”

In other news from KISC, Dave Chislett has just been appointed Head of ICT, so is taking on new responsibilities and oversight.

The new KISC building (left) under construction and an architect’s sketch of the new school site.

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CMS-AFRICA RECRUITING NEW HEAD Our sister organisation CMS-Africa are in the process of recruiting a new international director. The outgoing international director, Rev Dr Dennis Tongoi, will be leaving in 2018.

Please pray for them in this process, that God’s chosen servant leader will emerge.

WILD LENT Rachel Summers, oa student on the CMS Pioneer Leadership course, has recently had a book published

by Kevin Mayhew.

Wild Lent draws on Rachel’s experience of Forest Church, and introduces a new approach to Lent that actively engages with creation to discover God. Former CMS community mission mobiliser Mark Berry described it as “full of hope, action and fun”. Rachel was also featured on Songs of Praise on 11 February.

WORLD VIEWS

WORSHIP:

most fully human Just before 6am, everyone on the cathedral compound is making their way to the cathedral, with praise but silent.

I Madagascar

By Derek and Jane Waller

Worship is the heartbeat of the cathedral in Toliara diocese.

t is our second morning in Toliara, and the sun is already warm as we join them. Once inside, we scatter to quiet corners around the building. A hymn is announced and all sing, some in harmony, and the building fills. After 10 minutes of singing, silence once more descends and all open their Bibles and read.

In the last 10 minutes the leader calls us to quiet prayer: adoration, confession, thanksgiving and intercession, before ending with a concluding prayer.

Half an hour later, we move out of the building. The first person standing by the door greets the second (“salama!” which means “peace”), who then takes their place next to the first person. The third greets the first two and takes their place, and this continues until all have greeted one another and formed a circle. After a few words from Bishop Todd McGregor, we disperse.

STONES SHOUT OUT PRAISE These 30 minutes with God are part of the life of the cathedral community, a daily rhythm, taking place every day except Sunday.

It is early days – we write after three weeks here – but we sense that worship is the heartbeat of the Diocese of Toliara. The stones of the cathedral (built through a generous legacy donated for this purpose via CMS) shout out the central place of praise.

Opened in 2016, it is a large and beautiful building. The outside is finished in an almost white local stone. The inside is open and spacious without pillars to mar the view of the imposing altar with a simple, large cross behind.

The tradition is higher than we are used to. There is no denying the reverence with which Holy Communion is celebrated.

CLAP BLESSING There are surprises, too. At the sharing of the peace everyone holds hands and sings a song of peace, swaying from side to side. And during communion we sing with great gusto the revival hymn “There is power in the blood” – the most popular song during communion in our time in South Sudan!

A memorable moment for us comes at the end of the worship. We are invited forward to be welcomed by the congregation. The bishop then asks the two of us to hold out our hands, ready to receive.

Everyone rubs their hands together to get them hot and then claps 10 times before pushing their hands towards us, sending their blessing to us. A clap blessing is a first for us!

THE CALL – SPRING 2018

TRANSCENDING LANGUAGE In these first weeks we’ve felt like babies, unable to understand or be understood. Very few Malagasy speak any English at all. We speak, and people look mystified; they speak, and we haven’t a clue what they are saying.

Yet worship communicates beyond words. We join in silent prayer together and we sense that God is among us. People pray for us and we don’t understand the words but know we are being blessed. The hymns make no sense, but the singing lifts our hearts. And best of all, bread and wine need no language. The body of Christ is available to all and we receive gladly, alongside our brothers and sisters here.

The Diocese of Toliara, led by the bishop, is committed to evangelism and church growth. We’ll be excited to learn more about this in the coming months. But we are very glad that our first impression is that this diocese puts worshipping God – Father, Son and Holy Spirit – first.

RIGHT RELATIONSHIP It’s not that we find worship natural.

We often prefer to be busy doing rather than worshipping – or sleeping rather than waking early to pray! And genuine worship means shifting the focus away from ourselves onto God, and that’s not easy because our lives naturally revolve around ourselves.

But deep down we know that we are most fully human when we are worshipping. We are then in a right relationship with ourselves, the world and, most importantly, our Lord.

Putting God first puts our lives in the right order. With the help of God and the encouragement of the worshipping community here, we pledge ourselves to prayer and worship.

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WORLD VIEWS

A CALL TO COURAGE Jesus as a baby reminds us of the vulnerability of the newborn. The ruling king gave the order to kill all boys under two, and, guided by the Holy Spirit, Jesus’ parents fled to Egypt. The infant Jesus was protected by his parents, as every baby should be.

Asia By a couple in Asia working with a local organisation in the fight against human trafficking.

COURAGE TO ACT What would you do if you discovered your neighbour had sold their infant?

An incident was raised during the induction training with our new member of staff. It concerned someone in their community who had sold their infant some months before.

The parents were very poor and addicted to alcohol. The hospital asked them for fees to cover the birth – something that they shouldn’t have done – as childbirth is supposed to be free in government hospitals.

The family could not pay and the nurse suggested that they could hand over their newborn instead. Consequently, the couple gave their baby away.

So you have the problems brought on by addictions and poverty, a nurse acting

illegally by asking for fees, a hospital probably knowing what had happened. These are not problems that can change overnight.

Personal, community and structural issues need to be dealt with. Courage is definitely needed for someone or a local church to take action.

TOUGH QUESTIONS What does a church do when babies are sold?

Nothing? Pray? Act to rescue the child or prevent others from doing the same? What did the local church do in this particular case?

Nothing. Is it the job of the church to do anything or is it the role of another?

These are the issues that we are working through when we discuss child protection. Is it the job of the church to find the child sold and rescue them? Probably not. But the Bible

is clear that we are to seek justice and love mercy (Micah 6:8).

When a Christian knows that a child is in danger, it is their job to do something, whether reporting it to the police or to a social worker who can act. And then to pray about it and follow up to find out if anything was done.

Often when we don’t know what to do, or if the problem seems too big, we do nothing.

The baby sold was created in God’s image.

The great Alpha and Omega who flung stars into space created this baby and died for them. Each one is precious and should not be forgotten.

Stories we hear confirm that we are in the right place. We wish we could give a happy ending to the story of the baby sold, but we can’t. Where is this baby now? We don’t know and it’s almost too difficult to think about.

COMMUNITY

VISION DAYS 2018

BOO

ONL

K

INE

A DAY OF SHARING NEWS AND VISION

MANCHESTER 21 APRIL | LONDON 19 MAY The community vision days will be an opportunity to spend the day with members of Church Mission Society leadership, sharing news and looking together at the vision for the year ahead.

We also hope to highlight work that’s specific to each region.

BOOK ONLINE AT: CHURCHMISSIONSOCIETY.ORG/EVENTS

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WORLD VIEWS

YOUNG ALTRUIST HAS FINGER ON POVERTY PULSE The waiting area of the food bank is not the cheeriest of places – just several black chairs up against the wall in the corridor of a church – but seven-year-old “Oliver” and his mum were waiting patiently.

F Malta

By Doug and Jacqui Marshall

Empty shelves at the only food bank in Malta.

lanked by older women with empty trolley bags waiting for the food packet that would get them through the week, Oliver was dressed in smart, clean clothes and had a full, blue plastic bag in his lap.

I don’t know how long he waited, but when his mum saw me rushing by with papers in my hand trying to sort out a difficult client – I hadn’t even noticed them sitting there – she called out to me.

She hurriedly explained, trying not to take up too much of my time, that her son wanted to give a donation. He had just completed his piano exam and instead of his mum treating him to a special lunch he wanted to spend that money on food for the food bank.

I was floored! Stopping what I was about to do, I took them into the back of the food bank where we assemble the food parcels and showed Oliver where to put the tins he had brought. He watched as the tins were immediately put into packets for the next client.

FOOD IN/OUT DISCREPANCY To take you back a few steps, last September I started working at the food bank in Valletta, the capital. It was started two years ago by the new minister at St Andrew’s Scots Church, Rev Kim Hurst.

She had run a food bank in the UK before she came to Malta and when she saw the need here she started the only food bank on the island. (There are a few charities and churches that give away food to their local communities, but nothing as open or organised as a food bank.)

When I started, it was clear that the food bank was struggling. The donations over the summer had come to a standstill. And with school starting, families needed to buy school uniforms and stationery, squeezing their already tight budgets even more.

The demand on the food bank over last September and October increased, serving three times more clients than it did the same time the year before. In early October, we had to turn away families – three of them – for the first time as we ran out of food before the end of the shift.

Normally, the food bank has 60 clients a week and has four shifts a week. But the other week it had 30 clients in just one shift.

As a last attempt at getting donations, Rev Kim Hurst contacted a local paper who printed an article about the food bank running out of food. This produced a spike in donations and we are praying that this continues. So far God has always provided and the food bank has not had to shut – but the future is unknown.

NOT JUST MIGRANTS His mum was very grateful and told us that she would contact his school and see if they would donate too. She hit the nail on the head when she said, “People just don’t believe that there are others in Malta struggling in poverty, they just don’t believe it!” Or, to put it more precisely, they believe that the only people in Malta in poverty are migrants.

We have heard this misconception over and over again: the food bank only helps migrants. People don’t believe it when we tell them that at least 70 per cent of our clients are Maltese.

THE CALL – SPRING 2018

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PIONEER MISSION LEADERSHIP TRAINING PUT YOUR PIONEER CALL INTO ACTION

Fitting in is overrated.

OPEN DAYS

2018

DATES:

THIS UNIQUE COURSE PROVIDES A DYNAMIC LEARNING COMMUNITY FOR ANYONE WITH A PASSION FOR PIONEER MISSION – BOTH LAY AND ORDAINED. The focus is on equipping pioneers for innovative mission and the creation of fresh expressions of church. You can take individual modules or pursue a certificate, diploma, BA or MA accredited by Durham University. Pioneer ordinands will do some additional weekends with students at Ripon College, Cuddesdon.

Tuesday 13 March, 2018 Monday 21 May, 2018 Tuesday 12 June, 2018

TIME: 10.30am–2.30pm

LOCATION: Church Mission Society Watlington Road Oxford OX4 6BZ

RSVP TO: Helen Harwood 01865 787439 pioneer@churchmissionsociety.org Website: pioneer.churchmissionsociety.org Twitter: @CMSPioneer

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COVER STORY

LIFE TO THE FULL IN HULL

I’m a relative newcomer at Church Mission Society, having joined the communications team in the autumn. Had I been asked to predict where I would be travelling to research my first story for a mission organisation, Hull might not have been my initial guess!

BY JENNY MUSCAT SENIOR EDITORIAL CONTENT PRODUCER

O

n reflection, this is fitting, as 2017 was a big year for Hull – being put on the map (literally – it was added to the BBC weather map!) as a destination in the UK through being the City of Culture. Yet it is also a city with many challenges, including one of the highest concentrations of deprived areas in the UK, according to the Index of Multiple Deprivation report in 2015, an image that the City of Culture events have tried to challenge.

It turns out that life is far from dull in Hull, particularly for CMS mission partners Anna and Chris Hembury, who have been working there for the last 20 years.

Anna and Chris started off with a shared passion for working with young people on the margins, and this was the focus of their work here for many years – although they didn’t realise at the start how long they would end up staying! They expected to spend around five years in Hull, but three years in, it became apparent that wouldn’t be long enough. Now, they simply say they “forgot about going anywhere else”.

So, what could I find out with just 24 hours in Hull?

THURSDAY, 12 NOON Arriving shortly before lunch, I started my glimpse by heading to Orts, a sewing collective for women, born out of friendship.

THE CALL – SPRING 2018

Anna explained that she got to know a woman in the community who had been grappling with addiction and began to build a friendship – nothing out of the ordinary, we might think. Yet for Anna’s new friend, this was a unique relationship – as Anna was neither a support worker, nor part of the vulnerable or addicted community. This gave Anna the idea to create a space where women could come together from different parts of the community, bridging social gaps and allowing friendships to flourish. Orts means “scraps” or “leftovers” – and this is a community where those scraps of fabric and other materials are brought together into something beautiful, just as a beautiful community flourishes as the women come together each week.

Top left: Breakfast Club Top right: Anna and Chris at Selby Street Mission.

Bottom right: Chris and Anna Hembury

PHOTOGRAPHY BY JONATHAN SELF

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LIFE TO THE FULL IN HULL From left to right: Getting creative at Orts Tucking in at Breakfast Club St Matthew's Parish Hall, where Orts takes place Bottom: Community at Selby Street

Turning left in the entrance of St Matthew’s Parish Hall, I entered a different world from the slightly austere-looking outside – a stunning, colourful space, covered with banners and other craft projects, along with fabric, thread and myriad other craft supplies. Anna feels that “everyone needs colour in their life”, and Orts helps to provide that.

