AnglicanLife Apr/May 2013

ISSUE TWENTY FOUR – APR/MAY 2013

Diocese of Christchurch

The New Shape of the Diocese of Christchurch Transitional Cathedral Takes Shape

Social Housing in Christchurch

Festival of Salt & Light 2013

An (Overseas) Leap of Faith

Discipling Young People

AnglicanINVITING / FORMING / SENDING / SERVINGanglicanlife.org.nz

He Oranga Mihinare

AnglicanLife Issue 24 1

ContentsBISHOP’S ADDRESS: Shout “Alleluia!” 01

FEATURE: Is God Calling Us to Fresh Expressions? 03

LIFESTYLE: Social Housing in Christchurch 06Festival of Salt & Light 2013 08Preparing for Missions Work 10

WORKPLACE: An (Overseas) Leap of Faith 12Discipling Young People 13

PHOTO ESSAY: Transitional Cathedral Takes Shape 14

DIALOGUE: A Good Samaritan Situation 16

FEATURE: The New Shape of the Diocese of Christchurch 18

CLOSING ESSAY: Resurrection People 21

ISSUE 24April/May 2013

AnglicanLife is published bi-monthly by the Anglican Diocese of Christchurch.

ISSN 2253-1653

Editor – Philip Baldwin

Contributing Writer – Megan Blakie

Contributors +Victoria Matthews, Bridgit Anderson,

Joshua (Spanky) Moore, Rachel Smith, Rosie Staite, Fiona Summerfield, Josh Taylor, Jolyon White,

Claudia Wood Advertising Enquiries

Ivan Hatherley – [email protected]

Editorial Enquiries Philip Baldwin – [email protected]

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EDITORIAL

Shout “Alleluia!”WORDS: BISHOP VICTORIA MATTHEWSPHOTO: BAYLY & MOORE

I pondered why I was having such difficulty writing this article about Resurrection. After all Easter is only three weeks away and Resurrection is the bedrock of my faith.

Then I realised that the problem is quite simply that too much of my work at the moment is about death and destruction. More buildings are being assessed for seismic strength, and the diagnosis of “earthquake prone” is never far from our thoughts.

There is another delay in the completion of the Transitional Cathedral, and the battle over the Cathedral in the Square continues. The list goes on.

But then I remembered that all those concerns are transitory. Each and every one of those worries is part of the old pattern that passes away when Resurrection arrives. And so I said: “Alleluia, Christ is risen; the Lord is risen indeed, alleluia”.

We are now into the third year after the devastating earthquake of February 2011, and it has been and is a hard road at times.

My heart goes out to all those who are on the east side of Christchurch. But I also want to give thanks for the fun days, the fabulous community events, and the brilliant idea of Avonside to celebrate their history by giving thanks on Easter Sunday in spite of the fact that much of their surrounding neighbourhood is red-stickered.

Saying “Alleluia” isn’t about deciding whether the glass is half full or half empty. It is rejoicing in the power and love of God to bring about new life, and remembering that the Resurrection of Christ is indeed the definitive cry of the Kingdom of God on earth.

So, this Easter shout “Alleluia!” Then shout it again. Tell someone you love them. Give thanks for all God has given us in this Diocese called Christchurch.

CHRIST CHURCH: that is who we are and who we will ever be.Alleluia!

Saying ‘Alleluia’ isn’t about deciding

whether the glass is half full or half empty.

It is rejoicing in the power and love of

God…”

2 AnglicanLife Issue 24 3

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Is God Calling Us to Fresh Expressions?Towards the end of 2012 I had the privilege of heading to the UK for three months to study the Fresh Expressions (FX) movement, shadow the National UK FX Team, and participate in the training program for FX pioneer ministers at Ridley Hall in Cambridge. The time away was a transformational experience for me, and seeing the impact these mission-minded forms of church were having on the spiritual landscape in England was both inspiring and challenging.

WORDS: JOSHuA (SPANkY) MOORE

“In the UK these Fresh Expressions have been popping up in places as

diverse as housing estates, schools, skate parks, cafés, pubs, retirement

homes, and art galleries.”

It made me wonder: if the Spirit is up to such exciting and unexpected things in the UK, could he also do the same in New Zealand—given half the chance?

Most of us have probably heard this Fresh Expressions term thrown around a bit over the past few years, but one thing I’ve realised is that most people are still pretty iffy on what the term really means. Admittedly, it’s one that has had some misuse over the years. For example, one church in the UK famously applied for diocesan funding for a notice board under the guise of it being a “bold new Fresh Expression”. So before you treasurers out there start getting any ideas, the official definition might be helpful.

