Cippenham Baptist Church

Continuing our look into the ever-changing world of Christianity (indeed that fact that I can say that is a testimony to this) here are a couple of extracts from an article at deepchurch.org.uk talking about how difficult it is to enact change thoughtfully and properly …

These days there seems to be a deep suspicion of all organisations, and in particular any structure, hierarchy and a basic resistance to anything that is an ‘institution’. And I for one, am convinced that institutions are the enemy of good practice (if I may paraphrase Alasdair MacIntyre badly).

Often, in reaction, we think that, in having no programmes, no hierarchy, the removal of the institution will solve the problem. After all, if the institution is getting in the way of the purpose, get rid of the institution. This response is increasingly ingrained in us, such that even using the word ‘institution’ is anathema to those seeking new ways of doing and being church. But I think how ever well intentioned, this approach is naive and inadequate to the task of being Church.

The question is not whether you can avoid being an institution; the question is what kind of institution can we imagine that will support the purposes of who and what we are trying to bring to others?

It’s so easy to have a knee-jerk reaction, so easy for others to do the same, and then so easy to have a large part of the church think that they are “progressing”, when all they are really doing is acting uniformly to the same stimulus, being swayed by thw world around them (not necessarily a bad thing), but also by the history and politics of the Church.  The result of this is an even more insular sub-culture of “church” that, contrary to it’s intention, becomes an even more distant and irrelevant part of society.

My opinion is that the cure for this is careful thinking and awareness of the issues, the like of which is displayed by the blog post I linked to at deepchurch.org.  To change and be effective for God’s Kingdom need time, effort and hard work.   If it’s easy and reactionary, let’s face it, it’s probably wrong.