Pioneering Sprituality ed by Cathy Ross and Jonny Baker Reviewed

Pioneering Spirituality: Resources for reflection and practice edited by Cathy Ross and Jonny Baker, published by Canterbury Press, is the latest work from the CMS stable.

Whilst distinctly different from its predecessor last year ThePioneer Gift it still has the familiar format of having a range of chapters from practitioners in a range of contexts. The work that Baker and Ross do involves seeking to facilitate the hearing of voices which might not otherwise be heard. This has primarily involved seeking to ensure that it is those who would describe themselves as pioneers whose stories and theological reflections are heard.

The scope of contributors to this book seems wider than in previous texts of this kind. It seems that going beyond the traditionally recognised type of fresh expressions and pioneering projects they are engaging more widely with different types of pioneering. This includes hearing the voices of Harvey Kwiyani who is one of a group of Malawian pastors living and working in Nottingham and Berdine Van Den Toren-Lekkerkerker and Benno Van Den Toren who are originally from the Netherlands but have worked in various parts of the world. The former discusses African Spirituality in Western Contexts and the latter From Missionary Incarnate to Incarnational Guest: A Critical Reflection on Incarnation as a Model for Missionary Presence. There is also a chapter by anti-FGM activist Ann-Marie Wilson, who started 28 Too Many, on An Active Spirituality for Mission.

That said there are the familiar type of Pioneers in here too such as Gavin Mart of Engedi Arts who is a Methodist Venture FX Pioneer. Whilst Ross and Baker are careful not to speak with the voices of academics, rather presenting their introductory chapter in a more conversational form the academic voice is here too. Not only via Ross (and to a lesser extent Baker) but also through Stephen Bevans of Catholic Theological Union in Chicago. Bevans chapter Dancing with the Missionary God: Towards a Mission Spirituality seeks to identify six constant features of spirituality which provide a template for those engaged in pioneer mission.

The Bevans chapter is one which seeks to invite the practitioner to reflect on their own spirituality and seek to identify what both unpins it but also what sustains it. This concept of ensuring the pioneers own spirituality is sustained and the sharing of ideas and practices to help with this is the focus of the first part of the book. The most powerful chapters on this topic I believe are Kate Pearson’s on Angela of Foligno as a Model for Pioneer Minstry and Beth Honey’s Pioneers as Pilgrims. Both of these chapters were particularly useful to me personally as I seek to identify how to develop my own spirituality having moved into a lay university chaplaincy role – a role that in her chapter Pearson who is a chaplain at a different university describes as having “been a space for pioneers for a long time.” (p80)

Other chapters particularly in the second half of the book talk more about practice and how to help others develop their spirituality. Johnny Sertin’s chapter on Getting Dirty talked about doing this within a Church of England Parish Context whilst Tina Hodgett talked about it in relation to a group for young mums in her chapter on Doors in the Air: Baby Spirituality. These were interesting chapters telling the stories of what they were doing in a way which readers of the Ancient Faith, Future Mission series will be familiar.

Overall though this is more of a book to help pioneers themselves reflect rather than a book for those outside the system. It is a text to help understanding between different groups and to facilitate a conversation as illustrated by Kim Hartshorne’s We Are One Body Because We all Share in One Bread: Pioneering and the Eucharist. This chapter was focused on explaining to those from lower church backgrounds particularly why the Eucharist is so important to many practitioners from an Anglican tradition. This chapter articulated clearly why the rules matter to some people and why in finding new ways of doing things respect needs to be given to existing etiquettes. Again as somebody who doesn’t at times understand the need for the rules and restraints this was something I found particularly useful.

Overall this is a book which I would highly recommend to those who are seriously following developments in this area of pioneer ministry and mission because it highlights how maturing is now occurring. There is also more space being given to voices of those who have come from elsewhere to the UK which is good. I would also recommend it to practitioners who wish to reflect on their own practice and rootedness. Would I recommend it beyond that readership? I am not sure. Whilst it is a very good book and very readable and far less of a text book than some recent books I have read in this area it is still I believe quite specialist reading. It is clearly seeking to support the growing band of practitioners whilst developing some important conversations. It is a book of sharing ideas and also asking important questions of pioneers themselves.

The Minister as Entrepreneur - Reviewed

Entrepreneur is a word which people often find difficult when applied to religious organisations and this is something Michael Volland is well aware of. This ministerial trainer on mission and diocese missioner's latest book The Minister As Entrepreneur: Leading and Growing the Church in an Age of Rapid Change published by SPCK devotes some time and space dealing with this apparent problem.

One of the problems which is identified in this text, which is based largely around a piece of fairly small scale qualitative research he did amongst Anglican Clergy within the Diocese of Durham, is the association with the language of business and the market. He gives a quote from CMS head and Fresh Expressions expert Jonny Baker indicating why many within the church feel there are problems with this language; they link it with negative aspects of capitalism.

Whilst Volland clearly seeks to go beyond this business approach in his examination of the subject and use of the term it has to be recognised that this book feeds into wider debates within the CofE on theological education and training. The language and ethos of the business environment has been central to the GreenReport (Talent Management for Future Leaders and Leadership Development for Bishops and Deans: A New Approach). This small book I think would best be seen as part of this wider discussion around how we identify gifts and vocation and how we encourage those who might have specific gifts of leadership or callings into specific types of ministry, both lay and ordained.

 

Language and it’s use is the focus of the first part of the book which takes the familiar form of operationalising the terms being used and going through the literature review. Within the first few chapters Volland also engages in some interesting theology particularly in chapter three which is titled “An entrepreneurial God?

 

In this first part of the book Volland is clear to lay out the limitations of this text and the research sample it is based upon. The discussion questions around each chapter at the end of the book together with his initial comments show that this book is intended as a discussion starter. This is indeed how it should be viewed, being somewhat brief in nature.

 

Having read previous work by Volland, such as Through the Pilgrim Door, it is clear that writing in a less academic form is his preferred medium and this is why some parts of the book read better than others. In the preface he appears to be using his natural voice whilst later it reads slightly more awkwardly as he moves away from using the voice of the storyteller wrestling with complex academic questions and more into the more usual formal academic style. I much prefer the former style which has emerged from Volland, Baker and their pioneer contemporaries. The natural style they have developed is one which is clearly rooted in their experiences as practitioners who engage with academia and I think it is very readable. The sub-headings are a useful feature which are well used in this book, guiding the reader well and it is notable that these disappear during the second half of the book.

 

The first 65 pages are distinctly different in tone to the second where he presents his research findings and conclusions as I have indicated. This is perhaps because he identifies the two halves of the book being written for different audiences. The first half is focused on and addresses a broader audience than the latter which not only focuses on his ordained Anglican sample but seems to be addressed those living within a similar occupational bubble. It is clear from his comments that time has led to this restriction but it is a shame as because it means one feels as if they have walked into local debate around resources and recognition.

 

Of course there is wider application or this book would have not been published and that needs to be taken into account. Pages 101 – 103 in chapter 8 are perhaps the most central within this second half of the book because within them Volland outlines what his respondents felt aided the exercise of entrepreneurship in their ministry. These 19 points not only relate to entrepreneurship, I would argue, but what is central to healthy churches, mission and ministry more broadly. I believe they form the basis of what our discussions on the future should be.

 

As I say this is a useful, easy to read, short text which should be taken as a discussion opener or way into engaging with a number of difficult questions which need to be grappled with more widely than just within the CofE. 

 

The Minister as Entrepreneur by Michael Volland published by SPCK. ISBN: 9780281071821

(apologies, not sure why text has gone funny in 2nd half of this post)