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“A fresh expression is a form of church for our changing culture established primarily for the benefit of people who are not yet members of any church. It will come into being through principles of listening, service, incarnational mission, and making disciples; and it will have the potential to become a mature expression of church shaped by the Gospel and the enduring marks of the church and for its cultural context.”

It comes from the assumption that God’s Spirit is constantly at work in the world, or in Rowan Williams’ words: “Mission is about finding out what God is doing and joining in”. As the church discovers fewer people connecting with our inherited forms of worship, we move beyond our sacred spaces to see what God’s Spirit is up to in unexpected places. We begin by going out and listening; then, serving whoever God has called us to, we gradually start making new disciples; and then, we see what

faith community emerges from these new followers of Jesus.

In the UK these Fresh Expressions have been popping up in places as diverse as housing estates, schools, skate parks, cafés, pubs, retirement homes, and art galleries. They engage people of all ages, stages, classes, and races. But just how successful have they been? Well, in the Diocese of Liverpool, statistics just out on UK Fresh Expressions show a four-fold return on people joining a FX from those sent out to plant them. Fresh Expressions now accounts for over 10% of their weekly service attendance.

In New Zealand, though, uptake on the idea has been very slow. Messy Church has gained some ground, and we’ve certainly seen a few creative attempts at planting congregations that target those outside our regular parish clientele. When compared to the UK effort over the past decade, we’re barely at the starting line with these initiatives. But that could all be about to change.

Our own Diocese is faced with two huge challenges where Fresh Expressions will surely play a role. Firstly, many of our parishes were struggling pre-quake with the issue of decline: the faithful are getting older, the young more illusive. Christianity has ceased to be the automatic default setting of society, and is now just one possibility among many. Secondly, post-quake many of these same parishes are asking the question: “Where, and in what form, is God’s Spirit calling us next?” The temptation is to simply rebuild the way we were before February 2011.

But even before the earthquakes we were in need of a serious re-think of how

mission and ministry should be approached for this new era. The Fresh Expression principles and processes offer us a proven framework for sharing the gospel beyond our comfort zones. God knows, if we’ve ever needed such a framework, surely it’s now.

One of the most encouraging things I’ve seen since returning home has been the launch of the Mission Shaped Ministry (MSM) course in Christchurch this February. MSM was painstakingly written and put together by the UK Fresh Expressions team, and so far over 20,000 have completed the part-time year-long course in England. Attempts were made to launch the course in Auckland and Wellington this year, but only Christchurch could muster the numbers to get one going, with 40 people enrolled. Judging from the conversations and feedback on that first day, the earthquake seems to have unleashed a deep hunger and openness to re-thinking how the church can reach out with the good news and plant new expressions of church in unexpected places.

Now don’t hear me wrong, Fresh Expressions certainly isn’t some silver-bullet saviour of the church. To plant a Fresh Expressions congregation takes huge amounts of patience, risk, and just plain hard work. But as the church we’ve been following God’s Spirit into unexpected places ever since Pentecost. The question is, are we brave enough to hear his call once again down under, in our own neck of the woods? I pray that we are.


NGOs can argue about whether there is a problem without any data, or overall plan, from which to work.

Meanwhile, in a parallel, idealistic dimension, Eric visits Mr Brownlee. He tells his story over a coffee. Gerry listens carefully.

“I wonder”, Gerry says, “how many others are in difficult housing situations?”

“No idea, mate.”“No! That’s the point, me neither! And neither can any one of

the organizations involved, as hard as they all work.”“Wow, I wasn’t sure that you’d care.”

“We lost over 280 low-cost beds lost in the inner city east alone, and there are currently zero overall social housing plans for the city.”FAMILY / SOCIAL JuSTICE / ENVIRONMENT / SuSTAINABILITY / SPIRITuALITY

Lifestyle Social Housing in Christchurch:

Eric and Gerry Hatch a PlanGerry Brownlee, and lately The Press, claim there is no housing crisis in Christchurch. WORDS: JOLYON WHITE

So what constitutes a crisis? Maybe it depends where you are looking, and whom you are asking.

A homeless guy named Eric, who wears a hoodie, told us how he lost his inner city bedsit in the quake. Now his only affordable options are far out in the eastern suburbs, where transport costs are higher and opportunities for engaging with society are lower, but he is farther from his friends, doctor, and the City Mission (where, incidentally, the night shelter has been consistently full since the quake).

