Talking about God in Practice : Theological Action Research and Practical Theology 9780334046936, 9780334043638

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Talking about God in Practice

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Talking about God in Practice Theological Action Research and Practical Theology Helen Cameron, Deborah Bhatti, Catherine Duce, James Sweeney, Clare Watkins

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© The Authors 2010 Published in 2010 by SCM Press Editorial office 13–17 Long Lane, London, ec1a 9pn, UK SCM Press is an imprint of Hymns Ancient and Modern Ltd (a registered charity) 13a Hellesdon Park Road, Norwich, Norfolk, nr6 5dr www.scm-canterburypress.co.uk

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher, SCM Press. The Authors have asserted their right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988, to be identified as the Authors of this Work

British Library Cataloguing in Publication data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

978-0-334-04363-8

Originated by The Manila Typesetting Company Printed and bound by CPI William Clowes, Beccles, Suffolk

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Contents

List of Appendices

vii

List of Figures

vii

Introduction

1

Part 1 The Problem and Emerging Responses

5

  1

The Problem of Talking about God



in Practice

  2

Practical Theology as a Response

18

  3

Action Research as a Response

34

7

Part 2 A Fresh Response   4

47

Characteristics of Theological Action Research

49

Part 3 Theological Action Research: The Process Explained

61

  5

What Is Theological Action Research?

63

  6

Who Do We Need to Be to Do Theological

  7

Action Research?

70

Setting up Theological Action Research

83



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  8

Doing Theological Action Research

  9

Reflection Leading to Renewed Practice and Theology

92 102

Part 4 Worked Examples of Theological Action Research

109

  10 Theological Action Research in a Parish

111

  11 Theological Action Research in a Diocese

121

  12 Theological Action Research with a Faith-Based Agency

130

Part 5 Theological Action Research: An Initial Evaluation

139

  13 Evaluating Theological Action Research: Learning Points in Theology and Method

141

Conclusions

154

Appendices

156

Bibliography

180

Index

184

vi

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List of Appendices

  1   2   3   4   5   6   7   8   9 10 11 12

Grid of ARCS Research Projects Agendas for Warm-Up Meetings Set-Up Questionnaire Example of Remit Document Flow Chart for One Cycle of Theological Action Research Example of Information Sheet Example of Consent Form Example of Evaluation Questionnaire Example of Interview Schedule Example of Focus Group Schedule Guide to Reading Data Agenda for Joint Reflection Meetings

156 160 161 163 166 168 171 172 174 176 178 179

List of Figures 4.1 4.2

The Action–Reflection Cycle The Four Voices of Theology

50 54

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Introduction

This book is the product of four years of research in which the authors worked as a team to develop a fresh approach to practical theology. The term ‘team’ is not used lightly in that we are unable to say which of us should be credited with any particular part of what we have developed. The way in which the book is written reflects our different voices but we have designed the book together and commented on each other’s writing. As is our convention in our publications, we list our names alphabetically except for the first named author, who has undertaken the final editorial work. The research was motivated by a desire to find more faithful ways of relating theology and practice, ways that did justice to the whole discipline of theology and to the complexity of practice. We were also quick to realize the benefits of working ecumenically, in this case a project based at a Roman Catholic college joined by a Church of England research centre. While the research took place at a time of turbulent relationships between the two churches, at the level of practice in diocese and parish this collaboration was welcomed and found to be enriching.

The relationship between the book and the ARCS project This is the first book-length treatment of the ARCS project. Action Research: Church and Society was initiated by the Pastoral and Social Studies Department of Heythrop College, University of London in 2006. One year in, the project became a collaboration with the Oxford Centre for Ecclesiology and Practical Theology 

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introduction at Ripon College Cuddesdon, a Church of England Theological College. This broadened the range of the organizations the project worked with and enabled comparative perspectives to emerge. The ARCS project had as its focus the ad extra or outward looking work of dioceses, parishes and faith-based agencies, mainly working in London. This book reports two of the main outcomes of the project so far. First, a methodology called theological action research, and second, a model for theological reflection, called the four voices of theology. A comprehensive report of the ARCS project in the form of a monograph is also planned.

The purpose of the book This book aims to share Theological Action Research (TAR) as a methodology and the four voices of theology as a model for theological reflection in sufficient detail for others to try them out and develop them further. This book has been written before the monograph in response to requests from students and others wanting to make use of our approach.

The intended readership The book is written for a number of audiences: • •

•

for students and academics undertaking research in practical theology, who wish to explore our approach for those studying and teaching practical theology who wish to understand some of the practical challenges involved in theological reflection for practitioners who might find TAR helpful, such as those in dioceses, parishes and faith-based agencies.

The structure of the book The book is divided into five parts each with a particular purpose. 

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introductio n Part 1 examines the problem that confronts so much research in practical theology, that of talking about God in practice. Chap­ ter 1 sets out the problem as we understand it. Chapters 2 and 3 describe two emerging responses to the problem: Practical Theology and Action Research. Part 2 is a single chapter, Chapter 4, which contains an initial statement of the characteristics of TAR and the four-voices model of theological reflection. Part 3 is a step-by-step guide to undertaking TAR. It starts with a brief overview in Chapter 5 and a description of the team approach that TAR requires in Chapter 6. Chapters 7, 8 and 9 describe the research process. You will find that Part 3 will guide you through the appendices, which offer working documents that assist with TAR and provide examples of research instruments. Part 4 offers three worked examples drawn from the ARCS pro­ ject. They come from different stages of the project as the methodo­ logy evolved and so each chapter concludes with some lessons we learned, which were used to refine TAR. These examples are partial accounts of the work done giving an illustration of the methodology and its outcomes rather than a full description of the research. Part 5 offers an initial evaluation of TAR. The approach is still under development and so our claims are tentative. We end with an invitation to develop the methodology further.

How to use the book This book has been designed to set out a problem, make some proposals, describe how a fresh proposal, TAR, can be enacted, offer worked examples and then evaluate TAR as a response to the original problem. We accept that there may be those looking for a quicker route. For those wishing to use this book as a guide to undertaking TAR, we suggest you start with Chapters 4 and 5, then skip to one of the worked examples in Part 4 and then work your way through Part 3. For those wanting to understand the academic claims we are making about TAR as an approach to Practical Theology, we invite 

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introduction you to read Parts 1, 2 and 5 before looking at the guidance and examples in Parts 3 and 4. Appendix 1 gives an overview of the groups we have worked with and the issues tackled.

