Neil came in February to set us thinking about changing Christianity. His talk was well attended by members of our church as
well as people from other churches in the area.
Christine and Peter Sheasby know Neil well as he was their University Chaplain in Manchester and then later their minister at Plymouth Road Methodist Church.
He signed The Covenant on 1 November 2003 in Westminster. The Queen was present and for the first time she shared the Peace, and of course she shook hands with Neil.
He ran in the London Marathon in April for Christian Aid, so he is involved in the physical side of the church as well as the mental and spiritual.
His theme was Continuity and Change
and how the two had to work hand
in hand to ensure that the church evolves in the future. During the last hundred
years, probably the biggest change had been the ordination of women. Other
factors such as changes in contraception had naturally influenced both marriage
and divorce. He pointed out how the language of the church had changed since
the
'60s discarding thee and thou
from our prayers and everyday church
language.
Sunday opening hours had affected the attendance at church services.
He threw out challenges to us to consider the timing of our services and
encouraged flexibility to try and encourage people to come to church— perhaps
by coming later or earlier than at present. Playing Devil's Advocate, he said,
Did we need services at all on a Sunday, should they be held mid-week?
He stated that countries such as those in Africa and Asia were seeing an increase in Methodist membership, but our country was experiencing a decline in numbers and we no longer can call ourselves a Christian country as our religion is in the minority now. He questioned whether an affluent country could sustain an increased membership anyway, and perhaps poverty was the key to swelling the church congregations.
He emphasised the reliability of God throughout all ages, circumstances and changing conditions. Where there is God there is hope.
© Fulwood Methodist Church
17:08:19 Wednesday, 26 October 2005
No part of this site may be reproduced without prior permission.
Contributions to the site are always welcome. Email: webmaster@fulwood.org.uk
This site uses 757.95KB