A couple of places have become available because of cancellations. If you are interested, please email Kim .
The Future of the People of God will be a unique gathering of thinkers and practitioners from the “emerging church” in conversation with one of the most influential biblical scholars of our day, N.T. Wright.
At first glance it may seem strange that the new Anglican Bishop of Durham should be seen as such a powerful source of inspiration for a movement which is largely still on the fringes of the organised church. However, his ground-breaking work in New Testament studies has persuaded many that even in the most sensitive area of biblical interpretation it is possible to be both orthodox and radical, committed to the historic church but willing at the same time to rethink the grounds of faith within a new and disorienting cultural environment. The results of his work have undoubtedly provided foundations for much recent thinking in the West concerning the relationship between God, church, gospel and society.
Our primary purpose in calling this gathering, therefore, is to allow conversations that many of us have had with Tom’s published work to grow and mature “in the flesh”. He will be contributing much to our proceedings, but he will also be listening, questioning, and debating with us. He will be our starting point, but he is willing to set out on a journey with us as we explore the implications of his work in the various contexts of emerging church.
We have the further hope that this gathering will attract a wide diversity of people from across the UK, and perhaps from overseas, who are living out something new but who may be doing so in isolation. We would love this to be an opportunity for us to listen to – and learn from – each other.
As far as possible we want the gathering to have an “open” structure, which means that participants will have the opportunity in the months leading up to the event to shape the agenda. The details of how this will work will be made available when the site goes live in the New Year, but it is our desire that everyone be an equal contributor to the conversation.
You may be wondering who or what is organising The Future of the People of God. The truth is that the idea sprang from a chance meeting between two of the organising group and Tom. An ad hoc group was then gathered together in order to plan the event. We don’t represent anything other than ourselves, although some of us are part of big organisations. Having said that, thanks are due to Shaftesbury Society for administering the gathering.
The venue we have chosen will accommodate up to 120 people. In the event that more than this number apply, we will not proceed on a “first come first served” basis, which would benefit our friends and the well-organised at the expense of others. Instead we will take the risk of making a selection on the basis of the information provided in the application with a view to ensuring that the group is as representative as possible.
We look forward to seeing you there!
Jason Clark, Chris Erskine, Simon Hall, Mike Love, Andrew Perriman, Matt Scrimgeour
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