More on small missional communities...

Our vision

is to facilitate, encourage and enable the growth of a network of small missional communities and projects in the UK.

I have never before felt that I belong to a church but this community has shown me the possibility of a loving God. Being part of a group that learns from each other and grows together has given vitality and strength to my own journey."

How might a network of small missional communities come about?

an ongoing series of conversations around the UK

the conversations began with a gathering of people in January 2009: ‘forming small missional communities of the global Jesus in an emerging world’ - a space for sharing stories, for pooling wisdom and for learning in all directions, facilitated and resourced by a team made up of CMS people led by our missional community developer Ian Adams and co-worker friends
in 2009-2010 Ian Adams is engaging in many conversations with individuals and groups around the UK who are interested in the possibilities of small missional communities - please contact him if you would like to get into conversation

mentoring and guiding

through Ian Adams who has ongoing experience in beginning, leading and facilitating small missional communities, and in mentoring people
there’s a great need for mentoring where people are involved in boundary-crossing work like this
this could include occasional visits, plus regular email, phone and skype

resources

online via the CMS website
developing a variety of mission spirituality resources
CMS Daily Prayer

shared learning

We've set up a Facebook hub called Missional Communities and Projects Hub at CMS where people interested in starting and sustaining project-communities can network and share learning.

What might this look like?

a network of small missional communities

each community-project would have its own character and be shaped for mission by its own setting and by the people in the community
probably started by two or three people with a vision
made of up ‘regular people’ living under their own roofs but trying to live by community principles
being mentored and resourced by CMS to a lesser or greater extent according to need
each community low cost, self-sustaining from day one, and light on its feet

houses of mission and community

a network of houses around the country funded locally and self sustaining
the CMS House of Mission on Iffley Road Oxford is one potential model for houses where people live together as a community
possibly acting in some way as a resource centre for any small missional communities in their area

Why CMS?

CMS has much to offer in terms of our global and historical perspectives on mission around the world, sharing this learning in all directions
CMS is a great resource hub in people, experience, ideas and academic study
our commitment to mission will provide impetus and help small missional communities keep looking outwards into their settings

Some future possibilities

CMS has become a recognised religious community, and it’s possible that some small missional communities might want to explore formal links to the CMS community and see CMS as their place of belonging and accountability.

We can imagine that at the right time this could be something that pattern might be helpful in other settings similar to our own, for example in Northern Europe.

The nature of this network of small missional communities (for example the conversational style, learning in all directions, moulded for mission by their own settings, and shaped by the people in them) means that a further generation of small missional communities will have the flexibility to emerge from and adapt to their own cultures and settings.