Anglican churches are attempting to be more pro-active in efforts to use more systematic and scientific ways to understand the needs of its congregations. The Diocese of Portsmouth, Church of England, has recently begun a comprehensive audit of the physical, social and spiritual needs of those living in their communities since July.

It is part of the Bishop of Portsmouth’s ‘Kairos’ initiative. ‘Kairos’ is a Biblical word meaning ‘an opportune time’ or ‘God’s moment’, and the bishop’s Kairos process was launched across the whole Anglican diocese in February.

The Bishop of Portsmouth, the Rt Rev Kenneth Stevenson, said, “The Kairos initiative is not a leap in the dark, nor is it just the latest diocesan campaign. The research phase, vital for next year’s planning, is about carefully gathering local information, in order to provide the kind of evidence we need for us to travel together for the next stage in our common life as a pilgrim Church in this diocese.”

The survey will be the largest survey of its kind carried out by the Anglican Church in England. Here is an outline of the methodology:

1) Churchgoers hear about both the problems and opportunities faced by the Church in a 'Kairos roadshow' led by the bishop, which toured the diocese during Lent.
2) Churchgoers study the theology behind the Kairos process in sermons and small groups in their parishes between Easter and July.
3) Churchgoers will work together in clusters of parishes, looking at the results of the 2001 census, local authority data and national statistics, on deprivation to build a social picture of their own community. In addition they may consult governmental departments or experts.
4) Churchgoers examine their own churches’ human, physical and financial resources to see what they can do to help meet the needs of others.

The final conclusion of the initiative is expected to be a formal five-year plan for parishes, which would enable them to serve the social and spiritual needs of their communities more effectively. The draft of the plan will start in January 2005. The final phase will be the implementation of those plans from summer 2005.

The chairman of the Kairos executive group, the Ven Chris Lowson, said, “Of course, many parishes may know a lot about their own communities already, but it is unlikely that many have conducted an audit on this scale. There may be surprises - parishes may discover a section of their community that no Christians are engaging with at all. That’s the kind of information that will be vital for the planning phase.”

This responds to the initiative’s aim to find new models for the Church to minister to those outside its doors and new ways of engaging with the wider community, but not just to increase service attendance.