Just asking about social housing post-quake is like walking into a room where everyone is talking at once.

Some economists muse that market forces pushing low-cost housing out of the CBD is part of the city’s progress. “Eric will make new friends out east”, they might say, “and if life is harder for Eric, that will give him an incentive to get a job”.

Waipuna Trust finds housing for young people, Comcare caters for adults with mental health concerns, other organisations focus on the needs of the elderly or those struggling with addictions or abuse. All of these groups have their own needs.

Housing New Zealand talks about opening some blocks in the CBD, but for how many units, and for what type of needs?

ComCare recently received $700,000 from the SHU for 12

additional units, but we lost 280 units in a six-block radius of the inner city. And while one group gets some funding, in a competitive process another misses out.

Clarifying the mixed evidence and disparate issues around social housing is daunting. It would be understandable for Mr Brownlee to be reluctant to call it a crisis, even if he found people squatting in his office, drinking all the coffee, and rolling cigarettes out of his press statements, because the word “crisis” carries implications.

“Now come on guys. Please get your blankets off my desk. This is not a crisis; there are alternatives.”

And maybe there are. But finding any quantifiable data is hard.

So what constitutes a crisis? For me it is this: there are more than half a dozen distinct groups requiring some sort of housing support with differing needs; HNZ, Council, DBH, SHU, multiple NGOs, and private landlords all have a stake in social housing; we lost over 280 low-cost beds lost in the inner city east alone; and there are currently 0 overall social housing plans for the city. Count them again: 0. Finding out just what housing is like for those on the margins, and how close it takes them to personal crisis, should surely be a priority. A crisis is where the media, government, and

“What we need is some holistic, government-funded research. Then we can make a really well formed plan, instead of arguing about the nature of the situation. My dear Eric, we care a great deal.”

And so, some socially concerned researchers are employed by the government to talk to all parties and get a realistic view of social housing needs. The information is then considered by policy makers, who make an intelligent plan.

In the meantime Gerry invites Eric to live with him. Eric gives Gerry his black hoodie. Gerry wears it with pride.


experiencing Gore Bay, and I have to say, I was impressed with what God had done with the place. Some went surfing, some lay on the beach chatting (females), some threw stones at a piece of wood sticking out of the ground (males), while others attempted to impress the opposite sex. Each to their own, I guess.

At Saturday’s night session we were introduced to the controversial practice of dumpster diving: the radical pastime of sneaking behind supermarkets late at night, and rescuing (aka eating) “B grade” food from becoming landfill. Once we learnt what dumpster diving was, we then debated that ultra-controversial question: “Would Jesus dumpster dive?” We were helped along by the formidable debating skills of Lyndon Rogers, John-Luke Day, and Kate Day. Who won the debate? A show of hands showed the crowd was split right down the middle.

I have to admit, in my rhyming opinion, “the Salt and Light festy was truly the besty”. It was a great way to kick off the year and reconnect with God. Roll on 2014!

LIFESTYLE

“I was proud of myself for choosing Helen-Ann Hartley’s talk on Career Choices, and resisting

the allure of Darryl Gardiner’s exposé on Sex and Relationships.”

Festival of Salt & Light 2013After many months of eager anticipation the 8th of February finally rolled around. In the beautiful setting of Gore Bay, tents were pitched, inflatable mattresses were inflated, and the question “So which church are you here with?” was asked by everyone at least nine times.

WORDS: RACHEL SMITHPHOTOS: CLAuDIA WOOD

Welcome to The Festival of Salt and Light. Over 250 young adults escaped the tyranny of wi-fi and flushing toilets to spend the weekend wrestling with the question: “What does God want to do in my life this year?”

Things kicked off on Friday night, followed up by late night espresso and live music. I even stayed up to watch the midnight screening of Moonrise Kingdom, and tripped over many a guy rope as I wandered back to my tent in the wee hours.

Over the course of the weekend we were challenged and entertained by the speaking talents of Darryl Gardiner, Helen-Ann Hartley, Matt Stott, and many more. We learnt about how God is, among other things, dirty and greedy: dirty enough not to be disgusted by the filthy state of our lives, but ready to help us work through our rubbish; greedy enough to want not just our Sunday mornings and 20-second grace before dinner, but our whole lives.

