‘All this is from God who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation.’
2 Corinthians 5:18, NRSV
A strategy for spiritual and numerical growth
Our parishes have long been united by our three-fold purpose:
- Worshipping God – "All this is from God"
- Making new disciples – "who reconciled us to himself through Christ"
- Transforming communities – "and has given us the ministry of reconciliation"
Our primary means of helping to deliver this purpose is the application of the healthy church principles identified by NCD, known locally as the 8EQs (8 Essential Qualities).
In seeking a truly integrated strategy, we need to include cathedral, schools and chaplaincies as well as churches. The ‘whole diocese’ therefore includes:
- Parish church and other church communities
- Schools
- Cathedral
- Chaplaincies
All of these together gather around the Diocesan Bishop to share in the apostolic ministry and mission given to us by our Lord Jesus Christ - which, for the Diocese of Coventry, includes a historical and international emphasis on Reconciliation. A working understanding of reconciliation is that used by the Dean of Coventry: ‘Journeying from a fractured past towards a shared future.’
Through this we are all:
‘Partners together in the message and ministry of reconciliation’.
To deliver our strategy we have identified six shared objectives, all of which we seek to view through a lens that ensures we are focused on engaging with people from Global Majority Heritage/UK minority ethnic (GMH/UKME) communities and work developing children’s and young people’s spirituality.
Whole-diocese shared objectives
Our whole-diocese shared objectives are:
- Making the gospel known throughout the Whole Diocese so that people become followers of Christ.
- Strengthening the health of churches and organisations across the Whole Diocese in the 8 Essential Qualities (8EQs) identified by NCD.
- Enabling the wellbeing, development and flourishing of clergy and lay people across the Whole Diocese.
- Equipping the Whole Diocese for the work of reconciliation.
- Promoting life-long Christian learning and education across the Whole Diocese.
- Delivering positive community transformation.
The intention of this approach is to enable resources to be more effectively aligned to support our whole-diocese objectives, which are considered to have the greatest impact on health and growth.