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© 2001
Grant Barclay

A Church Without Walls > Presbytery timetable

Presbytery has scheduled this as a way of dealing with the study and discussion of the Report over three years as instructed by the General Assembly.

Recommendations - Year 1 (2002)

Focus: Congregational Life

Instructions

1. Instruct all Kirk Sessions to study the Report, take appropriate action and establish the necessary accountability for progress by 2005.
   Proposed procedure: Accountable to Presbytery through Support Groups
2. Instruct Kirk Sessions to urge all elders who have not untertaken training in the past three years to accept training to share the current vision of the role and expectations of an elder in the Church of Scotland and encourage Kirk Sessions to be flexible in recognising and deploying the individual gifts and callings of elders. [II.A.4.3.]
   Proposed procedure: Over to you!

Commendations

• Urge congregations to take risks, to try new ways so that faith may grow and encourage the wider Church to support them as they do. [III.3.]
  Let's try it!

1. Urge congregations to reflect on the cycle of grace and what it means to live out that grace in our life together. [II.A.1.2.]
   Can we revitalise - True Discipleship?
2. Urge Ministers and Kirk Sessions to undertake a review of the worship of the existing congregation and assess potential for developments within and beyond the congregation. [II.A.2.4., A.2.5., A.2.6.]
   Can we revitalise - Worship?
3. Urge congregations to determine to integrate children and young people into the life of the congregation; or to offer the resources to plant a church for a new generation alongside the current congregation. [II.A.3.2.]
   Can we revitalise - The Church Family?
4. Urge Kirk Sessions to identify the spiritual gifts of the people and grow the Church around the people we have rather than deploy people to support existing Church structures. [II.A.4.1.]
   Can we revitalise - Our personnel?
5. Urge Kirk Sessions to identify ways of deepening the prayer life of their congregations individually and together. [III.1.]
   Can we revitalise - Prayer?
6. Urge the leadership in every area of Church life to institute the discipline of a period of retreat, rest and reflection to allow space for God to change us. [III.2.]
   Can we revitalise - Ourselves?

Recommendations - Year 2 (2003)

Focus: Congregation - Community and Mission

Commendations

• Urge congregations to take risks, to try new ways so that faith may grow and encourage the wider Church to support them as they do. [III.3.]
  Let's try it!

1. Urge congregations to choose to study, reflect on and live by one Gospel for one year in the first instance, and let Jesus shape the life and structure of the congregation. [II.A.1.1.]
   What about - a Focus?
2. Urge congregations to undertake a community review at least once every five years to reflect on the issues, changes and missionary opportunities in the community in collaboration with others wherever appropriate and for this to be monitored as part of the Presbytery visit. [II.A.2., A.2.1., A.2.2., A.2.3.]
   What about - your Parish / Community?
3. Urge congregations to form paths for the spiritual journey to help people become Christian disciples in today's world. [II.A.3.3.]
   What about - 'Searchers'?
4. Urge congregations to research an area of the World Church and establish a personal partnership with a congregation or project. [II.A.3.8.]
   What about - a link with the 'World Church'?
5. Urge congregations to explore ways of being more environmentally aware and responsible as a witness to the Christian care of God's creation. [II.A.3.9.]
   What about - concern for our environment?

Recommendations - Year 3 (2004)

Focus: Congregational Structures

Commendations

• Urge congregations to take risks, to try new ways so that faith may grow and encourage the wider Church to support them as they do. [III.3.]
  Let's try it!

1. Urge congregations to consider how the cell, congregation and celebration dimensions of being the Church might be applied locally. [II.A.3., A.3.1.]
   Could our structures be - more flexible?
2. Urge congregations to form groupings according to their natural communities, to explore shared mission and mutual ministry with other churches in the area. [II.A.3.6.]
   Could our structures be - more cooperative?
3. Urge congregations to establish links with other congregations in a different social context as a partnership of mutual ministry. [II.A.3.7.]
   Could our structures be - less parochial?
4. Urge Kirk Sessions to develop appropriate open styles of meeting and processes of communication. [II.A.4.3.]
   Could our structures be - more open?
5. Urge congregational leadership teams to form networks focused on a shared context or a shared concern in order to build trusting relationships as the basis of future cooperation. [III.5.]
   Could our structures be - more practical?

Instructions

1. Instruct Kirk Sessions to study the Report as a stimulus to identifying the levers for change and the limits to growth in the local situation; to establish a "local needs" plan; and to apply, where appropriate, to the Community and Parish Development Fund. [III.4.]
   What practical needs have arisen?
2. Instruct Kirk Sessions to review the leadership structure, consider what ministry team is needed for current needs and determine how it might be developed in the next five years. [II.A.3.4., II.A.3.5.]
   What ministry needs have arisen?