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Preparatory reading for

UNIT L :‘Evangelistening’

andwhole life discipleship

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Table of Contents

UNIT L : .................................................................................................................................................. L1

God’s Mission and our calling ...................................................................................................... L3

Preparation for Session One: ....................................................................................................... L3

Outline of Sessions .................................................................................................................... L3

Preparation for Session Two ........................................................................................................ L9

Preparation for Session three..................................................................................................... L11

Preparation for Session Four...................................................................................................... L13

Preparation for Session Five ...................................................................................................... L14

Preparation for Session Six ........................................................................................................ L15

Preparation for Session Seven .................................................................................................. L17

Preparation for Session Eight..................................................................................................... L19

Preparation for Session Nine ..................................................................................................... L23

Preparation for Session Ten:...................................................................................................... L27

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God’s Mission and our calling

Aim: to understand what God is doing in the world and to find our place in that mission.

Preparation for Session One:

The final ten sessions of the CCS are not separate modules, but fit together. They will help you to understand God’s activity in the world and your place in it. They begin by asking ‘What is God doing in the world?’ Many of the previous units have examined what God has done in the past and so increased understanding of the character of the God we worship. The units on prayer and on the sacraments have explored the work of God in the life of the believer. The unit on Christian decision making has asked how we can know how to act in a way that reflects God’s care for us. Having seen how Christians have expressed their faith in the past and how we pray and make decisions, we now look at our part in God’s mission.

In many ways these units bring together all that has been studied so far. As you do them you will need to look back at previous work and you will also be asked to look around you and see what God is doing. But you will also be asked to look forward and ask yourselves the question: ‘What next?’ Where do I, and my church, fit into God’s mission?

Outline of Sessions

Session 1 God’s mission

Session 2 Sharing Good News - stories

Session 3 What is the Gospel?

Session 4 What questions do people have?

Session 5 Responding to enquirers.

Half term break

Session 6 Growing as disciples

Session 7 Responding to human need by loving service

Session 8 Transforming unjust structures of society

Session 9 Safeguarding the integrity of creation and sustaining the life of the

earth.

Session 10 Listening to God’s call

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1. The Mission of God

What is God’s mission? What is God’s plan for the world? This is how the letter tothe Ephesians puts it:

God has ‘made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfilment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ’(Ephesians. 1:9-10).

When Paul speaks of ‘God’s will’, he does not (usually) mean God’s personal guidance for our individual lives, but his great purpose for the whole world, throughout all time and space. He calls this a mystery because it hasn’t been revealed before the time of Christ, but now can be known to all people. God’s plan is to bring healing and unity to the whole creation in and through Christ. The mission of God is to redeem the whole of creation, broken by sin and evil, into the new creation, populated by the redeemed from every culture, through the cross and resurrection of Christ.

Mission, then, is primarily the activity of God, driving this purpose forward through love and bringing it to its glorious conclusion. Our contribution is to listen to God’s call us to participate in this great plan.

It’s God’s World

Christian disciples need to know about the world around them because it is God’s world: God loves this world and chose to reveal himself through the historical person of Jesus. Belief in the inc a rn a ti o n : the em-bodi-ment of God is a uniquely Christian insight; it is what makes Christianity different from any of the other faiths. Through it we learn both that God has become part of this world, and that the world may be a means of understanding God better.

Learning about the earth, for example, will tell us more of God’s character as creator, learning about all of human life will open our eyes to truths about God in whose image we are made. And learning about those with whom we feel no affinity or affection may be the most effective way of understanding truths that were closed off to us!

We need, of course, to be well informed about the world in order to be faithful to God’s call to join Him in mission to it, both in prayer and in action. The task of ministry cannot be carried out in ignorance of the lives of those around us. The study of the Bible should have shown how much of it is concerned with the hazardous calling to live as God’s faithful people in an often hostile world. Occasionally the people of God were called to separate themselves from surrounding culture, such as when intermarriage was forbidden (Ezra 9:1,2), but for the most part the calling was to transform society by the purity and faithfulness of their lives.

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This is not to say that Christians have found it easy to be involved in the world’s affairs, and different approaches have been taken. It is worth reflecting on the contrast in the New Testament between Paul’s situation as he describes it in Romans 13: 1 – 7, and John’s situation as described in Revelation 13. The traditional explanation of the difference between these two passages is that Paul is talking about a time before Rome’s persecution of Christians and that John reacts to a very different time when Christians and being imprisoned, threatened and persecuted by Rome.

For Paul, Rome is one of the governing authorities ordained by God as a guarantor of justice in the world. Paul’s personal experience, as recorded in Acts, is that Rome is his protector. He is a Roman citizen and uses this fact as a defence against persecution by his own people the Jews. In the end he appeals to the Emperor in just the same way as we might appeal to the House of Lords for a final judgement. No wonder Paul saw Rome as being part of God’s plan. Some might even accuse him of being compromised by the protection he received from the Roman Empire.