And finally . . . Most of our ARCS team meetings have taken place in either the board room at Heythrop College or the Seminar Room at Ripon College Cuddesdon. A photo would expose our working method. A large table covered in papers, laptops, cups of tea, coffee and juice and the food which is so essential to brain function. At one end of the room a white board, with lists and diagrams. A tape recorder to capture the vigorous conversation which is possible when the common aim of developing faithful practice is present. What can’t be so easily captured are the epiphanies, the moments of recognition, the struggles for right discernment which we have received as a gracious gift. But this is only half the story; most of the work of the project has been done by our partners in their contexts whether alone or in dialogue with us. These conversations have been just as lively, with laughter often signalling a fresh epiphany. We hope you will read this book as an invitation to join the conversation.



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part 1

The Problem and Emerging Responses

Part 1 of the book explores a key problem in researching Christian practice and offers two emerging responses to this problem. Chapter 1 explores the problem of talking about God in practice. It examines the way in which talk about God has moved to the margins of contemporary culture and the difficulty of using theology to explore Christian practice. In Chapter 2 the response of practical theology is described as a response to practice from within the discipline of theology. In Chapter 3 the response of action research to the problems of researching practice from within the social sciences is described. These chapters aim to give a summary overview and prepare the way for Part 2, in which Theological Action Research is proposed as a fresh response to the problem.



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1 The Problem of Talking about God in Practice

The rule ‘no politics or religion’ is sometimes needed to keep conversation civil. People have different reactions to religious talk. Some wax eloquent. Others are embarrassed, or irritated. Even in religious circles, words and their tone can be crucial. A parishioner watching a DVD presentation approved, because: they’ve got it down to the nitty-gritty of ordinary everyday life. Not too pious, holy pie in the sky, just quietly living ordinary lives. This is the kind of God talk that connects with experience – but theology seems to be something different. In the minds of many, ‘theological’ is synonymous with ‘irrelevant’, dissociated from human experience and cut off from the everyday business of living. ‘We don’t do God’ has been a common saying ever since Alastair Campbell used it to prevent Tony Blair being questioned about his faith. The surprise is how many of those who ‘don’t do God’ today are actually believers. Some feel prevented from being upfront because of their job or position, as Prime Minister Blair was. But even in some religious bodies, faith convictions are kept in deep cover. Looking for public funding for a church social pro­ ject, for example, is often a pragmatic reason for not advertising   Examples are taken from the ARCS research report, Bhatti et al. (2008), Living Church in the Global City: Theology in Practice, London: Heythrop College, University of London & Ripon College Cuddesdon. In this case CaFE research conducted in a London parish. See Appendix 1 for details of participating organizations.



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the problem and emerging r e s p o n s e s faith, lest it be seen as proselytizing. But it is the strong reaction to public declarations – from hostility to blank incomprehension – that more than anything inhibits any mention of God in polite company. Religion has become a new taboo. The taboo takes a mutant form within the Church. For example, during research interviews, parishioners in a Church of England parish were frank about their discourse not being very explicitly theological – they ‘didn’t do Jesus’. As one person put it: The only expectation I think [this parish] places on people is to be present in a church and to celebrate God as you understand him.  The conclusion, nevertheless, was: ‘It’s so non-expectational that it’s magnetic!’ Too much religion might, apparently, be counterproductive! Again, volunteers at a churches’ cold weather shelter project found God talk problematic: I think these are very profoundly difficult questions about evan­ gelism, and some people feel very evangelistic . . . But that doesn’t strike me as the flavour of this particular project, and no one has ever mentioned to me the idea of pushing a more evangelistic agenda on to it. I think it would change it. But, they were in for a surprise at how their ‘guests’ spoke. One guest commented: I am finding it interesting that despite the difference of the churches here, actually they’re coming together as a body, as it should be, in the Body of Christ and actually working together and establishing some sort of unity and strength in unity together to help the outside.   St Mary’s Church of England parish, Battersea.   Housing Justice, Churches Cold Weather Shelter project.   Housing Justice, Churches Cold Weather Shelter project.



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the problem of talkin g a b o u t g o d The volunteers had to admit: ‘They were a lot more religious than [we] thought . . . they are very conscious of being in a church, much more than we are.’ One person’s excess of religion is just what someone else needs!

Theology in today’s culture The cultural prejudice today is more resistant to religion than to faith or ‘spirituality’. What meets with suspicion are the structured forms of faith, faith with a hard edge. This includes theology. Theology has an image problem. It was never easily accessible to the non-theologian given the highly speculative form it took in recent centuries. And now the word has acquired authoritarian overtones. ‘Theology’ is bracketed with ‘theocracy’ and seen as a throwback to medieval times. To brand a discussion point ‘theological’ is to accuse it of obscurity, delving into trivia, avoiding the real matter in hand. Our scientific and secular culture is not only non-theological, it has turned anti-theological – theology being bracketed with ‘religion’. It is also the case that the analytical discourse of theology can be off-putting to the enthusiastic believer. Its measured approach does not always resonate with the people in the pews. Even the clergy can have a jaundiced view. The preoccupations of committed church people – about, for example, spirituality and/or social justice – come in their own characteristic modes. In spirituality, the mode is ‘expressive’ rather than analytical. Social justice agencies rely on the socio-economic disciplines rather than the theological. Parents, teachers and clergy fret about the irreligion of the young, and look for effective ways of handing on the gospel truth. Critical theological enquiry might not serve their purpose. And bishops, who have to defend Christian positions in a hostile culture, are not always patient with theological speculation. But theology has actually been driven, especially over the last half century, by the sense that the well tried practices of the past no longer embody faith and mission effectively. The reason, in a word, is secularization. Our culture has shed much of its 

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the problem and emerging r e s p o n s e s previously presumed Christian idiom, and we are now constrained to find new ways to portray Christianity. We think about things differently because material and social conditions have changed. As people of faith struggle with the dilemmas of social change, the pervasive doubts about religion can feed into their selfperception. Faith-based organizations – schools and colleges, health care facilities, social action projects, voluntary organizations – find their identities being subtly remoulded by the pervasive organizational culture. As they (mostly rightly) adopt today’s professional standards and bureaucratic practices they can also drift into today’s secular world view. A similar thing strikes at the heart of the Church, among parish congregations, diocesan agencies and grassroots movements. They can readily – and too easily – identify with that strange blend of community values and individualistic values that is characteristically post-modern. And theology can capitulate just as easily. It can give up on any claim for the truth of faith, and rest content with being simply expressive, a mere paraphrase of human-spiritual experience. The ARCS research with church groups and agencies noted all these complex cultural dynamics. The research team was intrigued when one organization described its use of Theological Ac­ tion Research as ‘outsourcing our theology’! Needless to say, the ARCS effort then was ‘to send the theology home’. A number of the agencies we worked with were effective in enculturating the gospel into contemporary cultural modes. But with this went the challenge to present the gospel in all its fullness including the elements which are seen as radical in the current context.