Round the table, over lunch and sewing, knitting and running repairs, there was shared life, laughter, poetry, frustrations and joys.

Some of the crafts are made to take home, some to sell and some for community activities or campaigning – including a knitted zebra crossing as part of a bid to improve safety on a local street! The group have designed or adapted simple craft ideas, so that everyone (even me!) can make something – from flowers and birds to bunting and quirky tea cosies.

This is a beautiful space, but quite a tight squeeze. And although this is a community doing life together, there are times when quiet or privacy are needed. So Orts have a dream to remove the false ceiling in their room and create a mezzanine level to allow space for quiet conversation away from the craft table.

THURSDAY, 3.30 PM Once clearing up from Orts was complete, and Chris had returned from an estates meeting with other church and community workers and the Bishop of Hull, I was taken a few steps down the street to Matt’s House, where I was staying overnight.

2017 was an important year for Matt’s House, a CMS-owned property used by CMS and Hull Youth For Christ (who lease the property) to facilitate mission in the community, as renovations were completed. Major work was undertaken to weatherproof the house, including on the roof and chimneys, double glazing some of the windows and addressing issues with heating – for which I was truly grateful on a cold January day! As well as accommodation for those working in the area, there is a community garden, where local people can come together to cultivate fruit and vegetables, and have social events in summer.

Even after just a short time in the house, named after its former role as vicarage for St Matthew’s Church, I could see that it underlines that mission here is about the long term. At the moment there are just two residents in the house – Sam and Martin – but there will be others moving in to join them soon. Sam and Martin have both been here for several years and are committed to living incarnationally as part of the local community, being part of bringing God’s kingdom as they do life here.

The garden, too, speaks of the way that Anna and Chris want to do mission. They speak of “moving towards mutuality” as they share the work in this and other projects, and of learning about mission as “a two-way street” where they receive as well as give. Here, the community are working to create a space to enjoy and be proud of, and it speaks of life and hope even in the midst of struggle.

THURSDAY, 8 PM After spending the evening catching up with Anna and Chris to hear more about their work and passion for mission, we returned to Matt’s House for Soul Space – an opportunity to reflect and share spiritual conversations each week in a relaxed setting which is just restarting after a pause.

FRIDAY, 7.40 AM It was a bright and early start to head down the street to Breakfast Club, one of the most consistent parts of the Hemburys’ work in Hull, having been running every Monday to Friday in the local Baptist church since 1999. Indeed, some of the parents who now bring their children along actually came to Breakfast Club when they were children.

The idea is a simple one – each morning, children and their parents can come to eat breakfast, share life and perhaps play some games. It came about as Anna and Chris were running after school clubs, but wanted to create an opportunity to see more of children and families, and build stronger relationships.

The operation ran like clockwork – after gathering to pray, tables and chairs were laid

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out, food prepared, games and books brought out, and tea brewed. Over 30 children and their parents came along, sharing food and time together before school – fulfilling Anna and Chris’s vision of giving the kids a good start to the day, both relationally and physically. In the words of one of the girls, “We’re all one big family here”. Her mum, Bev, started coming along through a neighbour a number of years ago, and this sums up her feelings about Breakfast Club – which was how she and her family were drawn to the church, and has been a key part of her journey to faith.

Shortly after nine, clear up was completed, and you wouldn’t know that Breakfast Club had been there, yet this ministry is key in communicating, through the presence of the church serving the community, that God is there for them all week, not just on Sundays.

Other activities have grown organically out of Breakfast Club over the years, including a Mums' Night, parenting courses and trips to the beach.

Chris commented, “I never get bored of going to Breakfast Club.”

In the meantime, there was just time for a cup of tea before heading on to my next activity…

FRIDAY, 10 AM The final ministry I visited was the Selby Street Mission. This takes place in a small church building around the corner from Matt’s House, next to the railway line. The Mission plays host to a range of activities to engage those on the margins throughout the week – this is a place where those who are vulnerable, perhaps facing challenges around mental health or addictions, can come and share community. I joined in a gathering that combined a short liturgy, space to hang out and build relationships, a shared lunch and the chance to discuss a Bible passage for those who wanted to.

The room gradually filled with a mixture of regulars and newcomers, with all of the hubbub of people coming together. Yet in this slightly chaotic scene, as the liturgy began, a tangible reverence fell over the room. The simple service of prayer, song, readings and reflection gives this community a place of encounter, outside of the more daunting structure of Sunday church.

SPRINGING UP One of the residents of Matt’s House, Martin, wrote this poem summing up what he has seen God doing in the area:

Indeed, Anna told us of this being the context for one of her “most real experiences of church”.

One week at the gathering, a long term member of the group really connected with the discussion.

This was about how we can put up masks to portray what we want people see of our lives, even as Christians, and the need to share some of the reality of our struggles and who we really are. This member of the group initiated a deep time of sharing then and there – and though it was hard, it was a refreshing and non-judgmental conversation for the group as people shared honestly and deeply about where they were in life.

Overall this place, as with the other ministries I had visited, spoke of not giving up, even in the face of huge challenges – bringing light in the darkness, and planting seeds of hope while also sharing times of mourning and lament.

FRIDAY, 1 PM I left Anna and Chris as they prepared to take a group of young people away for the weekend – theirs is definitely far from a nine to five role!

After 24 hours of coming alongside Anna and Chris as they put their call into action, it is fair to say that I was a little tired – yet they have been ministering in Hull for 20 years. So what is their secret to keeping on going?

Their comment on their work is that “we love what we do”, and that it is not a job or a project but a life – doing life together, sharing grief and lament as well as joy. As we walked around the local streets it was immediately apparent that Anna and Chris are a key part of the community – so many people just pause and say hello on their way past. For Anna and Chris, people are central, and particularly those on the margins – they comment that “God is at the margins”, and as they work with people on the margins they are “experiencing something of God that you don’t get anywhere else”.

Through the many activities and groups that they are involved in, Anna and Chris see a real cross section of their community – and so part of what they do is build bridges, be that between

women from different backgrounds, between the City of Culture events and a community that could be quite detached from them, or, most centrally, between God and a community that feels forgotten.

Their contribution in this community is highly valued. Alison White, Bishop of Hull, commented, “Anna and Chris do all kinds of things and make a difference, but I think what really matters is who they are and the relationships that grow from that. There are all kinds of words people use about them – generous, gentle, clear and passionate, courageous, fun, loving, Christlike.”

I left Hull feeling privileged to have been welcomed into this community, even if only for a short time. I was also hugely encouraged by seeing Anna and Chris put their call into action – living humbly as part of the community; showing that they, and God, are in this place and love this community for the long haul.

GIVE

Could you support faithful people in mission like Anna and Chris in their vital, hope-bringing work? Church Mission Society is currently running an appeal for UK mission.

You can give to this appeal at: churchmissionsociety.org/bringhope THE CALL – SPRING 2018

Something’s happening on the Boulevard.

Pops is up to something.

We know it’s him, ‘cos like when the Springtime comes along and things start to grow and flourish, bringing colour and joy and relief, it’s almost effortless, like we aren’t really doing anything ourselves, we’re just getting up and getting on and it’s just sprouting up all around us.

And it’s beautiful.

Yeah, it’s Pops all right.

He’s on a mission, Pops.

Through the seeds he’d planted long ago, and the people he’d left in charge of tending the garden, through the fruit of his spirit, they’ve persevered, stood, endured, watched, watered and weeded, and now that their roots have become nourished deep in the earth, it’s growing.

Something’s happening in the old vicarage.

New gardeners have come, old ones have been re-inspired.

A community of intentional living is starting to sprout.

It went quiet for a while.

The birdsong.

But now the sound is back and it’s such sweet music to the ears.

Like that birdsong, it’s diverse; many breeds and backgrounds all flocking together under Pop’s feather, fed from the fruits of a well nourished soil.

He’s got big plans, Pops.

He’s using the old vicarage as a beacon, and expanding his garden here.

He’s branching out, showing the Boulevard that there is hope in community.

He’s encouraging the sharing of possessions, the breaking of bread, the making of music, the moulding of character and the shaping of mission.

No matter how long the dark night, the sun always comes up, and no matter how bleak the winter, the Springtime always follows…

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THE CMS LATIN AMERICA FORUM INVITES YOU TO:

¡ADELANTE! 2018 A time of learning, praying and sharing together about what God is doing in Latin America

WHEN:

Friday 13 April (informal catch up and coffee) Saturday 14 April (all day, main event)

WHERE:

St Stephen’s Church, Serpentine Road, Selly Park, Birmingham, B29 7HU

For more information, contact Mary Rollin: mary.rollin@churchmissionsociety.org

Book online at: churchmissionsociety.org/adelante

SOUTH DOWNS SPONSORED WALK Grab your boots and come along for a great day out, walking in beautiful countryside for a fantastic cause. Choose your distance – from 10km to 60km – and join us to help raise vital funds for Church Mission Society people in mission all around the world!

WHEN: 12 May 2018 WHERE: the lovely South Downs WHO: You, your family and friends! Walk with CMS staff and

others from the wider CMS community – an ideal opportunity to connect with people passionate about mission.

WHAT NEXT: Check out our website, churchmissionsociety.org/southdowns2018, email hannah.caroe@churchmissionsociety.org or call 01865 787521 14

CHURCH MISSIO N SO CIETY

FEATURE STORY

LIVING LA VIDA LOCAL In 2009 Church Mission Society merged with the South American Missionary Society (SAMS). This year, CMS has taken a bold step towards cultivating a locally-led mission movement within Latin America. Mission development manager for Latin America Paul Tester will lead this work from Lima. Here he talks about vision, mission and tradition.

WHAT LED YOU TO APPLY FOR THE POST OF MISSION DEVELOPMENT MANAGER FOR LATIN AMERICA? The short answer would be God. The long answer is I’ve been working happily with SAMS then CMS in the Diocese of Peru for 10 years, first with young people and then in discipleship across the diocese.

But when I read about the role, I felt a sense of calling. The idea of placing this position within Latin America to work alongside the local church to develop a mission movement within and from Latin America is really exciting.

“We’re not inventing something new. We’re just looking to follow God’s lead and we’ve sensed that this is the right time to do something a bit different.”

SO WHAT WILL IT TAKE TO GROW A DISTINCTLY LATIN AMERICAN MISSION MOVEMENT? Many things are already happening within Latin America. There are Latin American churches who have sent missionaries to serve within Latin America and globally.

In addition to sending mission partners from the UK, we are already working with many local partners whom God has raised up (see pages 16–17). So we’re not inventing something new. We’re just looking to follow God’s lead and we’ve sensed that this is the right time to do something a bit different. We need to work with the Latin American church, encouraging dioceses and strategic partners to participate in this broad global movement from Latin America to the rest of the world.

We need to connect with other mission movements and we need to give and receive resources. There are lots of things that CMS can offer the Latin American church to help facilitate mission within and from the region – things such as experienced mission training and a vast network – and vice versa. We work closely with the Anglican province of South America to nurture mission growth and we will continue working together at a deep level.

WHAT ARE SOME CHALLENGES IN LATIN AMERICA TODAY? There are issues of poverty, particularly wealth inequality. Corruption is another issue. There have been some huge political scandals and people are feeling disillusioned with politicians. There are massive environmental challenges particularly adversely affecting indigenous peoples and the rural poor.

There is a huge need for Christians to speak into these issues. I strongly feel this has to be led by the Latin American church and we from the UK need to walk alongside them.

SO WHAT WILL YOU DO FIRST? The first step for me is listening, to God and to our key partners, getting a sense of what they see is the next step, what support they need in mission. My plan is

CONTINUED OVER PAGE >> THE CALL – SPRING 2018

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LIVING LA VIDA LOCAL to visit all our mission partners, local partners and short-termers in my first 18 months, to listen and observe and to build together from there. It’s a big challenge; we work in 10 Latin American countries.

I’m keeping the founding Venn principles of CMS very much in mind: particularly to start small, begin with prayer and to rely on the Spirit of God. YOU’VE USED THE WORD “MOVEMENT”.

WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A “MOVEMENT” AND “GOOD THINGS HAPPENING”?

