The Fresh Expressions movement in the Church of England and the Methodist Church is built on firm biblical, theological and sociological foundations, concludes a book of essays answering the big questions about the idea of a mission-shaped church launched by Church House Publishing today on Tuesday.
Mission-shaped Questions tackles some of the common queries and myths about fresh expressions of church head-on and argues that embracing a mixed-economy church is not the preserve of a certain type of churchmanship or something that should be seen as a 'bolt-on' to 'normal church'.
Edited by Dr Steven Croft, the Archbishops' Missioner and Team Leader of Fresh Expressions, Mission-shaped Questions explores some of the key issues facing churches as they seek to develop new ways of 'being and doing church' for the twenty-first century, in a society that is becoming increasingly mobile, less socially cohesive, and has a weaker understanding of the Christian faith than older generations.
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, has welcomed the book's insights, commenting: "If we are to grow and mature as a mixed economy Church, there are hard questions to be asked and answered.
"We need first-class thinking to back up and support all that is happening at local level. I hope this collection will get the attention it richly deserves."
The collection of essays by respected thinkers in the field addresses some of the big theological and practical issues that church leaders have grappled with as they have implemented ideas from the Mission-shaped Church report. It follows a series of day conferences held during 2007 across the country, sponsored by Fresh Expressions, called 'Hard Questions'. These events featured theologians discussing key subjects, followed by questions to the speakers and a panel discussion with practitioners and church leaders.
The book includes contributions on issues such as the definition of church, sacramental ministry in fresh expressions, the evidence for the existence of fresh expressions in the New Testament, and how a mixed-economy Church can connect with contemporary spirituality.
Among the essays, the Rev Canon Professor Loveday Alexander, Professor of Biblical Studies in the University of Sheffield and Canon Theologian at Chester Cathedral, embarks on a detailed study of the evidence in the Acts of the Apostles, suggesting that the early church also struggled with the tensions between forming a solid institution and also reaching those at its edges.
