Terry Virgo and new forms of church

We’re having a summer break here at Nomad Podcast, so you won’t be getting our usual show with discussions and book reviews. But to keep you busy we’re uploading an interview with Terry Virgo, the leader of the New Frontiers network of churches.

Now, I know what you’re thinking, Terry Virgo and New Frontiers don’t sound much like emerging or Fresh expressions of church (and it is true, off air Terry admitted to not having heard of ‘Fresh Expressions’). But I was recently given a copy of his biography, No Well Worn Paths, and I was struck by how, in the early chapters, he was asking the same sorts of questions we’ve been asking. Having come to faith at the age of 16 he found church to be a ‘foreign culture’, and he craved genuine community without all the religious trappings, and he craved a genuine spiritual experience. This was at the time when the charismatic movement was just starting to form, and through that Terry had a life transforming experience of the Spirit. He immediately developed a passion for prayer and mission. Consequently, he gave up his job in the civil service and moved onto a deprived local housing estate. During this time he lived by faith so he could dedicate all his time to serving. He never once asked for money and never sent out any ‘prayer’ letters, but money arrived as he needed it. He would spend each morning in prayer and Bible study and each afternoon serving on the estate.

He then became the leader of a small local church, and worked hard to bring them into the same experience of the Spirit he had had. This soon developed into a ministry where he began to advice other churches on renewal. And so New Frontiers started to take shape, a network born out of church planting, and the reshaping of existing churches. New Frontiers now has over 500 churches worldwide.

To be honest, I only really enjoyed the first part of the book which described Terry’s early commitment to prayer, mission and the local church (and an interesting overview of the charismatic movement). The book then focused on the development of his global ministry, which I found much less engaging.

Terry started the book by saying there was a need for new wineskins for new wine, that the structures of church needed to change. But as I read on I became a bit disappointed that the only changes the book documented were the introduction of the gifts of the Spirit and more informal services. I started to find myself getting frustrated, hoping he would go on to more fundamentally challenging the way we do church. My frustration grew as his small house churches grew into more highly structured (and in many ways traditionally structured) ‘warehouse’ churches.

But then I guess the changes people like Terry Virgo have brought in I’ve taken for granted. Informality and openness to the Spirit were major victories for him, and many churches have benefitted from that.

So the book challenged me to carry on this journey and try to figure out what sort of wineskins are required for the church in my local context.

Tim