Church growth under the microscope: a Church Times & Modern Church webinar

Thursday 29 May | 7pm BST

Delivering a presidential address to General Synod in 2021, Archbishop Stephen Cottrell reaffirmed the goal of the Church of England’s national vision and strategy. It was a strategy for growth, he said. “It is not about managing decline gracefully. We want the Church of England to grow and even if it doesn’t – then let our death be a grand operatic death, let it be fantastic and let’s not crawl in a corner.” It’s a strategy that comes with ambitious goals: doubling the number of children and young people in the Church by 2030; creating ten thousand new Christian communities. Tens of millions of pounds are being committed to dioceses for projects designed to deliver on such goals. These are to be delivered in a challenging climate: falling numbers of people identifying as Christian, congregations that haven’t recovered since the Covid-19 pandemic, falling vocations among ordinands, and warnings that both clergy and lay leaders are showing signs of exhaustion and mental strain. Yet we know that churches can grow and are growing, and by diverse measures. This webinar takes a step back from questions of delivery to ask questions about the theology underpinning the drive for growth. What does God say about growing the Church? What does it mean to remain a small, or even declining church? Where is God when growth doesn’t come? And how do we hold onto the scriptural teaching that it is ultimately God that gives growth?

This is a webinar broadcast in collaboration between Modern Church and Church Times

Modern Church encourages open, respectful debate on Christian faith. Founded in 1898 as an Anglican society,  they welcome all who share their ethos, work ecumenically to encourage non-dogmatic approaches to Christianity and support liberal voices in their churches.

Learn more about Modern Church here

Panel

In the Chair will be Madeleine Davies of the Church Times, and there will be four panellists taking a range of approaches to the concept of church Growth, including Angela Sheard (soon to be Anglican Tutor at the Queens Theological Foundation), Trey Hall, Director of Evangelism and growth, Methodist Church in Britain, Christian Selvaratnam, St Hild's Dean of Church Planting and founder of the Centre for Church Planting; and Alison Webster representing the Organising for growth initiative focused on the Centre for Theology and Community in East London).

Madeleine Davies is a senior writer at the Church Times, where she has worked for 13 years. Her writing has explored the implementation of various strategies for Church growth.

Angela Sheard is an Anglican Tutor at The Queen's Foundation, Birmingham, where she trained for ordination. She has just completed her curacy at St Martin-in-the-Fields.

Alison Webster is General Secretary of Modern Church and Mission Theologian in Residence at Citizens UK, the Community Organising Charity. She was, for many years, Deputy Director of Mission (Social Justice) at the Diocese of Oxford.

Revd Dr Christian Selvaratnam is St Hild's Dean of Church Planting and founder of the Centre for Church Planting, the Church Planting Track and the Seedbed programme at St Hild College. Before this, he worked for fifteen years at Alpha International in various roles including as Head of Alpha UK and National Director, and concurrently for fourteen years as the Ordained Leader of G2, a Church of England church plant in York, and as the Pioneer Minister at St Michael le Belfrey, York.

The Revd Trey Hall is the Director of Evangelism & Growth, Methodist Church in Britain. He’s presbyter, pioneer and evangelist, occasional marathoner, failed improv-comedy student, BBC Radio2 Pause for Thought contributor on The Scott Mills Breakfast Show and co-host of the Spill the Spirituality podcast.

Articles in Church Times

You can read these past articles on church growth as featured in our newspaper:

Leading your Church Into Growth: ‘Move from presence to proclamation’

‘Dramatic growth’ in church attendance by young people, Bible Society research finds

Next Bishop of Aston praying ‘impossible prayer’ for church growth

Church in Wales to spend £10m on four church-growth projects

Archdeacon with church-growth remit to be Bishop of Southampton

Photo story: Church growth at RHS Chelsea Flower Show

Archbishops take comfort from small signs of growth in church attendance

Church growth in the North hampered by supply, not demand, researchers find

Boscombe parish gets £400k for youth in Winchester growth bid

C of E should try this recipe for growth

Road to church growth not short, Wigan finds

A beginner’s guide to church-planting

If a church closes, one fifth of the congregation won’t look for another, poll suggests  

Bookstall

View a selection of discounted books relevant to the webinar at the Church House Bookshop - https://chbookshop.hymnsam.co.uk/features/church-growth-bookstall 

Tickets

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