In a small Midlands town, a church's large dayglo poster advertised an evening of inspirational choral music. On the other side of the road, directly opposite the church's notice board, was a small row of shops – including a bookmaker, tattoo parlour and a chippy. The road was wide but the cultural gap between the two sides was more than that; it was enormous.
Why would the person putting a tenner on Wayne Rooney's goal-scoring skills, adding a tattoo to their collection or investing in a bag of chips even think of taking in the works of John Rutter? And vice versa.
There were very few, if any, tattoos evident among the concert-goers as they arrived in their gleaming cars. It all served to make me wonder who that church was for and to what extent it truly represented the parish in which it was set.
More and more we live in a world of mixed up cultures. Even in 'chocolate box villages' that may outwardly appear to be mono-cultural the scene is changing. These cultures may be represented by families whose lineage goes back a long way in the area's local history – and incomers who have moved in relatively 'recently'. That is, within the last 20 years or so!
The challenge for the church is to engage in mission and form disciples in this plurality of cultures. Much is rightly made of the need for cross-cultural missionaries in 21st century Britain but, with the majority of the population having no conscious, meaningful relationship with Christ; there are thousands of people within the regular orbit of disciples of Jesus who need to be introduced to him. There is an urgent need for Christians (especially younger Christians) to be able to form church within cultures and contexts that are familiar to them but which may not be represented (and sadly sometimes not welcomed) in the local Parish Church or Methodist Chapel. For many, the calling is not to cross cultures but simply to cross the road and build relationship with those they know or find there. And wherever God sends, the call and commission is the same, namely to make disciples.
As fresh expressions form in cultures both familiar and strange, some key lessons are being relearned about how disciples are formed:
- they form in sacramental community;
- fruitful fresh expressions seek to create communities where belonging comes before believing and which model holistic living;
- they know the formative power of a rich spiritual life of prayer and worship and a deep sense of God’s imminence and transcendence.
Methodist minister Barbara Glasson said that at Liverpool's bread-making church, Somewhere Else, they sought to make disciples
through friendship, laughter, being real with each other, finding a way to engage in honest conversation, honouring questions, encouragement and mutual learning.
Pioneer Anglican Priest Ian Mobsby, of London-based Moot, adds that
grace and radical generosity are the focus of the community and its understanding of the New Testament word ekklesia for the Church.
These are communities seeking to model the grace of God. This sacramental dynamic is given practical expression through table fellowship and a culture of hospitality. The specific sacrament of Holy Communion is highly valued.
Many fresh expressions have a profound sense of the Eucharist as a place where they meet with Christ, however creatively or humbly the arrangements by which the sacrament is celebrated. When leading Sanctus1 in Manchester, pioneering minister Ben Edson said
Communion is central. It is the way that people feel part of the community, and for some has been a rite of passage into the community. It helps sustain community and focus us on the central focus of our discipleship – the person of Christ.
Disciples grow through supportive relationships. Throughout Christian history this has been true, from the first disciples of Jesus being sent out two by two through the house churches of Acts to more contemporary cell groups and household churches. Fresh expressions of church have grasped the importance of mentors, companions and small groups for making and nurturing disciples. The small groups typically share the features of Acts 2.42; teaching (the group is usually seen as the key gathering for biblical study and learning), fellowship, eating/breaking bread and prayer.
One of the root meanings of the word disciple is 'learner' and this is especially important for those nurturing those new to the faith in fresh expressions. Wholesome, life-giving, biblical learning is vital and a community full of new Christians or those exploring the way of Jesus is often the most fertile of learning environments. No wonder then that General Secretary of the British Methodist Church, Martyn Atkins says of fresh expressions
I find discipleship almost happens at an accelerated pace.
And it is not just those new to the faith who grow. There is no greater stimulus to the learning of established Christians than the questions of explorers or new Christians!
In fresh expressions, disciples are being formed by engaging in mission, serving the needy and getting stuck in. When I was learning to swim I was the most exasperating of pupils. One day my teacher's apparently inexhaustible patience ran out and he picked me up and threw me in the pool, and I found I could swim. Please don't copy this as it would probably be illegal today! We often grow most when God calls us out of our comfort zone and into the needy zones of others.
Wolverhampton Pioneer Ministries, a joint Anglican/Methodist fresh expression of church for young adults, has a strap line of 'putting a smile on the face of the city'. The motto found particular resonance last year when the cities of Wolverhampton and Birmingham were the focus of summer rioting. The young adults of WPM were at the forefront of the clean up and peaceful reclamation of the cities. They grew visibly in their discipleship that week and enjoyed the goodwill of the people of the city – to paraphrase Acts.
We live in a world of many cultures and many needs. Fresh expressions, alongside other churches, are increasingly playing their part in making the love of God known in the midst of the mix and forming new disciples who can themselves cross streets and cultures, bearing with them the reconciling message of Christ crucified and risen.
Andrew Roberts is Director of Training for Fresh Expressions and a co-author of Fresh! An introduction to fresh expressions of church and pioneer ministry (David Goodhew, Andrew Roberts, Michael Volland, SCM Press, 2012).
This article was printed in the Church of England Newspaper on 2nd March 2012.