New Reality, Same Mission
Members of the URC鈥檚听Church-Related Community Work,听Church and Society,听Children鈥檚 and Youth Work听and听mission and discipleship听teams, along with听Church Action on Poverty, started a conversation called ‘New Reality, Same Mission’ about helping congregations think about mission and community engagement in these challenging times.
The initiative began as a response to the Covid pandemic, but it is being broadened to include responses to other issues, including the cost of living crisis.
Covid response
In 2020, we produced a resource called ‘New Reality, Same Mission – A stimulus to renewed community engagement as we emerge from the pandemic’ that explored Pastoral Cycle and how this can help your church focus on the needs of your local community. There is a听full version听(PDF | 6.1mb) and a听summary of the pastoral cycle (PDF | 98kb)
Videos
Here is a听 of video reflections from a range of people talking about engaging in God鈥檚 mission in the time of Covid.
Zoom sessions
In early 2021, 鈥淐hurch at the Edge鈥� Zoom sessions were held monthly, exploring different topics or questions about mission and community engagement in an informal setting. These sessions have currently stopped, but may resume in future.
Here is a听, Principal Officer for Pentecostal, Charismatic and Multi-cultural Relations with Churches Together in England, sharing her thoughts on what the Church should be doing in response to these most challenging times.
Funding support
Finding funding sources for mission and community engagement can be challenging. Here are a few good places to start:
- Synod-distributed funds/funds听requiring听synod support听鈥� Contact your Synod Office听for more information on potential funding sources in your area, including denominational funds which are distributed by synods, or otherwise require synod support.
- Community funding organisations 鈥� A list of organisations and agencies with potential funding support for mission in your local neighbourhood.
- Discipleship Development Fund听鈥� Around 拢5,000 per award per year is available to recognised groups within the URC who can demonstrate that their plans are about helping people to live out their faith in everyday life.
- 鈥� A great tool for finding potential sources of funding for various purposes and groups, including engagement with your local neighbourhood.
- URC听Children鈥檚 & Youth Work Committee grants 鈥� Small grants for events, projects, activities which will benefit children, young people and families.
Additional resources
Here are some additional materials which might be useful to you and your local church as you explore mission and community engagement in light of the pandemic:
- (PDF) 鈥� A practical document from think tank , stemming from the听听which can help your church grapple with the challenges of connecting with your neighbourhood in meaningful ways.
- 鈥� A helpful resource from听听for organising effective partnerships with other churches, denominations and organisations which can be applied to partnerships for mission in your local neighbourhood.
- Organisations recommended by the CRCW network 鈥� A list of organisations and agencies, recommended by the URC鈥檚 Church Related Community Work network, with resources and support for mission in your local neighbourhood.
Contact us
Please contact us by听email听or call 020 7520 2718. We鈥檇 love to hear from you, or help however we can.