Church of England Hopes to Inspire Sense of Adventure in Mission

"What the Church of England could do with possibly more than anything else at present is adventure... an adventure where the risks are real and the stakes are high". So begins the latest in a series of challenging reflections on the nature of doing mission, in a new Church of England book, Mission-shaped Spirituality, published at the start of December.

"The clergy may need adventure more than anyone else. Most - highly motivated, sensitive, passionate, caring, longing to be used effectively in the service of the gospel of God - signed up so they could make a difference. Many of them believe they were called to an adventure with God," says Susan Hope, author of the book and Missioner for Sheffield Diocese.

The new release aims to help re-energise both clergy and congregations with inspiring examples of what happens when churches pause to listen to the Holy Spirit, listen to their local communities - and then decide to go ahead and do something about it.

According to the Church of England, Mission-shaped Spirituality is not a 'how to' book that claims to have all the answers for clergy and congregations looking to reach deeper into their communities. Instead, author Hope combines real-life case studies with lessons from her own personal journey during 17 years of parish ministry to create a picture of what happens when churches re-ignite their commitment to mission by taking steps out of their traditional comfort zones and crossing boundaries into the unknown.

The Bishop of Reading, the Rt Rev Stephen Cottrell, says: "This book arises out of the deep well of Susan Hope's own abiding in God and the work she has done to encourage and facilitate the mission of God's church. It leads us on what she calls 'an apostolic adventure'."

Such adventures include:
- The two middle-aged women from a church in the heart of Doncaster's red-light district who decided they could no longer go on ignoring the plight of the young prostitutes, so they did what they could: the pair made up two flasks of hot coffee and began taking them out to the girls on the street. This work of simply listening to the young women eventually grew into a drop-in centre where they can get health-care advice and support. Since then, a number of the young women have come to faith.

- The priest who, with the support of the store's management, began to lead a weekly Mass at his local Asda right in the middle of the main entrance concourse, which was also broadcast to staff and customers over the store's tannoy system.

- The 14 elderly ladies in a small church who discovered that many of the children attending the school next door began the day without breakfast, so they started cooking and serving breakfasts in the church hall. After a while, concentration levels in the school improved, as did relations between church and school - to the extent that the head teacher became a Christian.

"Mission-shaped Spirituality reflects on the inner resources and attitudes of mind required to engage in mission in a post-modern, pluralist society," says Hope. "I hope it will encourage Church leaders to discover a spirituality that invigorates and revives enthusiasm and personal vision for evangelism and mission."

This book is the latest in the 'Mission-shaped' series. Others include: Mission-shaped Children, Mission-shaped and Rural. December will see the publication of Mission-shaped Parish.

Mission-shaped Spirituality: the transforming power of mission (ISBN 0-7151-4080-9) is priced £7.99 and available from Christian bookshops including Church House Bookshop, 31 Great Smith Street, London SW1P 3BN, tel. 020-7898 1300, email bookshop@c-of-e.org.uk, or on the web at: www.chbookshop.co.uk (mail order available).