Thinking again about church in the Church of Ireland
Once upon a time in Ireland, we lived in a church-going era. Sunday mornings and evenings witnessed people walking and driving to church in crowds - at least in far larger numbers than we are generally seeing today. A brief look through our preaching books with their record of numbers in attendance at services would, by and large, reveal a decline over the years. This sad fact is also reflected in the growing number of churches that are no longer offering evening services.
There are, of course, some exceptions to this. Vestiges of a church-going culture can still be seen in some parts of N. Ireland in particular, but it is slowly dying as post-Troubles’ secularism gains more and more ground. It’s not as if the people are no longer there – many still remain on the churches’ membership books – but attendance is sporadic and low. The truth is that much of the Church of Ireland is slowly losing touch with the community with which it was once intimately linked. This is not something that is easy to face up to, or indeed all of us can see. Churches with many active programmes for their own, and ministers busy with looking after their people are not always aware that the community around them is growing apart from them. Those that are aware of this are so exhausted with all that they have to do to maintain their church and its present programmes, that even the thought of addressing this growing gulf is a non-starter. And so, the problem continues.
Is there anything to be done? We live in a world of ‘the instant’, whether it’s instant service in a fast food restaurant, instant access to the world through the internet, or instant success on X-factor for a hitherto unknown member of the public! If we are looking for an instant solution to the problem the Church faces or an instant reversal of the general trend, then we are in for disappointment. Instant solutions are not the way God works. Jesus didn’t instantly have a church of millions, but he started with 12 and worked his way up! However, many of us do sub-consciously at least, look for the instant solution. The latest wind of doctrine, whether it be on the Spirit or in some new Church growth programme, is latched on to as something that will bring us immediate returns. From time to time, we place our hopes in these things. But neither Charismatic renewal in the form of Wimberism in the 80’s or the ‘Toronto Blessing’ of the 90’s has reversed the trend of decline in the churches. Nor indeed will packaged programmes like Alpha or Christianity Explored or Willow Creek leadership programmes. All of these may have their merits, but looking to them to bring an instant solution to our problems is both unfair to these programmes and unrealistic. And tragically, when they don’t deliver what we imagine they ought to immediately deliver, disillusionment and disappointment can quickly set in paralysing us from ever attempting to do anything similar again or hoping for anything good to come from our ministry.
So, what can we do? Well, if church is about people, then maybe we need to start there. Programmes have their place in church life but people have always been God’s priority. Why not try a radical idea? – start with people rather than programmes! Jesus’ way to reach millions was to start with a few people and give them quality time in teaching them his word and modelling a godly life. Jesus quite literally chose 12 men and set out to establish the Kingdom of God, founded on his death and resurrection, through the message proclaimed by the apostles. Why not follow his example? Why not chose a number of people from within the church or outside it, whether they are Christians or not, and start teaching them the Word of God and modelling a Christian life to them? Why not pick a book of the Bible and read it with someone on a one-to-one basis, either in their home, or before work, or at lunch-time, or at any mutually convenient time during the week, week-on-week for a year, all the time modelling prayer and a godly life to them through your character? All the time you’re doing this with them, you’re also modelling to them how to do the same with others, whether it’s their family, spouse, friends or workmates.
It’s the type of thing that can be done across all age groups and in any home by any faithful Christian. Clergy can get this going in their parish with their people and so equip them to have a similar ministry to others. It’s not as if they would have to change much about their present ministry. It would simply be deliberately beginning with a few to minister to the many and starting afresh with a new group every year. Nor should clergy or faithful Christians think that this will be the immediate solution to the problems of decline in their church or failure to reach the community. No instant success here. However, faithfully doing such a biblical ministry year on and year out will, by God’s grace, have a deeper, longer effect in reaching the community and growing the church than endlessly pursuing the latest programme. It may not bring back the church-going culture of the past or the droves of people who once attended, but it might just be the beginnings of a new day for us, the Kingdom of God growing through our faithful ministry.