General Assembly 2001
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General Assembly 2001 July 16th -19th York The United Reformed Church Annual Reports, Resolutions & .Paper.s Produced by Communications and Editorial, Graphics Office, The United Reformed Church, 86 Tavistock Place, London WC I H 9RT Contents page page SYNOD REPORTS 1 APPENDICES 87 Eastern 2 1 Accounts 88 East Midlands 4 Budget 110 Thames North 5 2 Commentary on the Budget 113 Yorkshire 7 3 Edmonton 119 SYNOD RESOLUTIONS 8 4 Growing Up to the Ministry of Evangelists 127 5 Students sent by Synods 132 CHURCHES - CHANGES 12 6 Statistics of Students 134 SYNOD MODERATORS' REPORT 19 7 Reports from Colleges 135 MISSION COUNCIL* REPORTS 23 INFORMATION 141 and RESOLUTIONS 28 History Society 142 Musicians Guild 143 Schools 144 COMMITTEES and TASK GROUPS 39 Silence and Retreats 148 REPORTS and RESOLUTIONS Women's World Day of Prayer 149 Assembly Arrangements * 40 Assembly Pastoral Reference 42 Church and Society 44 STANDING ORDERS 151 Doctrine, Prayer and Worship 49 Ecumenical 51 Finance* 64 Health and Healing 65 Inter-Faith Relations 66 Life and Witness 68 Ministries Sub-Committees * 74 Nominations * 77 NOTE The General Assembly in 2000 decided that from 2001, committees will report in alternate years, except where for legal or administrative reasons annual reports are required. The latter are listed above with an asterisk. Synods • ' I c -:astern ,r::~:ynod 1-· !. "" - "'-=- = ~ = ~~ = '- = """~~ ~ ~ ~ -- ~~ "' ~ ,..,.~ = - "" "' ~~ ,; ~"' ~ - ~ = = ~~--- ~ = "" ,,' '"'-~ ~ ~ ~ = The Challenge 2.3 We have also invested in major 1.1 Eastern Synod - in common with the rest of redevelopments with existing churches. Several of the Church - has been grappling with the challenge of our historic churches have re-modelled their buildings what it means to be Church and how to engage in for more effective mission. These include Leisten, God's mission in our present situation. We have Maldon, Fenstanton and Crowstone St George's. received the Growing Up report - what happens next? Two churches, Halstead and Newport, have moved to There are new ways and new places that call out for re-modelled health centres. And at North Avenue in us to be Church; new ways to minister; we need to be Chelmsford the church has gone into partnership with a healthy Church. the Essex Youth Trust in constructing a fine new youth hall and in employing a youth worker. 1.2 Do we need a change in mind-set or do we need to be faithful disciples? Is it the local church or 2.4 The Synod Roadshow will be hitting the the wider church that is to show the 5 Marks of road again in September. Co-ordinated by Anthea Mission? The answer is probably yes to both! Coates, a small group also including the Moderator, members of the Training Team, and second-year 2 New ways/new places to be students from Westminster College will spend a week Church working with local churches in projects that involve the local community. 2.1 East of England regional structures require .. 2.5 The twice-yearly Synod meetings have had our attention, and Synod has two people who are part a make-over. A questionnaire two years ago revealed of the East of England Churches Network. As was a wish for more interactivity in the Synod business, said at our last Synod meeting, we ignore them at our and more relevance to the local church. peril! We have the convenience that our Synod is wholly within the East of England region, but there is 2.6 The Synod web-site has been re-launched, very much a challenge to know what issues should be to tell people who we are and where our local addressed at this level of government by the Church. churches are. It is also useful for internal Quality of Life has been and remains an area of great communication, such as listing finance publications interest. and providing Continuing Ministerial Education application forms. 2.2 We are involved in the development of several new ecumenical congregations. These are at different stages. 3 New ways to minister Cloverfield at Thetford (Norfolk), a shared 3.1 Ministerial training has progressed well Anglican/United Reformed Church, now within the Synod. We currently have 19 ordinands has its own purpose-built worship centre; and the take-up of Continuing Ministerial Education Chafford Hundred at Grays (Essex), a multi has been very encouraging. For the last two years, denominational project, is progressing a two-day colloquium for all serving ministers of the towards the development of its first Word and Sacraments in the Synod has been held In building, and this will involve the local the autumn. We are studying the 5 Marks of Mission Community Church in the sharing in the context of pastoral ministry. Having examined agreement with the mainstream the nature of mission and the preaching and denominations. The most recent venture is sacramental ministry in previous years, this year we at Cambourne (Cambridgeshire), which is shall be looking at pastoral care. being welcomed as a new mission project at this Assembly. There Is an ecumenical 3.2 The greatly increased demand for training, church plant at Great Notley (Essex) which lay and ministerial, together with m1ss1on has similar aspirations. development, has led to a need for extra administrative support; Linda Hack joined the office All this new work has considerable team in September. implications for the use of our resources of money and ministry. 