Core Leadership Team - June 2024

It was good to have the space and opportunity for the Core Leadership Team and the Trustees to be together at Yarnfield Park in June.  We began our gathering reflecting on Scripture, “Lord, to whom shall we go?  You have the words of eternal life.  We believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.” (John 6:68-69) and praying for each other.
 
There was time set aside for us to reflect together on Tuesday’s additional Baptist Union Council meeting which considered our Financial Model Review. Recognising that the financial challenges that we face are not unique to us, Council were able to discern and agree the broad strategic direction for this project, together with an action plan for implementation.  In the short term we want to ensure stability across Baptists Together and then work towards financial sustainability by 2028.  Given the complexity of our Baptist family, there is much work still to be done on this journey, but CLT and Trustees are committed to working together to implement Council’s decisions.  A Council report is available here which gives more details of the meeting and resolutions agreed. 

A large part of our gathering was dedicated to considering the requests made to CLT and Council as part of the Project Violet Report.  Deep appreciation was expressed for all the co-researchers and the work that they offered as part of this project.  As we listened to one another share about how Project Violet was “landing” in their context, it was clear that attention was being given to this right across Baptist Together.  We also heard and continue to be aware of the pain expressed through the research findings.  We recognised that things are not as they should be if we really want to reflect that both women and men are created in the image of God and called to leadership equally. 

It is important that we name and lament this gap between how things are and the biblical vision of how things should be and there was a deep desire amongst us to see a renewed culture and lasting change in our family.  We also recognised and celebrated that our women ministers enrich our movement in so many ways and that their flourishing leads to flourishing for us all and for the Kingdom. In terms of the requests, CLT identified a lead person and/or a process to respond to each of the requests made of us and Council.  Furthermore, we created a co-ordination group with the aim of ensuring that all 57 requests for change are responded to.  Finally, there was a call to our churches to consider the requests specifically made to them and encourage response. 

Following Council and Assembly we wanted to look forward and identified that Project Violet, Everyone Everywhere and the Financial Model review would be key projects for us to engage with for 2024/25. 

Prayer Crosses
 
Many Assembly delegates signed two wooden crosses over the Baptist Assembly weekend to symbolise our unity in Christ and for our mission. The crosses are a prayer initiative which seeks to place Jesus at the centre of everything we do as Baptists Together and inspire prayer for one another. One of the crosses was present throughout our time and was used to facilitate times of prayer. The crosses will now travel around our Union, and we will be sharing when they are in your association shortly.  
 
Steve Finamore led prayers around emerging leaders from Psalm 145.  At Assembly and in the latest edition of our Together magazine Steve has outlined the twin focus of his theme, urging Baptists to focus on developing younger leaders, and to think afresh about the place of the Bible in our worship and teaching. Steve has said ‘I would like to see us all looking around our congregations and other gatherings and asking ourselves if there are young people we could encourage and mentor and in whom we could sow the possibility of serving God in ministry. I know this won’t be right for all of them, but I can’t help but feel excited about the difference that groups of young ministers might make in our churches. They could be the agents of the kinds of renewal for which many of us are longing’. 

We reflected on the recent Baptist Assembly. We were encouraged not only by the number of people who attended, almost 1,000 over the course of the weekend, but also the positive feedback received from many delegates. 

We considered the various purposes of Assembly and discussed how these might be reflected in future Assemblies. This included the relational aspects of Assembly, allowing for conversation among Baptists and the BUGB CIO’s provision for gathered discernment through Resolutions. Assembly is also an important time for Baptists to gather together to celebrate ministerial and leadership calling, whilst commemorating those who have shaped and impacted the Baptists movement over past years.  

We also recognised that, with rising costs, Assembly has become an expensive undertaking for many. With all this in mind, it was agreed that 2025 Assembly on 16th and 17th May, will be held at Bethel Convention Centre in West Bromwich. It was also suggested that a three-year rolling plan for Assembly be drawn up to ensure wide participation.  
 
We finished our time as we had started – in prayer for each other and our Union.  

Lynn Green
June 2024
The Revd Lynn Green is General Secretary of our Baptist Union

The Core Leadership Team (CLT) is an expression of covenant and interdependence for us as Baptists.  It draws together many of those offering leadership across our Movement (Regional Team Leaders, College Principals, Specialist Team Leaders, our President, Treasurer, General Secretary, the Moderators of Council and the Trustee Board, together with a leader from each of our current priority areas) and its purpose is to perceive what God is doing, to encourage flourishing across Baptists Together and to model together what it means to be a Kingdom Movement. 

Please share these messages with your church