My father was not a toolmaker. He was a bridge builder – spending most of his working life in one of the many back offices of Sir William Arrol & Co. History buffs will know that the second Tay Bridge, the original and the second Forth Bridges, along with Edinburgh’s North Bridge, are all “Arrol built.” Building bridges takes work. The nature of the barrier to be overcome will impact design, resources required and the schedule of delivery. These challenges apply whatever the shape and size of the bridge required.
It seems that the church today needs good-quality bridge building more than ever as it seeks to connect with local communities and the individuals and families within them. Bridge building is one of the key areas of mission development, and it is my passion. I love connecting with people with a clear purpose in heart and mind, committing to identifying needs, casting vision, pulling together resources, building teams, and working in partnership with others to make new things happen.
I am excited by churches that engage in bridge-building. My role is to support and encourage such initiatives and the creativity, commitment and compassion needed to bring them into being. Within my area, there are a growing number of significant initiatives in the area of hospitality (combatting social isolation and food poverty) and in the areas of dementia support, bereavement care and environmental concern that are making a real practical difference to how our friends, colleagues and neighbours are able to live their lives. In recent weeks, I have attended award ceremonies where projects that I know well have received recognition from their peers for their work. These projects would not be possible without the vision and the hard work of people of faith.
At the same time, I am finding a fresh openness to the presence of faith-inspired activity in local communities. Often, the church has resources (buildings, people, finance, expertise, and passion) not otherwise available. In an increasingly anxious society, the offer of practical hope is a precious thing that is welcomed by many for whom church is not a natural starting point.
However, there is a challenge. In the end, the good news is shared through people, not projects, and no matter how successful a project may be at making connections, if there is no culture of conversational faith sharing within our congregations, there will always be something missing from the bridge-building enterprise. When the question comes (and it will) about the reason for what we do, how many people are able, or even willing, to respond? My passion for successful bridge building will never be fully realised unless the people I know who used to go to church or who have never been to church encounter someone willing to share their story. A story grounded in the integrity, authenticity, humility, hospitality, generosity and community is found in Christ’s transforming love.
This is where I hope our bridges will ultimately take us. For that to be the case, we need to focus more on encouraging and enabling those who sit alongside us on a Sunday to take on the everyday witness that has traditionally been the responsibility of the professional few. This is not just a task for a select few, but a responsibility we all share. And the great news for all of us willing to go on this journey is that we will discover when we get across the bridge, the Holy Spirit has already been active there for quite some time.
Rev Ken Brown, Edinburgh & West Lothian’s Mission Coordinator
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