In writing this piece I am influenced by the writings of Alan Jamieson in his book ‘A Churchless Faith’. He uses the analogy of being on an ocean liner to represent being part of main stream church. I am questioning myself as to whether I have truly been part of mainstream church at any part in my life.
I was born immediately after the Second World War ended in the year 1946. I understand that much questioning was taking place as to the presence of God at such an awful time, and, of course, the role of the church. There was also the questioning of the communist ideology in the West with a mixture of fear (The Cold War) and perhaps the feeling that communal ideas could be the salvation of mankind.
I believe that my father, who did not go to war because he worked on the land, was very reflective about what was happening. He had some leaning towards communism in what he said and did not experience the real terrors of war which led many soldiers to appreciate divine intervention. He undoubtedly had a form of faith in God, but I believe that he had lost faith with the church. I was therefore brought into the world through the traditional root of baptism into the Church of England and handed over to my godparents to introduce me to the life of the church. For many years aunty and uncle religiously took me to the local Anglican Church. I have memories of the building as I sat there with my younger brother. Eventually, however, my uncle became disillusioned with the church, or at least the minister, and that ended the first phase of my church life.
I believe that this first phase was merely an experience, rather than membership.
When we became more independent, my brother and I felt that we needed to renew our church attendance. To this end we went off on our own to visit other churches in the town. We lingered in some longer than others. I was much impressed by the Pilgrim’s Progress story which was the central teaching in one church for a number of weeks. This phase came to an end.
During this phase I feel that I was a visiting observer of church rather than a member.
School was the next phase of my spiritual journey. Biblical Christianity was taught with great seriousness. I was given my first Bible (A King James) by the local education authority, via the school. Worship, each day, was taken very seriously. It was at this time I learned many of the Ancient and Modern Hymns that still recall today.
If anything, it was during this phase that I greatly experienced and was part of church. I was in a caring community. Many of its leaders (teachers) were Christians and I was nurtured along good moral and spiritual lines. School was my second home. I valued it.
Seven spiritually empty years followed. Work and the world took over. I had serious education to do. My best friend was the son of a vicar. He and I spent many happy hours touring the Mansfield pubs. During Teacher Training I dabbled very briefly in religion for the wrong reasons, but social life was more important, even than training.
However, it was here that I met and married my wife Irene. At the time her work was more important than her faith. In fact it was not until we set out to arrange the wedding that I discovered that she had any sort of faith, and only several years later that she returned even more fully to the God that she had given her life to, many years earlier as a school girl.
I then observed my wife as she trod the Anglican pathway, introducing our two oldest children to it as we moved from home to. That is from Brington, Hunts. To Aylesbury to Great Horwood nr. Milton Keynes. It was in Great Horwood that her journey was to change and greatly influence mine. Here she became disillusioned by Spiritless, dead tradition and began, with her friends to explore alternatives. Our home would become a meeting place for the transition period as she moved over to Pentecostalism. I was still an observer. However, I tasted some of the true Christian Spirit for the first time, as I went about my degree studies, which occupied a lot of time. I do remember saying to my wife at this time that I understood early Christianity to be no more than simple gatherings for a meal and worship in someone’s home. This was at the time when the group was concerned about the validity of taking communion without an ordained minister. In fact they got around it by inviting a local AOG pastor to visit and officiate.
I was to become an atheistic head teacher of a Church of England school. It was here that I am certain that God made a personal revelation to me, sealing my destiny forever. (Very dramatic). I began to attend an Elim Church in neighbouring Stamford. The church became independent shortly after I joined. I became a baptised member of the church and for awhile felt very much at home there. The call of the small group tugged at me. We (my wife and I experimented with ecumenical village groups and attempted to established a main stream AOG church in nearby Oundle. For ‘spiritual’ reasons I lost my job at the school and I thought that the call had come to work at Christian Education in Milton Keynes. This meant joining a very large church in the ‘City’. During this time our two youngest boys were born and our eldest made the transition through university to adult life. At this point I will not speak much of regrets and the forgiveness that I owe all of our children.
Following my ‘failure’ to establish Christian schooling in Milton Keynes and the need to give our youngest boys a ‘proper’ education we moved to Stapleford, Nottingham, where for 11 years I was head of religious studies at ‘The King’s School’, until my heart attacks and retirement. At the beginning of our time here we attended a sister church of the main sponsoring church of the school.
During this phase it may be possible to say that I was fully a member of the main stream church. I had been baptised. This, or communion, is often viewed as the boarding pass. However I was rarely comfortable in any of the churches that I attended.
My conclusion is that I have never truly sailed on any of the church ships that we have boarded. Therefore I do not consider myself ever to have been a church leader in the true sense of the word. My current theological position is that since my baptism in 1984 I have been travelling on the ship of Salvation, the church of Jesus Christ.