The social conditions of belief  These examples show the complex situation that faith communities face today. They are constrained by society’s changing culture to find new ways of undertaking their mission. But the new   S. Bevans (2002), Models of Contextual Theology, Maryknoll NY: Orbis Books.   The phrase is taken from C. Taylor (2007), A Secular Age, Cambridge MA: Harvard University Press.

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the problem of talkin g a b o u t g o d practices they adopt will inevitably be both a response to cultural change and, in some measure, an absorbing of that culture. (The traditionalist rejection of change is not immune; the refusal of change is itself a new practice.) Vincent Miller goes further and points out the capacity of today’s pervasive consumerism to swallow religious practices and symbol systems whole. Consumerism deals in more than material goods; cultural and symbolic artefacts too are highly valued ‘goods’. To avoid a consumer-driven takeover of their religious resources faith communities have to guard them carefully. More to the point, since the consumerist ‘enemy’ is within, faith communities need to become more highly self-reflexive – which does not always sit easily with religious practice – and more thoroughly self-critical. The divergence of the culture from the gospel was called ‘the drama of our times’ by Pope Paul VI in the 1970s. The continuing puzzle for Christians was voiced by Cardinal Cormac MurphyO’Connor in a lecture he gave on his retirement: Fifty years ago I think most of the values that the Church wanted to uphold were also those that society itself would have agreed with. I am in no doubt that many still recognize and admire the Church’s social and charitable work. But for others the Church and indeed Christian life seems to be out of step with ‘the spirit of the times’. There has been a subtle but deep change in the way the Catholic Church has been perceived by contemporary culture. It is not that it meets with indifference or even hostility – although that is certainly noticeable – rather it is heard with a certain incomprehension. This incomprehension is attributed by some theologians to a fundamental shift that has taken place quite recently, a historical ‘interruption’ in the unfolding of the Christian mission. According   V. J. Miller (2003), Consuming Religion: Christian Faith and Practice in a Consumer Culture, London: Continuum.   Paul VI (1975), Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi, London: Catholic Truth Society, n. 20.   Text at www.caseresources.org/latestnews/The_shape_of_the_Church.htm.

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the problem and emerging r e s p o n s e s to Lieven Boeve,10 modern (Western) society has lost touch with its deep traditions, its taken-for-granted values and customary practices (the work ethic, neighbourliness, marriage, family life, child-rearing, etc.). These traditional ways were born of the religious world view of previous ages, and they embodied a convergence of the Christian faith and the life of humanity (and this held even in the face, in recent centuries, of sceptical Enlightenment philosophies). Over nearly two millennia, ever since its social establishment by Constantine, Christianity was able to assume its own historical credibility. By virtue of its deep involvement with the philosophies of the times Christian faith (and theology) was manifestly a real engagement with the world and society. But today, ‘de-traditionalization’, the rejection of established standards and practices, the establishment of new experimental lifestyles and the cultural move against religion have radically disrupted all that. The continuity between the concerns of faith and the life of humanity is no longer self-evident. It cannot be assumed. That continuity is apparent now only to those who adhere personally to the Christian world view, from within the specificity and now narrowed reach, of faith. God talk, then, is no longer so straightforward – at least in the public world, outside the ‘household of faith’. And when our talk about God – our theology – loses social traction, mission too falls into crisis. Charles Taylor, in his wide-ranging analysis of the Secular Age, describes the point we have reached as the difference between the state of affairs (around 1500) where ‘it is virtually impossible not to believe in God’ and another (2000) ‘in which faith, even for the staunchest believer, is one human possibility among others’.11 He acknowledges that unbelief is the default position of many, perhaps most, in the secular age – although it is not an unreservedly secular age. Belief and unbelief are both viable. And they do not stand free of each other; they are, to a large degree, co-dependent. This can set up a dynamic between them 10  Lieven Boeve (2007), God Interrupts History: Theology in a Time of Upheaval, London: Continuum. 11  Taylor, A Secular Age, p. 3.

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the problem of talkin g a b o u t g o d of mutual threat. The religious feel vulnerable before secularism; secularists are threatened by the continuing hold of faith.

Theological speech in practice Rescuing the practices of faith from the clutches of the cultural forces that would keep faith under cover is one of the purposes of this book. The case for this has to be made amid the rancour stirred up by religious fundamentalists on the one hand and ‘new atheists’ on the other. Rather than getting trapped in that battle, we put forward the approach of ‘practical theology’. Its central task it is to propose anew the deep connectedness of the Christian theological tradition and human experience. Practical theology is theology in active mode, grappling with the contemporary culture. It does not pretend to rise above culture but recognizes that it is deeply implicated in it – just as, on the level of practice, worshipping communities and professionalized faith-based organizations are implicated in the culture and faith context in which they operate. John McDade calls theology ‘the sphere of “proper speech” about God’. It is an enterprise which happens ‘in the middle of human history and experience’.12 Besides the ‘proper’ philosophical ways of talking about God there are equally ‘proper’ practical ways.13 Practical theology’s focal interest is not directly in the philosophical but in the ‘performative speech acts’ of faith practice. The contextual sketch given above (what Taylor calls ‘the social conditions of belief’) can be thought of as the stage on which these ‘speech acts’ are delivered. But crucially here, the context is involved in the performance. Practical theology is always an interactive performance. As with all performances, the appropriate mode of expression is critical. The research method we outline stresses the close link, 12  John McDade (1991), ‘Catholic Theology in the Post-Conciliar Period’, in A. Hastings (ed.), Modern Catholicism, London: SPCK, pp. 423–4. 13  See H.-J. Gagey (2010), ‘Pastoral Theology as a Theological Project’, in J. Sweeney, G. Simmonds and D. Lonsdale (eds), Keeping Faith in Practice: Aspects of Catholic Pastoral Theology, London: SCM Press, pp. 80–98.

