Thursday 1 February 2018

What politicians can teach the church

Bermondsey Deanery Synod, joining together the seven parishes of our deanery plus the two Scandinavian churches, met last night at St James and we discovered what politicians can teach the churches.

Simon Hughes is a new member of the deanery synod, representing St James, and he posed us a challenge.

We were discussing the subject of Mission Action Plans, thinking about how the churches of the deanery could reach out with the message of God's love to their communities.

 'Go out and knock on the doors' he challenged us. Let people know the church is there. Ask them for their views. Find out if you can be of an help to them. Leave them a bit of literature about the church's life.

That's what the political parties do all the time. His local party, for instance, aimed to visit every home in the constituency at least once a year. Why couldn't the churches aim to do the same?

That generated a lively discussion and actually got people fired up about a project the whole deanery could get involved in. Even if we can't visit every home, we could visit some and with the Thy Kingdom Come project coming soon, with its focus on praying for the nation,  perhaps we could link in with this - letting people know we are praying for them, and finding out their prayer needs.

It was a challenge. Now the big question - as always when the church talks about mission - is whether talk will lead to action.

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