A focus for the Diocese of Oxford in 2007 and beyond

One of the areas Bishop Richard and his colleagues have identified for development in our diocesan strategy is embedding in our life our commitment to the wider church and world.  As one expression of this our bishops have encouraged the Council to promote a World Church Year in 2007.

We have chosen the overall title AT HOME IN THE WORLD CHURCH.  We believe we can use it to convey our vision.   We shall be impoverished disciples if we are not in lively company with the World Church – receiving, giving, praying, learning, loving, aware; and if we are richly at home in the wider church, we shall be ready and able in our commitment to the wider world as well.  The five marks of mission are central.  We shall not emphasise 2007 as a once and for all programme.  We want being at home in the world church to be a lasting delight.  The Lambeth Conference in 2008 will provide special opportunities.

The Five Marks of Mission are proclaim the good news of the kingdom teach, baptise and nurture new believers respond to human need by loving service seek to transform unjust structures of society strive to safeguard the integrity of all creation and sustain and renew the life of the earth

The Style of our World Church Year.   The main emphasis is not on setting up several big events. We have sensed resistance to any pressure to “come to this, support that”.  Rather we want to offer resources and make suggestions, encouraging parishes to treasure the people and the resources we already have around us and among us. 

There are several useful handles for parishes and deaneries to take hold of, including:

• Celebrating the Abolition of the Slave Trade Act Anniversary: CTE, CMS, and USPG all have material for Lent Studies:  There will be a special service at Christ Church Cathedral on Sun Mar 25^th: and no doubt more events elsewhere.
• 1000^th Anniversary of Oxfordshire is being celebrated around the May 7^th Bank Holiday.
• The Lambeth Conference 2008.  We hope the planners will be offering study material so that churches can study and pray about key Lambeth issues.  We would like to set up study groups around the diocese, ideally Autumn 2007, or possibly Lent 2008.  There will be visiting bishops and their spouses in the fortnight or so before the conference, and the Council is being invited to co-ordinate hospitality for those who would like to stay a few days in our diocese.
• The Kirchentag is at Köln from June 6-10.  This is a wonderful opportunity for world church company, for young people and old, and not expensive.  We hope for a strong party from this Diocese, led by the Bishop of Buckingham.
• Welcoming the Church Mission Society to their new home in Oxford.
• Refreshing our companionship links with the Dioceses of Kimberley and Kuruman in South Africa, and Växjö in the Church of Sweden.  All three diocese expect to have new bishops in 2007

The Växjö/Oxford Programme. 

We have begun a course with 16 participants in this diocese and a similar number in Växjö.  Each group is meeting and studying separately over the winter, and we plan to meet together here in February and in Sweden in May to learn from each other’s experience.  The aim of our course is to foster mutual learning, and to encourage and enable a group of facilitators who can act as catalysts for local initiatives in mission and partnership with the world church.  Here are people of great experience already, who next year and in the longer term will be ready and able to help in parishes and deaneries.

Ideas and suggestions for Parishes include:

• Treasure Christians (and all people, of course) from the wider world who are working here (e.g. in the care services), temporarily or permanently.
• Discover what international links your local schools have, not only Church Schools; invite these schools into church to share what they are doing, and vice versa.  Develop shared projects with your schools.
• Share world church projects with the children in your church
• Our Anglican Mission Agencies have all been thinking creatively about their roles in recent years.  They have been facing tough challenges most creatively.  Contact them and use the rich resources and experience they have to share. 
• Use your Mothers’ Union branch, and their links with the world wide church
• Use the world wide experience of your church members, and of your neighbours.
• Treasure ecumenical opportunities
• Maintain as ever your support of Christian Aid, Tear Fund, and other development agencies

• The study course in Lent, summer lectures on a World theme, some Sunday sermons
• A developing World (and World Church) visual display throughout the year.  Members of the Växjö group are being invited to maintain and renew it.
• Opportunity at the Christ Church Open Day on Sept 15^th for a World Church workshop and presentations, and participation in the Cathedral Service at the end of the day

Other Churches and Centres

• We hope that other churches, not least but not only in the main centres, can match some of the Christ Church ideas, and develop their own programmes. 
• The Christ Church visual display can move around from place to place.

Publicity:        

• We shall develop At Home in the World Church on the Diocesan Web Site
• There will be regular presentations in The Door (which has been strong recently on World and World Church issues)
• We shall give a high profile to Kimberley and Kuruman, and to Växjö, with visits from members of these churches, we hope
• Material in Diocesan and Bishop’s mailings