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the problem and emerging r e s p o n s e s and the overlap in theology, between speech acts and performed practice. The goal is to enhance the faith community’s theological capacity. This means both expanding its theological ‘vocabulary’ and developing faithful mission. These belong together. Words without performative actions are hollow; actions without the words that convey purpose are empty. But words and action do not simply exist side by side; they co-inhere. Theology has many facets. The point to make here is that theology is not external to faith or superimposed on it. The faithcarrying words and actions of believers embody an ‘operant’ theology.14 Action research aims to increase faith practitioners’ capacity for theological functioning – just as the psychiatrist or counsellor will help a client attain a new psychological vocabulary for the sake of insightful self-knowledge. This is not an attempt to make the ‘ordinary believer’ into a theological specialist, any more than the client is being trained as a psychologist. What is involved is the development of practical skills: theological fluency, the ability to function effectively within the world view of faith, and crucially – the capacity to speak as well as to think theologically. Some competence in theory and a knowledge of doctrine is also necessary, of course, but on its own that would not be sufficient for living in faith among the cross currents of today’s culture. Theological fluency is an art, and like all art it seeks to capture a reality greater than any individual performance. A vision of the world and human life seen through the lens of a religious or spiritual tradition is something that is captured in the imagination. The crucial moment in action research is the moment of insight on precisely this point, when vision dawns and the capacity of theology to disclose meaning and purpose becomes apparent. As long as theology remains only words, or discipleship is only action, the dynamic of Theological Action Research is not under way. In the ARCS project, the crucial significance of these ‘light bulb moments’, the dawning of theological awareness in the midst of 14  This dimension of theology is explored somewhat differently by Jeff Astley (2002) as Ordinary Theology, Aldershot: Ashgate.

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the problem of talkin g a b o u t g o d practice, was apparent. The case reported above of the cold weather shelter volunteers who were able to recognize their guests’ appreciation of religion is one instance. Another striking witness was the parishioner puzzled by some unfamiliar theology: Going there (to a day of prayer) I felt – and I found out that I wasn’t the only one, there were four of us – ‘What’s “stewardship”? I don’t know what stewardship is.’ And I kept reading over the letter and he had put an enclosure in there and still it never made any sense to me. And I thought: ‘Well I don’t know what stewardship is – got no idea.’ . . . Went to the day of reflection; but coming home . . . everyone felt the same. The day was so thrilling . . . it felt like a weight had been lifted from my shoulders. And I was walking around just grinning like a Cheshire cat. And everything in life did not seem to matter – all those little worries that you have about what you are going to wear, how you are going to do this – it didn’t matter; it would all fall into place; don’t worry about it. The point that got through in this ‘road to Damascus’ experience was that: I had completely misunderstood [stewardship’s] meaning and importance . . . I thought it was based on the need for the laity to become more involved in parish life due to lack of priests and the likelihood of fewer priests in the future . . . [but] stewardship is recognizing that everything comes from God and everything is a gift.15 Here we get a glimpse of the electric sense of excitement that grows as genuine theological insight dawns. The ‘cultured despisers of religion’ don’t have it all their own way!16 The experience that ‘a weight had been lifted from my shoulders’ gives voice to 15  Portsmouth Diocese Stewardship process. 16  The phrase is Schleiermacher’s (1799, 1958), On Religion: Speeches to its Cultured Despisers, New York: Harper & Row.

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the problem and emerging r e s p o n s e s the more general feeling of exhilaration that comes from making a breakthrough to faith in a monochrome secularist culture.

Conclusion This chapter has introduced the difficulties of talking about God as practitioners in contemporary culture. It has started to make the case for theological action research, a case that will be developed in the remainder of Part 1 and Part 2. The step-by-step procedures for undertaking Theological Action Research will be described in Part 3, with worked examples in Part 4. As will become apparent, each group and agency embarking on this path needs to establish its own specific and concrete agenda. The theological envisioning of our lives and world comes in glimpses and is never fully grasped. It cannot be programmed, but neither does it emerge without effort and determination. Important as the moment of vision may be, this is not visionary dreaming! The chapter has situated Theological Action Research in the wider context of faith and culture today, and stressed that these interact in a co-dependent kind of way. This puts a specific challenge to theology if it is to maintain its integrity. It has to guard against simply capitulating to the culture, and has to interact actively with it. This is also the challenge at the level of practice. The aims can be stated rather bluntly: • • •

For faith-based organizations or church social action agencies, it is a matter of ‘putting the “F” back into the FBO’. For the church community or worshipping group, it is ‘putting religious doctrine back into the religious experience’. For theology, it is, as David Tracy (noting the risk of a merely empirical approach) puts it, ‘actually to do systematic theology’.17

17  D. Tracy (1975), Blessed Rage for Order: The New Pluralism in Theology, Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press, p. 238.

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the problem of talkin g a b o u t g o d Practical theology’s task is to make practice more theological – and in that way it makes theology more practical. This is not a matter of being ‘only’ practical, or without theoretical interest. Theological Action Research seeks a transformation of practice which includes new insight, new theological insight not just generic insights into the theory of practice. The authority such empirically grounded insights can claim is closely related to the nature of Christian truth. This is much more than a quality of conceptual knowledge. Ultimately, theological truth-claims rest on Christ’s claim ‘I am the Way, the Truth and the Life’ – truth embodied in a Person. This is truth to be grasped through the practice of the Christian life. It is this quality of truth that Theological Action Research seeks to articulate.

Further reading Gallagher, M. P., revised edition, 2003, Clashing Symbols: An Introduction to Faith and Culture, London: Darton, Longman & Todd. Williams, R., 2000, On Christian Theology, Edinburgh: T&T Clark. Sweeney, J., G. Simmonds and D. Lonsdale (eds), 2010, Keeping Faith in Practice: Aspects of Catholic Pastoral Theology, London: SCM Press.

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2 Practical Theology as a Response

We have seen how there appears to be a separation of theology and practice in the life and work of many Christian people today. At the heart of such separation lies the difficulty of integrating theology and practice in an authentic unity of living faith. This difficulty has received much attention in recent years. Outstanding among the responses to this problem are those approaches that can be held together under the heading ‘practical theology’. In practical theology we see an emerging discipline that seeks to tackle directly the difficulties raised in our first chapter. This chapter will take a closer look at four themes within contemporary practical theology, so as to locate this book, and to highlight persistent questions to which it seeks to respond. The chapter starts with an overview and then an introduction to Roman Catholic and Protestant perspectives in practical theology.

