We are delighted to announce that last night our Church Meeting approved the adoption of a ‘Manifesto’ of principles for our church.
Heavily based on Dave Tomlinson’s book ‘The bad Christian’s manifesto’, it is a list of 9 guiding principles for a forward-looking church.
The principles spell out what sort of church we are, and, importantly, will act as a guideline for future actions and decision making. We will judge all proposals and decisions in future against these principles and ensure that what we do is always supportive of them. As individual Christians we will endeavour to live our lives in accordance with these ideas.
Here it is. Let us know what you think.
The London Road Congregational Church Manifesto
How we want to live
- To follow the way of Jesus rather than rules and conventions;
- To doubt and question WITHOUT fear, and never be daunted by orthodoxies and authority figures;
- To live courageously, and resist being motivated by guilt or fear;
- To look for God in every person and situation;
- To embrace messiness and imperfection while aspiring to be all that we can be.
How we want to love.
- To make a priority of kindness and compassion, and pursue justice for all people;
- To resist passing judgement, and befriend people in the margins;
- To love the world and honour it as God’s body;
- To celebrate the uniqueness of everyone, laugh often, enjoy friends and welcome strangers.
Huge thanks to Dave Tomlinson for allowing us to use his words.
Newark Congregational Church 