We bring Good News
May 1999 No 102 Diocese of Oxford Reporter
Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire
Planning for mission in the next decade Mission is not just on the agenda, it is the agenda,' someone said at a consultation day on a missionary strategy for the Diocese of Oxford in the next decade. Sixty key people from the Diocese, both lay and clergy and including the bishops, archdeacons and senior staff, gathered at Green Park near Aylesbury at the invitation of the Bishop of Oxford. In his address of welcome Bishop Richard said that the day was part of an ongoing consultation process about sharing in the mission of God. 'We don't want just to dream dreams,' the Bishop said but to consider what is 'really achievable in the Diocese in the next ten years'.
'What would the Diocese of Oxford and its churches look like if, for the next ten years, bishops, clergy, lay people, synods, boards and councils and all budget decisions were made from a wholly missionary (rather than maintenance) perspective?' Those attending were asked to consider this question in the light of the Diocese's Vision and Priorities Statement drawn up in 1992. Summarising the responses, the Bishop of Buckingham, Mike Hill, said there were five major areas of agreement. The Church of tqmorrow should reflect the concern of God for the whole world. It would be outwardlooking and inclusive but would also take seriously the need to equip church members to be disciples.
Collaboration and the participation of the whole body of Christ would be taken seriously by the Church of tomorrow which would also have a more flexible attitude towards its structures. The day was co-ordinated by Rosemary Tucker of USPG. Much of it was spent in brain-storming groups. From them came a spectrum of ideas covering everything from prayer to clergy training and new definitions of community. People dreamed dreams. But there was also sense of realism and excitement at the start of a consultation process as the Diocese prepares to move from maintenance to mission. Christine Zwart
No t ime for God.? An exclusive survey for The DOOR on church-going reveals that people are 'too busy' to attend church People don't go to church on Sundays because they are too busy. Even 37% of churchgoers give this as the chief reason for not going regularly. This was just one finding of The DOOR's survey which set out to find out why so few of those who claim some kind of allegiance to the Church of England don't attend church. Another message that came through loud and clear was that a third of those questioned are not interested in the Church because they think it is irrelevant. But it is not all bad news. People were drawn to the idea of a new start even though they didn't associate it with going to church. Full survey report on pages 10 and 11
inside The DOOR
Children's Aid Direct has been working in Albania since 1991. Now they are caring for refugees
He is the founder and director of an international Christian charity and he is still only 24. God in the Dage life of Patrick McDonald
Goring reaps reward for green churchyard Broomrape and cinnabar moths are just some of the 113 different species of wildlife found in the churchyard of StThomas of Canterbury in Goring, Oxfordshire. On April 17 it was one of 30 projects to be presented with a Living Churchyard and Cemetery Project (LCCP) award by the Bishop of Dorchester at a ceremony in Benson Church Hall. Since 1995 the Diocese of Oxford, BBONT and other conservation organisations have been running the LCCP to encourage the management of churchyards and cemeteries with sympathy for their wildlife and respect for their graves and those who visit them.At St Thomas', Ray Carter, a retired agricultural advisor and former churchwarden, leads a team of volunteers who help with wildlife surveys and the management of the nine areas of the churchyard, each of which is mown at a different time to suit the needs of its wildlife.Their work has recently helped them win the new conservation section of the Best Kept Village competition for the village of Goring and the plaque hangs in the church. Frank Blackwell photographed some of the volunteers at work. In the foreground are Natalie and Sarah George, aged 9 and II and behind them are (r to I) their father, John George, jenny Emerton, who has been involved with the project from the start, and Ray Carter. June 6 is Conservation Sunday.
Hot work in the kitchen. Bishop Page 4 Mike cooks for charity
PLUS Pages 11 & 11t: The DoorPost The Revd Margaret Hall reflects on Page 8 five years as a priest
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Almighty God, our Father, we speak to you from a world of suffering and sadness. We see families torn apart with little children separated from those who want to nurture them. We ask you to provide the care we are unable to give to those who suffer at this time. Strengthen those who strive to bring aid, love and order into situations of need, hatred and disorder. Increase our own commitment to work in your Name. May your love replace the conflict and division which exist on earth so that the world sees a new dawn of justice, peace and compassion. Through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen This prayer has been produced by the Mothers' Union