A brief overview of practical theology Practical theology as a recognized discipline is a relatively recent phenomenon. However, it can also be seen as a field with its own history which goes back many generations. For many practical theologians, Friedrich Schleiermacher (1768–1834) is seen as ‘the father of practical theology’, although interpretations of his contribution vary. This post-Enlightenment and post-Reformation   For example compare the slightly different readings of Emmanuel Lartey, ‘Practical Theology as a Theological Form’ (pp. 128–34) and Alistair Campbell, ‘The Nature of Practical Theology’ (pp. 78–88), both in J. Woodward and S. Pattison (eds) (2000), The Blackwell Reader in Pastoral and Practical Theology, Oxford: Blackwell.

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practical theology a s a r e s p o n s e provenance does raise some questions; presumably the Christian community has, in some sense, never been without ‘practical theology’. However, it does allow for a narration of practical theology in terms of its modern development through a focus on ministerial training, into its significant interdisciplinary relationship with psychotherapy and counselling, into the contemporary concerns with Christian community and the transformation of society toward peace and justice. This is a story which can usefully be understood as a shift from the therapeutic to the hermeneutic. Increasingly practical theologians are recognizing that theirs is a discipline with a more ancient heritage. Elaine Graham, Heather Walton and Frances Ward offer an historiography which begins with the very first Christian communities, whose theological– practical care for one another and for God’s world is increasingly fragmented through the specializations and institutionalizations of medieval and Reformation Christianity. Such an approach leads to the recognition that practical theology ‘is not a novel or exceptional activity. Rather, it has constituted Christian “talk about God” since the very beginning’. Historical studies of pastoral care, as well as the influential works, in the USA especially, of Thomas Oden, Edward Farley and Ellen Charry, have developed further the sense of practical theology as the proper heir to a long Christian heritage. Practical theology is emerging out of a period of self-understanding as a ‘new’ theological sub-discipline,   E. L. Graham, H. Walton et al. (2005), Theological Reflection: Methods, London: SCM Press, pp. 2–3.   Graham et al., Theological Reflection, pp. 2–3.   Graham et al., Theological Reflection, p. 1.   Notably G. R. Evans (ed.) (2000), A History of Pastoral Care, London: Cassell; and P. Lynch (2005), The Church’s Story: A History of Pastoral Care and Vision, London: St Paul’s.   T. C. Oden (1984), Care of Souls in the Classic Tradition, Philadelphia: Fortress Press.   Of Farley’s many works see especially his influential E. Farley (1983), Theologia: The Fragmentation and Unity of Theological Education, Philadelphia: Fortress Press.   E. Charry (ed.) (2000), Inquiring After God: Classic and Contemporary Readings, Oxford: Blackwell.

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the problem and emerging r e s p o n s e s which has to carve its own niche within established theology faculties, and is moving to a more mature reflection on its own integrity within the Christian theological tradition as a whole. In the various attempts to tell the story of practical theology we can see a tension characteristic of the field: the need to develop as a fresh, critical voice in contemporary theology is held together with an instinct that practical theology is, in any case, properly theology, and stands in continuous tradition with the great theologian-pastors of Christian history. This tension between the contemporary and the traditional has shaped much of practical theology today. This ‘holding of tensions’ can be illustrated by referring to the list of 14 ‘essential characteristics’ of practical theology drawn up by Stephen Pattison and James Woodward. In particular, they write: Proceeding by way of a kind of critical conversation, many contemporary practical theologies hold in creative tension a number of polarities such as • • • • • • • •

theory and practice the religious tradition emanating from the past and contemporary religious experience particular situational realities and general theoretical principles what is (reality) and what might be (ideal) description (what is) and prescription (what ought to be) written texts and other ‘texts’ of present experience theology and other disciplines the religious community and society outside the religious community.

Practical theology is a discipline committed to making whole and dynamic the truthfulness of Christian thought and action, through the bringing together of aspects of faith which, in truth,   Woodward and Pattison, Blackwell Reader, pp. 15–16. For the full list of 14 characteristics see pp. 13–16.

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practical theology a s a r e s p o n s e can never be separated from one another. Practical theology seeks in explicit and varied ways to enable the Christian practitioner to articulate faith – to speak of God, in practice. This is the context out of which this book is written.

Catholic and Protestant: different perspectives in practical theology? A preliminary word needs to be said about the tendency, in the English-speaking world at least, for practical theology to be dominated by a broadly Protestant perspective.10 In part, this is due to the distinct development and heritages of Protestant and Catholic theological traditions. So, while practical theology as a named sub-discipline has been less prevalent in British Catholic theology, pastoral theological approaches can be seen in the work of Catholic moral theology, liturgy and ecclesiology, where we find themes and methods which have much in common with the concerns of practical theology. In addition, just as much practical theology within Protestantism arose from and is being developed through ministerial training and practice, the strong Catholic tradition of theology in formation for priestly ministry and religious community has enabled a contemporary practice of theology within distinctly confessional ecclesial and pastoral contexts. The articulation of a distinctive and explicit Catholic contribution to practical theology is still emerging.11 However, certain characteristically Catholic approaches may be tentatively identified. A tradition of ‘natural theology’, and of a long interdiscip­ linary relationship with philosophy, enables Catholic practical theologians to bring to the field insights concerning the vexed questions of interdisciplinarity and culture.12 An ecclesiological 10  As recognized by Woodward and Pattison, Blackwell Reader, p. xiii. 11  An important recent collection of essays from Catholic contributors to the field can be found in J. Sweeney, G. Simmonds and D. Lonsdale (eds) (2010), Keeping Faith in Practice: Aspects of Catholic Pastoral Theology, London: SCM Press. 12  Particularly important here is the work of Stephen Bevans. S. Bevans (2002), Models of Contextual Theology, Maryknoll NY: Orbis.

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the problem and emerging r e s p o n s e s emphasis on visible, organic and structural aspects of Church has, especially in the wake of the Second Vatican Council, brought about a strong theological-practical sense of ecclesiology, worked through in various ways by some outstanding thinkers.13 The liturgical and sacramental strands in Catholic thought are also emerging as places of significance for practical theologies, as we shall see in the present work. In all these areas something of what Stephen Bevans14 describes as the ‘Catholic Method’ can be discerned: the significance of analogy, with its sense of connection, of ‘similarity-in-difference’; a pervasive theology of grace and sacrament/ality; an instinctive realism and pragmatism; a profound sense of Church, community and belonging.15 The ecumenical make-up of the present volume’s authorship means that insights from both Protestant and Catholic emphases have been important in the development of the book’s approach.

