ReNew: united, confessing, missional

Is the Commitment signed on Tuesday by delegates at the ReNew conference a manifesto for schism? In a word, no. The document begins with a promise to pray and work for a broad vision: “a nation of healthy, local Anglican churches”. This of course implies that there are not enough churches in the nation; many of them are not “healthy” in the sense of being Christ-centred, bible-based and Spirit-filled, growing and influencing society around them. The number one answer to the crisis of spiritual decline in England is seen by the ReNew movement as the development and strengthening of local congregations based on the Gospel of Jesus Christ. This could be seen as a congregational ecclesiology if it stopped there, but there is a recognition of the importance of episcopacy providing oversight and facilitating the work of mission at the local level.

The partnership of Church Society with Reform means that there remains a strong commitment to working within the existing structures of the Church of England. There is a real desire to take Archbishop Welby at his word, that as Conservative Evangelicals are considered to be part of authentic Anglicanism and encouraged to “flourish” (according to the July statement on Women Bishops), so churches in this tradition should be encouraged to grow and multiply. However while there is appreciation for those called to sit on Synods and be engaged in C of E politics, there will be no attempt to try to gain control of the structures; rather to grow a movement of like minded Anglican churches across the country. The strategy is to secure a good future for those churches which are currently strong and vibrant; to establish an evangelical ministry in many churches which are currently middle of the road and Gospel-lite; and to plant new congregations. Often these new ministries can be carried out successfully as part of a plan by the local Deanery and approved by the Bishop.

The controversial part of the commitment is the recognition that there will be times when pioneering new congregations will on occasion mean operating without Diocesan approval, and the Anglican Mission in England (AMiE) is the mechanism to enable this. As we heard in various case studies during the day and a half together, there are various scenarios where new congregations have emerged wanting to be Anglican, or where growing parishes have felt the need to establish another presence, a daughter congregation, in a large area of population where the existing parish church is of a totally different churchmanship and is making little impression. Rather than welcome such fresh expressions of Christian life and growth, and eagerly own it as part of the Diocese, many in the official leadership structures block such moves, often through prejudice against conservative evangelical theology. It was emphasised at the conference that in such cases, the aim is not to be “gung-ho” and deliberately rebellious, but rather, after respectful negotiation sometimes over many months, if it becomes impossible to reach agreement, the furtherance of the Gospel must take precedence over niceties of protocol. Such new congregations wanting to maintain an Anglican identity can do so with oversight from AMiE, their panel of Bishops, and their oversight from the GAFCON Primates. Read more