By the time that John was writing the situation was very different. Beginning with the emperor Nero (who ruled from AD 54 – 68) Christians fell under suspicion of treachery and were persecuted. Church leaders were asked to swear allegiance to the emperor as a god and the emperor began to be given divine status. In John’s mind the emperor is now, in effect, claiming to be King of Kings and Lord of Lords and it is the responsibility of the faithful to resist this.

If we take these two scenarios we are left with questions for our own age. Do we live in a time when political authorities are, as in Paul’s imagination, there to provide a fabric of justice in which human diversity can flourish and where dissent can be expressed, or do we live in a time when those in power claim our obedience in every part of our lives. Some of these claims may be subconscious – the call to be consumers, for example. Two options, of adaptation or of retreat are still possible, so we should ask whether we or our churches are compromised by our participation in contemporary culture, with all the benefits it brings, or have retreated from effective engagement and, consequently, are not forces for good? The challenge for most of us will be to live in the world with a distinctive, Christian, lifestyle.

o Take time at this point to reflect on your position with regard to the world around you. Do you see it as essentially un-Christian, hostile to the Gospel? Or as a place where Christians may learn more about God? Or somewhere in between, perhaps relating to different parts of your life in different ways?

o Can you identify parts of your non Church life where the values and attitudes make it especially difficult to act as a Christian? Conversely, are there parts of your non-church life where you find Gospel values such as patience, hospitality and selflessness better expressed than in church?

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2. The Church and the World

Now ask these questions for your own church. Listen to words spoken in your Christian community, both at Sunday services and during the week. Are any of the three attitudes described above reflected in what you hear? If so, what do you think are the reasons behind these attitudes?

o If you listen to the intercessions at your church, there will often be prayers for "the world,” and "the community around us." As you listen to them, does it sound as though the person leading the intercessions assuming that the members of the congregation are part of the world and the local community or separate from it?

o Sometimes there is a sense of distance between the church community and others in the neighbourhood. "They’re only using the church, for baptisms and weddings,” for example. Or criticism: "they just think of Christmas as a time to enjoy themselves." What is being implied about the speaker's attitude to the community who are not regular attenders at church services?

o One can also sometimes detect a sense that the church, (and God), is a refuge from the world. Before prayers someone might say: “Let’s just still ourselves and leave our troubles behind as we turn to God…” We are encouraged to concentrate on God, not on the world around us.

o Do any of the songs and hymns you sing in church indicate an attitude to society at large? What, for example, is Patrick Appleford’s hymn, “O Lord all the world belongs to you” saying about God, the world and the church?

o Begin to look around your church building. Is there evidence of engagement with issues in the local, regional or national community? Look at your notice board and the information you are handed as you enter church. Examples of engagement might be involvement in a local regeneration project, or prayer for someone in government.

You will have noticed that we are asking you to observe what is happening at your local church, and to listen attentively to casual conversations around you. These may be sights and sounds that have become so familiar to you that it is hard to notice them: exploring the world around us is hard work! You will need to try to listen to well-known phrases as though you had heard them as a stranger, and to think about your conversations with people well known to you.

But do be persistent, and honest, in this preparation. You are not being asked to criticise what your fellow church members say or do, just make a note of what we all do without thinking!

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3. The Mission of God’s People, the church.

There have been many attempts to define and describe the mission of God’s church. In 1984 the Anglican Consultative Council began to develop a “mission statement” for the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the bishops of the Lambeth Conference adopted these “Five Marks of Mission” in 1988. They were then adopted by the General Synod of the Church of England in 1996.

“The mission of the church is the mission of Christ

o To proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom

o To teach, baptise and nurture new believers

o To respond to human need by loving service

o To seek to transform unjust structures of society, to challenge violence of every

kind and to pursue peace and reconciliation

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

the earth

See more at: http://www.anglicancommunion.org/ministry/mission/fivemarks.cfm

The breadth of this statement witnesses to the immense scope of God’s care for theworld.

Mission obliterates the sacred/secular divide. There are not parts of our lives that God is interested in and parts he is not. We are all ‘mission partners’ called to carry God’s message to the world in all the places we find ourselves. The scope of God’s mission is also a reminder that no-one can do it on their own – we need each other. And that is what the Church is for.

So God calls all of us to participate in mission and gives us each particular gifts that equip us in a specific area. So, for example, all of us need to be ready to bear witness to our faith, but some are specifically gifted as evangelists. All of us are to be ready to do acts of kindness, but some have a gift for healing. All should speak up for what is just and right, but some are specifically called to work in political and judicial advocacy, or in tackling global poverty, hunger and disease. All of us should live responsibly in our use and care of creation, but some are called and equipped to pursue environmental biology and do ecologically appropriate scientific research and advocacy.