Consistent themes I: ‘Practice’ in practical theology ‘Pastoral and practical theology are concerned with practice.’16 This apparently simple comment opens up some of the most challenging questions for the practical theologian. For the call to be ‘concerned with practice’ not only suggests an almost infinitely large sphere of legitimate research; it also raises highly complex methodological and epistemological questions about the nature of human practices, and what it might mean to see them as sources of knowledge. Practical theology helps us to see more clearly here that the problem of speaking about God in 13  For example, H. Küng (1968, 1992), The Church, Tunbridge Wells: Burns & Oates, and E. Schillebeeckx (1990), Church: The Human Story of God, London: SCM Press; and, more recently, R. Haight (2004), Christian Community in History, 3 vols, New York and London: Continuum. 14  S. Bevans (2009), An Introduction to Theology in Global Perspective, Maryknoll NY: Orbis, ch. 9. 15  One might also usefully refer to Richard McBrien’s ‘principles of Catholicism’ in his 1994 Catholicism, London: Geoffrey Chapman, pp. 8–16. See also the characteristic of linking pastoral theology to the great themes of systematic theology, evidenced in Sweeney et al., Keeping Faith in Practice. 16  Woodward and Pattison, Blackwell Reader, p. 6.

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practical theology a s a r e s p o n s e practice is not a simple problem of speaking of God, but also a question made properly complex by the nature of practice as the place of speaking. So, one of the immediate questions for the practical theologian is, what, and whose, practice is it concerned with. As Pattison and Woodward comment: ‘Any issue that is of practical contemporary human and religious concern may become the focus for practical theological considerations.’17 This immediately makes of the practical theologian one who makes a choice, who (at best) discerns the locus of concern. It also makes inevitable the partial nature of any work of practical theology, as it is drawn into a particularity of context and content. In such ‘small’ or particular places the great tradition of the language of God-talk can appear difficult, remote, and too great a weight to bear. Practical theology names practice – with all its specificity and limitation – as the place of encounter with the infinite mystery of God, the place of grace; the Christian practitioner is thus compelled to seek out and speak the language of God within definite human contexts. The fact is that, in reality, this remains difficult. Part of the intractable difficulty of making practice our theological starting place and end is that practice, by its very nature, resists any exhaustive account of itself. Practice is a thing done, a thing experienced; articulation of that experience or action is never ‘complete’, never the reality itself. The practical theologian needs to find ways of working with this. A serious question for the practical theologian is how the practice concerned is to be analysed or ‘read’. This is where, for many, an interdisciplinary relationship with social science expertise is valuable. Qualitative and quantitative research methods have played their part in enabling practical theologians to develop a clear picture of the realities they speak about.18 Positively, such 17  Woodward and Pattison, Blackwell Reader, p. 8. 18  We might refer, for example, to L. J. Francis and P. Richter (2007), Gone for Good? Church-Leaving and Returning in the 21st Century, Peterborough: Epworth; M. J. Cartledge (2003), Practical Theology: Charismatic and Empirical Perspectives, Carlisle, Cumbria and Waynesboro GA: Paternoster Press; M. M. Fulkerson (2007), Places of Redemption: Theology for a Worldly Church, Oxford: Oxford University Press.

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the problem and emerging r e s p o n s e s methods can enable a clarity and realism about a practice that may elude the ‘naive’ theological observer: the practical theologian who expertly uses qualitative research to explore the responses of parishioners to sermons will, in principle, be able to draw a more ‘objective’, more nuanced picture of what is going on, than the preacher who simply asks one or two people what they think of his or her sermons. This interdisciplinarity carries with it its own questions, as we shall see in what follows.19 Practical theology also engages in the personal experience and practices of the practical theologian himself. This presents particular challenges. Practical theology is about connecting practice and the theological tradition; but in our own time such connections seem to have become problematic, since we have, as a Christian culture, lost that gift of instinctive God-talk in practical planning and action. To reflect on one’s own experience is, for the late modern practitioner, instinctively to reflect on one’s own subjectivity, one’s psychological responses to a situation. The integration of this with the language of faith is often secondary, and struggled with as a problem. It is in response to this difficulty with practice that practical theologians have developed methods of ‘theological reflection’, discussed below. The fact that such methods have been so widely sought after, and variously developed, illustrates not only practical theology’s response to bifurcation of theology and practice, but also the depth at which this separation has been experienced. It is a breach which goes right to the heart and mind of the practising Christian. In this book’s own methodology we will demonstrate how the complexity of practice as a theological source might be worked with, building on the insights of practical theology. First some space needs to be given to the perennial question in practical theology of what place the Christian theological tradition should play in its concern with contemporary practice.

19  For a discussion of these questions see J. Swinton and H. Mowat (2006), Practical Theology and Qualitative Research, London: SCM Press.

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practical theology a s a r e s p o n s e

Consistent themes II: Classical Christian sources in practical theology One of the ‘tensions’ which practical theology seeks to hold together is that of personal experience and the Christian tradition.20 Indeed, it is fundamental to practical theology as a constructive response to the splitting of theology and practice, that the attention given to practice is properly ‘theological’. In its way this has proved every bit as difficult for practical theology as have the complexities of practice itself. A study from 2003 suggested that practical theology as taught to students has often had a rather weak sense of relating experience and practice to the Bible or to Christian tradition.21 The question is put succinctly by Ballard and Pritchard: the issue to be faced with any correlational approach to theological reflection is that it may lack criteria for giving adequate relative weighting to different sources of information in the conversation. Presuming that the Bible or tradition has a normative status for the Christian, how is that to be evaluated?22 The question of what counts as ‘normative theology’ for practical theology elicits various responses. Typically practical theologians tend to reflect on an aspect of theology in relation to practice, employing some theological knowledge deemed to be relevant to a situation.23 From the point of view of a systematic theologian such an approach might seem in danger of losing sight of the unity of Christian theology, with its traditional sense of central doctrinal themes, related to one another through an 20  See Woodward and Pattison’s ‘polarities’ listed earlier in this chapter. 21  R. Walton (2003), ‘The Bible and Tradition in Theological Reflection’, British Journal of Theological Education 13:2, pp. 133–51. 22  P. Ballard and J. Pritchard (1996), Practical Theology in Action: Christian Thinking in the Service of Church and Society, London: SPCK, p. 123. 23  S. Pattison (2000), A Critique of Pastoral Care, London: SCM Press, p. 249, where Pattison refers to theological reflectors needing ‘some knowledge of relevant aspects of the theological tradition’. The question of how ‘relevance’ is determined is unclear.

