Rewilding The Church
Embrace the Spirit of renewal!
See, I am doing a new thing!
Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the wilderness
and streams in the wasteland.
(Isaiah)
Many local churches are under strain.
SEARCH seeks to support churches to 'rewild', to explore new ways of being and doing church, ways that are simpler, lighter and more connected to creation.
We long to see a flourishing garden of diverse communities springing up across Hull, sowing seeds of justice, peace and joy!
What we offer:
We support the rewilding of churches by:
COACHING:
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We offer one-to-one coaching for leaders
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We provide support to leadership teams
"Meeting with a small group of people with the intention of deeply listening to one another is such a life affirming thing to do. The group has a strong code of conduct which might sound restrictive, but actually is what helps it to be such a safe space. We follow the same pattern each time we meet, it is an intense experience, but to be held in such love, and to be able to hold the space so mutually is a really precious gift."
(Group Participant)
COURSES:
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We design and deliver bespoke courses to suit the needs of a church or associated ministry.
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We deliver courses from Unlock, including their 'Unlocking Emotions' course.
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We deliver courses from the Church Urban Fund, including their Growing Good and Know Your Church, Know Your Neighbourhood courses.
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COMMUNITIES OF PRACTICE:
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We host a quarterly reflective learning space for leaders, called ‘Liberating Leadership’.
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We host regular monthly spaces for collective spiritual accompaniment based on a Quaker practice called ‘Faithfulness Groups'.
If you are interested in finding out more about any of the above, please do get in touch.
Making Peace with the Land
Rewilding the Church is not only about releasing the innate healing and creative potential of people, but also about reconnecting with the whole of creation and doing whatever we can to release nature's innate capacity to heal and renew.
What I stand for is what I stand on.
(Wendell Berry)
Below are some quotes from Steve Aisthorpe's book 'Rewilding The Church':
"The outcome of rewilding is complex. Landscape becomes more multidimensional, biodiversity becomes richer. However, as a policy, it is simple, an approach rooted in trust. As an ecological strategy, we trust that nature knows best; in rewilding the Church we rely on God’s power and wisdom and are suspicious of substitutes; both rewilded landscape and rewilded Church emerge from the Creator’s hand. Simplicity is what allows us to respond to Jesus’ call ‘Follow me’ with the minimum of interference. The rules of life of monastic traditions throughout history vary in many ways, but simplicity is always there, creating the space for transformation to occur. It distressed Jesus that people had taken God’s law and woven it into a web of onerous regulations, far removed from its loving intentions. If we want an example of simplicity, how about ‘love God and love your neighbour’. As with rewilding in nature, the consequences of this kind of simplicity will be rich and complex, beautiful, demanding and compelling. Simplicity is not an outcome, but is the kind of context that facilitates and optimises God’s work, minimising distractions and diversions."
"The attempted resuscitation of dying congregations is a tragic diversion and not to be confused with the resurrection of the Church. The former is often the preoccupation of the institutional centre; the latter tends to happen on the fringe. Attempts to resuscitate dying congregations usually involve adaptation, trying to find new answers to old questions, especially related to the how, what and when of congregational worship services in an effort to make them accessible and understandable to those who are not involved. The rewilding of the Church draws on the resurrection power at its heart through innovation, asking new questions and going back to foundational considerations, refocusing on following Jesus and loving neighbours and being open-minded about what emerges.
God is rewilding the Church. The wild Messiah cannot be tamed. That inexpressible power at the heart of the Church may be hindered by invasive species, but cannot be quenched. We too are summoned to be rewilded, urged to allow the Great Interferer to have his way, to transform us from the inside out. You and I are invited to cooperate with the great regeneration of creation and invited to be part of what is emerging. We are beckoned along that trajectory of hope, inspired and energised by the new-every-morning love of God. Hear the call to participate in the ultimate adventure. Jesus says, ‘Follow me’."