A Case Study:Fresh expressions of Church

& Pioneer Development Workers

“As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” John 20.21

1m people300k in diverse city5 uni/market townslots of very rural

313 church buildings30 larger (100+) worshipping communities225 smaller ones (less than 50 worshippers)50 worshipping communities of less than 10

Changing the landscape…Lincoln 2010

‘You called, You shouted,You broke through my deafness,

You flared, blazed andbanished my blindness,

Your lavished Your fragranceand I gasped…’

Augustine of Hippo (354-430), Confessions X.27

The calling…1. As many mature, growing fresh expressions of Church in 2030 as

inherited/continuing ones;

2. The vast majority (98%) led in the first instance by teams of licensed Pioneers (most lay, volunteers) with a detailed package of support, accountability, training and development (with hopefully some growing into being paid and/or being called to ordination);

3. Nearly all diocesan ‘fresh expressions of Church’ resources going into supporting these licensed Pioneers.

A calling linked more to anecdote than evidence ...but a new equation was being formulated….

+ =( )

People:Sent to Now

Sent Now Ratio

Adults 503 1229 2.4

Children 140 586 4.2

TOTALS 643 1815 2.8

Sent Now0

200

400

600

800

1000

1200

1400

AdultsChildren

Christian De-Churched Non-Churched0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Who was the Mission Task to reach?

AimResult

Note: the team sent out make up amajority of the Christians present

The weight of discernment…

Part of long term Diocesan vision

At same time as national StrategicDevelopment Funding comes on stream

Increase ownership across Diocese

More resources needed

Lives and communities transformed in God’s grace

Strong evidence for what was previously anecdotal

The gifts of God…

Mads Jonathan Matt Morgan Dowman Pitt

1. Discerning, enabling, training, accompanying and coaching lay volunteer teams of licensed Pioneers

2. Grounded in a particular fresh expression of Church (a day a week-ish)

3. Each taking the lead in one specialism: Jonathan - learning & teaching Mads - developing practice Matt - research

Output/outcome As of Spring 2014 Target Autumn 2019 Target 2030

Growing number of active and maturing fresh expressions of Church

65 (estimate) 180 320

Growing number of licensed Pioneers

15 250-350 640

Growing number of members of fresh expressions of Church

1,858 people(slightly out of date)

7,000 people 15,000 people

Growing levels of engagement with non- and de-Churched people

500 people Churched;700 x De-Churched;650 x Non-Churched

1,500 x Churched2,000 x De-Churched

3,500 x Non-Churched

3,000 x Churched4,000 x De-Churched

8,000 x Non-Churched

Generating a greater learning culture; growing levels of positive systemic change and greater inclination towards risk taking, talking about failure and missional enterprise (targets and measures being developed in January using the Transformational Index tool)

Increasing amounts of financial giving by fresh expressions of Church into the Parish Gift scheme

Negligible directly, some indirectly (through their

‘host’ parish)

Enough (direct and indirectly) to fund an

Archdeacon for Pioneers, or equivalent role

Enough (direct and indirectly) to fund all necessary oversight,

development, support and training roles in their

own right

A range of qualitative, quantatative and holistic measures are used in measurement. 2019 mid way points based on ‘The Diffusion of Innovations’ by Everett Rogers

“People say, ‘what is the sense in our small effort?’ They cannot see that we must lay one brick at a time. A pebble cast into a pond causes ripples that spread in all directions. No one has the right to sit down and feel hopeless.” Dorothy Day

A Case Study:Fresh expressions of Church

& Pioneer Development Workers