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the problem and emerging r e s p o n s e s over-arching understanding of the economy of salvation. Such criticism seems to require that the practical theologian must also be a systematic theologian – and, in practice, this may seem a demand too much. The practical theologian as practitioner, social scientist, theologian and cultural expert is in danger of becoming an impossible person! This is worth noting. The development of team approaches has seemed an essential response to this difficulty by the present authors. The question of ‘normative’ theological sources also raises important questions of ‘authority’ for practical theology; in particular, the relative authorities of all that it aims to hold together: contemporary practice, personal experience, the Christian tradition, and the insights of other disciplines. This may be one of the places in which different ecclesial traditions work differently. For example, in his helpful and influential piece on theological reflection, Stephen Pattison describes theological reflection as: a three way conversation between a) her [the student’s] own ideas, beliefs, feelings, perceptions and assumptions, (b) the beliefs, assumptions and perceptions provided by the Christian tradition (including the Bible) and (c) the contemporary situation which is being examined. This conversation is carried out with the understanding that there is a possibility of change ‘on all sides’.24 This engaging picture of theological reflection suggests that personal beliefs and assumptions have the same relative authority as the Christian tradition, and that the situation itself also speaks with equal authority. For Christians working within a tradition with a strong sense of, for example, ecclesial authority, this model needs some modification. This observation raises in a sharp way a question about the significance of drawing together experience and doctrine as ‘conversation partners’: what kind of theology of revelation or the Holy Spirit underpins our understanding of these various sources for practical theology? 24  S. Pattison (2000), ‘Some Straw for the Bricks. A Basic Introduction to Theological Reflection’, in Woodward and Pattison, Blackwell Reader, pp. 139f.

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practical theology a s a r e s p o n s e Contemporary practical theology confronts us with the question as to whether we see the Christian tradition and the claims of orthodoxy as ‘restraint’,25 or whether some other account of relative authorities can be developed in our methods. Once again, these are questions to which ‘Theological Action Research’ seeks to respond explicitly, through the development of a methodology that names and elaborates the nature and place of normative traditions.

Consistent themes III: ‘Theological reflection’ and the pastoral cycle One of the most significant and influential ways in which practical theology has engaged with the problem of practice and theology is through the development of methods of theological reflection. These methods have been described in a substantial body of literature,26 covering a range of possible approaches as to how the practical theologian is to develop authentic connections between theology, practice and personal experience. Central to these methods is the ‘pastoral cycle’. This cycle can be most easily understood as a model of action–reflection, through which wise change can be made. An early form of the pastoral cycle can be seen in the See–Judge–Act pattern of reflection developed by Joseph Cardijn with the Young Christian Workers movement begun in the 1930s – a model which was taken up in liberation theology base communities in the late 1960s. In both c­ases attention is first given to the situation of the reflectors,27 who are encouraged to describe and analyse it, perhaps employing sociological or political–economic tools. This leads to discernment of the situation and the action it calls us to, in the light of the reflectors’ faith, the Scriptures and other normative theological sources. Diagrams of the ‘cycle’ abound, and can be summarized by Ballard 25  Woodward and Pattison, Blackwell Reader, p. 15. 26  See further reading on theological reflection at the end of this chapter. 27  It is interesting to note that both for Cardijn and for the liberation theologians, this reflection takes place in a group, rather than individually – a method encouraged by the authors of this book.

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the problem and emerging r e s p o n s e s and Pritchard’s account of Experience, moving to Exploration, then through Reflection, to renewed Action.28 Stress is laid on the way in which the phase of action calls out for renewed reflection, bringing the reflector back to awareness of the (new) situation; and so the cycle begins again. Classically the pastoral cycle calls the practical theologian to begin with experience. However, developments of the pastoral cycle into different models of theological reflection have led to a recognition that there may be times when other starting places may be appropriate. For example, among Killen and de Beer’s nine processes of personal theological reflection,29 are examples of starting with Scripture reading, with a doctrine of faith, with a cultural text, and with an everyday object. In all cases the journey takes the reflector through experience, self-awareness, some aspect of the theological tradition, and moves toward some kind of renewal of situation or outlook; but there is an inherent flexibility in the processes. Such a flexibility and diversity of process is also evidenced in the more recent works of Thompson et al., and of Graham, Walton and Ward, and in R. L. Kinast’s critical account of five ‘styles’ of reflection.30 It seems well recognized within practical theology that it is the theological reflection ‘bit’ of the cycle which is often most problematic: students can work attentively with experience, and are keen to suggest renewed action, but the making of genuine and transformative connections with theology can often be rather weak or superficial. If we are to choose a ‘bit’ of theology to help with reflection, how are we to do it? Is it enough simply to use one Bible passage for reflection, and so avoid the often complex scriptural picture? Can we be selective, or critical about the theologies we use, on the basis of our limited experience? Once again, it is the problem of ‘making connection’, of being able to articulate faith in, for and as practice, while having some sense of continuity with the wider Christian tradition which is beyond any one experience or practice. 28  Ballard and Pritchard, Practical Theology in Action, pp. 85–6. 29  P. O. Killen and J. de Beer (2006), The Art of Theological Reflection, New York: Crossroad, pp. 87–110. 30  All referenced at the end of the chapter.

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practical theology a s a r e s p o n s e The authors of this book have, as we will show, developed a reflective method based on the pastoral cycle, which aims to respond to these concerns, while not being able to ‘solve’ the problem of which they are symptomatic. In this reflective process reflection is theological from the outset, and also uses the methods and expertise of some social science methods in order to read and reflect on practices more honestly. The place of other disciplines in theological reflection takes us to brief consideration of another question for practical theology: that of interdisciplinarity.