For Anglican Christians God’s mission is about transformation – transforming individual lives, transforming communities and transforming the world. As we follow Jesus Christ, we believe that God’s mission is revealed to us by the Holy Spirit in three ways: through the Bible, through the tradition and life of the Church, and

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through our own listening, praying, thinking and sharing as we respond to our own context.

The Anglican Consultative Council has noted, though, that "The first mark of mission, is really a summary of what all mission is about, because it is based on Jesus' own summary of his mission (Matthew 4:17, Mark 1:14-15, Luke 4:18, Luke 7:22; cf. John3:14-17). Instead of being just one of five distinct activities, this should be the key statement about everything we do in mission."

See more at: h t tp : / / w w w . a rch b ish o po f y o rk.or g / pa g e s/ f i v e - ma rks -o f - m iss i on . h t m l#s t h a s h . y W P l M d7 w . dp u f ”

(Sessions 2-4 will focus on this first mark, proclaiming the Good News.)

For further Study

Gordon Lynch, understanding theology and popular culture, 2005 BlackwellPublishing).

Called to New Life: The World of Lay Discipleship, Church House Publishing 1999Edited by Cathy Ross and Andrew Walls, Mission in the 21st Century - Summer2008,

Bosch, David Transforming Mission - Orbis Books (USA); New edition (Dec 1992) Mission-shaped church.

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Preparation for Session Two

Mission-shaped church

In 2004 the General Synod commended the report “Mission-shaped church” to the whole of the Church of England. Building on the five marks of mission, this report speaks of five values for a missionary church:

o A missionary church is focused on God the TrinityWorship lies at the heart of a missionary church, and to love and know God asFather, Son and Spirit is its chief inspiration and primary purpose…

o A missionary church is incarnationalIt seeks to shape itself in relation to the culture in which it is located or to which itis called…

o A missionary church is transformationalIt exists for the transformation of the community that it serves, through the powerof the Gospel and the Holy Spirit…

o A missionary church makes disciplesIt is active in calling people to faith in Jesus Christ…it is concerned for thetransformation of individuals, as well as for the transformation of communities.

o A missionary church is relationalIt is characterized by welcome and hospitality. Its ethos and style are open tochange when new members join.

The report recognises that people are more likely to have networks of relations, friends and colleagues than to know the people who are geographically close to them. Communication is by ‘phone, email or social media rather than bumping into each other at the local shops. Meetings are planned, rather than happening in the normal course of events, and people will travel to go to work and leisure activities. The parish system, on the other hand, is based on a geographical location. So the Mission-Shaped church report encourages Christians to share the Good News with them wherever they are, creating new Christian communities.

The Church is committed to encourage these “fresh expressions of church” and they may be seen in many places, contexts, neighbourhoods and networks, alongside the traditional worship and work of Christians in the church and in the world. These fresh expressions attempt to reach the 40% of the population of this country who will not enter a church during their lives. For more information, see w w w . f res he x p ressio n s . o r g . u k and for examples in Chelmsford diocese, see h t tp : / / w w w .c he l m s f o rd . an g l i c an . o r g/ f x

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o Do you think these values should apply to traditional forms of church, as well asto ‘fresh expressions’?

o Do you know of Christians who are part of ‘fresh expressions,’ meeting people at work, at leisure activities, or in the local community? Or are you involved in such ventures? What difference might it make to the way the Gospel is expressed to be in such a context?

The aim of the first session was to present mission as the responsibility of every believer and the reason for the Church’s existence. But not everyone will find this easy. A Church of England report, Called to New Life: The World of Lay Discipleship, first published in 1999 surveyed attitudes to the relationship between church and faith. It found that these attitudes broadly fell into the following categories:

1. People who feel that the Church does not, and could not, understand the issues they face from Monday to Saturday.

2. People who want to escape their Monday to Saturday lives and want the church to be a haven for Sunday that does not remind them of the pressures and difficulties they face during the week.

3. People who see the Church as their real work and paid employment in some other organization as the means by which they can afford to do it.

4. People who long for support and help in identifying a Christian perspective on issues that arise in their lives.

5. People who lack the confidence to be adult disciples because they Church seems to tell them that they have to be accredited before they may speak of their faith or raise questions that may lead to moral and ethical debate.

6. People who feel that the Church has much to say about what is perceived as the 'softer places of work', e.g. service industries, work at home … as opposed to the 'tougher world' of business, commerce, manufacturing industry.

These categories are not mutually exclusive; a single person could identify with several of these statements at one time.

o Do you know people who would identify themselves in these groups?

o How much help do you receive in relating your faith and your daily life?

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Preparation for Session three

All mission is done in a real time and place. The Good News is shaped by the great diversity of places, times and cultures in which we live, proclaim and embody it. We have already seen in Session One, as Paul and John’s attitudes were compared, that different contexts can mean that believers take different attitudes to the world around them, depending on their own circumstances. The message that God loves the world and is seeking to bring all creation to fullness, in and through Jesus Christ, is unchanging, but even in the New Testament it can be seen that there are a variety of emphases as each person and community’s needs are met.

