The End of the Pew?
What is the biggest obstacle to the growth of the church in Britain today? Creeping secularisation? Richard Dawkins? Infighting over women bishops or gay clergy? Let me make another suggestion: how about the continued existence of pews? For the first 1500 years of the church’s life, pews were extremely rare. In most medieval churches people stood or sat on the floor, with only a narrow bench around the edge of the building for seating. Eastern Orthodox churches never got around to having pews – still today in Russia and Greece, worshippers stand. When they did gradually get introduced, pews were a mixed blessing. They were intimately connected with social division and hierarchy, with pews ranked according to social standing. The rich would have large grand stalls at the front and woe betide anyone who sat in the wrong one. They were exclusive then, and they are exclusive now. Pews today effectively exclude the 90% of people who are not regular attenders of services. The problem i...
Sounds great but not able to be come. Will the talks be available to download on HTB website
ReplyDeleteSheila Bridge First year ordinand
it was great to be able to attend. Thanks so much for all the work involved in making this happen. I'm still in awe of Jurgen Moltmann's lecture delivered so strongly at the age of 84. I was too timid to come and say hi but I think my pal Ash tweeted you to say I was coming (ask him about our Glaswegian Holy Spirit experience in 1993 or '94!)
ReplyDeleteThe only downside of the conference was the no-sleep sleeper train......!!
You are still standing at the edges and circling round the outskirts - ask Nicky Gumbel - he had a Language emergency when he tried to describe what it was like being filled with the Holy Spirit (cf. Ephesians 5:18) and all he could say was that it was like 10,000 Volts of pure Electricity flowing through him - although I am not saying that was what caused him to white haired, but he stepped forward right into the full force, the full Encounter with the Holy Spirt and it rearranged him right down to a sub-molecular level - do you understand this? He was prepared to take that kind of risk - are YOU?
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