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What is the Church for?
It is meant to be Christ's
presence here on earth. (Please forgive my imprecise theology.) Being this,
it should minister to people's needs, both within the Church and beyond.
Does it minister to people's needs? Does it reach out?
I can safely say that many
of us commit ourselves to ministry in the church, not just in the jobs we
do, but in the dedication with which they are done. Think of the running of
Sunday Club every Sunday; or the concentration that goes into a choir
rehearsal, if you've ever seen one; or the amount of planning that went into
Tom's leaving celebrations (I can tell you that just as much effort has gone
into finding out our needs as a parish, and deciding what qualities we need
in a new Vicar, before looking for one); or the pastoral care of those who
are ill or with problems - much of which is very personal, and therefore
goes unsaid.
But do we reach out to those we do not know? The criticism which always
comes from somewhere, is that church people are only interested in
themselves. Well, do we only minister to ourselves? Does anyone feel
excluded?
Much of the answer lies in all the individual contacts which we make with
different people. Personal contacts in real-life situations with neighbours,
fellow-parents, work colleagues and so on, are the only way that we can
bring the Church closer to others - the other side of the equation is, their
response.
There are those, even within the church, who feel “unleashed”, or out of
sympathy with what we are and what we do. It's important engage with and
listen to any such people, at the same time remembering that our approach to
what we do is the result of careful thought and hard slog, which are not
always apparent until you have to deal with the issues yourself. It's a
two-way process: we need some sympathy as well!
Then there is the question of welcoming newcomers into church. I once heard
someone (now very active in the church) say that St Mary's appeared very
formidable from the outside, and it needed quite some effort to “take the
plunge” and come in. I'll tell the truth - many of us, I'm one, find it
daunting to speak to a complete stranger (in worldly terms) who appears in
the next pew though (spiritually) they are fellow pilgrims! So, if anyone
reading this is wondering about coming to St Mary's but feels rather daunted
- we're in the same boat! But the first step is always the hardest, and the
next steps easier.
One thing that can help people to “get into” the church is to have some
matter or activity, however small, to see about. You can have little contact
or involvement unless it's about something.
As far as ministering to those right outside the Church - in fact outside
the parish - I can tell you that that goes on as well. On the first Saturday
in September, a coach-load of children of primary school age was taken to
Littlehampton for a day out. All the concomitant arrangements such as food
and drink, money for fun-fair rides and the myriad health and safety
requirements were made. They were children from homeless families, many of
them asylum-seekers. Who took them? Members of the churches in Merton, under
the auspices of Christian Care.
As I write I have just returned from a similar trip for young teenagers of
11 to 15 (we're nothing if not systematic), which could have been a far
tougher proposition (but wasn't). The point about this work is not simply
who it's done for, as many charities do such work, but who does it. The same
applies to everything we do in Church.
Neville Squires
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