Painfully aware?

 "But the people of Israel broke faith in regards to the things that were of first import". Joshua 7:1.

This week, Ben Phillips provided a very insightful evaluation of the errors made by the Church of England during the 2020/21 crisis.

Under the heading "Covid and the Church of England's Retreat", he soberly examines what lead to the church as a whole merely submitting to the will of external forces without any real form of concern or protest as a bare minimum.

He begins by noting how there was a total lack of genuine direction with respect of how to react amongst those he knew the week prior to lockdown, and how he witnessed a sense of 'genuine relief' when the lockdown requirement was made, and the burden of decisions had been removed from the shoulders of the church itself.

He acknowledges that there were older members of the clergy, like a section of the general public, that needed to be shielded, and that as guidance became more relaxed, some bodies found ingenious ways to 'work within' these, but the tragic fact remains that so many did not.

"A faith-based system", he writes, "built on sacrifice, presence" and other vital traits, entirely withdrew behind locked doors. This, he notes, was an acceleration of a process that has been at work in the C of E for a great deal longer, where 'virtual ministry' has become a key component of what makes up service and worship each week. A very real consequence of this is as churches re-opened, long-standing members of congregations did not return.

Since the end of lockdowns, the withdrawal procedure has actually accelerated, with many meetings and other activities becoming fenced off from the day to day social dimension of church life. Creativity and vitality have become minimised and in many cases there is simply no enthusiasm to genuinely engage with the wider community, presumably because of the 'risk factor' 2020 brought to the fore.

The entire crisis, he concludes, shows just how disconnected the church has become from the real world, living in a bubble that it can continue 'warm and safe' in its little enclave whilst refusing to engage with the actual harsh realities that impact upon more and more of us each day.

What is conspicuous by its absence is good leadership, at a local and a national level, which would robustly engage with the present continuing crisis and would not be fearful to speak out and lead the church away from its stupor.

The excuses no longer stick. The time has come for a change of direction, derived from a genuine and profound change of thinking.