On Saturday morning, in honour of Shrove Tuesday, the whole camp feasted on bacon, pancakes, and berry compote—I could get used to that. After the morning session we were then subjected to the agony of choice, with two tempting workshops going on simultaneously. I was proud of myself for choosing Helen-Ann Hartley’s talk on Career Choices, and resisting the allure of Darryl Gardiner’s exposé on Sex and Relationships. Helen-Ann’s talk was largely discussion-based and I found it hugely helpful, so ten holy points to me.

Saturday afternoon was gloriously sunny, so the majority of “festival-ites” headed to the beach. It was my first time


LIFESTYLE

Preparing for Missions WorkNick and Tessa Laing are heading to Northern Uganda as long-term mission partners with the New Zealand Church Missionary Society (NZCMS). They are currently training at St Andrew’s Hall in Melbourne. Philip Baldwin caught up with them on Skype to learn more about their journey.

WORDS: PHILIP BALDWINPHOTO: COuRTESY OF NZCMS

running the course have lived overseas for long periods, and you can really learn from their experience.”

Nick and Tessa are long-term Mission Partners with NZCMS, explained Sophia Sinclair, Communications Officer for NZCMS. Typically long-term partners serve a 3-year term overseas, followed by 6 months of leave (travelling to encourage churches to support mission, de-briefing and training, retreats and rest). “…The idea is that they would return for another 3-year term – God willing”.

The commitment to become Mission Partners is considerable, and the young couple face significant financial realities. Nick and Tessa are responsible for raising 50% of what they need, and the rest is provided through the Anglican Missions Board (AMB) and NZCMS. Sophia showed me the brochure promoting their work: information about them and NZCMS, a tear-off as a reminder to pray for them, and a form for making your commitment to support them financially.

At first, they were daunted by the prospect of fundraising, but have been “overwhelmed by generous offers of support, both financial and prayer. We still have a way to go yet, though!” Ultimately, they don’t really see going to Uganda as a financial sacrifice: “All money and resources are God’s. If we think resources are ours to ‘sacrifice’, we have the wrong mindset”.

The couple expect some of their biggest challenges to be cultural: how Ugandans see white people, what it means to be a friend with someone in Uganda, what the local feelings are about women, and “how money is used and accounted for—that will be a big challenge”, Tessa added. “We’ve also got to be careful about our safety, especially if political circumstances change.”

“We’re excited to see how God will use Nick and Tessa”, Sophia said. “NZCMS desires to send and support Mission Partners who will make an impact for the kingdom of God”.

If you would like to support NZCMS or Nick and Tessa specifically, please e-mail Sophia Sinclair at [email protected].

“…we don’t see [missions work] as

sacrifice…we see it as doing what God wants

us to be doing”.

When they arrive in Uganda, the couple will focus on becoming part of the local community and learning the local language, Acholi. Nick will work as a volunteer doctor at Lacor Hospital, a mission hospital which serves the neediest people in the wider Gulu region. Tessa will partner with local churches, action groups, and the wider community to address social justice issues, including lack of compensation to war-affected communities. They will work with the local church to see “communities in Gulu following Jesus, spreading and growing God’s radical love and justice.”

Tessa and Nick became Christians as teenagers at St Tim’s Burnside, and it has been their home ever since: “Through becoming Christians we realized that God wants us to do stuff for him wherever we are. Mission isn’t going overseas to a poor country. Christians should be involved in God’s work bringing heaven to earth wherever they are. One of the founding members of CMS, William Wilberforce, stayed right where he was, and was key in ending slavery in England”.

For Nick, however, “Uganda has been on our hearts for a while. That’s where we believe we can serve God best right now”. In 2008, he did his medical elective in Uganda. In 2010 Tessa returned to Northern Uganda to do research for her Masters thesis to understand the work that different groups, including the church, were doing in the aftermath of war.

Both Tessa and Nick were inspired by people in their church community: “There is a legacy at St Tim’s, a great connection with NZCMS and Uganda. One couple lived in Uganda long term and other St Tim’s folks have been over and helped out. They all inspired us!”

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Tessa described their training at St Andrews Hall, the CMS Australia base, as “practical anthropology: tools for getting your head inside another culture and the worldview of people with a very different background. That’s critical”.

“We’re also looking forward to a course which will help us learn the local language”, Nick added. “We are learning how to talk about Jesus’ good news in another context, and exploring what motivates people in different cultures. We just finished a workshop on telling bible stories.” He pointed out that “the people

Part of the city of Gulu in northern Uganda.


