A COMMUNITY CHURCH

Early in the period of change, Capel Seion shifted to more unconventional ways of ‘doing’ church and adopting a new and more grassroots model of a church community. Helped enormously by being independent, grassroots change came when the church started rebuilding from the ground up. The new way the church managed its affairs was performed through the efforts of local individuals and small groups rather than being driven and controlled by church elders (or by a centralised organisation or hierarchy in nonindependent churches). This model emphasised community involvement and participation at its core, with decision-making often being more democratic and inclusive. This methodology was decidedly a seachange.

In the grassroots model, Capel Seion emphasised building relationships and fostering a sense of shared responsibility. The new church community was built around small groups or cells that met regularly to study scripture, pray, and support one another. ‘Chatbots’1 became a clever AI tool and a dependable new member in successful home groups.

This model of a faith community was more flexible and adaptable than traditional institutional models, allowing for more responsiveness to the community’s needs and concerns. In addition, the grassroots community was more inclusive and diverse, as the restrictions or biases of a centralised authority did not restrict them.

Overall, Capel Seion’s faith community developed into a powerful way to build a solid and supportive community of believers committed to living out their faith in tangible ways.

A steering group of members representing different community sectors was set up in response to the rapidly changing economic and environmental pressures that seriously affected the church’s survival. This group had a much broader representation of needs. The group assessed these community needs on an ongoing basis and profiled the skills and talents of community service users. This group had a lasting twofold effect on the community’s future. First, following a series of successful prosperity bids to the local authority, future community activities were now served from a specially designed community centre building that used to be the church vestry. The future spiritual needs of the area were invigorated and reshaped to reflect changing patterns of life.

The early 2020s was a turning point in the redevelopment of the church. Over the following ten years, deaconship gave way, albeit slowly, to a new type of community/church management system. The new community hub promoted community activities by providing a multi-agency centre that energised the ailing church. As a result, more people participated in bilingual church services because of simultaneous translation, and the facility was used by a wider section of the public. This period of change was pivotal in the church's survival and was a prelude to more radical changes to the concept of a traditional independent church. As deacons reduced in number, a community representative replaced them. Ministerial leadership was partly replaced by streaming services and later by avatars and holographic representations.

Over the next 25 years, the church developed into a thriving community-led organisation. The redeveloped church vestry was then used for church services and enhanced community activities, while the main church building is still used today but only for important church calendar events. This development was a clear and unequivocal turning point to the accepted standard organisational structure of the traditional independent church. But being independent, the church was not held down by any hierarchical constraints like other churches. It was able to assess needs, plan and move the church quickly and efficiently to ensure its successful future.