Jesus and Paul, for example, were speaking in different contexts and used different language and images. Jesus spent most of his time with fellow Jews, who were familiar with the promises of the Jewish Scriptures and who were looking for a Messiah. Their country was occupied by an outstandingly powerful foreign army. One influential religious group, the Pharisees were teaching that only by keeping the Law in every detail could the nation have any chance of winning God’s favour. Jesus’s message is that God’s Kingdom has arrived with his own presence and that God’s forgiveness has already been given.

Paul, mostly preaching to Gentiles, is speaking to people who have quite different concerns. In a world where there are many gods, he proclaims one God, who has raised Jesus from the dead. He assures the many nationalities to whom he speaks that God has welcomed them into the community of God’s people, to share in the privileges once enjoyed only by Jews. Past mistakes are forgiven, new life in Christ is given.

These are not two different Gospels, but the same Gospel presented differently. If we are to share the Good News we need to discern the needs of those we are communicating with. We need to find out what questions they are asking. Tim Sumpter has coined the word ‘evangelistening’1 to describe the kind of evangelism that listens before speaking, paying attention to the deepest need of others. Thesekinds of evangelists have developed their listening skills and know how to ask questions that help them to understand the situation that the speaker is in. They will demonstrate sympathy and a desire to understand the other person’s point of view. They will not attack a person’s views, but genuinely try to stand in the shoes of that person.

There is much to learn from those whose listening skills are exercised in a ministry of pastoral care, though there is a difference between pastoral listening and‘evangelistening.’ Evangelistening will be aiming to listen so that the Gospel may beshared in an appropriate way. It is easy to assume that there is only one way of

1 Evangelistening: Recovering the art of Listening in Evangelism. Grove Books, Ev 96

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expressing the Gospel, probably the way that has been significant for us, but some people might be looking for quite different perspectives.

Paul Jones2 has identified five ‘theological worlds’ that describe the questions people have about life and, therefore, what would be good news for them. The following table describes the particular anxieties that people have, what role Christ takes to meet that need and how salvation looks in that world view.

Theological world Christ as Salvation isSeparation and Reunion, a sense of being abandoned

Revealer of Home Coming Home, Hebrews 11: 13-16

Conflict and Vindication,A concern for reconciliation or justice

Liberator A New Earth, John 2: 13-22

EmptinessSense of pointlessness and futility

Example of fulfilled life Wholeness, John 10: 10

Condemnation andForgiveness, Conviction of sin

Saviour Adoption,1 Peter 2: 9-10

Suffering and Innocence,Apparent unfairness of world

Suffering Servant,Companion, Physician.

Survival, HealingHebrews 4: 14-16Revelation 21: 1-4

Try to find examples of people in each of these five ‘worlds.’ This may be in newspapers or magazines, on TV, or be people you know. Record the words which are used, for sharing during the next session – but don’t use real names.

2 Theological Worlds Nashville 1989

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Preparation for Session Four

In preparation for Session Four, Read John 4: 1-26

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Preparation for Session Five

Sharing the Good News through baptism, weddings and funerals.

Most Church of England churches hold Christenings (Baptism is the same thing), Weddings and Funerals: it is a distinctive feature of being the church for the whole country. No other denomination sees so many people at these turning points in their lives. Christenings, Weddings and Funerals are sometimes referred to as the‘occasional offices;’ happening on significant occasions in someone’s life. British residents have various rights in law to these services from the church and they are influential in the determining the local churches reputation in the surrounding community. They are also an opportunity to share the Good News of Jesus Christ.

o In the first session you were asked to consider what the ‘regular’ congregation thought of the presence of people on these occasions. Look back at your responses now.

o Find out, if you can, how many of each of the three services take place in your church, and how many funerals are taken by ministers at the crematorium.

o Christenings: Look back at the work you did on baptism/christening to refresh your memory.

o Weddings: How are wedding couples prepared for married life and the religious service itself, by your church?

o Funerals: When there are funerals in your church or at the Crematorium, taken by one of your ministers, is there any follow up after the service?

o Have you been to one of the three occasional services recently? Pick one of them and identify what you found in it that was ‘good news’ for you. (If the most recent was a difficult or painful time, you do not have to think about that. This is a question about what was good news for you).

Some people feel reluctant to think about sharing the Good News with people who are coming to church for the occasional offices, believing that would be intrusive or unwelcome. When doing so it is especially important to listen well, practising the listening skills which have been used throughout this module. Mission is often more about listening and sharing, than talking all the time. When we know people better because we have really listened, we will be able to respond to their questions and concerns. And these significant occasions in people’s lives raise plenty of questions!