FINANCE / CAREER / STEWARDSHIP / ETHICS

Workplace An (Overseas) Leap of Faith A four-week parish placement in Christchurch is a long way to come from Wales, especially if you had planned on a placement in Wales.

WORDS: FIONA SuMMERFIELD

At Synod he was “impressed with Bishop Victoria…It really encouraged me to be positive

about women’s ministry”.

Adrian Morgan got on a plane with misgivings about the idea. But he also trusted his mentors, spiritual and godly people, who had encouraged him to take the opportunity. “It has shown me that if you trust God, you can be blessed ten-fold”, he said.

On arrival he was straight off to join the young adults in the Parish of Burnside-Harewood on a weekend away. Adrian joined in with enthusiasm, grabbing every opportunity to be involved in parish life, meals with parishioners, even attending the September (2012) Synod.

While in Christchurch, Adrian noticed parallels with his own diocese. He found our use of te reo Maori and English in worship similar to the situation with English and Welsh at home. He also saw similarities in the tensions around buildings in the Diocese, though for different reasons. In Wales there are too many church buildings. He felt “both churches were struggling to know what was the right thing to do”, facing such a complicated issue.

At Synod he was “impressed with Bishop Victoria”, since Wales doesn’t have women bishops. He said: “It really encouraged me to be positive about women’s ministry”.

He found the “deep faith in the good people of the parish” strengthened his own. “It was good to be in a lively church”, he reflected. “It changed me in many ways.” He was impressed with the discipleship he saw: “It has made me think seriously about how we can reach out and disciple people in a way that is more effective”.

He loved the work with young people. “It showed me how important role models can be, and how a small group can influence others.” It demonstrated for Adrian “what is possible if you have people with deep convictions”, but still left him wondering: “How do you start such a group from scratch?”

While Adrian found the trip a big leap of faith, it left him with a profound sense of “trusting in God, knowing he is Sovereign, and that he knows the future of his Church.”

Adrian at the ruined Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament in Christchurch

Discipling Young PeopleJosh Taylor, recently appointed Diocesan Youth Advisor, remembers having “that moment of clarity when I felt I could give myself to [youth ministry] in a life-time kind of way” at just about the same time Spanky Moore encouraged him to consider the position as half-time Youth Leader at St Christopher’s Avonhead: “I really felt God’s calling [to take that role], and I felt right at home”.

WORDS: PHILIP BALDWIN

Born in Greymouth but brought up in Christchurch in the Baptist tradition, Josh completed a Bachelor of Theology from Laidlaw College and an internship working with young people while attending a New Life church.

He was drawn to Anglican liturgy, partly through his studies at Laidlaw College: “In some ways [the Anglican Church] is all new to me, but in some ways it’s not…there’s a sense of prayerfulness in the Anglican Church that I really appreciate”.

In addition to the Diocesan position, Josh feels the half-time role at St Christopher’s “keeps me in touch with people in the local context, being part of a team, working together. Youth work’s been a place that hasn’t been taken very seriously in terms of theological engagement…I’m really interested in building skills around teaching and discipling young people”.

Josh believes that high schoolers are at a critical age in terms of being open to learn the truth about God: “Many young people ask the hard questions about life, about what Christianity is, and who God is, and how does this work as they get older. If they’re not answered well, they just curl off and never come back”.

He would like to see the mentoring programme started by Phil Trotter (his predecessor) carry on: “I think we can talk about God in ways that don’t bore them or scare them or coerce them and does keep them engaged. A lot of that has to do with training leaders well and resourcing them with interesting material.

“Young people are really linking in with the depth of prayer and sacrament and the mystery around God, and the theological ability to think through issues of faith”.

Josh also believes that encouraging 24/7 Youth Work connections between churches and high schools is invaluable: “Most schools are open to having 24/7 youth workers and often they’re from different churches. There’s an opportunity to give life to a community. It’s a gift to the school from the church”.


PHOTO ESSAY

Transitional Cathedral Takes ShapePHOTOS: COuRTESY OF BRIDgIT ANDERSON

Overseas interest in the Transitional Cathedral project has been fueled by National Travel Editor for Fairfax Australia, Anthony Dennis, who wrote in February of this year: “Christchurch will gain a much-needed tourist attraction when the Japanese-designed Cardboard Cathedral—an innovative temporary replacement for the 19th-century ChristChurch Cathedral—opens in April”. The Adelaide Age and Sydney Morning Herald recently included the 700-seat building on their “Ten Must See 2013 World Attractions” list.

