36 Reasons to say NO - Part Four - Pastoral

 Since the new Bishop of Truro, the Rt Rev David Williams, published proposals for pastoral reorganisation in Kerrier deanery, west Cornwall, last month we have received many questions from people who are concerned about the plan and would like to know how to object.  This pastoral reorganisation, with its proposal for 23 churches under one rural dean, has attracted negative attention both locally and nationally.

Here are three dozen reasons why large groupings of parishes are unnecessary and unwelcome...  These come under four headings. To read the first (Legal) click here , the second (Evidence) click here and the third (Finance) click here. The fourth heading is Pastoral.  A paper by Admiral Sir James Burnell-Nugent 

 Summary:  From the teaching in the Bible, through the bishop’s ordination sacrament, to today’s huge demands for social and mental care, the parish is an immensely resilient solution.  A loving relationship with a local vicar is an essential part of this.  Stick with the parish as we know it – and don’t give up your PCC!

The Minster Community or mega-parish idea runs counter to the teachings and learnings of the church for 2000 years, particularly the emphasis on ‘place’ and ‘local’ in the Anglican Church.

27. Where better to start than the New Testament?  Mark 6: 34 ‘As he went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things’.  Parishioners are like sheep – and they need a shepherd.
28. From the Ordination and Consecration of Bishops – the Archbishop says “Bishops are called to serve and care for the flock of Christ.”   The Archbishop goes on to say “Through him, with his fellow servants in Christ, increase your Church and renew its ministry, uniting its members in a holy fellowship of truth and love.  Give him humility, that he may use his authority to heal, not to hurt; to build up, not to destroy”.  PCCs should ask your Bishop whether the formation of large parish groupings across the diocese, destroying local successes, is consistent with the vows of his consecration.
29. The Church of England’s own mantra is ‘A Christian Presence in every community’.  How will that work right across a huge group of parishes?  Is that being achieved today in benefices of over a dozen parishes in your diocese?  An Oversight Minister has made it clear in an interview how hard it is not to be part of a parish: he said that he always felt an outsider.  What is your Bishop’s definition of ‘a Christian presence in every community’?  Is that a volunteer who unlocks and locks the church every day – or is that an incumbent parish priest?
30. The Church of England’s Vision and Strategy calls for ‘a parish system revitalised for mission so churches can reach and serve everyone in their community.’  How will that work in a community of over a dozen geographically dispersed parishes?  How will a ‘hub’ church ‘serve everyone in their community’ – widely dispersed over rural areas?  Volunteer numbers are declining – so you cannot bank on them taking the strain.
31. Does your diocesan strategy seek large numbers of new authorised ministers (lay and ordained) – including focal ministers, leaders in new worshipping communities and volunteers.  Many do.  Why then cut clergy now?  PCCs should challenge such contradictory language and strategy.  Who will do the sacraments of baptisms, weddings and funerals at the parish church where people live?  Some deaneries are already centralising funeral arrangements.  Who will do pastoral care, already fast disappearing in many parishes?
32. Lay ministers cannot offer Holy Communion.  Church rules require one Communion service per benefice every Sunday.  It is highly likely that outlying churches in large groupings will see a significant reduction in the local availability of Communion.  Communion by Extension (which has formed part of the so called ‘solution’ in Truro Diocese where they are reducing to ‘Oversight Ministers’) is designed to be given by a lay minister – but only ‘occasionally not regularly’.  It should not form a regular part of church life.
33. The wider strategy of the Church of England is that ‘New Worshipping Communities’ will be within the physical boundaries of parishes but not integrated with them.  How can this possibly be revitalisation of parishes?  Challenge why such initiatives (and associated funding) is not being done through the extant parish system.
34. It is likely that your current vicar – even if they are shared amongst several parishes – has some responsibility as a trustee of, for example, a church school, or some church buildings for public use, or local charities.  Ask who will take on this important task if your benefice is expanded to double the number of parishes?  This is a particularly important role in church schools.
35. At the STP Spring Conference Bishop Andrew Rumsey from Salisbury Diocese said “As Anglicans, we have a highly developed sensitivity for place.  Ecclesiastical geography is important: What kind of place is the English Parish?  The parish is a covenant with place binding secular to sacred, human life to landscape, reflecting the need for a footing in the world and the desire to belong.  The parish system as inherited and curated by the Church of England is not arbitrary, but has theological richness.  It has resilience and durability over centuries.”
36. And Professor Alison Milbank said “Our country desperately needs the return of all that we mean by parish.  So many people are isolated and alone, or struggle with mental illness.  Parishes offer healing and reconnection.  Parishes offer forgiveness, which is also part of the sacraments of the Anglican Church; they offer hope.  All the intellectual tendencies in recent thought are towards reconnection with the local, and established parishes are poised to respond to this new hunger. There is a gospel to proclaim, and the parish is the way to proclaim it authentically, at the personal, local and relational level, where we live. 

Part One Legal  

Part Two Evidence

Part Three Finance

Part Four Pastoral