To follow up:

Two Church of England web-sites with information for enquirers: ht t p : / / ww w . y o u r ch u r ch w e d d i n g . o r g / p r es e n t ati o n s / w e d d i n g s - pr o j e c t/ i n d e x . ht m l Look up the wording of the services atht t p s : / / ww w . ch u r ch o f e n g l a n d.o r g / w e d d i n gs - b a p t i s ms - f u n era l s / b a pti s m/ c h r i s t e ni n g - f a qs.aspx

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Preparation for Session Six

Growing as Disciples -Teaching, Baptising and nurturing new believers

The second of the ‘Marks of Mission’ is ‘To teach, baptise and nurture new believers.’

For recording in your journal:

1. Recall a time of change or particular event in life that provoked you to learn about your faith. Remember that experience: What happened? Which person/ mentor/friend/book was particularly important to you at that point? What did you learn?

At the Induction Day there was a reminder that people vary in the ways in which they prefer to learn. For example, some respond to visual material, some to aural, and some to kinaesthetic – movement. Some people learn easiest on their own, some with others. Some people like to spend more time thinking and reflecting, some prefer action and experience. Consider how you like to learn and how this might be different from other people.

2. The Course in Christian Studies is based on an understanding of Christian learning that includes the way we pray and behave as much as what we think. The goal is not a qualification or a certificate, but nothing less than to share in the mind of Christ (Philippians 2: 5-11).

We can look at examples of Paul’s teaching in this light and see how he weaves these three strands – our relationship with God, our understanding of the faith and the way we treat each other, together.

Read 1 Corinthians and complete the grid overleaf: identify what Paul has to say about the following:

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Our relationship withGod

Our understanding ofthe faith

The way wetreat each other

What to believe

How to act

How to pray

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Preparation for Session Seven

Responding to human need by loving service

The Great Commission and Jesus’ Commandment. Matthew 28: 20 records Jesus telling his eleven disciples to teach those who they will baptise to ‘obey everything I have commanded you.’ The Gospels tell us that Jesus commanded unclean spirits to leave possessed people, demonstrating his authority over evil, and he commands the winds and the waves, demonstrating his authority over the elements. His many instructions to his followers were not designed in the same way to demonstrate authority and power, but to show them the way to be like him. These instructions were summed up in his words at the Last Supper: "My commandment is this: love each other as I have loved you" (John 15:12). Jesus shows that he is as concerned about the way we treat each other as he is about our attitude to himself. This is made explicit in his teaching. For example:

o Matthew 25: 31-46 Those who care for the needy are deemed to be caring forJesus himself

o Matthew 5: 23 – 24 It is more urgent to be on good terms with another person than to offer sacrifices to God.

‘as I have loved you’ The Gospels record countless examples of Jesus care for the poor, needy and unloved people around him. As we copy Jesus’ action we are joining in God’s mission of healing and reconciliation in the world and being obedient to Him. There some distinctive features of Jesus’ ministry:

o There was no group excluded. Jesus met and healed men, women, children, adults, Jews and, eventually, Gentiles, rich and poor, powerful and weak.

o Jesus expected these healings to be noticed. Mark’s Gospel records his early desire that the arrival of the Messiah be kept secret until the right time, but when that came, all were expected to understand that these healings were a sign of the breaking in of God’s Kingdom.

o Jesus acted as a ‘deacon,’ one who serves. This is often translated as servant, but recent scholarship has shown that this word was used in other Greek literature to describe someone who carried someone else’s authority, rather than simply a menial servant. A deacon is someone who stands in for an important person, like an ambassador in another country is the representative for the Queen. One might compare the situation of a waiter in a restaurant who asks each customer to choose from a wide range of dishes and a waiter at a wedding feast, who serves one dish to the guests, the dish the hosts have chosen. The second kind of waiter is much more the servant of the hosts, acting on their behalf, not trying to satisfy all the needs of the guests and subject to them. Jesus was a deacon in the second sense, giving to the world the blessings his Father had provided. And we are God’s servants, also acting on His behalf, and must enquire of God how we are to serve His world.

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Imitating Christ In the second letter to the church in Corinth Paul exhorts the believers to contribute towards the needs of the Christian in Jerusalem.Read 2 Corinthian 8: 1-11 and 2 Corinthians 9: 6 – 15:

o What reasons does Paul give the Corinthians for being generous?

o What outcome may they expect?

