Chelmsford Cathedral AGM PRESENTATION AND REPORT BY THE DEAN at the - PDF document

Chelmsford Cathedral AGM PRESENTATION AND REPORT BY THE DEAN at the 9.30 am and 11.15 services at the Cathedral on Sunday, 12 April 2015 INTRODUCTION From this morning’s Gospel reading: When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you.’ After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.’ John 20.19-21 This is the perfect text for us this morning as we look at the mission of Chelmsford Cathedral. On the evening of the first Easter Day, Jesus, the wounded risen saviour, empowers the disciples and sends them out to be instruments of peace and reconciliation. With that as the overall message, I want to look at three things today: - What is the cathedral used for? - What is our mission “field” , or even what are our mission fields? - How do we use our resources in the service of our mission? And throughout I’ll be referring to our 2014 statistics to illustrate the theme. 1 WHAT IS THE CATHEDRAL USED FOR? This is a useful question as it helps us to identify what goes on here. There are various ways we could analyse this, but the simplest is probably the one we are currently using to develop funding applications. This suggests that there are three ways in which the cathedral is used: - Cathedral as WORSHIP space - Cathedral as PUBLIC space - Cathedral as CULTURAL space In a variety of ways these three over lap, but they are a useful lens through which to look at the operational life of the cathedral, what happens day by day. 1.1 Cathedral as WORSHIP space This is the way most of us naturally think about the cathedral, and each day is framed by prayer and worship. For members of our thriving Sunday congregations it may be that Sunday worship is our main experience of the Cathedral and its ministry. Last year saw total visitors and attendances of 101,169. And it is probably not surprising that worship accounts for over two thirds of our total visitors and attendances in 2014 (70,870). But it is also worth noting that regular Sunday worship accounts for less than a fifth of the overall total (19,779). 1.2 Cathedral as PUBLIC space Increasingly – and maybe quite surprisingly in our apparently secular context – cathedrals are becoming important as public space. This may be for a conference, an information day, corporate hospitality. A huge range of activities. A few years’ ago the nav e of Liverpool Cathedral was the

Chelmsford Cathedral – an apostolic (SENT) community Jesus says: ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.’ John 20.21 setting for the launch of the Range Rover Evoke . We are part of this story – though only at the beginning of it. Out of a total of 101,169, 2014 registered 26,225 such visits and attendances to do with PUBLIC SPACE, including 18,083 (a minimum number) people who simply came into the cathedral for no stated reason – simply to be in this extraordinary space. 1.3 Cathedral as CULTURAL space The recent major report From Anecdote to Evidence identified cultural activities as a very significant way in which an increasing number of people engage with cathedrals nationally. This has been an important part of our history here at Chelmsford – in a typical week in term time as many people come to concerts at the Cathedral as to Sunday worship; and Friday is regularly the busiest day of the week. Cultural activity includes lectures, talks and exhibitions as well as our core musical offerings. Out of a total of 101,169 In 2014 visits to the cathedral for cultural activities accounted for 15,486 attendances. Here is the first VENN DIAGRAM: Cathedral Worship Public Cultural 2

Chelmsford Cathedral – an apostolic (SENT) community Jesus says: ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.’ John 20.21 2 What is our mission “field”? This is another way of asking the question “what is the Cathedral FOR?” rather than “what does the cathedral DO?” (although of course we want the answers to both those questions to be quite close to one another!) If we look at it this way, we will see a different picture. Here are three more headings, all arising from the Dean’s Big Question and the Dean’s Round Table: - Cathedral as PARISH CHURCH - Cathedral as home to THRIVING CONGREGATIONS - Cathedral as BISHOP’S CHURCH Those of you who have been part of the Round Table conversations will know that the third – Bishop’s Church – has proved so far the most difficult to grapple with, but let’s get there by steps. 2.1 Cathedral as PARISH CHURCH Parish Church is part of our DNA, and the largest single group of English Cathedrals are like us – “parish church cathedrals”. What does this mean? It means quite simply that the cathedral – alongside its other ministries and responsibilities – has specific responsibility for the geographical area in which it is set. Where a cathedral is not a parish church, there is normally a major local parish church with which the cathedral has a significant relationship delivering this parish ministry. To get this right we need to be clear about the word “parish”. Many people – including some clergy – use the word “parish” to mean “congregation”. In the Church of England this is not (and never has been) what the word “parish” means. Rather in the Church of England it means (and has always meant) the geographical area that the church is there to serve. Behind that lies a serious theology of place: that the people and networks of the surrounding area have a claim on the ministry of the local church, regardless of their own faith and convictions, and that the local church has a responsibility to the people and networks of the surrounding area. So to be a “parish church cathedral” means that – alongside all the ministries that go with being a cathedral – we have the responsibility and privilege of being a transforming presence in the networks of the city centre, the schools, the university, the City Council, the County Council, the Courts, the Police Station, the Fire Station, the Railway Station, the pubs and clubs and retail centres. And of course that means we are the church for those who live in our parish – currently over 3,700 people (2011 census), and rising fast as new housing is built. It is a population with a very clear profile: 3,700 residents and rising: - very few people over 65 or under 16; - the largest group is 15 – 29 year olds; - with a lower than average (15%) minority ethnic population; - 55% of the population say they are Christian; - 46% of households are families - a surprising 41% are single people - significantly higher level of qualifications than the national average - significant pockets of poverty and deprivation. That is a brief pen portrait of our parish as a key mission field for us as Chelmsford Cathedral. 3

Chelmsford Cathedral – an apostolic (SENT) community Jesus says: ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.’ John 20.21 And here is the map of our parish: It is possible to talk in numbers – our stats for 2014 suggest 28,151 (including baptisms, weddings, funerals, etc). But of course our ministry as parish church is mostly not seen within the walls of this building but on the streets of our community and the networks of our city. I’d suggest that it is an area of our mission field that deserves more of our time, our attention and our resources in order to fulfil this significant part of our ministry. 4