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How is the
Order able to work non-denominationally when its members come from
such a diverse variety of traditions?
1 Corinthians,
chapter 12 clearly states that there is only one church/body with
Christ as is its head. People have caused it to be divided and
fragmented through misunderstanding, dissent, jealousy, politics and
power struggles. All we are doing is returning back to that original
position and showing that it can work.
Do other
denominations have problems with this position?
Yes. Some of
our members do suffer and some smaller churches and groups have
disallowed their members from becoming or being members of the Order.
Those churches
who do not support the ordination of women for example certainly have
problems with their members joining On Call as On Call supports the
ordination of women. The Order's position is quite simple - God calls
who God calls and that is sufficient.
Other problems
come from the fact the Order was set up in 1999 and is relatively new
and is generally unfamiliar to people. The ministry it offers is a
little different from that offered by the main stream churches.
Despite this, the work and reputation of the Order is growing.
Does the
work of the Order cut across the work already being done by main
stream churches?
Overall, no.
Members of the Order frequently find themselves working in areas that
are not generally being managed by the main stream churches. We do a
lot of work with those who have lost touch with the church or have
been denied ministry or sacraments by the church.
Our role is to
minister to their immediate needs and then help them move on in their
faith journeys or help them find a group or church that can best meet
their needs. This work was once described as 'rounding up the lost
sheep and finding homes for them'. Although a little over simple it
is fairly accurate.
It isn't the
only work we are involved in as you will have probably seen as you
visit other parts of the web site. Our members are increasingly
involved in supporting the work of their local churches which helps
avoid cutting across work already being done, but as yet this tends
to be more the exception rather than the rule. Some main stream
clergy still feel that the Order has yet to prove itself but it is happening.
Is the
Order a part of 'Churches Together'?
The Order is not a
church or denomination but an ecumenical/non-denominational community
so it cannot register as a full member, but it could potentially
register as a 'Body in Association'.
The Order would
like to be in discussion with Churches Together regarding becoming a
'body in association' but, so far, Churches Together have not engaged
in any meaningful dialogue and the Order is still waiting for replies
to communications, some outstanding for over twelve months.
The Order has been
in contact with both Churches Together England and Ireland (CTEI),
and Churches Together England (CTE). Of the two bodies, CTE had
initially been the most helpful and open, and whilst the Order
unreservedly does acknowledge and appreciate their initial interest
and assistance, it notes the closing of ranks and the lack of
communication on Churches Together's part.
The current
situation is that even though the Order wishes to support and be a
part of Churches Together in some way, it is not able to do or be so.
It may be that On Call still needs to prove its worth as a community
and charity even though it is involved in ministry at local, national
and international levels.
Do your
members have churches of their own?
If you mean 'do
they operate from a church building?' then some do, but many choose
not to. It generally depends on the sponsoring tradition that each
member come from and whether they are already responsible for a church.
Many members
choose to work from within the community they are a part of and do
not need a church building as the central focus for their ministry.
They still manage house groups and small communities without the need
for a specific church building by meeting in people's homes or
borrowing or hiring rooms.
It is generally
accepted by all traditions that the church proper is made up of
people, not buildings, so this is consistent with the Christian ministry.
What
happens when there is a conflict of interest?
This does
sometimes happen.
There are two
issues to be considered - pastoral need and being obedient to one's
sponsoring tradition (or bishop!). Each member has to decide for
themselves what is the best course of action but we advise as a
general rule that no member takes a course of action which brings
either their own faith, tradition or the Order into disrepute. It
does mean that two members might respond quite differently to similar
conflicts of interests but this is accepted providing each acts faithfully.
From
experience, the Order is more than happy to allows members to 'pass
on work' to other members if they feel that they cannot offer 100%
support or there is a conflict of interest.
Will the
Order do 'gay weddings'?
The Civil
Partnership Bill makes it quite clear that a civil partnership is
nothing more than a legally binding agreement between two people of
the same gender which gives them the same legal and financial
protection as a married couple. It is not a wedding but a civil
matter and unlike a wedding is neither sacramental or requires
consummation. It is therefore falls outside of the work of the Church.
Our members
have been strongly advised that it is not appropriate to be involved
in blessing civil partnerships, either directly or indirectly, and
may take appropriate action against members who choose to ignore this advice.
You say
you are non-denomination, but what denomination are you really?
We really are
non-denominational and will go out to anybody at anytime anywhere
with the Love of God. We don't deal in denominational dogma of any
kind. People matter more than this and our approach is consistent
with scripture.
When Jesus
commanded mankind to 'love God and love your neighbour', there was no
clause that added 'so long as they are Church of England, Roman
Catholic, (or even Christian!), etc'.
It was plain
and simple - love (as defined in 1 Corinthians 13 verses 4 -8) must
be extended to all people regardless of social background, ethnicity,
education, spirituality, status, etc. We don't do 'denominations'.
Can anyone
receive communion?
Anyone who
shows some understanding of what communion is or represents is
welcome to receive communion from any of our members so long as they
receive with good intention and do not hold the body and blood of
Christ in disrespect or contempt. It is not a requirement that those
who receive are confirmed.
The tradition
of the Roman Catholic Church is that re-married divorced people are
forbidden to receive (see CTS Essentials 'Who can receive
communion?') - we believe that this position does not reflect the
grace and forgiveness found within the Love of God and will never
refuse anyone this sacrament.
What about
women priests?
We believe that
God calls whom God calls and it is not for us to stand in His way. We
will support, encourage and assist where we can all those whose
calling to ministry is discerned.
This principle
is held very strongly within the Order.
Applicants who
do not personally support the ordination of women or cannot accept
their ministry will be unlikely to be offered membership of the Order.
What
denominations do
your members come from?