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Preparation for Session Eight

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

1. This fourth mark of mission is the one that many people find the hardest to engage with – and some Christians find it strange that it should be included. But, in fact, the entire Bible contains material that addresses issues of justice and of reconciliation. Read, for example the social and economic rules given in The Hebrew Scriptures, (what we know as the Old Testament). You do not need to look up each of the references; they are there for your information.

o Land must not be sold in perpetuity, for (God says) ‘the land is mine; with me you are but aliens and tenants’ (Leviticus 25:23). The land thus belongs to God, who is just; he demands that it be administered fairly by those who don’t own it, but act as tenant-farmers on behalf of the Creator and Owner. Those who held it in this way were answerable to God, not subject to any human ruler (see the story of Naboth’s vineyard in 1 Kings 21:1—15). To us today, this seems both strange and restrictive: landownership is the basis of much wealth and status in our society, and has been for many centuries.

o Interest was forbidden when God’s people lent to each other (Exodus 22:25;Deuteronomy 23:19; Leviticus 25:35—37).

o Surety (i.e. the ‘deposit’ someone gave a lender to ensure that they would pay up) was controlled: ‘If you take a neighbour’s cloak in pawn, you shall restore it before the sun goes down; for it may be your neighbour’s only clothing to use as cover; in what else shall that person sleep? And if your neighbour cries out to me, I will listen, for I am compassionate’ (Exodus 22:26—27). ‘By divine command, both human life and human dignity are to be respected in borrower—lender relationships’ (Crossan, God and Empire, p.68).

o Cancelling debts – every seventh year, God required that debts be cancelled (Deuteronomy 15:1—2) – and once again, the reason is the same: because it is what God does. And the law adds a rider, warning lenders not to refrain from lending because the seventh year was approaching (Deuteronomy 15:9) – again, radical instructions to maintain equality, and prevent the powerful from growing ever more powerful and abusing the vulnerable.

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o Freeing slaves – again, every seventh year, slaves are to be freed (Exodus21:7—11; Deuteronomy 15:13—14, 18). There are different laws applying tomale and female slaves, for the former to compensate him materially for the time he has worked for nothing; for the latter, to compensate her if she has lost her virginity to her master.

o Reversing dispossession – the year of Jubilee, an ultra-radical decree: ‘You shall hallow the fiftieth year and you shall proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you: you shall return, every one of you, to your property and every one of you to your family’ (Leviticus 25:10). In other words, every fiftieth year, the land is to revert to its original distribution (in Israel’s case, to the land given by God to each of the twelve tribes).

The way that God’s people were to behave was specifically modelled on the character of God Himself. ‘The Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who is not partial and takes no bribe, who executes justice for the orphan and the widow, and who loves the strangers, providing them with food and clothing. You shall also love the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt’ (Deuteronomy 10:17—18).

These principles are retained within the world of Islamic banking. Sharia Law prohibits the payment interest - or making money out of money. As it is not permissible for banks to charge interest on their loans, sharia-compliant deals are usually structured so that the bank ends up leasing the property to the homeowner, who essentially ends up paying rent until ownership is transferred. Thus with a large purchase, like a house, the bank will buy the property and then sell it, sometimes in instalments, to the customer.

Perhaps because the risks are shared, investments in such banks have not suffered so steeply in the credit crunch as other, more traditional accounts. Both the bank and the customer share in the profits – and the losses if the value decreases. There is much less incentive to engage in get-rich-quick speculative dealing. Some traditional western banks, such as HSBC and Lloyds TSB have sharia-compliant accounts, open to anyone, and there are now stand-alone Islamic banks licensed by the Financial Services Authority. Each has seen a significant rise in non-Muslim customers.

Jesus, too, was very concerned about the way people used their money and possessions: there are more of His recorded words on this subject than any other! They are very challenging. Some Christians respond to Jesus’ teaching by asking, "Can a Christian own property?" The New Testament answer is "No". Christians cannot own property. The reason we cannot own property is that we have a king. When we commit to Jesus, all our property belongs to him. We cannot own property, because we and everything we hold belongs to him.

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Many Christians ask a different question. "Do I have to sell everything I own?" This question does not make sense, because a Christian does not own anything. Everything we owned transferred to Jesus when we surrendered to him. We cannot sell what we do not own.

A different question is more relevant. "Can a Christian hold property". The answer is yes. We can manage Jesus’ property on his behalf. We can act as his steward. The key is a shift in attitude. We no longer own property, so we cannot "claim our possessions as our own". They belong to Jesus, so we must use them as the Holy Spirit directs. That changes everything.

Words taken from:http://kingwatch.co.nz/Christian_Political_Economy/jesus_on_money.htm

What would you now say to a fellow Christian who said that Christians and theChurch should only be concerned with ‘spiritual’ matters?

2. Consider the words of Dom Helder Camara “When I feed the poor, they call me a saint, but when I ask why the poor are hungry, they call me a communist” Camara was the Catholic Archbishop of Olinda and Recife, Brazil, serving from 1964 to 1985 during the military regime of the country. In a short tract entitled Spiral of Violence (published in 1971), he examined the way that resistance to unjust social conditions spirals into rebellion and is then met with repressive violence. In this way injustice, deprivation and violence are linked. Christian communities, he said, have a responsibility to find ways of breaking this spiral. It is not enough simply to satisfy people’s needs, but also vital to ask what structures in society are keeping people poor.

