If there is one simple conviction that animates the mission of Venn, it is the confidence that the news of God’s reconciling work through Jesus Christ is good: good not just for how we feel, or how we think, but good for the world through-and-through—for our homes, for our work, for our communities. The renewal of all things has begun, and God is calling women and men to bear witness in all they do and in every context to his resurrection power and purpose. That’s why we carry the Venn name. That’s why we create demanding and integrated learning contexts where leaders can be equipped for service and action across all the walks of life.
But this is where the questions really kick in. What is the engine room of Christian leadership and service in the world? What will shape and sustain our efforts to make a difference? Where does lasting renewal spring from? For the embattled, anxious, post-Covid Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and beyond, these questions are real. Anyone who has worked in a sustained way for gospel-shaped change knows that these are make-or-break matters: hope vs despair, anger’s bitterness vs deepened compassion, condemnation vs forgiveness and reconciliation. So: How shall we follow Jesus over the long haul? How can we let God reshape our work towards lasting fruitfulness? What is the wellspring of Christian action?
Over our years of teaching and resourcing, encouraging and developing, we’ve become convinced that the lasting, faithful change God works through us here and now—in our workplaces, in our communities, in this whenua—springs from lives which God has stepped into, has come to dwell in, has filled with the light of Christ. It is out of this extraordinary reality that everything else must flow. Conditioned by work of the Lord, our work, our activism, our efforts, are not in vain (2 Corinthians 15:58). That’s what animates this edition of Common Ground: the conviction that Christian action finds its wellspring in Christ—looking at Christ, attending to Christ, responding to Christ. Of course we must act. But we no longer do so alone—and that is just the start of the goodness that will follow.
Even so, it might seem counterintuitive that Luke Fenwick’s lead article is about silence and solitude, neither of which seem particularly generative of action. But if, with Luke, we observe that Christian silence and solitude derive from Jesus’s own life, we might consider exactly why these things have proven so important for Christians down through the ages. Luke’s essay has its complement in Ryan Lang’s arresting meditation on Mary of Bethany, “The Fragrance of Christ”. Our artist reflection is by Zoë Mitchell, who takes us into the fruitful overlap in her life of pottery and prayer—also featuring beautiful photographs by Charlotte Ennor. And—because we’re all about holistic learning—John Dennison provides practical guidance around how to, as he puts it, go out of your way to be with God.
We’re honoured to be able to feature an essay by long-time friend of Venn, writer and historian Sarah C. Williams. A specialist in nineteenth and twentieth-century cultural history, Sarah has recently published a new book When Courage Calls, on the Christian reformer Josephine Butler. Her essay gives us a glimpse into this new book, reflecting on just one example of the way in which Butler’s profound, daily relationship with God through prayer animated her political action. Alongside this, our Field Notes interview features conversation with Gina Wong about her community development work in Porirua East focussed on food access and cultivation. To put it like that is to tell just half the story: in truth, this work, which does so much to bring dignity and flourishing to people, has the fingerprints of God all over it—read, and be encouraged.
Friends, always, the Lord is on the move. Let us slow down, and listen, and join in.
Ngā mihi nui,
Dr John Dennison,
Editor, Common Ground.