Even in October 2012 Lonely Planet author Brett Atkinson declared: “Christchurch’s remarkable recovery has progressed to the point that we’re naming the city as one of the top 10 cities to travel to in 2013”, and noted that “construction has also started on the city’s innovative new ‘cardboard cathedral’ (cardboardcathedral.org.nz)”.


A Good Samaritan SituationAnglican priest and school counsellor Mike Coleman is a passionate advocate for home-owners affected by the red-zoning of their homes in East Christchurch. Megan Blakie caught up with him to find out where things are at.

PHOTO: MEgAN BLAkIE

1. The deadline for government pay-out offers has passed for many red-zone home owners. What issues are still outstanding?Setting a deadline, without addressing why people couldn’t move on, was heartless and reveals a political and economic ideology that says “the market” will address all woes.

Red-zone issues literally vary from one house to another, but the real issues are exactly the same as they were 18 months ago: insurance companies won’t fully honour a full-replacement policy and the only other option for a red-zoner is a rateable value pay-out, which can be up to $200,000 [below replacement value].

Red-zoners are still battling EQC apportionments (damage estimates per quake). They are going into a real estate market that has escalated in staggering proportions. Others are waiting for land; none of the powers in leadership have moved to get affordable land on the market.

MEgAN BLAkIE WITH MIkE COLEMAN

Dialogue“Our fellow citizens are being

emotionally and financially abused by big corporate

insurance companies. They are being neglected by their own

Government. Both have walked past them. We as Christians cannot,

if we practise the way of the kingdom.”

2. What needs to happen?Insurance companies are still refusing to honour a full-replacement [home insurance] policy by arbitrarily stating they can repair a red-zone house. The companies know red-zoners couldn’t get building consents and SCIRT won’t repair infrastructure, yet they assess, re-assess, fight, stymie, wear down these ordinary folk to the point of “stress upon stress”. Eventually people take what offer they can get. The Government knows this is happening and still refuses to appoint a regulatory body like an insurance tribunal. We have asked for this since November 2011.

3. Why is the case now before the High Court significant?The case is about an insurance company offering to repair a red-zone property even though the owners are not allowed to repair the house! The O’Loughlins [owners] are a Christian couple who only want fairness.

I realise this could be a landmark case. I have offered support by helping the O’Loughlins handle the media, by writing letters, and opening up a bank account so people can help them with their costs. They’ve just got an invoice from the High Court for $15,000. The case is likely to cost $70,000+. This is why folk on the east are powerless; they can’t afford to go to court.

4. Why should we take an active interest in what’s happening for many home owners? This is a Good Samaritan situation. Our fellow citizens are being emotionally and financially abused by big corporate insurance companies. They are being neglected by their own Government. Both have walked past them. We as Christians cannot, if we practise the way of the kingdom.

Even if ten households are losing half their financial equity, we would need to act. As it stands we are talking about thousands of people struggling for the next few decades to get back what they had. Losing even $50,000 is enormous for an average family on the east. The children will be affected for years.

It is easy to bake a cake or dig liquefaction, but scary when we stand up for righteousness against powers hurting another.

Kaiapoi, Pines Beach, Kairaki and Brooklands Residential Red Zone

Land Check Zones - 31/10/2012

0 250 500 750 1,000125Metres

±

Pg. 2Basemap data sources: LINZ,CCC, SDC, WDC, Transit NZ

Locality

Legend

DisclaimerThis map is a static output of depicted layers and is for

reference only. Data layers that appear on this map may or may not be accurate, current, or otherwise reliable.

Publication Date:11/01/2013

Coordinate System:NZGD 2000 New Zealand Transverse Mercator

Scale:

(Original sheet size A3)1:20,000

Map Document:4545_Redzones_v2.mxd

For re-prints and map production contact Northsouth GIS: [email protected]

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5. What’s your response to the sentiment that “homeowners should just get on with their lives”?Here’s one scenario: your house is worth $350,000 at market rates and has a rateable value of $290,000. Your insurance company won’t rebuild your house, so you are forced to take the $290,000.

With $290,000 you can’t afford to buy land and put a house on it. You can’t buy an existing similar house on good land in another part of the city. You can’t “move on” unless you get a unit or very small home. You may have had a good house on a good section, but you are now left helpless. This is just one situation…there are all kinds of variations on this.