The term “movement” gives a sense of life, as opposed perhaps to an institution. And I think we really are relying on the movement of God’s Spirit. God is way ahead of us in this. In a sense we see that already: Latin Americans have been serving in international crosscultural mission for years. God is already stirring things up and we are just looking to play our part. Also I think in a movement there is a unity of purpose, a common vision or direction. I’m hoping to find this as I travel around Latin America; I’m hoping to see mission in many different contexts, but with a similar desire to work together and equip each other to join in with what God is already doing.

CMS HAS CHOSEN TO PLACE YOUR ROLE WITHIN THE REGION. HOW SIGNIFICANT IS THIS? I think it’s really important, both practically, because we’ll be geographically closer, and because it sends a strong message that we genuinely want to work alongside the Latin American church, not swoop in and take over. My office will be based at the diocesan centre in Lima and I think that will help with integration.

WHEN YOU LOOK AHEAD, WHAT EXCITES YOU? We see Latin Americans migrating throughout the world and working in many different contexts, establishing churches. We see Latin American churches sending groups to serve in mission. That’s exciting. I’m also excited by how encouraging the church in Latin America has been to us in this move, particularly the Anglican Province of South America. The bishops have lent their support and been involved in this process.

Latin American Christians have real, visible passion for living out their faith, which can be contagious. I think in certain contexts Latin Americans may be more welcome and better received than someone from the UK. DO YOU FEEL THE WEIGHT OF CMS AND SAMS HISTORY ON YOUR SHOULDERS? I feel a sense of responsibility but I don’t feel weighed down – I feel excited to be part of that wonderful tradition. And if this move is truly of God, I don’t need to feel burdened.

Rather, I can simply play the part God wants me to: looking after our current people in mission and cultivating a locally led mission movement.

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MEET OUR L

DISCOVER HOW T

As well as supporting mission partners, CMS already helps local partners to live out their call in Latin America. We’d like to introduce you to some of the local leaders we are working with…

Anderson Sanchez, (Lima, Peru) 1

Anderson has been in pastoral and teaching ministries in Miraflores for many years and recently received an award for work in the local young offenders unit. He supports his wife, Isabel, Head of Santa Trinidad Anglican School, where for the first time a school camp for those about to graduate from high school has been held.

Franklin Cuenca, (Santa Cruz, Bolivia) 2

Franklin is from Cochabamba, southern Bolivia, and qualified as an orthodontist. He studied theology at CEP seminary in Santiago and is senior pastor at Christ, Light of the World. He is also responsible for the annual Anglican Provincial Youth Congress and works on effective leadership training and outreach to the local community.

Walter Toro, (Tarija, Bolivia) 3

Walter is in pastoral ministry at Jesus the Good Shepherd church and developing mission outreach in a marginalised part of the city. One of Walter and his wife Adelita’s main desires is to support married couples in times of crisis. Both the 12 house-based prayer groups and the Men of Valour ministries are active and well attended.

Aida Cuenca, (Salta, Argentina) 4

Aida is based in Salta and is Northern Argentina diocesan secretary. Her role centres on equipping leadership groups, including church or zonal treasurers, AMARE women’s leadership and pastoral committees. In other words every person or group needing organisational training, in understanding and applying the principles and tools of effective administration.

Nicolas Fuentes, (Santiago, Chile) 5

Nicolas studied at CEP Santiago seminary and leads a church planting team at Puente Alto (High Bridge), where his main role is equipping the team and maintaining the future church vision. He focuses on encouraging the team in constant friendship evangelism, and in serving and loving the local community as they hear the message of the gospel.

Bishop Abelino Apeleo, (Temuco, Chile) 6

As assistant bishop of Chile, based in the region of Araucania, Southern Chile, Abelino has oversight of the Rural Bible Institute in Temuco. Working among the Mapuche, his own people, he feels it is a privilege to share the gospel and to face the challenges of training church leaders for some very remote communities.

CHURCH MISSIO N SO CIETY

MEET OUR LOCAL PARTNERS

LATIN AMERICA LOCAL PARTNERS

THEY ARE TRANSFORMING LOCAL COMMUNITIES Noel Diaz,

SPAIN

(Zaragoza, Spain) Noel is originally from Nicaragua, and is currently supported by IERE (Spanish Episcopalian Church). He is responsible for a church plant in Zaragoza, with emphasis on social outreach and counselling for the community. Noel was recently ordained deacon and has taken on roles as Spanish Episcopal Youth Delegate and Diocesan Delegate for Media.

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Victor Gonzalez, (Rico Verde, El Chaco, Paraguay) 10

Victor travels for several weeks a month to visit and encourage small indigenous groups in the Chaco. These communities live in precarious situations but are faithful in meeting as families for prayer and Bible study. Victor and his team use local radio to reach the most isolated places, and last year 59 believers were baptised.

Alex Teixeira, (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) 9

Alex studied music and theology, and is responsible for Calvary Mission Chapel, Nova Friburgo. His role includes running a local radio programme and leading Christian education projects in Mage. A range of resources is being designed to engage children’s curiosity. At a local monthly fair people can get to know about activities and receive prayer.

Tiago Oliveira, (Florianopolis, Brazil) 8

Tiago Oliveira, based at Santa Catarina Church in Florianopolis, became a Christian at 25 and felt God’s clear call to mission. He has volunteered in projects including rehab for drug addicts and his current role is initiating outreach and discipleship work with young adults.

Mario Agreda, (Buenos Aires, Argentina) 7

Mario is rector of Santa Trinidad Church, Lomas de Zamora, and chaplain of two local schools. He studied sociology, and promoting Christian education is one of his specialities. The church has an annual arts festival and supports the San Lucas mission church 500 km away in Arias, Cordoba, with regular visits and practical help.

To support Church Mission Society’s local partner programme, go to:

churchmissionsociety.org/localpartners THE CALL – SPRING 2018

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WHAT IS MISSION?

There are so many myths about mission. At Church Mission Society, we don’t like to see people held back by these myths – instead we love seeing God’s people set free to put their call into action. And that’s why we’re out to bust some myths and help you engage with mission.

1 MISSION

MEANS...

WE HAVE TO SAVE THE WORLD

Why would we want to dampen anyone’s enthusiasm for world-change? We don’t.

Not at all. But we think it’s absolutely vital to understand who it is who’s actually doing the changing… if it’s God’s mission, where do we fit in?

O I S S I M S I T A H W

O T E TH N O I S MIS

IS... PRIMARILY 2 MISSION A WESTERN THING

If you do a quick Google image search on the word “missionaries” it will return a large number of white, western faces surrounded by non-western “beneficiaries” of mission. Yet the centres of gravity in global Christianity have shifted. We now live in a world where almost three out of every four Christians live outside the West: in Latin America, Africa and parts of Asia. The question for us to answer is: what are the implications of this reality for us as we think about mission?

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the call i

IS... ABOUT DOING 3 MISSION THINGS FOR PEOPLE IN NEED

How do we grapple with the question of when to help, and when to simply listen, learn and be? How can we examine our impulses to “help the needy” and discover mission that is transformative in every way?

4 MISSION IS... FOR

ON?

4 P O

S H T Y M

in action

EXTRAORDINARY PEOPLE

Are the people who “do” mission all extraordinary? Sometimes we can feel as if we are too “ordinary” to be having an impact in mission. Is packing food at a local food bank an act of mission? Is caring for your child an act of mission? Is giving to your church or charity an act of mission? We think so. It seems to us that most Christians want to be more involved in mission; they just need to be “set free” to do so – from whatever is holding them back.

WHAT DO YOU THINK?

To explore and bust these myths, check out our new Bible study , What is Mission? Look over the page to find out more, or head to:

churchmissionsociety.org/missionis THE CALL - SUMMER 2017 THE CALL – SPRING 2018

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MISSION IS...

WHAT IS MISSION? WE’RE GLAD WE ASKED! Last year, we learned from our Mission Is survey that most Christians believe we should all be involved in mission in some way, but also that many people aren’t always able to put their call into action.

At Church Mission Society we are passionate about seeing people set free to put their call into action, so we’ve been busy developing some resources to help you, your small group, your church, or a wider group of Christians in your area to engage with mission. Here we outline some practical tools that draw on CMS's cross-cultural experience to help you engage with God's mission and your call within it.

BIBLE STUDIES There are so many myths about mission.

Or maybe the more accurate word is “misconceptions” but “myths” sounds more intriguing and it’s shorter so that’s the word we’ve chosen for our Bible study series – four studies busting some mission myths.

When we think of mission, often we think of great people, going to places most people don’t want to go to, to do good things. But mission isn’t just a job someone does for a while. It’s not just a task or activity or obligation for specific people. At CMS, we’ve learned that God is working all over the world and that all followers of Jesus are called to be part of what he’s doing.

In our new Bible studies, you and your group will be introduced to all kinds of CMS people in mission, and if there’s anything holding you back from being in mission, our prayer is that you’ll be set free from whatever that is. And we hope you’ll take a further step into God’s mission, if not with Church Mission Society, then with someone – but preferably with Church Mission Society.

SO WHAT ARE THESE MYTHS WE WILL BE EXPLORING? MISSION MEANS WE HAVE TO SAVE THE WORLD Why would we want to dampen anyone’s enthusiasm for worldchange? We don’t. Not at all. But we think it’s absolutely vital to understand who it is who’s actually doing the changing… if it’s God’s mission, where do we fit in?

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MISSION IS PRIMARILY A WESTERN THING If you do a quick Google image search on the word “missionaries” it will return a large number of white, western faces surrounded by non-western “beneficiaries” of mission. Yet the centres of gravity in global Christianity have shifted. We now live in a world where almost three out of every four Christians live outside the West: in Latin America, Africa and parts of Asia. The question for us to answer is: what are the implications of this reality for us as we think about mission?

MISSION IS ABOUT DOING THINGS FOR PEOPLE IN NEED How do we grapple with the question of when to help, and when to simply listen, learn and be? How can we examine our impulses to “help the needy” and discover mission that is transformative in every way?

MISSION IS FOR EXTRAORDINARY PEOPLE Are the people who “do” mission all extraordinary? Sometimes we can feel as if we are too “ordinary” to be having an impact in mission. Is packing food at a local food bank an act of mission? Is caring for your child an act of mission? Is giving to your church or charity an act of mission? We think so. It seems to us that most Christians want to be more involved in mission; they just need to be “set free” to do so – from whatever is holding them back.

The study material includes leader’s notes, biblical reflections and videos in which some friends of CMS explore the myths and what they have learned, and share some practical examples of living out mission. You can find the Bible studies and videos online on our Resource Hub: churchmissionsociety.org/resources There, you can also find more resources to help you think about and engage with, pray for and support mission. For more information, contact Helen Brook, church mission adviser, on helen. brook@churchmissionsociety.org or 01865 787493.

WORKSHOPS As well as providing Bible study resources, we can come along to run a workshop exploring the theme of “Mission Is”, looking at how we can learn cross-cultural lessons and apply them in a local context.

This could be within your church, or for a group of churches in your area to engage with together.

The workshops are interactive and involve exploring how God is working in your community and what you can do to join in. We cover topics including: Reaching your local community Crossing cultures in your context Pioneering new initiatives In autumn 2017 our team ran some workshops in Bristol diocese, and this is what some of the participants said afterwards: “Very thought provoking and very enjoyable, the time just flew by” “helpful and nourishing” “Very stimulating and relevant” “It was well presented – excellent resources – understandable” “Good pace and variety of input” “Very engaging and action orientated” If you would be interested in workshops that CMS can run to help your church or community in thinking about and stepping out into mission, please do get in touch with John Orchard, church relations officer, on john.orchard@ churchmissionsociety.org or 01865 787523.

Get the study materials at: churchmissionsociety.org/missionis

CHURCH MISSIO N SO CIETY

PIONEER MISSION LEADERSHIP TRAINING

THE LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY ORDINANDS Helen Harwood, pioneer training administrator at Church Mission Society, talks to Kevin Colyer, Susie Templeton, Chris Sheehan and Nick White about being pioneer ordinands with CMS.

T

he Pioneer Mission Leadership Training course started at Church Mission Society in 2010 with a pilot group of nine students. 2012 was a landmark year as we became recognised as a viable training pathway for people pursuing ordination (we also began offering an MA option).* In 2015 CMS welcomed eight ordinands onto the course, seven from the Church of England and one from the Church of Wales.

They are now in their final year of preparing for ordination, so I was delighted to catch up with some of them before they start a new chapter of their ministry, to hear what it’s like to train for ordination with CMS.

