Page 55 - The Church of Ireland Apologetic for Mission?

chapter four
lessons for the church of ireland
We return to Jerry Greenfield’s analysis of leadership when he said, “One of the key roles of leadership is to tell your own people the truth about the way things really are on the ground”.78 Helping an organisation to look at reality is possibly the most challenging aspect of leadership. It is an aspect that many leaders shy away from. But once you collectively begin the journey of looking at how things really are it throws up the next challenge – knowing what to do about it.
Comments from a range of interviewees, as well as feedback from a Council for Mission conference, suggest strong opinions of how things are and how they might change for the better.
... many, but not all, churches are experiencing a falloff in numbers, aging congregations and weakening community links.
... have a divine discontent about the way things are.
Halfhearted efforts – not resourced by budget or personnel ...
What is leadership bringing as tools of renewal ... Where do they stand in their passion and drive?
How do you resource leadership in a very complex context ... of consumerism?
What does church bring to the party? ... it needs to be built on biblical scaffolding.
What does ‘Mission’ mean in the life of the Church of Ireland today. For many, it only refers to the overseas efforts we make to support those who work in global mission to help those who are in developing countries ...79
The Church of Ireland has an unmistakable apologetic for mission. In so many ways it is in the DNA of what it says about itself. It is also an organisation made up of human beings. Like any organisation it faces the struggle of living up to its ideals. We have used Molloy’s image of the iceberg as representing both visible and invisible obstacles that stand in the way.
Whatever the Church of Ireland may say about itself the Great Commission involves a challenge to the Church at large and to each individual parish to be involved in mission at both local and global levels. This challenge comes at a time,
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We have lost the capacity to take God out of the sanctuary or the tribal shrine or the ability to converse with the outside world.
As we become a less Christian society we need to up our game.
Stop thinking everything was always better in the past.
Stop worrying about the ancestors or the days of bigger numbers or power.
If our perception of history imposes a sense of sclerosis or inertia it becomes (our) master and a tyranny.
We think we are so weak that we can only survive or maintain.
Our culture changed and the Church did not speak into it.
Church of Ireland Gazette (24/11/07)
Church of Ireland Council for Mission Conference (Dromantine 2014)