Catholic to
protestant, high church to low church, traditionalists to reformers -
and we all get on. Our concern is in completing the work Christ set
before us with one mind and that is our focus.
Do your
clergy have different ranks and titles like other churches?
Clergy have no
special titles or roles other than the Executive Bishop (Bishop
Michael), who is the head of the Order, and up to two assistant
bishops, of which there is just one (Bishop Ian) at the moment.
There are a
number of people who use the title given to them by their sponsoring
tradition, but these titles carry no weight, or give the right of
special responsibilities, power, authority or jurisdiction within the
Order. Titles are no guarantee of quality of ministry, but in
contrast, good quality ministry speaks for itself, so titles are un-necessary.
There is a
saying in On Call, 'If you need a title to do your job, you are not
doing it properly, but if you are doing your job properly, you will
never need a title.' There are some who make much of their titles but
offer little in return.
As an Order, we
recommend that our members are simply known as Reverend, Pastor,
Father, or Brother or Sister if members come from religious
communities. We also recommend that when our members work under the
'On Call' banner, they do not use the titles given by their
sponsoring traditions as this can cause confusion. As our ministry is
one of service and humility, titles have little function or lasting
value and are therefore unnecessary.
Plain and
simple works best for us.
What kind
of training do your members
receive?
Our members are
made up of clergy from many different denominations and they are
trained by them. We do however expect our members to continue in
their formation and an increasingly large number of training and
learning resources are made available to members, many of which have
been tried and tested by other Christian organizations, communities
and churches from all over the world.
We also try to
provide resources from various agencies to individual members for
specialist areas areas of ministry, for example health care
chaplaincy, counselling, PTSD etc, when requested. Members also
receive training from outside agencies but this is largely done on a
voluntary basis and is specific to their own forms of ministry.
Some of the
members of the Order are highly qualified in their own field of
expertise and do occasionally arrange courses when they feel there is
a need or benefit to other members.
Does the
Order follow a form of 'rule' like the Fransiscans or Benedictines?
Yes we do. The
Order follows 'the
Rule of Simplicity' which can be
found by clicking the highlighted link. It is mostly a rule of
spirituality although it covers some practical matters.
In part, the
Order's rule follows some revised Benedictine practices but the rule
is there to support ministry rather than be its focus.
Does
'On Call' maintain the traditions of the church?
Yes, so long as
those traditions still have meaning and relevence and providing that
they do not cause division amongst people or become of greater
importance than serving God or God's people.
Does
your Order have a professional code of conduct?
Yes we do, and
it runs along side the Order's Rule of Simplicity. When the Order
receives new applications from clergy, they must give assent to the
Principles and Guidelines of the Order, The Rule of Simplicity, the
Order's Child Protection Policy and also the Order's professional
code of conduct. If applicants cannot give their assent to all of
these then their application is rejected.
The Code of
Professional Conduct covers most aspects of the work of a priest and
is very similar to the one used by the Church of England. The code is
found in the Order's Handbook along will all other key documents.
Part has also been published on this web site and covers the
interfacing between members of the Order and those they minister to.
Click here for a link
to the Code of Professional Conduct Summary web page or download it
via the document download links on the 'home page'..
What
happens if any of the Order's members behave unprofessionally?
Any member who
is proved beyond reasonable doubt to bring either the Order or the
faith into disrepute will have their membership terminated without
appeal. We take our vocation and ministry seriously and will respond
firmly and quickly. The reputation of the Order is something to be
protected and honoured by all its members and unprofessional conduct
will not and cannot be tolerated. This includes anything outlined by
the Professional Code of Conduct and also behaviour that reflects
badly on or is contrary to the servant nature of our priesthood.
Although the
Code of Conduct covers much of what is expected of members at a
general level, other aspects of what is and is not considered to be
appropriate professional conduct will be confirmed by the Order's
bishops or may be referred to the Order's Executive Council.
Is there
an official complaints procedure
should any member behave unprofessionally?
Yes there is.
The complaints procedure is outlined on the Order's website and can
be accessed by clicking this link.
The complaints procedure can be activated by any members of the
public (or by other members of the Order) providing any complaint is
submitted in writing unless there are extenuating circumstances, e.g.
protection of identity, issues relating to information given in
priestly confidence, etc.
Do your
members have CRB checks?
All applicants
are required to have CRB checks and members are expected to keep
theirs reasonably up to date.
Those
applicants and members who have, will or may have a ministry amongst
the more vunerable members of society must have a current full CRB
check and from 2010 must additionally be ISA (Independent
Safeguarding Authority) registered.
The only
exception to this applies or will apply to members who are no longer
in active ministry.
I am not
clergy but would like to be part of what the Order is doing. Is there
some way I can belong.
Ministry
Support Team membership is for those who would like to give their
general support to On Call and to the work of the charity. The
application form is simple and straight forward.
I would
like to help with the charity work the Order but
not be involved in the other areas the Order is involved in. Is
there a place for me?
As part of the
Ministry Support Team, you can choose to focus purely on your own
Christian ministry, or simply by raising the profile of the charity
as a speaker and/or raising funds.
There are lots
of different ways the latter can be done, for example by developing
printed materials, putting together short talks for different age
groups, arranging information displays and local fund raising
activities ranging from coffee mornings to direct sponsorship of
children or projects.
You may also be
involved in letting the charity trustees know of local groups who
need financial and/or other support that fall within the charity
objects (the different areas On Call has agreed with the Charity
Commission to work in). You would be directly responsible to the
charity trustees for a specific geographical area and would liaise
with them about your activities.
There is plenty
of scope for those who are willing to be innovative and try new ideas
out - the main requirements are enjoyment of this kind of work,
honesty, enthusiasm, good, creative thinking, good communication
skills and have an interesting and infectious personality.
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