HEARING THE PIONEER CALL I wanted to find out how our pioneers first felt called to ordained ministry, so I asked them to tell us their stories. Chris Sheehan from Evesham told me: “Throughout my life, God has given me a heart for the underdog and those who struggle with life, whether that’s in my working life, for example those starting in business with huge gaps of knowledge or skills, or visiting mentally ill people or people

in care homes (including the one my father was at before his death).” Being a street pastor has shown Chris great need and hunger in his community. He felt God asking him to be the bridge between the community and the church, and has done this by listening to people’s stories, being prepared to share his own story and offering worship, hospitality and fellowship.

Chris goes out on the streets and draws people into the life of the church, particularly those who lack self-confidence, who are poor, the long-term unemployed and their families and those who feel they’ve failed. A vast majority have had no regular experience with church.

Chris’s calling is to be a “distinctive deacon” whose focus is weighted towards those at the margins. For him, “being ordained means I can be there for those for whom the collar is reassuring as well as for those who find it offputting, as I have the option not to wear it.”

Nick White, who has come to CMS from Chatham, Kent, told me his ordination journey began as soon as he came to faith: “Ever since God found me, I’ve cared about helping other people find faith in God and grow, and quite a few people have said they thought I would/ should go for ordination.” Nick worked first in youth and children’s ministry with a local church

Pioneer student Susie Templeton

THE CALL – SPRING 2018

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THE LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY ORDINANDS Pioneer students left to right: Kevin Colyer Nick White Chris Sheehan

which had no children at all! He had to start from scratch in his local community with schools and home visiting and getting to know local families, finding out what the barriers were to children and families engaging with church.

The Mission Shaped Ministry course introduced Nick to the possibility of ordained pioneer ministry with the Church of England. “That caught my attention and I started thinking more seriously about ordination and got to know a couple of other pioneer ministers. A key moment for me was when I applied for a community ministry role with a church and the vicar interviewing me said ‘everything you talked about in the interview was saying to me ORDINATION’. When I talked to my own vicar about it, she just said, ‘About time… I wondered when you were going to say that!’ And so I began the discernment process.”

Participating in Mission Shaped Ministry also offered Susie Templeton the chance to consider pioneer ministry while doing pastoral work in the Naval Chaplaincy in Southsea. She explained, “Although I didn't really understand that pioneer ministry was a thing at that point, I certainly knew that I wasn't called to be a typical parish vicar. I was lucky enough to participate in a Mission Shaped Ministry course and that's when I started to understand that pioneering was a distinct approach to ministry, and something I had been doing intuitively for a while. It suddenly made a lot more sense of my vocation to ordination.”

SQUARE PEGS IN SQUARE HOLES Kevin Colyer from Reading took a while to find his calling to ordination. When asked what drew him, he replied: “It clearly wasn't the chance to wear 16th century dress and preserve historical buildings or rituals! … I've always wanted to make communities of people who are transformed and transforming the world around them because of Jesus. I couldn't see a place for me in the Anglican Church 25 years ago; it is only in the last decade as the role of ordained pioneer emerged and it seemed to describe me better than anything else….” He adds, “I was perhaps a square peg and now can see square holes to fit into!”

The “gift of not fitting in” is something that’s talked about a lot at CMS, particularly by pioneer course leader Jonny Baker. It seems to be one of the hallmarks of being a pioneer.

FINDING A HOME AT CMS Having discovered pioneer ministry as an option, what was it that brought these ordinands to CMS for their training?

All of them said CMS was recommended, as well as mentioning other important factors. Chris said he felt “… the overlap between the distinctive diaconate and pioneering was exactly the right type of training and challenge I needed.”

When Kevin was looking for training there were only one or two places that were offering the sort of training he could see he would need. He told me, “CMS stood out clearly… all those I talked to talked highly of CMS. I also liked the idea of training with another mission organisation as I

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CHURCH MISSIO N SO CIETY

worked for 25 years with YWAM before. The crosscultural and contextual understanding of mission is vital for a pioneer and this is the strength of a missionary organisation.”

Nick was drawn to the fact that the CMS course had been designed by pioneers for pioneers, and because it enabled him to continue his current ministry while training. Most important for Nick was the benefit of regularly being with a lot of other pioneers, as well as training with other ordinands on the weekends at Ripon College Cuddesdon.

Despite feeling overwhelmed by the selection process, Susie found that a Pioneer Course open day made her feel “very welcomed and excited about the approach to training”, and she was reassured by Jonny Baker talking about pioneers becoming “the truest version” of themselves. She commented further about how training at CMS chimed in with her call: “It felt like coming full circle – the fact that everything was taught from a missional, and global perspective. When I was at uni, I had felt a strong call to global mission and had spent a lot of time travelling and working overseas. One of my fears about ordination was having to close the door on that chapter, but the opportunity to train at CMS felt like God was honouring it in an unexpected way. I knew it was the place for me!”

I asked the ordinands about the different aspects of ministry and Christian experience that they encountered while on the course. Kevin really valued “seeing fresh ways of knowing Jesus that are deeply rooted in the tradition of Christianity but are helpful and useful today.” Meanwhile, the partnership with Ripon has been helpful to Nick, who has “learned a lot about the nuts and bolts of parish ministry on the weekends at Ripon”.

EQUIPPED FOR THE NEXT CHAPTER? After nearly three years of training, how have these ordinands found training with CMS? Kevin said, “I have been thrilled and delighted at CMS. It has ‘done what it said on the tin’!” He explained that he had been bowled over by his fellow students who he described as a constant source of inspiration, support and encouragement.

“We learn a lot from each other, bringing reflections on practice, ready illustrations and creative ways to apply learning.”

Nick told me he felt he had developed immensely as a result of doing the MA. “It’s stretched my thinking, encouraged me in my local mission and ministry, challenged my practice, deepened my faith, and sometimes shaken me out of complacency.” Nick has also grown in knowing God was calling “… me as ‘me’, rather than as a stereotypical super-charged, heroic, idea-a-minute, edgy pioneer minister.” He feels he needs to keep central that ordination training is mostly about allowing God to shape him and grow him.

Chris shared that the course exceeded his expectations –

PIONEER MISSION LEADERSHIP TRAINING “Over-exceeded. I had no conception of many of the people, fresh expressions, love and great work being done in the UK and worldwide. The rich colour and diversity of those who I study alongside has been really invigorating and the ideas for responding to the economic needs of my community will be further enhanced by the missional entrepreneurship course.”** Susie commented on the foundations that her training has given her for ministry in the future: “Training at CMS comes off the back of over 200 years of developing cross-cultural missional practice, and all the lessons learned from that. As a pioneer, it's opened up my vocation in fresh ways and given me a language to understand the urgent need for innovation and creative thinking in mission and ministry within today's society. I have grown in self-awareness, in confidence, and in the ability to approach the challenges of contemporary faith with authenticity, informed by the deep traditions of spirituality gifted to us by our historic church family. I can't imagine a better foundation for the future outworking of my calling to ordination in the Church of England.”

“Training at CMS comes off the back of over 200 years of developing crosscultural missional practice, and all the lessons learned from that. As a pioneer, it's opened up my vocation in fresh ways and given me a language to understand the urgent need for innovation and creative thinking in mission and ministry within today's society.”

Susie Templeton

SO WHAT NEXT? Looking forward, Nick spoke about the ministry area he would like to work in: “I feel drawn to an urban estate, possibly a new housing development, perhaps growing small intergenerational missional communities.”

For Chris, the next step is straightforward: “My curacy will begin next summer in Evesham as I’ll be a self-supporting distinctive deacon. I hope to spread the word about the diaconate and pioneering across the diocese and to start and continue with initiatives such as Germinate Enterprise (Christian business start-up support), Soulfood (a Christian meal and reflection for all) and the work of the social business Shine Out of School Clubs, which was founded with support from a previous missional entrepreneurship week.”** Susie will be heading on to a curacy, and is aware that “if training is anything to go by, it will be brilliant in many unexpected ways so I am looking forward to what God has in store!” Kevin will also be heading on to a curacy – in his case in Maidenhead.

We look forward to hearing from all of them about how God uses these extraordinary ordinands!

JOIN

To find out more about Pioneer Mission Leadership Training, go to pioneer.churchmissionsociety. org, come along to one of our open days (see p. 10), or contact Helen Harwood: helen.harwood@ churchmissionsociety.org.

* These are awarded through our partnership with Ripon College Cuddesdon to deliver Common Awards accredited by Durham University. **The Missional Entrepreneurship course, now called Make Good, is open to all as a residential five-day event run in November and April.

Further interviews with these and other students are available monthly by signing up to be a Pioneer Friend: pioneer.churchmissionsociety.org

THE CALL – SPRING 2018

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FEATURE STORY

GREEN DREAMS Amy and David Roche inspire children in Lebanon to consider ecological sustainability

BY MARIA RIDING, WRITER

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hat to do when working in a country grappling with a waste management crisis, struggling government, a refugee crisis and sectarian feuding?

CMS mission partners Amy and David Roche responded by launching an eco-friendly children’s initiative, Planting Cedars of Hope. “We had been living in Lebanon for a few years and saw that we could do more to care for the environment,” commented David. “More can be done for the country’s recycling, pollution and for global climate change. So we set up an essay writing competition for children to imagine the future of an ecologically sustainable Lebanon.”

SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS The couple, in collaboration with the British Embassy, the British Council and Lebanon’s largest nature reserve, invited 110 schools nationwide, both public and private schools and from all faith backgrounds, to put their thinking hats on. They challenged grade six to eight children, aged 11–13, to consider what Lebanon might look like if they could change it for the better.

Name: Amy and David Roche

“I can’t stress enough how important it is that [children] should see themselves as owning the future of this country together.”

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CHURCH MISSIO N SO CIETY

Location: Beirut, Lebanon Our call: To share the good news of Jesus Christ in our diverse community in diverse ways Our role: We are mission coordinators for our church working pastorally with those in need

GREEN DREAMS that, corruption and internal feuding led to the country not having a cabinet or prime minister from 2014 to 2016.

These deep-seated issues were matters that Amy and David wanted to address through the Cedars of Hope project: “We chose this project because it goes to the heart of what needs to change in Lebanon. Lebanon is a beautiful country and yet the trash crisis is a metaphor for the issue of ineffectual political action because of corruption. There is also no teaching in the school curriculum nationally about environmental issues, and Beirut has terrible pollution. We wanted a project that can ask the future generation of children to consider what Lebanon might look like if they could change for the better.”

Winners from each grade could come to the Shouf Biosphere Cedar Reserve, home to 500 plant species and trees 2,000 years old, for a day to see up-close why it is so important to protect their country’s ecological resources.

David and Amy anticipated that half the schools might reply, but the response was much higher. Over 300 children from across the country travelled to the event on 17 November, where they hiked a 40-minute trail together and contributed to conservation by each planting a tree.

“This is surely one of the most beautiful parts of the country,” the UK’s ambassador to Lebanon, Hugo Shorter, said at the start of the day, looking out over the Shouf Mountains covered with cedar trees, Lebanon’s national symbol. “It’s heartwarming for me to see so many of you who have come from different parts of Lebanon here today united for a good cause: to help grow this reserve and share your brilliant ideas about solutions to environmental problems.”

Before the children headed off to walk the recently-opened Queen Elizabeth II trail, the Archbishop of Jerusalem, Suheil Dawani, also met with the children. And the Lebanese Minister for Education, Marwan Hamade, received copies of the three winning essays and handed out prizes to the winners.

Top left: The children viewed a mobile botanical garden.

Middle: Children from all faith groups walked the Queen Elizabeth II trail together.

Right: Planting a cedar tree as a sign of hope for Lebanon.

RECONCILIATION WALK The initiative had another motive: seeing youngsters from Muslim (both Shia and Sunni), Druze and Christian backgrounds hike a trail in unity is a fairly unique occurrence in Lebanon, a country still recovering from a devastating 15 year civil war which ended in 1990.

David explained that creating an opportunity for this unity was part of the vision. “The focus of this event was not only environmental restoration but reconciliation among faith groups across Lebanon who would not normally walk together. Our aim is that our Planting Cedars of Hope intentionally models to the children the vision of sharing together the future hope and care of Lebanon.

“I can’t stress enough how important it is that they should see themselves as owning the future of this country together. Where maybe some of the older people have given up or we failed, they can go forward and have success in this amazing country.”

FIVE MARKS OF MISSION As mission coordinators for a local Anglican church, Amy and David had wanted to find an occasion to engage with the Anglican five marks of mission. Based on Jesus’ summary of his mission, these points form the key statement about everything the Anglican Church does in this region. The fourth and fifth marks include aims to “pursue peace and reconciliation” and “strive to safeguard the integrity of creation”.

