Conversation Summary
Extracts from an interview with Deacon Kerry Scarlett, Faith-Rooted Community Organising Officer with the Connexional Social Justice and Social Action Team, provided the stimulus for our conversation. Kerry introduced us to ‘Faith-Rooted Community Organising’ (FRCO), an integral part of the Methodist Church’s ‘Church at the Margins’ strategy, and talked about the links and overlap between FRCO and TC. Following this we had an open conversation.
We acknowledged the need for deep conversations about difficult issues, for instance politics, that avoid confrontation and encourage cooperation, and the ‘Influence Course’ (details elsewhere) was recommended. ‘How do we make change in our world?’, we asked. Through prayer, certainly, but there is pain and loneliness in watching, as we wonder what we can actually do: maybe changing one life at a time is the way. FRCO starts with one-to-one conversations; it’s persistent, patient, long term and about building relationships. We considered the difference between chatter and intentional conversations, and despite valuing the latter, we realise that chatter may lead to something deeper. As people have testified that TC has had an effect on their one-to-one conversations, we are confident that it will be a very useful aspect of FRCO.
Helena
Ed Many thanks Helena, for your summary of the conversation.