In fact, it is often as one is involved in care and concern for people that questions about how their situation was created are raised. As preparation for the session, review the list of activities which you drew up to highlight who is involved in serving the world around us. Then record anything that has raised structural questions for you or your church. For example,

o Helping in a food-bank or night shelter might raise questions about the Benefits system,

o Being a Street pastor might have informed you about the needs of young people,

o Helping in a charity shop might have increased you understanding of the situation when a disaster occurs.

What are your questions?

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P ea c e - ma king Read Romans 12 9-13. and I Corinthians: 10-17 in preparation for discussion of these passages in the session.

Being a peace-maker. Some disputes will take a long time to resolve, but many disagreements are the result of people misunderstanding each other. A misheard remark, a wrong assumption or misinterpretation can easily escalate into something much bigger so people end up not talking to each other. If that happens, they need someone to mediate between them.

Good, basic listening skills are valuable here. In the second session you practised listening with attention to each other. A mediator will listen with attention to each party and, with their permission, tell each party the other’s version of events.

It is not easy to be a mediator. It is hard to put aside what you think should happen, or who is in the right, and simply be a messenger between two sides, enabling them to resolve their own difficulties. A mediator must be neutral, so they can be trusted by both sides.

Fur t her r es ourc e s : Consult the following websites and see what each organisation advises campaigners to do.

Third Way (see w w w . t h i r d w a y ma g a z in e .c o . u k ) New Consumer see w w w . n e w c on s u m e r.com ) Earthmatters (see w w w . f oe . c o . u k )

w w w . w a ro n w an t .o rg w w w . t raidcraf t .c o . u k w w w . tea rc r a f t .o rg w w w . o x f am . o r g . u k

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Preparation for Session Nine

‘To strive to safeguard the integrity of creation and sustain and renew the life of theearth.’

There are many threats to future of our environment, but the basic problem is this: the human population consumes more of the world’s resources than the planet can be replace. People argue about whether the problem is the number of people overall, or the amount that wealthier populations consume it is estimated that a child born in an industrialised country will add more to pollution over his or her lifetime than 30-50 children born in the Third World. Here are some of the effects:

Global warming, caused by gaseous carbon emissions (such as carbon dioxide and methane) is upsetting the balance of our climate system which in turn is causing extreme weather conditions such as drought, flooding from storms and from ice-melt, tornadoes, etc. The warming of the planet overall will make some parts colder as sea currents and wind patterns change. Britain, for example, has been warmed by the Gulf Stream, which is a warm current which flows across the Atlantic Ocean from the warmer seas of the Caribbean. The Gulf Stream warms Britain by 5-8C, but the warming of water in the North Pole is already slowing down the flow of water and may continue to decrease its effect, so Britain will get colder because the ice is melting.

Climate change is impacting the most on the poor who are often dependent upon marginal resources which are very much more susceptible to natural/man-induced disasters.

Some other related problems we face as a global community, are as follows:

Oil Shortage: Demand will outstrip supply by almost double within three decades.

Water Shortage: The number of people living in regions with chronic drought will reach between 2.5 billion to 3.5 billion, within just two decades, a fivefold increase from the half a billion today. There is a great deal of wastage both as a result of leakages and careless, unnecessary use. Water related diseases kill 6,000 children each day.

Fish Shortages: Nearly 50% of all stocks are fully exploited, 20% are over-exploited and only 2% are recovering. The oceans are becoming increasingly polluted and slight temperature increases, due to global warming, have destroyed large areas of coral reef, our most diverse ecosystems on the planet.

Land degradation and pollution are taking an increasing toll. Nearly half a billion people live in countries that no longer have enough healthy crop land to grow their own food However, in the developing countries annual carbon emissions have quadrupled in the last fifty years.

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Global Tourism: Increased air-travel is damaging the atmosphere and increasing global warming through the contrails and pollution of the skies. Short-haul flights are particularly damaging.

Globalisation means ‘the growing interdependence and interconnectedness of the modern world.' Multi-national companies are as rich as countries. Land that was once used to grow food for local people is being used to grow 'luxury' crops that will be flown overseas to relatively well-off consumers.

o Do you feel optimistic or pessimistic about the long term future of the planet?

o Do you feel confident to have an opinion about these issues, or are you silenced by the complexity of them?

The Christian response: Climate change is a crisis for the entire world’s population,but here we consider whether the Christian Church has anything distinctive to say.

Lessons from the Bible

In Genesis 2:15 humans are told to ‘abad’ the garden in which they have been placed. This Hebrew word is most commonly translated as ‘till’. This might imply that we look after the garden so that it serves us. Elsewhere in the Old Testament, however, ‘abad’ is translated as to ‘serve’ (e.g. Genesis 25:23; 27:29; Ex 14:12).

The other word with regard to our relationship towards the garden is ‘shamar’ a word that implies guarding and protecting from harm (see its use in Genesis 3:24; 4:9). It does not imply that the agent should preserve the garden in the sense of stopping it changing, but rather of protecting it so that it can live in peace.