David explains, “This project touches them at several levels, contributing to the work of environmental restoration, continuing the post-civil war social reconciliation and marking this with the deeper Christian hope to see God’s goodness cover the earth. The Cedars of Lebanon are a powerful symbol of this hope.”

TROUBLED COUNTRY Even before David, Amy and three of their five children moved from France to Beirut in 2014, they had started to realise how troubled Lebanon was. On an exploratory trip several months before moving, David noted, “All places of worship have a military presence outside and at Sunday worship there was a lorry of soldiers by the church entrance. We could sense the undercurrent of tension between opposing factions and the persistent sectarian violence.”

Lebanon has also absorbed a huge influx of refugees escaping the atrocities of the Syrian civil war. The government estimates the number of refugees to be 1.5 million, which is a quarter of Lebanon’s population – and far more than any other country has hosted. It has put a huge strain on education and public services.

A waste management crisis erupted in 2015 when authorities closed down a landfill site near Beirut. Rubbish started piling up on the streets, attracting vermin, contaminating water and causing health hazards when people burned the rubbish. The problem is still ongoing. On top of

THE CALL – SPRING 2018

SMALL STEPS There was reason for hope on 17 November, seeing the children walk, talk and eat together.

David said, “This is really an opportunity to take another much-needed small step in the work of reconciliation.” The team at the Shouf Biosphere Cedar Reserve were excited by the new initiative and are planning to turn the eco-project into an annual event.

Amy concluded, “To hear the imagination, the creativity that this younger generation have and to bring that together here in this beautiful environment has just been a really special day.

I think for me the cedar tree is a real symbol of hope and the replanting of trees for the environment, but also symbolically for the future of the next generation of Lebanon. We are all God’s children and should celebrate that.”

PRAY

1

Pray that the young generation will see they own the future of Lebanon together.

2

Pray for a long-term solution to the waste crisis in Lebanon.

3

Pray for strength and courage for Amy and David to proclaim and live out the gospel in a way that transforms lives and communities.

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THE CALL

IN THE WILDERNESS

BY MARK BERRY, COMMUNITY MISSION MOBILISER

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e are all familiar with the season of Lent. The time when we mirror the 40 days that Jesus spent in the Judean desert, the wilderness. From its earliest recording, Lent was a time of fasting.

St Irenaeus writing to Pope Victor I says that the Easter fast originated “in the time of our forefathers”, a phrase always used to refer to the apostles. We know that Lent had become a significant part of the Christian year by the time of the Council of Nicea (325) and St Athanasius (d. 373) in his Festal Letters instructed his congregation to observe the 40-day fast prior to the celebration of Holy Week. So, from the beginnings of the church it seems that this season has been deeply significant. The earliest followers of Jesus knew this time of fasting which Pope Leo (d.

461) called the “Apostolic institution of the 40 days” was not something to skip over or take lightly.

The purpose of Lent has always been the same – preparation through fasting and prayer.

This, as we know, is a practice which in Scripture wasn’t limited to Jesus: Moses spent 40 days and nights on Sinai, Elijah undertook a 40day journey through the wilderness to Mount Horeb. Indeed, the number 40 is significant in the Bible, often seeming to mean a period beyond what is thought normal or survivable.

The floods covered the earth for 40 days, the Israelites spent 40 years in the desert, Goliath provoked Saul’s army for 40 days, and so on.

The significance of 40 days of prayer and preparation has continued throughout church history – the patron saint of my church, St Brendan, is said to have fasted for 40 days and nights before setting sail on his great journey.

But let’s return to the story of Jesus. Jesus did not undertake his 40 days of prayer and preparation without reason, as an endurance test or quest to “find himself”. In this year’s Gospel reading for the first Sunday of Lent we discover what happens immediately before he sets out into the desert. Mark 1:9–15 finds Jesus at the banks of the river Jordan: At that time Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptised by John in the

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Jordan. Just as Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove.

And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”

At once the Spirit sent him out into the wilderness.

Lent then begins with the baptism of Jesus, the moment he publicly, before God, accepts and owns his identity and his calling. After this Jesus was immediately compelled by the Spirit into a period of struggle and reflection. Having made the decision to be baptised and having heard God’s acknowledgment, Jesus needed to wrestle with the reality of that calling. He had to face the temptation to take the easiest way, to submit to his human desires for approval and honour, for power and status and for wealth and worldly significance. These things were simply not compatible with his calling and he had to face and reject them, not because doing so made him more spiritual or more righteous, but because he had a purpose to fulfil, a mission to engage in.

Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. “The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!”

So if in the season of Lent we seek to mirror the journey of Jesus, it should be a time for us to reflect on our calling to that self-same mission.

As we enter this season, perhaps we need to take time to ask again what God is calling us to and to ask ourselves, what is it we really want and what are we prepared to put aside? But we should not do this because it makes us feel better, gives us a sense of personal achievement or as a way of balancing out the feasting of Christmas. Rather, we should do this because in doing so we allow God to equip us for the journey and the mission ahead, and to fit us to play our part in his purpose.

As members of the CMS community we acknowledge that God is still working in our world and that God still calls us to be part of that work. Together we share the calling to participate in God’s mission, to learn from God’s mission and pray for God’s mission here in the UK and across the whole world. Together we affirm God’s calling in each other, we support each other in fulfilling our part in it and we pray for and with each other.

Tim Dearborn wrote in Beyond Duty: A Passion for Christ, a Heart for Mission, “It is not the church of God that has a mission in the world, but the God of mission who has a church in the world.”

CHURCH MISSIO N SO CIETY

“The kingdom of God has come near.

Repent and believe the good news!”

I encourage you this Lent and beyond to ask again what it means to be part of that church, both expressed locally and as part of the global CMS community, and to affirm again the declaration we make to each other and to God:

I’m a member of the CMS mission community because I believe God is still working in our world and I want to be part of this.

I want my life to be about mission and I know that mission isn’t someone else’s job – it’s mine.

I want to live for Jesus daily and I realise I need fuel for this journey.

As a member of the CMS mission community I desire to help my local Christian community keep mission a priority.

I also wish to join other CMS members in regularly renewing my mind and spirit and my commitment to mission.

As some of you may know, I am leaving my role with CMS to take up a position with Birmingham Diocese. It has been a fascinating and fruitful five years as part of the CMS staff team, especially having spent the previous seven years as a mission partner. I’d like to thank all of you for your support for me, commitment to the CMS community and incredible passion for God’s mission. I have learned so much from you all, made some great friends and take so much gleaned wisdom with me into the next stage of my ministry. Of course, I will remain a member of the CMS community and look forward to connecting with you in new ways over the years to come. It has been a huge privilege to play a small part in this wonderful society and to be able to see with my own eyes what God is doing through members, staff, our people in mission and our local partners. I know you will welcome my successor with the same hospitality and encouragement that you have given me.

Should you wish to make any changes to your membership, or find out about being a member of the CMS community, please contact Tara Martin: community@churchmissionsociety.org or 01865 787482

WHEN CULTURES COMMUNITY CONVERGE NEWS

COMMUNITY EVENTS 2–4 MARCH. Southern CMS residential conference. Theme: God’s Creation – our Mission.

High Leigh Conference Centre, Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire. Main speaker: Dave Bookless, CMS mission partner working with A Rocha International. Contact Jane Fulford: 01189 695039 or jane.fulford@btinternet.com 13 MARCH, 21 MAY, 12 JUNE. Pioneer Course Open Days. 10.30am–2.30pm, CMS Oxford. Coffee and light lunch included. At our open days we share details of the course, tell you something of our story and are available to answer your questions about studying here. Please book a free place with Helen Harwood on 01865 787439 or helen.harwood@ churchmissionsociety.org 19 MARCH, 16 APRIL, 21 MAY AND 18 JUNE. CMS Edinburgh Prayer Group, 12 noon in the Undercroft Chapel at St Andrew’s and St George’s West Church, George Street, Edinburgh. We start by praying for CMS and situations around the world for an hour and then enjoy a shared lunch in the church cafe.

New members would be very welcome. Contact Liz Traill 01620 894843 or liztraill2000@yahoo.co.uk 10–18 APRIL. Study visit to Egypt. A unique study tour in partnership with McCabe Travel and the Egypt Diocese Association. See the ancient sights, meet today’s Christians and share in their worship. Contact Tanas Alqassis: tanas.alqassis@ churchmissionsociety.org 14 APRIL. ¡Adelante! CMS Latin America Conference at St Stephen’s Birmingham.

For further details contact Mary Rollin: mary.rollin@churchmissionsociety.org or see churchmissionsociety.org/events 16–20 APRIL. Make Good (formerly Missional Entrepreneurship) – a week-long event for those who want to start something from scratch.

Costs and booking details available from Helen Harwood on 01865 787439 or helen.harwood@ churchmissionsociety.org. Bookings by 15 March.

20 APRIL. Meal and talk in Harrogate, 7pm, St Mark’s Church, Harrogate, HG2 9AY with visiting speakers Eric and Sandra Read, currently working with Church Mission Society in the Philippines.

Please book in advance, cost £10. Contact Tim Cundy: 01423 569135 or tim.ruth.cundy@ntlworld. com 21 APRIL. Community Vision Day North, Manchester. Bishop’s Lodge, Walkden Road, Walkden, Manchester, M28 2WH. Spend the day with members of Church Mission Society

leadership, sharing news and looking together at the vision for the year ahead. Please book online at churchmissionsociety.org/events. Contact Tara Martin: community@churchmissionsociety.org or 01865 787482.

23 APRIL. Norwich Diocesan CMS Fellowship Group meeting, 10.45am–1.30pm, House of Prayer at St Edmund’s Church, Fishergate, Norwich, NR3 1SE. A time of fellowship and prayer for mission partners with links in the Norwich area. Drinks provided, bring your own lunch. Contact Louise Wright: 01508 536940 or louisewri@yahoo.co.uk 26 APRIL. Food & fellowship in Northamptonshire, 7pm, St Peter’s Church Rushden. Contact: Joan Botterell 01933 350126.

28 APRIL. Mission focused day in Leeds, exploring mission issues relating to refugees and asylum seekers. 10 for 10.30am–3.30pm, The St Chad’s Parish Centre, Otley Road, Leeds LS16 5JT. A day for anyone interested in mission, at home or overseas, organised by CMS in the north. Bring your own lunch: coffee, tea, biscuits & cake provided. Please book in advance. Contact Peter Hemming: 0113 2782735 or peterhemming@hotmail.com 12 MAY. Focus on Africa day conference. An opportunity to hear about the work of CMS in Africa, and for fellowship, prayer and networking. Keynote speaker: Dr Cathy Ross, with additional input from people in mission in Africa. Bring your own lunch from 12 noon, programme 1–4pm. St James’ by the Park, Shirley, Southampton, SO51 5LW. Contact Charlotte Smith: charlotte.plieth@doctors.net.uk or 02380777810.

12 MAY. South Downs Walk 2018. Goodwood racecourse. Pull on your hiking boots and walk from 10km to 60km for mission. See advert on page 14.

12 MAY. Mission focused day in Edinburgh, 10am– 4pm, Nicolson Square Methodist Church. Ian Adams, mission spirituality adviser at CMS will lead a day on “Breathing deep: life and mission in the spirit of the resurrection”. Cost £6, and please bring something to share for lunch. Contact: 07900 646595 or cmscommunityscotland@outlook.com 14–18 MAY. Make Good at Cliff College.

Costs and booking details available from Helen Harwood on 01865 787439 or helen.harwood@ churchmissionsociety.org 19 MAY. Community Vision Day South: St Mark’s, Kennington, London. Spend the day with members of Church Mission Society leadership, sharing news and looking together at the vision for the year

ahead. Please book online at churchmissionsociety. org/events. Contact Tara Martin: community@ churchmissionsociety.org or 01865 787482.

8–9 JUNE. Residential conference for CMS members and friends living in Wales and the borders, looking at CMS and mission in the UK, considering Micah 6:8: “What does the Lord require of you?” 12 noon Friday to 4pm Saturday, Llangasty Retreat Centre, Brecon. Main speaker Gavin Mart, Christian musician and creative events manager in Llandudno. Contact Chris Carey: 01291 425010 or crcandkili@tiscali.co.uk 9–11 NOVEMBER. Africa Conference 2018, Hayes Conference Centre, Swanwick, Derbyshire. Speaker: Berdine van den Toren-Lekkerkerker. Contact Nick & Val Fane: 01684 566601 or ac2018@fanes.uk

KEEP UP TO DATE WITH CMS EVENTS AT churchmissionsociety.org/events

THE CALL IN ACTION CHURCH MISSION SOCIETY STAFF CHANGES SINCE DECEMBER 2017 FAREWELL TO:

Liz Gan, conferencing and reception assistant (January); Mark Berry, community mission mobiliser (January); Liza Mae France, income and data assistant (January).

