Agenda Volume 3 - Methodist Conference

57. The Fruitful Field Project
and distinctive part in the life of our Connexion, and envisage much care being
taken to locate its activity and charisms within our existing patterns of life,
witness and leadership.
113.18 Open: We envisage a hub which can choose to dedicate its resources to initiate
and sustain key partnerships. We envisage a hub which is open to links with
partner denominations and with Partner Churches, at home and overseas. We
envisage a hub which can nurture intentional and mutually-beneficial links with
the Higher Education sector, allowing the Church to listen to and learn from
theologians and academics in the secular sphere, and enabling the Church to
contribute to the discourses of academic theology and professional practice.
We envisage a hub which can help the Church to be a presence in the world,
not least by helping the Church to update its apologetic and to exist in places
where culture is formed.
113.19 Broad: We envisage a hub which has the capacity to engage in activities across
the fields of learning, formation, training, theological education, scholarship,
research and development. We envisage a hub which is comfortable equipping
the discipleship of the Methodist people, and which is comfortable supporting
both lay and ordained ministry. We envisage a hub which, working through the
connexional network of skilled and knowledgeable staff, can have an impact
across the Connexion. We envisage a hub which is representative of the
theological breadth of Methodism. We envisage a hub which can strive to be
representative of the diversity of the Church, and which can engage with the
diversity of the Church, helping us all to belong together.
113.20 Sustainable: We envisage a hub with a sound educational and business model,
set up to succeed for 25-35 years, not 3 or 5. We envisage a hub which, as an
organic unit, can respond in an evolutionary manner to the changing needs of
the Church.
113.21 Excellent: We envisage a hub which is an excellent environment for learning
and formation. We envisage a hub which can offer accessible hospitality to the
Methodist people, and to our partners, colleagues and friends. We envisage
a hub which, through the design and operation of its premises, helps us to
reduce our carbon footprint. We envisage a hub steeped in an ethos of quality
assurance and enhancement, designing, delivering and offering pathways
of the highest quality for the Methodist people. We envisage a hub which
can be a beacon of excellence for the Methodist Church and even for other
denominations and traditions.
Conference Agenda 2012 685