When we discovered ‘House Church’ we had not come into port, we had discovered the ocean going liner that would enable us to continue the rest of our salvation journey. We now have to work it through.
I was born immediately after the Second World War ended in the year 1946. I understand that much questioning was taking place as to the presence of God at such an awful time, and, of course, the role of the church. There was also the questioning of the communist ideology in the West with a mixture of fear (The Cold War) and perhaps the feeling that communal ideas could be the salvation of mankind.
I believe that my father, who did not go to war because he worked on the land, was very reflective about what was happening. He had some leaning towards communism in what he said and did not experience the real terrors of war which led many soldiers to appreciate divine intervention. He undoubtedly had a form of faith in God, but I believe that he had lost faith with the church. I was therefore brought into the world through the traditional root of baptism into the Church of England and handed over to my godparents to introduce me to the life of the church. For many years aunty and uncle religiously took me to the local Anglican Church. I have memories of the building as I sat there with my younger brother. Eventually, however, my uncle became disillusioned with the church, or at least the minister, and that ended the first phase of my church life.
I believe that this first phase was merely an experience, rather than membership.
When we became more independent, my brother and I felt that we needed to renew our church attendance. To this end we went off on our own to visit other churches in the town. We lingered in some longer than others. I was much impressed by the Pilgrim’s Progress story which was the central teaching in one church for a number of weeks. This phase came to an end.
During this phase I feel that I was a visiting observer of church rather than a member.
School was the next phase of my spiritual journey. Biblical Christianity was taught with great seriousness. I was given my first Bible (A King James) by the local education authority, via the school. Worship, each day, was taken very seriously. It was at this time I learned many of the Ancient and Modern Hymns that still recall today.
If anything, it was during this phase that I greatly experienced and was part of church. I was in a caring community. Many of its leaders (teachers) were Christians and I was nurtured along good moral and spiritual lines. School was my second home. I valued it.
Seven spiritually empty years followed. Work and the world took over. I had serious education to do. My best friend was the son of a vicar. He and I spent many happy hours touring the Mansfield pubs. During Teacher Training I dabbled very briefly in religion for the wrong reasons, but social life was more important, even than training.
However, it was here that I met and married my wife Irene. At the time her work was more important than her faith. In fact it was not until we set out to arrange the wedding that I discovered that she had any sort of faith, and only several years later that she returned even more fully to the God that she had given her life to, many years earlier as a school girl.
I then observed my wife as she trod the Anglican pathway, introducing our two oldest children to it as we moved from home to. That is from Brington, Hunts. To Aylesbury to Great Horwood nr. Milton Keynes. It was in Great Horwood that her journey was to change and greatly influence mine. Here she became disillusioned by Spiritless, dead tradition and began, with her friends to explore alternatives. Our home would become a meeting place for the transition period as she moved over to Pentecostalism. I was still an observer. However, I tasted some of the true Christian Spirit for the first time, as I went about my degree studies, which occupied a lot of time. I do remember saying to my wife at this time that I understood early Christianity to be no more than simple gatherings for a meal and worship in someone’s home. This was at the time when the group was concerned about the validity of taking communion without an ordained minister. In fact they got around it by inviting a local AOG pastor to visit and officiate.
I was to become an atheistic head teacher of a Church of England school. It was here that I am certain that God made a personal revelation to me, sealing my destiny forever. (Very dramatic). I began to attend an Elim Church in neighbouring Stamford. The church became independent shortly after I joined. I became a baptised member of the church and for awhile felt very much at home there. The call of the small group tugged at me. We (my wife and I experimented with ecumenical village groups and attempted to established a main stream AOG church in nearby Oundle. For ‘spiritual’ reasons I lost my job at the school and I thought that the call had come to work at Christian Education in Milton Keynes. This meant joining a very large church in the ‘City’. During this time our two youngest boys were born and our eldest made the transition through university to adult life. At this point I will not speak much of regrets and the forgiveness that I owe all of our children.
Following my ‘failure’ to establish Christian schooling in Milton Keynes and the need to give our youngest boys a ‘proper’ education we moved to Stapleford, Nottingham, where for 11 years I was head of religious studies at ‘The King’s School’, until my heart attacks and retirement. At the beginning of our time here we attended a sister church of the main sponsoring church of the school.
During this phase it may be possible to say that I was fully a member of the main stream church. I had been baptised. This, or communion, is often viewed as the boarding pass. However I was rarely comfortable in any of the churches that I attended.
My conclusion is that I have never truly sailed on any of the church ships that we have boarded. Therefore I do not consider myself ever to have been a church leader in the true sense of the word. My current theological position is that since my baptism in 1984 I have been travelling on the ship of Salvation, the church of Jesus Christ.
When we discovered ‘House Church’ we had not come into port, we had discovered the ocean going liner that would enable us to continue the rest of our salvation journey. We now have to work it through.
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