WELCOME TO:

Bruna Chiaratti, HR administrator (December); Simon Jarrett, web and application developer (January); Peter Guy, conferencing and reception assistant (February); Stephen Wells, multimedia content producer (February).

CHANGES:

Maria Riding is now temporary editorial content producer rather than freelance writer.

PEOPLE IN MISSION CHANGES Welcome to Micah Wilson, son of Chris and Suzy Wilson, mission partners in Gambella, Ethiopia, born in December, and to Hoilalzou Khongsai, daughter of Kailean and Kim Khongsai, mission partners in Southall, London, born in February.

NEW SHORT-TERMERS:

Lily Sargent (Brazil) and Chris and Karen Roberts (Rwanda).

MOVING ON:

AFRICA DAY CONFERENCE 12 MAY 2018 CONTACT: charlotte.plieth@doctors.net.uk or call 02380 777810

KEYN OTE Main Speaker: SPEA Dr Ca KER thy Ross

THE CALL – SPRING 2018

Christine and Paul Salaman, with Daniel and Isaac, have ended as mission partners after 10 years serving in Dodoma, Tanzania. Paul taught at St John’s University of Tanzania, producing the next generation of leaders to serve their country and community. Christine worked for the Anglican Church of Tanzania, training and encouraging church leaders and worship leaders.

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MISSION MEANS

MISSION MEANS...

GOOD NEWS NOT FAKE NEWS

BY MALCOLM PRITCHARD, MISSION PARTNER IN GULU, NORTHERN UGANDA

W

ise advice given to visitors to a certain country goes like this. After one week you will be absolutely certain about what needs to be done to right the nation’s wrongs. After one month, you will not be quite so sure. And after one year, you will shut up.

So it is perilous to attempt an analysis of the way things are here from my vantage point of relative ignorance. And there are many desensitising ways to talk about Africa, so I am searching for a way of talking about life here that will evoke a response. Appropriately enough I am doing so in an ambiguous cultural context, with a foot in Africa and a foot in the West; I can see the fragility of the clinging consumer culture I have left (but only physically), yet at the same time I can see that there are undoubtedly ambiguities in Ugandan Christianity.

Unlike the UK, there is no embarrassment here in talking about God. “Praise the Lord” is a

common conversation starter. Prayers are offered at every opportunity. Not even a cup of tea is taken for granted. The thanksgiving for safe deliverance through the night to the gift of a new day is heartfelt.

The Bible is treasured. Worship is exuberant and joyful.

Churches are busy with fellowship groups, youth groups, choirs, Mothers’ Union, Fathers’ Union, prayer meetings and more. There is lots going on.

At the same time, something is seriously wrong.

Turning to our neighbour for a moment, where there are similar issues to be addressed, Archbishop Jackson Ole Sapit of Kenya asked in his installation address: “If Christians form 80 per cent of Kenya’s population, why are our elections often violenceprone? Why is our society riddled with corruption, nepotism and a great level of social stratification?

Why are environmental degradation, poverty and disease still ever-present realities?”

To visualise this, let me draw on something I see in everyday life here. I can look around and see plants that look good enough to produce a harvest, but closer inspection reveals “worms” (think caterpillars) which have devoured the business end of the country’s maize crop. The cause is a matter of dispute but what is indisputable is the large and powerful seed company selling maize seeds which, pests permitting, will produce only one crop. Any seeds from those plants will all be sterile. The poor farmers will have to go back to the rich multinational and purchase more “single-use” seeds next time. In my naivety I found it staggering that there are people who are deliberately creating dependency. A quick internet search of the company involved reveals deep concern about the methods the villains use to exploit the Ugandan poor with such impunity.

Name: Malcolm Pritchard Location: Gulu, Northern Uganda My call: Partnering with the

diocesan bishop and college principal to promote spiritual development and a faithful understanding of the gospel in college and diocesan life

My role: To work alongside local staff in helping them train students, clergy and lay leaders

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Of course Jesus talked a lot about seeds and sowers. So I find myself asking, what kind of seed are the sowers of today scattering?

Too often it seems the gospel seed sown is for single use only. It is buried in the heart of the believer as a golden ticket to secure safe passage from this wicked world to an ill-defined place called “heaven”. It is a private treasure that will not be required until the point of death. It is escapist and sterile. Jesus is a personal saviour but not necessarily Lord. Of course this blunt view of the gospel is not peculiar to the Church in East Africa.

So I find my primary challenge is to apprehend the true gospel and communicate what I have received in the various settings in which I now find myself. Recently this has been with a group of 23 enthusiastic lay readers and catechists at Archbishop Janani Luwum Theological College (AJLTC). The subject allocated to me was “discipleship” so we have spent time thinking about what the gospel really is and what it means to be a disciple. Of course I am learning loads and I cannot speak for the students but it feels good!

From a practical perspective I have put the classroom chairs into a circle. I have also broken a cultural norm by choosing to eat my lunch with the students from time to time rather than just with staff. I think students expected me to download information to them in a one-way “stuffing the goose” fashion. I hope that the discussions and shared learning and reflections on group activity have been pleasant alternatives to the traditional expectation.

In addition to work in college, the bishop has appointed me as curate to Christ Church in Gulu town with responsibility for the English service.

Sunday morning services – and there are three in quick succession – last a couple of hours.

Twenty minutes is given to the sermon and a churchwarden delivers a “time’s up!” note if you step over the limit. So glad the wardens in Luton didn’t think of that trick!

In all of these situations I long to find a way to sow seeds that will bear fruit. For my part, I will speak about a gospel that is always personal and never private, that will make a difference 24/7 and not just for a couple of hours on Sunday, and which is genetically engineered to make a difference to life on earth now, not merely in the new earth and new heavens to come, a gospel to be shared not guarded, Good News not fake news.

MISSION SPIRITUALITY

By Ian Adams, mission spirituality adviser for Church Mission Society

PARTICIPATING IN THE LIBERATING MISSION OF JESUS Part 2: A MANUAL FOR MISSION?

IS IT POSSIBLE THAT JESUS LEFT US A MANUAL FOR MISSION?

source. Jesus of Nazareth, John the Baptiser’s “Lamb of God”, of course knew a thing or two about this principle. Go undefended, trusting only in the protection of God.

This series in The Call is drawing on stories and themes in Luke 9, 10 and 11 to explore the nature of life and mission rooted in the person of Jesus.

4. TRAVEL LIGHT “Carry no purse, no bag, no sandals.” This appears to be a tough principle for those of us who like to travel well prepared for all eventualities! The principle seems to be that when engaged in the Christ’s mission we should not be reliant upon anything – however sensible – except the love and presence of God. It’s a radical call to dependence upon God. Travel light, trusting only in the provision of God.

And in this article we’ll wonder how the instructions recorded in Luke 10 as being given

by Jesus to the 70 might offer us a series of 10 principles to put into practice now – a manual for mission in the 21st century.

1. PIONEER NEW PATHS The Lord sends the 70 in pairs ahead of him “to every town and place where he himself intended to go”. A key principle in 21st century mission is that we seek to discern the presence of Christ and the nature of his activity in the places to which we go. Perhaps this verse gives us an additional perspective to that vital understanding. Is it a reminder that our pioneering presence is in some way key to the breaking in of Christ's mission in a particular place? Your imaginative participation – your pioneering – may somehow be, in God’s grace and imagination, essential to the task.

2. SEE THE POSSIBILITIES “The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few.” It’s tempting to despair about a harvest when the weather seems to be consistently poor. “For the first time in generations there’s a sense that the world has entered an uncontrolled skid” says Neil Cross, screenwriter for the new BBC series Hard Sun, and it’s hard to disagree. But this saying of Jesus offers an additional view. However difficult things become, the willingness of people to seek and imagine a better future remains. So, while being realistic about the nature of the times in which we live, we are called to see what is possible as the world seeks its healing, and to be bold in our response.

3. GO UNDEFENDED, TRUSTING “Go on your way. See I am sending you out like lambs into the midst of wolves.” This principle in our manual of mission is a reminder of the nature of the struggle that we face. It will be costly. The wolves will make themselves known. But more importantly, Jesus’ statement appears to suggest merit in going undefended.

Lambs cannot defeat or even resist wolves.

Their salvation needs to come from another

5. KEEP FOCUSED ON YOUR CALLING “Greet no one on the road.” This is an interesting principle. And not an easy one to fit in with contemporary models of mission, where presence to people and attention to context are rightly stressed as important. In our context perhaps this principle is something to do with being about our business. Not allowing ourselves to be distracted. Keep focused on your calling.

6. BE A PERSON OF PEACE “Whatever house you enter, first say ‘Peace to this house!’ And if anyone is there who shares in peace, your peace will rest on that person; but if not, it will return to you.” As you seek to participate in the liberating mission of Jesus your own sense of peace, rooted in Christ, may be the greatest gift that you can bring.

Greetings change the world in small ways – and a greeting or gesture that says “Peace to this house” (in your own words or style) may be a vital element in your mission. Resolve to be a person of peace, bringing peace.

7. COMMIT YOURSELF TO A PLACE, TO A PEOPLE “Remain in the same house…. Do not move about….” This principle for mission is about staying committed to a place and to a people.

The monastic vow of stability has been expressed in many different ways but has always echoed this teaching of Jesus. The peace of a house, a street, an area or a city will take time and presence. Do not lightly leave the people or place to which you have been called.

8. RECEIVE HOSPITALITY “Whenever you enter a town and its people welcome you eat what is set before you.” This principle seems to be about encouraging us

to accept the hospitality of those with whom we are working. We are used to being hosts.

And to host well and generously in the name of Jesus is important. But equally important in this manual of mission is the capacity to allow ourselves to be hosted. In this way the distinctions between us begin to blur. All are called to enter and enjoy the hospitality of God. Allow yourself to receive hospitality.

9. PRAY FOR HEALING “Cure the sick who are there, and say to them ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’”

It’s tempting to take a route here of suggesting that healing comes in many ways. It does, and that may be the bottom line. But I don’t want to gloss over the potentially literal and obvious meaning of healing. Either way perhaps our prayers for healing should be much bolder, whatever the nature of the healing that we seek. In this way, a sense of the liberating presence of God will be deepened. Pray boldly for healing.

10. RESIST WHATEVER IS DESTRUCTIVE “But whenever you enter a town and they don’t welcome you, go out into its streets and say…”

This principle is another tough one. How, if at all, might it be appropriate for us? After all, it could be argued that in our mission as Church at various and many times in history we have been way too eager to insist on a welcome. Perhaps the gift of this principle is an encouragement to embrace the nature of our prophetic calling to society, to speak truth to power, and to stand against whatever damages humanity or the rest of creation. In this way “the kingdom of God [will have] come near”.

Resist all that is destructive.

RETURNING WITH JOY What might happen if we practised the principles in this passage, seeing them as forming a manual for mission in the 21st century? The 70 sent by Jesus “returned with joy, saying ‘Lord, in your name even the demons submit to us!’” The struggle for the healing of all things in the way of Jesus, for a better world now, is a demanding one. The powers and principalities seem to be in the ascendant. Fake news, false truths, abuses of power and of privilege seem to prevail. But it is a struggle for good that will be won, and we are called to play our part. In the bold language of Jesus, may we see Satan fall from heaven.

Continues next page >>

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MISSION ISSUES

THINKING ABOUT RISK I will never forget the day I said farewell to a mission worker in the late 1990s. “Take care,” I said. “I don’t take care,” he said. “I take risks.”

BY JANET QUARRY, REGIONAL PERSONNEL OFFICER FOR LATIN AMERICA AND PA TO PHILIP MOUNSTEPHEN

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isk is an issue exercising many mission organisations today. Perhaps it is acceptable for an individual to take risks for themselves, but can an organisation ask its workers to take a risk?

WEIGHING UP RISK “Risk” is defined as exposure to danger, harm or loss. Most people accept risk in moderation. Many of us look for adventure, and adventure without risk would not be adventure! Taking risks raises courage, stretches imagination and strengthens emotional health. It is also unavoidable. We accept risk when we step out of our front door.