Red-zoners want to get on with their lives; it’s up to us to help them. Nearly all red-zoners have insurance cover for their land (why can’t they get their land fixed?) and full replacement for their homes (yet insurance companies refuse to rebuild their houses).

6. Why are you so actively involved about what’s happening?Love.


FEATuRE

The New Shape of the Diocese of ChristchurchMonths of work by a diocesan committee have culminated in a proposed new-look diocese. WORDS: MEgAN BLAkIE

understand their needs and resourcing”, says John-Luke. They also factored in the current state of land and buildings

in order to “make practical decisions about repairs, rebuilds, and new builds”.

According to its terms of reference, the committee will continue to meet and consult parishes until July 2013, at which

At the time of writing this, it’s expected that the six-member Structural Review Committee (SRG) will have its findings presented to Synod, after being given the okay from Standing Committee (a sub-committee of Synod).

It’s the most significant review of the diocese for more than 50 years.

“This is only the third time in our history we’ve made such plans for the structure of our diocese”, says John-Luke Day, a member of SRG. “The first was in the 1850s when the early settlers planned the first churches around the city centre; the second was in the 1950s as new suburbs cropped up to accommodate the baby boom.”

The Structural Review Committee was set up in September last year to help the diocese respond to the enormous changes affecting it as a result of the Canterbury earthquakes.

A solicitor by profession, John-Luke was nominated and accepted for a place on SRG along with Lynnette Lightfoot (vicar of Woodend), Andrew Allan-Johns (vicar of Rangiora), Juliet Wensley (parish of Christchurch – St John’s), and Philip Mackenzie (Parish of South West Christchurch).

“There has been a really useful balance of skills and experience,” comments John-Luke.

Change management consultant Susie Sauer was employed

by the diocese to advise the committee on institutional-change best practices.

The committee has drawn on information and research from a range of sources—including parishes and ministry units themselves—to come up with a suggested future structure for the diocese.

Some post-quake impacts the committee took account of were obvious ones, such as the damage and loss of church facilities and the financial impact to parishes of increased insurance premiums.

More difficult to assess were demographic changes: where people are now living, working, and worshipping; and researchers’ predictions for the future. This information was drawn from city council reports and other data.

“We have tried to get the best picture of our city’s profile so we can ascertain what are the key community and missional needs the Church can respond to”, says John-Luke.

More than just reviewing lines and boundaries on a map, the committee hopes the process will be viewed as a way for the diocese to maintain effective and affordable ministries within our changing communities.

“We …wanted to get a real feel for the worship and mission of the parishes so we can celebrate what needs celebrating, and

“We need...new forms of ministry.”The Christchurch Anglican Diocese is not alone in grappling with change in the wake of the earthquakes; other denominations are also in the process of assessing the impacts on their church communities, and planning for the future. Church representatives had this to say about developments within their own denominations:

time a decision will be made about any need for it to continue. It’s expected the committee’s recommendation will be open

for discussion at regional pre-synod meetings as well as at Synod, and that information will be made publicly available on www.anglicanlife.org.nz.

Paul Askin, Regional Leader and Pastor of kaiapoi Baptist Church

“For those of us who live and breathe the post-quake environment, our old familiar routines and landmarks—the old maps we work to—are gone. We’re somewhere new, where we’ve never been before.

“We’ve realised the most serious issues that face [Baptists] aren’t the direct result of the quakes, even for those who have lost buildings. Deeper [issues] were around before the quakes. We need to be more fruitful and more effective as communities within our communities.

“Each [Baptist] church is totally autonomous: there’s no Bishop’s office or hierarchy. We want to become much more of a movement together, rather than individual churches…to work co-operatively together and find God’s way ahead.

“[Since the earthquakes] some churches have significantly more people and some have significantly fewer; inevitably this means change. We’re working through what that change might mean and how we lead and coordinate it, and it’s not easy.

“We need a big vision for our region and that’s obviously in consultation with the wider Christian community.”

Mike Stopforth, Director, Bishop’s Pastoral Office, the Catholic Diocese of Christchurch

“Even prior to the September 2010 earthquake, Bishop Barry was looking at parish amalgamations and a consultation process had started. The earthquake was even more of a catalyst for amalgamations.

“We’re in a three-year roll-out for those amalgamations and we’re in year two. In general numbers, we have 50 parishes [in the diocese]; it goes to 25.

