Our God is a God of Mission. God calls us to bear witness to who God is, to tell what God has done in Jesus Christ, and to partner in God’s work in the world by going out to be salt and light. We call this the missio Dei (the mission of God).
Our Diocesan Mission Action Plan (DMAP) has been adopted by Synod as a guide to the actions we will take from 2021-2030, especially when Standing Committee and the Church Property Trustees (CPT) make decisions.
This “DMAP” will focus our aspirations to be a Diocese in Regeneration. In November 2021 our Diocesan Synod approved the Diocesan Mission Action Plan, or DMAP, and this is now available:
DMAP Dated Nov 2021
Our Goal
Regenerating our Diocese by growing in:
Strength (Ephesians 1:13-23), depth (John 15:1-11), and breadth (Acts 10).
Focusing our mission thinking in the missio Dei helps us understand that churches who accept God’s missionary call to proclaim our faith afresh in each generation will grow organically and easily (Mark 4:26-29).
Faithful participation in God’s mission allows missional churches to:
- Grow in strength, as they trust the God who calls them (Ephesians 1:13-23),
- grow in depth, bearing fruit as part of the true vine
(John 15:1-11), and - grow in breadth, to reflect the community they live within
(Acts 10).
Bishop Peter’s strategic goal for the Diocese reflects this:
“Regeneration of the Diocese from 2019-2030, measured by attendance numbers and by age profile
of the Diocese, with reference to specific age surveys for the years, 2021/2, 2025 and 2030.”
The Right Reverend Dr Peter Carrell, Bishop of Christchurch
Our Focus
Three priorities to achieve our goal:
• Making disciples,
• Supporting families, and
• Strengthening communities.
Keeping with the missio Dei, ministry with disciples, families, and the community all encompass aspects of calling people to faith and sending people of faith.
These priorities build a church that nurtures, serves, and transforms the world Christ sends us into.
These three priorities summarise what our Anglican Communion has expressed since 1984 as the Five Marks of Mission.
Five Marks of Mission
To proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom
To teach, baptise and nurture new believers
To respond to human need by loving service
To transform unjust structures of society, to challenge violence of every kind and pursue peace and reconciliation
To strive to safeguard the integrity of creation, and sustain and renew the life of the earth
Our Principles
To guide new growth
The principles that will guide our regeneration as we make Disciples, support Families, and strengthen Communities, are inspired by the analogy of a self-sustaining native forest.
This forest is abundant with life and a rich variety of plants growing together with continuous regeneration.
This marks a significant culture change for our Diocese:
- God’s intention is for the church to grow (Mark 4:26-29).
- God’s work in history often disrupts what has gone before (Matthew 5-7; Acts 15:1-30).
- God gives the Holy Spirit to breathe new dreams and visions onto his people (Acts 2:17).
- The church needs to adapt its structures and approaches appropriately to the social climate
surrounding it while staying true to the Gospel (Acts 15:1-30). - Like the Easter story, death can be a precursor to new life (John 19, 20; etc.).
- God calls his people to ongoing regeneration (John 3:3-8; 12:24; Ephesians 2:4-7)