3.3 The first part-time m1ss1on enabler was recently appointed by one of our Districts. Eastern l 3.4 Our new Synod Treasurer, Clifford Patten, 4.3 The District Secretaries and Pastoral drew attention to the higher proportion of Synod Oversight Committee Conveners have initiated grants for people in 2000 than for building projects. Guidelines for District Visits. This is mainly an amalgam of best practice, but also includes a few as 4 To be a healthy church yet-untested suggestions. This includes a review of any self-appraisals that the local church wishes to 4. 1 The Provincial Life & Business Committee share (such as a review against the 5 Marks of has taken a great interest in the Natural Church Mission, and/or the Natural Church Development key Development (NCO) process, and has advocated that characteristics). local churches undertake an NCO survey as a 'health' check. 15 persons - mainly ministers - have recently 4.4 No major organisational changes at Synod been on a two-day training session, with a view to level have been deemed necessary. We have their being used as enablers with local churches as however, strengthened the Synod Ecumenical post by they seek to address their weaknesses and use the separating this function from that of Convener of the full potential of their strengths. Church Development & Ecumenical Committee. We have also filled some gaps by allocating topics not 4.2 Following on from our unashamed specifically covered before - growth & evangelism, plagiarism of Southern Synod's Health & Safety and international issues & World Church - to existing Guidelines (with Southern's permission!), we have relevant committees. more recently published our very own Standards for Church Buildings, incorporating the mission perspective of local church buildings. Eastern ' ,- , •dl d 1 " d r ( :ast ,\:(',;_,l an s ,__ Jyno ;= I ~"' ,,. ~ ~~~m -;,'C' ""'""""= ~,,.~- , "'~ ~~,,,~--'-~ ~~" ~ ~.,,. ~= '°'~-~ = --""'.JI~=< "'~ J--;;, ,,7 1.1 The most significant development in the Some things have already happened such as a Synod East Midlands since our last report has been the Youth Event, called MMM (Mission Means Me) which Mission Enabler Programme which has been just happens also to be WWW inverted. This was headed up by Revd Moiseraela Prince P Dibeela of attended by 110 people and gave the Synod youth the Botswana Synod of the United Congregational work a whole new impetus which will be taken Church in Southern Africa. This programme has forward with the help of a new Youth & Children's been the direct result of the decision of Assembly to Work Development Officer. This officer will be allocate to the East Midlands a share of the Gift of appointed in October to follow John Quilter who is Grace money which came to the United Reformed moving on after 16 years in post. We owe John a Church from the Council for World Mission. As we great deal and want the whole Assembly to know how had been consulting and praying about the future much we appreciate his work, formerly in Youth directions for the Synod and had been led to appoint Leadership training jointly with Eastern and then such a worker, the finance came as a real answer to taking up the Youth & Children's Work Trainer position. prayer. Prince, as he is popularly known, came to us The Synod share of the cost of this programme takes on a three year appointment which ends in summer up much of the finance made available to us through 2001 and he lived with his family in Wigston just Assembly's Resource Sharing programme which is of south of Leicester in a manse provided by the significant benefit to the Synod. Oadby church. He has made a significant contribution to the life of the Synod not least by his The development of new churches continues to be an demand that all the structures and programmes of important part of our work with considerable the church both, wider and local, should clearly be population growth in the region not least in seen to serve the purposes of the kingdom. Peterborough where the new building for the ecumenical congregation of Christ Church in Orton 1.2 His address to the March Synod made Goldhay was funded jointly by the Synod and seven points for action which we share with Assembly.