Relational Mission course
In an era when uncertainty about the church’s future is high, how can we rethink our ideas about mission and cultivate relationships which enable us and our neighbours to encounter God in the small, the local, and the everyday?
This course will explore how prioritising a relational approach to mission can help us to slow down, become less anxious, and discern how God is calling us to engage in our local neighbourhoods in ways which embody the good news of Jesus.
Drawing on a blend of story, theology and research, we will discover together how letting go of some of our preconceptions of what mission ought to look like might enable us to embrace a more creative, liberating and relational approach… and perhaps some unexpected outcomes.
About the Tutor
Ruth Harley is a parish priest in the Diocese of Newcastle, working in two estate parishes with high levels of economic deprivation, but an abundance of other gifts to offer. She is the co-author with Al Barrett of Being Interrupted: re-imagining the church’s mission from the outside in (SCM Press, 2020) and writes about mission and ecclesiology from a feminist perspective, with a focus on questions of justice and power. She is currently undertaking a PhD at York St John, exploring how women’s narratives of vocation can challenge and expand our understanding of the vocation of the church as the body of Christ.
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