Читать книгу Kingdom Calling - The Faith and Order Commission - Страница 5

by Eve Poole

Third Church Estates Commissioner

Kingdom Calling asks a very difficult question: what is the point of all of these worthy Church of England reports, if they have no effect? This one looks at why, despite all the good work done over so many years to rehabilitate the role of the laity, so little has changed. It’s our chance to break this cycle and prove we can plot an alternative future, and to use this report as a spur to deliberate and sustained action to recognize the legitimacy of the ministry of all the baptized.

Perhaps this is the kairos moment for Kingdom Calling. The Church is poised to embrace a new Quinquennial Vision and Strategy based on the Five Marks of Mission.

To proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom

To teach, baptise and nurture new believers

To respond to human need by loving service

To seek to transform unjust structures of society, to challenge violence of every kind and to pursue peace and reconciliation

To strive to safeguard the integrity of creation and sustain and renew the life of the earth

The Five Marks are often abbreviated to Tell, Teach, Tend, Transform and Treasure. The current Renewal and Reform agenda has perhaps necessarily emphasised the first two, being based on research that shows that the best way to increase the number of disciples is to raise up more priests, which emphasises the clericalism this FAOC report is at pains to counter. But a re-framing of the Church of England’s activity using the Five Marks naturally includes the entire family of the baptized.

While it may be that those called to ordination are best placed to lead us in the Telling and Teaching, we can all Tend, Transform and Treasure, and indeed the laity are often better placed to be active in these latter spheres. The Archbishop of York talks about a ‘mixed ecology’ church, which includes the whole range of ministries, ordained and lay, parish-based or through chaplaincy, and throughout all the situations and places of England.

As the Church by law established, we have responsibility for the cure of all the souls of England, which is why Archbishop William Temple reminded us that we exist for those who are not our members, as well as for those who are. It feels that the time is now ripe to heed the call of this report to more manifestly embrace our vocation and discipleship in all of these areas – particularly in a post-Covid world and in recognition of the institutional racism that besets our structures – so that we may begin afresh to answer the call of the Kingdom.