“The prime question for the Bishop is how might he provide Sunday Mass into the future across the diocese. Bishop Barry is very strong on mission. So this really is a time to say, ‘What’s the best structure for the future?’

“It’s been a long process: the clergy were involved first, then the laity for consultation; it came into [the Bishop’s office] and back out again.

“Clergy involved in the first round of amalgamations have said overall it’s gone well. Underneath though, I know some people find amalgamation very difficult—it’s a different identity.

“We’re having [cross-denominational] conversations, which is good. People don’t want to see us operating in silos.”


FEATuRE

Darryl Tempero, Resource Minister, Presbytery of Christchurch

“Nine parishes have lost their worship space or buildings have to come down, but there are more parishes where their future’s looking frail….My role is to help parishes in their journey to discovering ‘what’s next?’

“The Presbytery is a corporate governing body, so we don’t have a bishop and archdeacons. Collegially, ministers and elders from all the Presbyterian parishes developed and signed off a strategic framework last year, to help guide our parishes.

“We’re taking the approach that Presbytery is wanting to resource parishes for their own mission; the whole thing is about resourcing and supporting them because they’re the ones that know their community and their people.

“The issues that we’re facing were issues that were there before the earthquake, this has just accelerated the need for us see some changes for the future.”

“Many of our parishes are declining and elderly, so basically we’ve said we need some radical new forms of ministry.”

Resurrection People We live in a world that so often sees death as the full stop. We live our lives in avoidance and denial of this full stop, delaying it with health precautions: exercise, diet, and medication; filling our time with pleasure: eating, drinking and being merry.

WORDS: JOSH TAYLORPHOTO: ROSIE STAITE

CLOSINg ESSAY

Still, Death looms like an old unwanted guest and we live in its shadow. This death is the consequence of humanity’s sin, but the good news of the gospel is

that death does not have the final say. God resurrected Jesus and in doing so, defeated death, as the Gospel accounts bear witness. This is no metaphor: the disciples touched Jesus’ wounds, and he ate some kai on the beach with them.

Resurrection lies at the heart of Christian faith. We believe in a God who doesn’t leave us hopelessly trying to avoid the inevitable verdict of death. Just like he delivered the Egyptians from slavery and oppression in Egypt, God has acted in Jesus’ death and resurrection to deliver his world from the slavery of sin and death. But sometimes it hardly feels as if this is a reality.

Paul expresses a profound understanding of embracing and participating in the death and resurrection of Jesus: “For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his” (Romans 6:5). Paul affirms the experience of believers whose suffering in this life is a participation in the death of Christ, but whose lives are also lived in anticipation of resurrection.

So there is a tension we find ourselves in, as we experience the realities of suffering and death but live hopefully in anticipation of resurrection. This hope shapes our present reality.

Donald G. Bloesch describes resurrection as both an event and a process: “Jesus rose from the dead for our salvation, but we must share in his resurrection if we are to know eternal life.”*

So we approach Easter remembering the resurrection of Jesus as a past event and our participation in it through baptism. We embrace what it means to be resurrection people, not glossing over the reality of death, but confidently proclaiming the hope of resurrection and new life.

* Donald G. Bloesch, The Last Things: Resurrection, Judgment, Glory (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2004), 121. We participate in the resurrected life of Christ

through baptism.

“Resurrection lies at the heart of Christian faith. We believe in a

God who doesn’t leave us hopelessly trying

to avoid the inevitable verdict of death.”

Jill Hawkey, Strategic Planning Coordinator for the Central South Island Synod of the Methodist Church

“We’re undertaking a very intentional process of strategic planning as a Synod, and that has required looking at all areas of our [church] life. It’s been going for the last 18 months.

“We very much have a consultative process. At a Synod strategic planning day in February...we affirmed some general directions; it’s gone out to congregations for further discussion.

“With the release of detailed engineering evaluations, we’ve got a second wave of loss of buildings. We’ve got to close further buildings…because they are earthquake-prone.

“It’s a new grief, a new re-adjustment. I’m really impressed with how congregations are responding to that news and how they’re reaching out and supporting each other.

“At the same time we need to be…engaging in the neighbourhoods where we are. Together with Anglicans we’ve been running the Community Fun Days over summer. We’re trying to live out the strategy while we’re trying to sort out some of the other things. You can’t wait till everything’s sorted because it’s going to take years!”

“The committee has drawn on information and research from a range of sources—including parishes and ministry

units themselves—to come up with a suggested future structure for the diocese.”

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