A third, important, though neglected concept in Genesis is ‘rest’. Rest is seen asessential, beneficial and holy. (Genesis 2:3).

The most controversial term in Genesis is that of ‘dominion’. In Genesis 1:28 God gives humans an explicit role in "subduing" and "having dominion over" all other animals. This task was limited to humanity. Other commands addressed to our first parents, to "be fruitful and increase, and fill the earth", were given also to the non- human creation (Genesis 1:22). The text does not say that creation was given to the human species for our own profit and pleasure. The kingly rule indicated by dominion was epitomised for the Israelites by the loving pastoral care of the shepherd-king, David. It was to be exercised by those "made in God’s image" - in other words, ruling in God’s way, on God’s behalf. The prime example of this leader/servant is of course Jesus Christ, who showed that self-sacrificial service is the way to exert our power and influence.

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Christian motivation

Jesus Christ’s death and resurrection offers hope in that our rebellious acts against God have been dealt with and we can have a fresh start. This new beginning is a form of healing and the Bible maintains that it applies not only to human beings, but also to the whole of creation, which Paul says has been ‘groaning’ as if in labour, waiting for its own new birth into freedom through Jesus Christ (Romans 8:20-22).

Christians believe that God has given us a unique responsibility to serve the world and that we are all individually and personally accountable for our actions. We need to live in each day as if we will die tomorrow, but look after the Earth as if we will be on it forever.

Activity at the personal, local, national and international level.At the lowest level there is the requirement for everyone to make best use of his or her own domestic materials. This will include having the most energy efficient home possible, not wasting water and recycling waste wherever possible. It is wrong to think that stewardship and sustainable consumption are problems for policy-makers and that nothing we can do affects our planet and its future. There are issues that each one of us needs to consider in our home, hobbies and at work.

A second level is management by local communities. For example, planning permission for new projects should take into consideration whether the proposal makes best use of any resources. This may involve issues of land use and sustainability. Planning laws often give local people the power to organise development in ways that will hand a healthy world to future generations. Can we be bothered to exercise those powers wisely?

Thirdly, government and industry, at both national and multi-national levels have the capability to act in ways that either serve or damage the long-term good of the earth and the species that live on it. We can try to hold those we elect to account for their decisions.

Further resources:

o ISO1400 internationally recognised Environmental Management System (EMS).o Friends of the Earth http :/ /www.f oe .co .u k/o - Greenpeace www. g reen pea ce.o rg.u ko World Development Movement www. wdm .o rg.u ko World Wildlife Fund www. wwf .o rg.u ko Christian Aid h tt p:/ /www.ch ristiana id.o rg.u k/issue s/c lima te chan ge /inde x.a sp xo Tear Fund h ttp ://www.t ea rf u nd .o rg/Campa ign in g/Clima te +ch an ge +and +d isaste rs/o CAFOD http://www.cafod.org.uk/climate-change

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Look at one or more of the following sites for ideas and projects that the local church could engage in;

o Eco-congregation - w w w . e c o c on g re g a ti on . o rg o Operation Noah - www .ope ratio nno ah .o rgo Shrinking the Footprint - www.sh rin kin gth ef o otp rin t. cofe .an glican .o rgo A Rocha conservation - en .a rocha .o rgo ‘Sharing God's Planet - a Christian vision for a sustainable future. Sharing God's

Planet’o ‘How many lightbulbs does it take to change a Christian?’The last two publications are both available from th4e Diocesan bookshop

o The diocesan guide to resources:h t tp : / / w w w .c he l m s f o rd . an g l i c an . o r g / up l o ad s/ R e s ou rce g u i d e . p d f

(For further assistance: Note that Susan Latchford was appointed the Diocese Environment Champion in 2014 by the Diocese Environment Group (DEG). Susan can be contacted by email: environmentchampion@chelmsford.anglican.org or by telephone on 020 8501 2267 between Mondays and Wednesdays).

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Preparation for Session Ten:

What is our part in God’s mission? - Listening to God

The following Biblical verses give advice and examples of hearing God’s word. Read these verses, preferably no t all in one go, asking yourself what can be learned from them about discerning the word of God?

Allow the stories within them to stay in your mind for a while. After you have given them some thought – and prayed with them, you can look up the background and context in whatever aids to Bible reading you have.

1 Kings 19: 11-13

Psalm 1:2

Psalm 37, 7-9

Proverbs. 2 1-5

Proverbs 3: 5,6

Isaiah 6: 8.

Philippians 1 9,10

1 Timothy 6: 3-5

James 3 3-17

1 John 4 1-3

When you are doing this at home, make sure that you have removed distractions: put on answering machine, turn off mobile or go somewhere where you are less likely to be disturbed. Have paper and pen handy to record any distracting thoughts, which you can return to later.

CCS students have been encouraged to keep a journal, and this would be a good way of recording how God has spoken to you. It is also good to talk with others about how God is guiding you as you listen to Him.