The Methodist Church engaging with Business Industry and Commerce






* Every local setting is different, so not everything will be relevant to your church. Choose what is most important for your mission and agree some practical action. Don't be overwhelmed by what you can't do; be enthusiastic about what you can do!

* Some of the places where you might use this material include:
* house groups exploring links between Church and work
* circuit meetings thinking about mission priorities
* superintendents' meetings reviewing District strategy
* ecumenical Lent Courses looking at a town's needs
* men's breakfasts addressing Spirituality at Work
* Women's Network groups asking about work-life balance
* young adults' groups wondering about career choices.

* Good people to invite along to give the topic a human face might be:
* a local Workplace Chaplain (see list in the Appendix)
* the District Church and Society rep
* a Sector Minister who works in secular employment
* a Christian in business or trade union official
* the connexional Secretary for Business and Economic Affairs

* It might be helpful for each member of your group to have a copy of this booklet. Free copies, and advice on other resources, can be obtained from the Methodist Publishing House (01733 325002 and sales@mph.org.uk) or from the Connexional Team (020 7467 5248 and oppong-asares@methodistchurch.org.uk). The text of the report is also on the Methodist Church website (www.methodist.org.uk).

* The booklet was written by John Ellis, Secretary for Business and Economic Affairs in the Connexional Team. He is grateful to the Methodists and ecumenical colleagues who commented on previous drafts. He is happy to respond to questions or invitations to visit you, to receive your ideas and to help you in any way he can as you implement the Methodist Church's strategy. He would also be very interested to hear how you used this material and what action you decided to take as a result.

Contact him via 020 7467 5297 or

Contact Connexional Secretary

Let Your Light Shine (The Preface)




A Strategy for the Methodist Church's Engagement with Economic Life & Study Guide For Local Churches

What's this all about?

* In the world, money matters. When the Church tries to be a good neighbour to people in need and to challenge injustice it keeps rubbing up against economic questions. Some seem horribly complex. When the Church seeks to increase awareness of God's love it finds people so stressed by their work or the loss of their pension that they cannot see the beautiful vision. When the Church seeks to make more followers of Jesus Christ people raise awkward questions about where are the Kingdom values in the places they know. Letting our light shine into the economic world is part of Our Calling.

* A generation ago Methodism had a model for spearheading this engagement. It is now questioned and those working within it sense a need for fresh thinking.

* This booklet gives the story so far and shows how the Methodist Church plans to shape its economic engagement for the next decade. In welcoming the vision, the Methodist Council asked that it should be shared with the Conference and around the Connexion - and action be taken to turn the vision into reality. So this paper now provides a resource to help people as they grow and learn as Christians.

So what do we do with this?

* While the Methodist Church has endorsed this approach as its official policy, the key question now is how is it implemented locally. The connexional resources described in this paper are to support local mission and most of the important initiatives will be local ones. You are invited to explore what the policy can offer and encourage in your area.

* To help you address the issues, there are five pages spread through the text headed Action Points. Each is clearly marked by a coloured background. These give Bible passages to study, questions to discuss and ideas for taking matters further.

* You may want to read the report all through first and then decide which set of Action Points is most pertinent for you. Each set relates mainly to the immediately preceding part of the report. It may be that you want to work through all five, perhaps at different sessions. In a group situation the leader may want to photocopy Action Points for everyone to see.