Allen Gardiner, who inspired the founding of the South American Missionary Society, travelled the world as a naval captain. It was normal to leave wife and children behind – a pattern he continued as a missionary to South America, where he died of starvation. Few mission agencies countenance such behaviour today.

In the early days of mission 60 per cent of all missionaries died within two years of arriving in their adopted country. Should anyone have stopped them?

SAFETY FIRST? The UK culture in the 21st century is highly safetyconscious. We live in a world with notices warning us that a floor might be slippery; we may not use a ladder without training or sell homemade cakes to the public in case we poison someone.

We are often astonished at the heroism of the early missionaries who went so bravely, suffered in many ways and often died early. But life in 17th century England was also “poor, brutish and short”. Britain’s early missionaries did not have the average life expectancy of 85+ years we have today. It seems our Western culture is no longer able to face the prospect of dying: neither in the young, nor the old. Many of us do all we can to avoid pain, suffering and loss.

THE BIBLE AND RISK Throughout the Bible we see people taking risks: Abraham left Ur Moses challenged Pharaoh Joshua stepped out in faith against Jericho Jeremiah spoke against the king Paul endured beatings and imprisonment

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The Bible gives story after story. Do we dare use Hebrews 11:32ff to encourage people to offer for service? The writer says they do not have time tell of those who were “tortured, refusing to be released so that they might gain an even better resurrection”.

On the other hand, Acts 8:1 tells us all except the apostles were scattered (though they preached the word wherever they went). In other words, they fled to escape persecution. Paul tells of his suffering in 2 Corinthians 11:23ff and faced persecution with courage when called by God to do so. But part of his response to risk was: escape it if you can. So he was let down in a basket over a wall and moved on from Lystra where he had been stoned.

The language of security management is first and foremost, “identify and then minimise risk”. In Acts 9 Ananias didn’t immediately leap to his feet and go to minister to the murderous Saul – you might say he did a risk analysis and accepted the mitigations offered by God. Security managers are often trained to focus, in a crisis, on the primary objective of “preservation of life”. Trustees and leaders of mission organisations, however, need to ask themselves if there might be other primary objectives – such as the ongoing work of the church in the host country or the spread of the gospel.

QUESTIONS FOR US ALL When it comes to risk, where do we draw the line?

Do we say, “I will give my life to save a nation”? Or only to save my family? Questions mission leaders must ask include:

1 Should we/can we ensure the complete safety of our personnel?

2 How do we respond to the challenge of Scripture which implies persecution is the normal fate of a Christian?

3 How much risk can a person be asked to take in pursuit of the Great Commission?

4 From the early deaths of missionaries vibrant missions emerged. Should CMS in the 21st century avoid the death of mission personnel and their children at all costs?

5 Should a worker be allowed to stay in a dangerous place if they believe it is right to do so, when all advice points towards the need for them to be evacuated?

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6 How does an agency determine how much “risk” is too much?

Too often we find the Scripture to back up what we already believe. If I choose to stay in a dangerous situation I might cite the case of Daniel. If I choose to pull someone out of a risky situation I might quote, “shake the dust from your feet”.

As you think about this issue, please don’t forget to pray for leaders who have to take decisions about risk every day, as well as those who face those risks across the world.

MISSION ISSUES

SAFETY

EYEWITNESS TO

RISK

BY JUDY ACHESON, CMS MISSION PARTNER IN DR CONGO 1980–2012, WHO CHOSE TO REMAIN DURING A TIME OF INTENSE CONFLICT

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isk: why should we not go to tough places, such as DR Congo, stay alongside those who are facing fierce conflict, be there for them and share the love of Christ?

Praise God I was single, I didn’t have children to protect, I could stay in DR Congo until the church asked me to leave. Someone in the UK asked me how I could believe in God when such awful things were happening. I could believe because God was actively involved. He provided when there were 23 people from the two warring tribes staying together in my house.

He enabled us to feed all these people. For the first time ever, my sweet potato patch produced enormous sweet potatoes! One night we didn’t know what we would eat the following day, only to wake up to our garden covered in button mushrooms – manna from heaven!

God protected some in the most miraculous ways: Barozi’s father was fleeing from the attack on his village by the Lendus and came face to face with a Lendu brandishing a machete. He knew that this was his end and so prayed for the Lord to take him. Even though they “looked” at each other, it was as though this man never “saw” him. Instead he turned away, moving off in a completely different direction. We saw God protect us even when our house was attacked. If God does not leave his children in difficult times, why should we?

What a privilege to be there and what a boost it made to my faith. On one occasion, our Bible study on Isaiah 41:10 (“You will not be afraid, they will not terrify you”) came alive as a few minutes later the house was surrounded by three different militia groups fighting each other. We sheltered in the corridor. The verse from Philippians 4:7 “The peace that passes all understanding…” came into my mind as I realised that I was totally calm and could help the others to stay quiet and wait.

What a great God we have who is present in such situations with his children. After the fighting, the

Lendus arrived at our house with machetes and iron bars. God had forewarned me and so I did not cower and the 23 people were protected.

I was called to the Congo when I was just 13 years old – at that time the country was still under Belgian rule but was building up to independence with all the years that followed of bloodshed and horror. For 20 years God prepared me and over the years talked to me about war, rape and insecurity as part of my call, before I finally had the opportunity to put that call into action.

As I looked at the history of the Congo, I questioned how the Congolese could take the risk of receiving me as another white person. They had suffered so much from Western involvement over the years. I cried at what white people had done.

How would the Congolese react to me?

I arrived in this beautiful country in May 1980 and thought, “Yes, I’ve arrived home.” But it was God saying to me “Don’t look at what man is doing but at what I am doing”, that enabled me to centre my thoughts and have faith that whatever would happen, God would see me through and I would see him in action.

I came to love the Congolese and learnt so much from them. They were well worth taking whatever risk was necessary to live alongside them.

I could be there to listen to people sharing the horrors of what they or their family had gone through. One young man came to tell me what had happened to his brother, who had been tortured and killed in front of his eyes. He told me every detail so graphically that I could even imagine I had witnessed it myself. I heard, soon after, that the young man had died from the shock.

As the provincial youth worker for the Anglican Church in Congo, I enjoyed getting alongside young people, helping them to think biblically for themselves and to live out their lives as Christ would want. I was thrilled to see how, during the war, some of them stayed true to Christ and looked after

With Outstretched Arms, Judy Acheson, 2017, p. 85. If you would like to get a This article features extracts from Judy’s new book, With Outstretched Arms. copy of Judy’s book, please do get in touch at the.call@churchmissionsociety.org If you would like to get a copy of Judy’s book, please do get in touch at and we will pass your message on to her. the.call@churchmissionsociety.org and we will pass your message on to her.

RISK

those from the other tribe: Deo (from the Hema tribe), Sinza (a Hutu) and Jijika (a Nyali from the forest) ran seminars on reconciliation in Bunia among the displaced people whom they visited. This opened the door for them to move out of Bunia to Dele, five kilometres along the main road, among the Ngiti (southern Lendu). They got to know 22 Ngiti, who then formed a team so that, once trained, they could go deeper into the Ngiti area. So courageous! Deo wrote: “Myself I have learnt to respect everyone and know that he is a creature of God, and that God loved all of us through his Son Jesus Christ. Now me, Deo, as a Christian Hema, what is my position in this situation of tribal war? In Christ we are all one.”

Another time he wrote: “God has shown me that we Hemas and Lendus are like our two hands open in front of him…”

Jijika, our girls’ worker, reached out in love to many girls, first in Bunia and then in the refugee camps in Uganda. They had awful stories to tell but also amazing testimonies of God’s presence.

One girl had been raped and taken as a sex slave and felt that her life was no longer worth living.

But one night, while she was resting from carrying a heavy load for her sex master through the forest, a man in white came and told her to follow him.

She did this until she crossed the border into Uganda where the man left her. She was free. It was not a dream. She managed to find her way to the camp near Hoima. Here Jijika explained the gospel to her. Once she fully understood what Jesus had done for her on the cross, she surrendered her life to the man in white who had saved her, once in the Congo but now for ever.

Isn’t this why God asks us to take risks?

p. 144 p. 85

THE CALL – SPRING 2018

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MISSION ISSUES FEATURE

NEW MISSION

PARTNERS IN THE MIDDLE EAST

In a new feature for The Call, we want to highlight some new mission partners who have joined Church Mission Society over the past few months. This issue has a Middle Eastern focus, featuring Fiona and Joel Kelling, who are heading to Jordan, Phil and Sylvie Good, who are off to Lebanon, and Anne Plested, who will be working in Bethlehem.

NEW

NEW

NEW

Fiona and Joel Kelling

Phil and Sylvie Good

Anne Plested

Fiona and Joel Kelling are responding to a deep call to work with the indigenous and migrant Christian populations of the Middle East. Fiona will use her experience in humanitarian response to support refugee and marginalised populations, while Joel will work with the Anglican Alliance and the Anglican Province of Jerusalem and the Middle East. He will be building the capacity of churches within the region and facilitating educational, health and youth development activities, as well as focusing on strengthening relationships between the diverse Christian communities.

Both will draw on previous experiences in the Middle East. Fiona worked with the UN in 2015 to facilitate timely and effective shelter assistance in the West Bank and Gaza. Joel volunteered at St George’s Anglican Cathedral as assistant to the Dean. Both were struck by the need of the indigenous Christians in the region and the importance of interfaith exchange.

Their faith has always influenced their values and career choices, having both grown up in Christian families. Fiona and Joel met as students in Oxford in 2009 and began their relationship after travelling together to Israel, Palestine and Jordan. While Joel completed his architectural qualifications, Fiona gained her first work experience in emergency response following the 2010 earthquake in Haiti.

After marrying in 2014, they worked with a team in the Philippines responding to Typhoon Haiyan.

Fiona and Joel will be based in Jordan, which has become a hub for the response to ongoing humanitarian crises in the region. A third of Jordan’s population are refugees from Syria, Iraq and Palestine.

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Phil and Sylvie Good are preparing to work at the Life Center in Beirut, Lebanon. This centre is a bustling place that helps refugees, many of whom are escaping the horrors of the six-year Syrian civil war.

Phil will work as an operations manager and Sylvie as administration and human resources manager.

Even before they met and got married, Phil and Sylvie each personally forged a commitment to global mission. And this passion did not diminish over the years. As a family with four young children, they travelled across Africa in a Land Rover just to see it first-hand. It was a life-changing experience during which they connected with development work. More recently, Sylvie worked with refugees in the Jungle in Calais and Phil taught irrigation in Africa.

It took a while, however, for Phil and Sylvie to respond to their call, as they felt that they were just “too ordinary” for mission work! As a consequence, they will be bringing 40 years of life experience and skills to their new roles.

Lebanon has taken in nearly two million Syrian refugees in the past six years and is stretched to its capacity. The Life Center is responding to these overwhelming needs by providing education for Syrian children and providing basic essentials for daily living such as blankets, food and clothing.

Phil and Sylvie’s input will release the pastor and other staff at the Life Center to devote their time to preaching, teaching and working directly with refugees.

Anne Plested feels called to teach, talk about faith and share the love of the Lord at Bethlehem Bible College and with local people in Bethlehem. She will work as a fundraiser and teacher of English for the Bethlehem Bible College, helping to increase the capacity of the team there. This means that more students will be able to improve their educational and job prospects by becoming fluent in English.

A deep realisation of God’s all-encompassing love in her twenties led Anne to make a conscious decision to offer herself in service to God. Leaving her job as a medical secretary, she retrained in agriculture in order to work in overseas development.

A degree in agriculture was followed by an MA in development studies.

She then lived and worked in The Gambia for 15 years. For five of those years she worked on a school farm and garden programme with VSO, and the remaining 10 years as a CMS mission partner with the local Anglican Church. During this time she coordinated the activities of the diocesan development office in the areas of agriculture, education and health, and also worked with refugees.

Anne has a particular heart for those living on the edge, such as those in Palestine, and to share in their joys and struggles.

If you would like to find out more about these mission partners or support their work, please go to churchmissionsociety.org/pim

CHURCH MISSIO N SO CIETY

APPEAL FOLLOW-UP Name: Miriam Knowles Location: Iringa, Tanzania My call: To live and work in Iringa, showing through my work and friendships the love that God has for each of us and that we are all equal in God’s eyes My role: An occupational therapist, running the therapy department at Neema Crafts Centre. Most of my time is spent working with children who have disabilities and their families and communities; I also do therapy with the staff at Neema, who are all living with disabilities.

