Crosslinks Annual Report for the Annual Meeting of Members (June 2003)

Much of this report has been lifted from the recent magazine mailing which took the form of an annual review. If you have received and read that you will notice quite a few similarities but there are some differences so please read on.

Celebrations and Thankfulness
This past year we have been celebrating the 80th anniversary of the foundation of the Bible Churchmen’s Missionary Society on October 27th 1922. God’s faithfulness over the whole of that period has been very marked and is our chief cause for gratitude. As in all things the amazing thing has been God's grace in spite of human agency. Yes, we have a glorious heritage but it is entirely down to God's merciful intervention and our faithful forbears would hate to take the limelight from the wonderful Lord they served. We gave thanks in a variety of ways and in different places, not least with visits by overseas church leaders (Bishop Francis Ntiruka of Tabora, Tanzania, Bishop Stephen Kewasis of Kitale, Kenya and Bishop Barnabas Theaung Hawi of Sittwe, Myanmar). 

Age Old Truths for the 21st Century
One of the major policy developments that we have been engaged in over the last year has been in the clarification of who Crosslinks is and what we stand for. It was becoming clear that previous assumptions could no longer (if ever they could have been) be taken for granted and that Crosslinks’ traditionally sharply focused position was no longer so obvious to all.

As a result of this we began a process to re-state our original purpose in a way that expresses where we are now. It was exciting to reach an unanimous conclusion (considering the size and variety of the General Council) on the following statement of Crosslinks’ distinctive participation in God’s mission:

  • Crosslinks is an international mission agency with its roots in the Bible and its principal sphere of operations in the worldwide Anglican Communion.

  • Our prime focus is making Christ known through the proclamation and teaching of God’s Word in the power of the Holy Spirit. We are enthusiasts for creative worldwide mission: our slogan is ‘God’s Word to God’s World’.

  • Crosslinks supports workers across cultural and other boundaries. We co-operate with churches and mission and relief agencies, sponsor students and encourage mission links worldwide – all within our prime focus.

There now remains the challenge to communicate this effectively for new generations.

Trends in Engagements
We are still experiencing the phenomenon of a good number of high quality candidates for overseas or other cross-cultural service. Almost without exception they are encouraged to approach Crosslinks because of, amongst other reasons, our Basis and Statement of Faith. Our challenge remains raising enough financial support so that these folk can be properly deployed and their service maximised.
In the last few years we have changed our policy with regard to the financing of mission partners. No longer are we in a position to be able to tell potential mission partners that they can get on with the work to which they have been assigned whilst we take care of raising their support. That was bankrupting us. Now the ultimate responsibility remains with the mission partner whilst we (the Crosslinks staff teams) seek to provide expertise and help in enabling that to happen for them. Of course, with this change comes a new challenge each time a mission partner returns as financial support is not easily passed from one to another.

Where and how are these mission partners being deployed? Many are now in regions of the world where we have not worked before or where we have not recently worked. We are seeking to respond to new challenges: East and South-East Asia, Serbia, France, South Africa, Togo, Malawi, Mozambique, the Canadian Arctic and The Gambia to name some. In addition, in more familiar areas we are being increasingly challenged to consider regions we have not previously considered; Southern Tanzania would be a case in point. It would be wonderful to sensitively place people in these areas that have other Christian traditions. One regular request (regardless of the region) is for training, and that remains the case for our more traditional areas of engagement too. It would be wonderful to have offers for service that allowed the opportunity to respond to what national churches are asking for.

· SMILE Our short-term programme has also seen development too.. There is a degree of autonomy for ventures with Irish churches and exciting growth in the Holiday Clubs and Camps, as well as short-term placements further afield, in teams and as individuals. For SMILErs from mainland Britain we have sought to make placements more clearly in line with our distinctive as well as giving more rigorous selection and training.

· SAMS Much has been achieved in the last year with regard to co-operation with the South American Mission Society. In terms of active engagement in mission we have enabled an interchange of bishops between Africa and South America and are actively seeking to help the needy churches of Angola. We have a probable future study partner from Chile preparing to train in South Africa. Closer to hand there has been joint working in selection and orientation as well as other shared services. Planning is underway for a joint Conference in May 2004.

· BEST We are confident too that our BEST scheme for training national Christians is more organised and systematic than previously. The interview of one Study Partner for our prayer tape (and on the website) gives an exciting glimpse at what this programme can enable.

