Where faith, arts and justice meet: Greenbelt (my review)

8 September, 2013 — 17 Comments

From 23-26 August I attended what I would describe as the best, most diverse, engaging, ecumenical, Christian gathering event I have ever been to. Greenbelt is an arts, faith and justice festival held in England that has now run consecutively for 40 years. This was my second time, the first being in 2011.

20130906-115842 PM.jpgIn this post I will explain what Greenbelt is, and then I’ll go through the things I did at Greenbelt this year as a way to show why I think it’s such a good time, and perhaps as a way to tempt you into joining me there sometime.

Continue Reading…

In education, Greenbelt , , , , ,
 permalink

Stop the weird people!

20 August, 2013 — 13 Comments

I’ve just finished the longest rest I’ve had in a long time: sitting on a plane for 23 hours flying to London. I’m looking forward to Greenbelt this weekend!
For two days last week I attended the annual Baptist Pastor’s Conference for the South Island (NZ) ministers. It was pretty good. It was mostly sitting listening to people talk, and I listened with my usual filter looking for signs of engagement with communication issues.

Stop-the-weird-people-mikecrudge

The highlight of this was during an interview panel of pastors facilitated by Murray Robertson from the Leadership Network. To the panel of three pastors he asked them why their churches were part of a small minority of (I think about ten) Baptist churches in New Zealand that have increased in size over the last five years. The comment I thought was the most revealing in terns of considering communication, was along the lines of:
Continue Reading…

In church, communication, explaining our faith, interference, relationships, sender, society , , , ,
 permalink

One thing every church should consider but usually doesn’t

7 August, 2013 — 13 Comments

This picture below probably looks familiar to you. I first came across a more simplified version of it in high school when a teacher scribbled on the board two stick figures and a few arrows. This is the Shannon-Weaver model of communication from 1948. In this blog post I want to introduce the idea that this simple representation of communication needs to be considered whenever anyone inside the church tries to communicate anything outside the church.

Shanon-Weaver-model-of-communication-MikeCrudge.comIn other words, whenever the church attempts mission, evangelism, being missional, being incarnational, everything we do: the process of communication needs to be considered. I don’t just mean spoken or written, but actions and everything else we do.

Continue Reading…

In church, communication, communication model, explaining our faith, interference, noise, receiver, sender, Shannon-Weaver, society , , , , , , , , , , , ,
 permalink

Does this bus need turning around?

31 July, 2013 — 26 Comments

I could easily spend several hours every week “having coffee” with people I know who have stopped going to church services. I like talking to people who are either well on the fringe of church (having moved from the centre) or have left completely. I like talking with these people because I appreciate hearing stories of their experiences and often frustration with church. If I didn’t work for the church I might be one of these people.

Not-in-service-bus-MikeCrudge.com-570o

Whenever I see a bus telling me it isn’t in service, I think of Sundays and churches and those who aren’t in church services on Sundays, especially those who used to be but aren’t anymore.  There’s another way to frame “NOT IN SERVICE” and I’ll end this post with that.

Continue Reading…

In church, church attendance, church decline, relationships, society , , , , , , , , ,
 permalink

Cathedrals and Hairdressers

26 July, 2013 — 6 Comments

It’s been a while since I went to a hair dresser. I still remember what it was like. It’s not actually something I miss. My stereotype of hairdressers are people who talk a lot all day with many different people. They have their ear to the ground, their finger on the pulse, and are probably happy to give their opinion about anything (I say that all positively).

MikeCrudge.com-Christchurch-Cathedral-Anglican-Church-PICT8256

For my doctoral research I interviewed some people who were not what I defined as being Christianised.  I wanted to gain their perception of the Christian church in New Zealand. One of these people was a 30-year-old male hairdresser working in the inner city who was born and grew up in Christchurch.  He had some fascinating thoughts about the Anglican cathedral which was a central icon in the inner city.  This is part of his story:

Continue Reading…

In Anglican, Christendom, church, church attendance, communication, New Zealand, society, The Hairdresser Test , , , , , , ,
 permalink

Pop quiz: When did regular church attendance peak in New Zealand?

19 July, 2013 — 31 Comments

I only found this out last year and the answer was not what I had expected. Since then, as conversations have allowed, I’ve been asking people to tell me a decade when they think church attendance peaked. Not many people have given me the right answer.

When do you think it was?

MikeCrudge.com-church-attendance-Oxford-Terrace-Baptist-Church-2010-PICT9525

It’s a pretty blunt tool to use as an indicator of the church’s health in a country, but people going to Sunday church services regularly does indicate something of their commitment to the traditional way of being “the church”.
Continue Reading…

In Christendom, church, church attendance, church decline, New Zealand, society, statistics
 permalink

How do you describe the kingdom of God?

11 July, 2013 — 23 Comments

The “kingdom of God” is a phrase translated into English from something that was central to the teaching of Jesus. This phrase has become church jargon. What does it actually mean? Is the intended original significance lost in the way it gets used today?

How do you describe the kingdom of God?

Are you able to simply define the kingdom of God to someone not part of the church who has never been Christianised?
Continue Reading…

In communication, explaining our faith, kingdom of God, kingdom of heaven, relationships, society , , , , , , ,
 permalink

One way to think of communication

5 July, 2013 — 12 Comments

In its most basic form communication is the establishment of common ground in terms of shared understanding. If there is no common ground, there is an inability to reach shared understanding, which means there will be an inability to communicate effectively.

MikeCrudge.com Akaroa, New Zealand

When I think of any communication process as an attempt to gain shared understanding about something, it helps me to think of those who are receiving or sharing in my communication, as well as the context in which the communication is occurring.

Continue Reading…

In church, communication, relationships, society , , , , , , ,
 permalink

Welcome to my blog!!

1 July, 2013 — 11 Comments

Two weeks ago (14 June 2013) I submitted my doctoral thesis for examination. So what do I do now? “Why not start a blog?” I thought.

ID-10073475-date

I’ve pondered blogging for years but haven’t really had the gumption to give it a serious go. Narrowing down the topic area has made the thought of doing this more manageable: sticking with things to do with communication, church, and society will keep me from blogging about cats or what I cooked for dinner.
Continue Reading…

In admin
 permalink