Church: Inside Out? – Pioneer Conversations Day 2019

Within Pioneering and Fresh Expressions questions about church and mission abound. Is this church? When does this become church? Can we have church-free Christianity? Who decides what is church?

The conversation day brings together theologians, writers, practitioners and pioneers to explore these themes and engage in the conversation.

Main Speakers

Stefan Paas – Professor of Missiology at the Theologische Universiteit, Kampen, Netherlands – live stream at 10.30am

Stefan has researched themes of church planting, innovation and missional communities all within the context of a secularized western culture. He is currently working on his next book ‘Pilgrims and priests: Christian mission in a post-Christian culture’ coming out in 2019

Clare Watkins – Reader in Practical Theology and Ecclesiology at the University of Roehampton, London – live stream at 2pm

Clare is a Roman Catholic, lay-woman theologian, committed to teaching and research in the areas of ecclesiology, sacramental and practical theology. She has a particular concern for working in ways that contribute to ministerial formation and church life and mission

Workshops and Panel Discussion

Alongside the main speakers there are workshops exploring themes such as liquid ecclesiology, invisible church, fresh expressions, forming church, the sacraments and more.

Pete Ward – Liquid Ecclesiology

Nigel Rooms – Mission, Ecclesiology and the Sacraments

Christine Dutton – Ecclesiology and Fresh Expressions

Nicky Pybus – Church-free Christianity in practice

Sue Steer – Questions around church, when to have that conversation and what it looks like in both a ‘new town’ context and in an ecumenical context.

Panel discussion: Mission and Church: questions, challenges and opportunities with Stefan Paas, Clare Watkins and Pete Ward (Durham University) – live stream at 3pm