· Ireland In addition to the exciting developments mentioned above we are carrying out a review of our work in Ireland with the aim of responding better to the current challenges and opportunities presented to us both in the North and in the Republic. The appointment of Mel Lacy as Ireland Team Leader is key to a more co-ordinated response across all of Ireland and better integration within Crosslinks as a whole. We are thrilled at the continuing work of the holiday clubs and camps (as mentioned above) in both the North and South today.

Mainland Britain
Trends in recent years have shown a considerable shift from church-based support in Mainland Britain to support from (and usually for) individuals. We are seeking to address this growing phenomenon of individuals but we feel strongly that we should not neglect the vital personal links that we have with churches. After all we are a church society seeking to serve local churches, whether elsewhere in the world or in Britain and Ireland. This is why we have spent some time this year in refocusing on what we are trying to achieve and assembling or reshuffling the appropriate staff team (the Regional Team) to achieve this. Here are some of the objectives we are hoping to address:

  • The appointment of a team leader to give the team direction, to carry out some of the work of a team member, and to provide a direct link into the Crosslinks Leadership Team.

  • Clarification of the aims of the Regional Team: to increase awareness and knowledge of and enthusiastic participation in world mission by the churches of mainland Britain by supporting Crosslinks. 

  • A reduced job description for the Regional Co-ordinators to allow for a more focused approach.

  • The introduction of elements of team specialisation to help Crosslinks relate to training colleges in a new way and to encourage active participation in mission by young people of all ages.

  • The above specialisations and the different gifts of the staff team will necessitate a less geographical approach; staff members will continue to represent regions in Britain and be the first point of call in them, but they may well have other tasks further afield in accordance with their strengths and gifts.

  • The reduction in size of the full-time staff will put added emphasis on the need to mobilise volunteer support.

  • We aim to provide a more thought-through consultancy service to help local churches develop a world mission strategy.

This as with all changes has not been without some considerable pain. We have seen the departure of three staff members from this team and the recruitment of two new members.

This last point has been part of a wider change this year. With the considerable problem of successive budget deficits we have sought both to increase income and to reduce expenditure, the latter being achieved by sharp reductions in home staff numbers. These changes have been accompanied by a refocusing of staff responsibilities and a few new appointments to enable us to be better oriented to the challenges we face at the beginning of the 21st Century.

Governance
Towards the end of 2002 we asked John Truscott to cast his experienced eye over the way Crosslinks is governed (and that ultimately touches you, the membership!). I hope to give an outline of some of the findings at the Annual Meeting of Members along with what we are currently doing about it. You will have also recently received a lengthy mailing on this. I would reiterate that no significant changes will nor can be undertaken without going through the members. 

These are the changes we are seeing in the membership of the Crosslinks General Council and we are grateful for the faithful service of many volunteers. We are grateful to all but a particular mention must be made for all that Martin Perris, our outgoing Chairman, has given to the Society over many years.

The Challenge
As we were looking at sharpening our focus in 2002 it was striking to review not only God’s faithfulness in the past but the openings that He seems to be providing us with in the present and the future. At the same time there was a clearly observable gap between the opportunities and the resources at the disposal of those opportunities. I am more than ever convinced of the needs for an agency like Crosslinks. It remains to be seen how the Lord will answer our prayers to match opportunities and resources.


We give thanks to God 

  • for the faithful servants of our Lord who have passed into his presence this past year: Eileen Buss (1948-83), Agnes Gurney (1934-1946),Thomas Hargrave (1981-87), Sewa Mehat (1985-2002), Sidney Saker, Mike Tyrrell and Ivy Wankling (1947-52).

  • for mission partners who have finished their periods of service with Crosslinks: Charlie and Anita Cleverly, Simon and Esther Clift, Narindar Mehat, and Nigel and Karen Rooms

  • for General Council members who have served their terms of office: Elisabet Elo, Gill Malcolm, Martin Perris, Pradip Sudra and Francis Wainaina

  • for all those who have finished serving Crosslinks at home: Paulette Douglas, Ester Dyal, Margaret Harding, Liz Jackman, Arun Kumar, John Laurence, Olly Leonard, Pam Mortimer, James Myles, Gerry O’Brien, Valerie Osborne, Bernice Raw, Richard and Liz Rogers, Patsy Sallnow, David Smith and Margaret Sylver. In particular we are thankful for Mary Punt, returning to headquarters as a volunteer, who has organised and watched over the Archives for the past 12 years.

Andy Lines
June 2003

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