In September 2017 Church Mission Society supporters responded generously to an appeal featuring the work of Neema Crafts, including the new work that Miriam Knowles is doing in running a therapy department at Neema. Miriam has shared with us how God is starting a new story for disabled children through the work of the therapy team.

BY MIRIAM KNOWLES

I

Heading out on a community visit

want to share a story of working in the communities and seeing how amazingly God moves. We went to join one of our children, a little boy who is disabled, at his church one Sunday with one of our Neema staff.

The boy’s father is a minister and he and his family had been struggling with people saying bad things about them as a family and about their church because of the boy’s disability.

Things such as, “if you go to that church your children will become disabled” and “Where is their God if they have a disabled child and he cannot heal him?”. It is tough when you live in such close community. They are godly people and love their son and yet were finding themselves being persecuted – even from people within their congregation – for not hiding him away!

On the Sunday we visited, the minister had

invited people from a couple of sister churches in the Iringa region. We spoke about who we are in Christ, that we are all created equally, that it isn’t a punishment from God that a child is disabled nor is it because a mother cheated in pregnancy or that it’s the devil’s child.

We talked about how cerebral palsy happens and how it affects people in every country. We talked about the reason we are doing this work and how we truly believe that God loves every single person.

The staff member who came with us from Neema then stood up and gave his testimony. He spoke about how he had contracted polio when he was a child and that he cannot use his legs and so moves around instead on his hands and knees. He has such assurance and confidence, and talked about how Neema had given him hope, taught him skills and how the work he does in the woodwork department is so good that his work is sold in the UK. His opening line was, “God does not make mistakes and I am not a mistake; I have value just like anyone else.”

It brought tears to my eyes. I don’t spend a lot of time with the adults at Neema as working with children and going into the communities takes so much time but it was amazing and a real privilege to hear what being a part of Neema meant for him.

Both during and after the service we asked people if they knew of any other disabled children and adults in the community as we would love to see them.

Everyone said “no” (this is quite a large village!). So we left, but a couple of days later the father of the child who we knew called us to say thank you for being a part of their service and told us that attitudes

THE CALL – SPRING 2018

had already started to change towards them.

Even better was that he had discovered seven disabled children in the village and had visited them all at their homes, explaining to their parents what we do and how the Neema team could come and visit their children.

We were so excited as this is someone who has a heart not just for their own child and situation but for others in their community. It really helped us to take heart that others also care. Following this, we paid a day’s visit to the village and saw each of the children and their families. It was such a blessing.

Praise God for the work that continues to increase and unfold in the communities and villages and that more children are getting treatment. Please continue to pray for the work we do in the communities and villages.

GIVE

You can help people like Miriam put their call into action by giving online at churchmissionsociety.org/give 33

CLASSIFIEDS

PUT YOUR CALL INTO ACTION SOME CURRENT MISSION OPPORTUNITIES AFRICA

Finance director, Khartoum, Sudan

Our partners in the Episcopal Church of Sudan are looking for a finance director. With the inauguration of the new province last year, they require the expertise of an individual to help create and organise financial systems and structures. The candidate must be qualified, highly motivated and have relevant experience. English language skills are essential, and competency in Arabic is desirable.

plenty of material for reflection on reconciliation and how forgiveness works within politics. Successful candidates will have relevant qualifications and experience.

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ASIA Centre manager Our partners in the Lutheran Church in South-East Asia are 2 looking for an education centre manager. The centre provides a mixture of traditional classroom-based learning with vocational studies.

Similar facilities are already established so support and advice will be available for whoever takes on this role. The Lutheran and Anglican churches in this region have a very good relationship and are keen to grow and develop these links.

EUROPE

University chaplain Famagusta, Cyprus The Diocese of Cyprus requires a chaplain to be responsible for ordering worship, Bible study, prayer meetings and other similar activities for the benefit of the student body and university as a whole. The project is situated in Famagusta on the northern side of the dividing line, but the parish includes churches on both sides of the line. This is one of the last divides of its kind in Europe and is therefore a unique setting, giving

LATIN AMERICA Gap years in Latin America – Brazil, Chile

We have two key gap year placement opportunites in Brazil and Chile. In Chile, you will be an English language assistant at St Paul’s School in Vina del Mar. In Brazil, you will be volunteering at a girls’ home, working with girls under 18 who have been rescued from the streets or abusive backgrounds. For obvious reasons, we will only be able to accept female applicants for this latter post.

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NORTH AFRICA 5

Elderly care centre manager, Egypt

Our partners with the Diocese of Egypt are looking for a manager to run their new elderly care centre in Cairo. The diocese requires an individual or a couple to run the centre, train local people to manage the centre and set up its procedures. This will be the first elderly care centre in Egypt that serves Christians and will have opportunities for outreach.

FINANCE UPDATE

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BY CHARLIE WALKER, DIRECTOR OF FINANCE AND CORPORATE SERVICES It’s the first day of the new financial year, and alongside expectation and excitement about what 2018–19 might hold for CMS, one thing remains constant; we will hold true to the Venn principle of prayer first, money second. We believe all of our financial resources are a gift from God, and we will continue to seek him for our provision. One small way we do that in the office

TO ENQUIRE FURTHER ABOUT ANY OF THESE ROLES, please contact vocational recruitment officer Isaac Frisby: 01865 787416 or isaac.frisby@ churchmissionsociety.org

is to pray together as the finance and corporate services team each Tuesday at 9.30am. Would you be willing to join us in praying not just for the work of CMS, but also for God’s continued provision?

Perhaps for five minutes every Tuesday? Prayer is such a vital work, and really does supersede any financial strategy and modelling (important though they are) that we do here.

February sees the finance team in the “in-between times”: we are busy closing down the last financial year ahead of our audit, while also getting ready for the new financial year. It’s hard to say at this stage exactly

where the year will end: although encouragingly our giving from individuals and churches in total looks to be ahead of prior year and budget, our general fund income might come in behind.

Another area we are constantly monitoring at CMS is our compliance to new rules and regulations. We have two big projects ongoing at the moment: one relating to new data protection regulation, and another implementing a new donor database to ensure all our supporters’ records are kept well.

Do pray for the teams taking on these changes.

CHURCH MISSIO N SO CIETY

LAST WORD

HOW TO…

PUT WOMEN IN OUR RIGHTFUL PLACE

BY TARA MARTIN, CMS CHURCH AND COMMUNITY MISSION AND FINANCE TEAM MEMBER

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icture for a moment an infant’s baptism in your church. The congregation swells with far-flung family and friends and among those in attendance is the young woman invited to be the infant’s godmother. She has but dim memories of coming to church, and dimmer still are her memories of what she learned. She never saw what church had to do with her – or what she could have to do with it. Yet as the baptismal service begins, a statement catches her attention: “God calls us to fullness of life.” What on earth could that mean?

What could it mean for her?

To be called to fullness of life is to use all the gifts and passions you possess to fulfil the role in God’s plan that he designed specifically for you. As Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 12:4, “There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them.” Verse 12 continues “Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ.” Our core belief in Church Mission Society is that all God’s people are called to join in mission, and our core purpose is to set people free to put that call into action within the body of Christ that is the church. What roles the church may offer the would-be godmother, however, have a tendency to centre on her gender rather than her gifts.

Historically, the church has served as a patriarchal institution that rendered women invisible, or at the very least marginalised them. Certain callings and gifts were ascribed to certain genders. Consequently, women traditionally occupied silent roles of service that were essentially extensions of their domestic duties. With women now in every level of church leadership, it cannot be denied that things have changed. Yet it would not take many conversations with women, nor glances around a church, to discover that sexist stereotypes and attitudes remain rife.

Women are the flower-arrangers, the cake-makers, the tea-servers and Sunday School teachers. They sing the harmonies in worship and are there to pray with people quietly at the end of the service. Their “callings” are supportive and decorative. I do not mean to discredit the value of any of these roles – all parts of the body are vital, and those called to these

ministries are a part of that body. Yet it is all too common for women to be expected to fulfil these types of roles, or for it to be assumed that only women will be called into these areas. Often, they are the only active roles available to women. But what of the women who are not called to any of these? And what of the men who are?

As the belief that men and women should be recognised and treated with equal value as fellow humans (otherwise known as feminism) proliferates through society, and movements such as #MeToo highlight the disproportionate injustices experienced by girls and women daily, the church needs to be at the forefront of change. The church needs to model that the equality and freedom we all innately crave is found only in Jesus and his plans for us. If we continue to perpetuate sexist stereotypes, we limit how far men and women can go in fulfilling their calling. We restrict them to life in measured portions rather than Godordained fullness.

In the baptism, our young godmother will be asked to “help [the child] to take their place within the life and worship of Christ’s church”. But are we doing so for her and every individual in the church? How do we prevent gender stereotypes from stunting mission?

Here are some suggestions; the first step, of course, is admitting there might be a problem.

1. MAKE WOMEN VALUABLE AND VISIBLE Begin by highlighting traditionally feminine roles and acknowledging their importance – don’t take them for granted. Doing so tackles damaging stereotypes applied to men as well. Relegating supportive and creative roles to women in the background implies that men cannot be creative, caring or subservient, as that is not really masculine. Instilling value into traditionally feminine roles instils worth into traditionally feminine qualities and thus puts them in their rightful place as esteemed gifts anyone would be glad to possess.

Moreover, make sure that women are heard as well as seen. Give them access to prominent roles where they have a valid voice. This doesn’t have to be leading the service or preaching; it could be leading the prayers or actively participating on the PCC. When women speak, listen to them.

THE CALL – SPRING 2018

2. CHALLENGE YOUR ASSUMPTIONS Take some time to consider what you might expect of men and women. Do you tend to associate particular traits and roles within the church with particular genders? For example, picture a drummer in the worship band and a volunteer in the creche. What is your response if the drummer were a woman, and the creche volunteer a man? There is nothing wrong with being surprised, but a problem arises if you are somewhat disturbed by the idea of a man quietly taking care of the children in the back of the service.

It may be worth examining your associations and the reasoning behind them.

3. SPEAK LIFE From throwaway comments to metaphors in sermons to common misinterpretations of Scripture, the way we speak to and about women and men has incredibly powerful repercussions. They not only denote attitudes outright, but generate subliminal messages that travel far beyond the church doors. It is due to such subtexts that much of secular society views the Bible as a misogynistic text rather than one of radical inclusiveness. Often the men who have served faithfully and remarkably are those we find spring to mind quickest as our examples, yet we have a heritage of women who have changed the world too. Do we speak of Hannah More alongside William Wilberforce? Or of women who throughout the history of mission overseas have also made sacrifices and taken risks? Even the way we speak about God should be considered; if we only dwell on masculine imagery, we perpetuate a limited and unbiblical understanding of God. It is man and woman together that are made in the image of God. We must speak life and encouragement into all aspects of humanity if we are to set men and women free to put their call into action.

4. RESPOND WITH GRACE Finally, what do we suggest you do if you witness or experience sexism?

Allow the Spirit to speak for you. Most importantly, do not allow it to prevent you from using the gifts God has given you. Pursue the mission you are called to, irrespective of your gender. This will be a powerful testimony and a light in the church and beyond.

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L A E

P P A

Top photo: At Jenny’s church, there are spaces and opportunities for local people to connect with each other and Jesus – like fun days for children.

“TO HELP PEOPLE KNOW JESUS AS SAVIOUR, NOT A SWEAR WORD – THAT’S MY CALLING.”

Bottom: Seeking asylum, finding faith: CMS mission partner Andrew teaches English to asylum seekers in Glasgow.

Jenny Green, mission partner in Bradford

Will you help people like Jenny to undertake vital mission work in the UK? Four years ago, Jenny Green moved from working with vulnerable children in Kisoro, Uganda, to become a community chaplain on Bradford’s Faxfleet estate.

She was confronted with a kind of poverty more profound than in Uganda. She explains that in Kisoro, almost everyone has someone. Although many struggle, extended family networks and the local community can help. But in Faxfleet, as in many parts of the UK, community and even family structures are broken and many find themselves destitute.

The good news is that change can happen. The light breaks in, and it’s powerful. When people who have known little but isolation and rejection are seen, valued and loved, their lives start to change. Like Leanne (name changed), a single mum with six children.

After coming along to Thursday family church, she found faith in Christ and decided to have her children baptised. Leanne has such new joy and energy. She is now even helping to lead some church sessions. Life is certainly not easy for her, but now she has hope.

GIVE

Church Mission Society has 15 mission partners putting their call into action in the UK. Can you support them as they work to bring hope instead of despair?

churchmissionsociety.org/bringhope