Consistent themes IV: Interdisciplinarity and practical theology Practical theology is consistently presented as necessarily interdisciplinary. The reasons for this interdisciplinarity can be found at the motivational heart of practical theology – to be able to speak truthfully and meaningfully about human realities. The desire of practical theology to be able to make a practical difference led it in earlier years to explore the skills of therapeutic counselling, in relation to the care offered by the Christian minister. Rich as this relationship was, it is significant that the major reason for its shift from the central concerns of practical theology was the growing sense of the need to answer the question about what was specifically theological – specifically Christian – about the Christian minister’s ‘care of souls’.31 More recently it has been the social sciences, with their various techniques for ‘reading’ practical realities, that have proved invaluable to practical theologians, with a growing emphasis on cultural studies.32 Theology has always been, and can only be, interdisciplinary, as the long relationship with various types of philosophy from the earliest days demonstrates. The difference for contemporary 31  This is particularly well illustrated by the reflections of Thomas Oden on his own changing perceptions. See T. Oden (1992), After Modernity, What? Agenda for Theology, Grand Rapids MI: Zondervan. 32  For example, see P. Ward (2008), Participation and Mediation: A Practical Theology for the Liquid Church, London, SCM Press.

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the problem and emerging r e s p o n s e s practical theology is that it self-consciously engages with ‘secular’ disciplines, which have authority claims of their own about how human realities are to be understood; these are disciplines that, in principle, are not self-transcending. On a straightforward level the recourse to other disciplines can be seen in terms of equipping practical theology with ‘the information about the modern world’ that it could not have from theological resources alone.33 Sociology, cultural studies, medicine and the like are routes to better understanding of the realities with which we are concerned, and the nature of those realities will determine the particular discipline we consult.34 From such a basic and apparently uncontroversial position another set of questions arises: first, concerning the nature of the relation between theological and, say, sociological insights; and, second, concerning the theological presuppositions that underpin the practical theologian’s use of other disciplines. In his very helpful essay Stephen Pattison locates the interdiscip­ linarity of practical theology in a particular way: One effect of the dethroning of theology as the ‘Queen of the Sciences’ and the realization that it is only one, very human way of understanding and analyzing reality, has been to make it clear that it needs to draw on other academic and applied disciplines to fully comprehend reality.35 This implies that the Christian tradition upon which theology draws can have no privileged voice in describing reality. Such a position is in some tension with those strands of Christianity – both Catholic and Evangelical (and Barthian) – which work with a ‘high’ theology of revelation, presupposing that, ultimately, the most authentic (because divinely inspired) account of reality is to be found in the traditions, languages and practices of faith. Such are the sources for theology. While such a ‘high’ view does 33  Woodward and Pattison, Blackwell Reader, p. 9. 34  Pattison, Critique of Pastoral Care, ‘A Vision of Pastoral Care’, p. 245. 35  Critique of Pastoral Care, p. 245.

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practical theology a s a r e s p o n s e not necessarily prohibit interdisciplinarity, it does raise some particular questions about how it is to be undertaken. Wherever we find ourselves in this debate, difficult questions will attend us. For those working out of a higher view of theology than that seemingly espoused by Stephen Pattison here, another question is raised under this heading. If, in some sense, theology remains ‘the Queen of the Sciences’, at least in so far as it claims some privileged relation to truth through its sources in divine revelation, then it may run the risk of failing to respect and work with the inherent methodological integrity of partner disciplines. Very often interdisciplinary theology has been accused by non-theologians of ‘theological imperialism’, in so far as it assumes a privileged authority for the theological tradition, above all others. Yet the logic of the ‘high’ theological position remains, as clearly expressed by John Swinton and Harriet Mowat: The idea of mutual conversation is helpful, but it does beg the question as to whether it is theologically appropriate to give all of the dialogue partners equal weighting within the research process . . . Can the social sciences really challenge theology at a fundamental level as the implications of this [correlative] method suggest? . . . How can a system of knowledge created by human beings challenge a system of knowledge that claims to be given by God? 36 These tensions and proper difficulties call the practical theologian to ask profound questions about her own theological assumptions and their implications. When we employ other disciplines, on what basis are we ‘trusting’ them – rationality, compliance with the assumptions of secular culture, a sense of theology as ‘one discipline among others’, or a theology of grace and fall which opens up a discerning and constructive (if critical) interdisciplinary conversation? As the methods of this book are worked out through the use of action research methods, these are fundamental 36  Swinton and Mowat, 2006, Practical Theology, p. 83, italics in original.

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the problem and emerging r e s p o n s e s questions to which the authors work to find a response in the suggested methodology.

Conclusions Practical theology has, in a relatively short time, made an important mark on theology and practice. In large measure this ‘success’ is due to the wide recognition of the problem that the discipline seeks to address – the tendency to split pastoral practice and academic theology, to the detriment of both. With the establishment of practical theology as a recognized discipline, the methodological and fundamental theological questions raised by its methods and content are thrown into sharp relief: the difficulties of ‘reading’ and articulating something as complex as ‘practice’; the need to offer more nuanced accounts of the proper and relative authorities of ‘experience’ and ‘tradition’; the perennial search for methods that better embody the proper complexities of faithful Christian practical wisdom; and the recurrent (and ancient!) question as to how theology is to learn from and ‘use’ the expertise of other disciplines, without doing violence to either its own peculiar integrity, or that of its conversation partners. The present book is an exercise in this practical theology, taking up the questions and concerns identified by this chapter. ‘Theological Action Research’ – while not pretending to be able to answer definitively or exhaustively these questions of practical theology – offers a single methodological and theological vision that aims to hold these questions constructively to the fore, keeping mindful of the claims they have upon us as practical theologians, committed to developing theologies for faithful practice.

Further reading Sweeney, J., G. Simmonds and D. Lonsdale (eds) (2010), Keeping Faith in Practice: Aspects of Catholic Pastoral Theology, London: SCM Press. Woodward, J. and S. Pattison (eds) (2000), The Blackwell Reader in Pastoral and Practical Theology, Oxford: Blackwell. 32

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practical theology a s a r e s p o n s e Reading on theological reflection Graham, E. L., H. Walton and F. Ward (2005), Theological Reflection: Methods, London, SCM Press; and (2007), Theological Reflection: Sources, London, SCM Press. Gros, J. (2001), Theological Reflection: Connecting Faith and Life, Chicago: Loyola Press. Killen, P. O. and J. de Beer (2006), The Art of Theological Reflection, New York: Crossroad. Kinast, R. L. (1996), Let Ministry Teach: A Guide to Theological Reflection, Collegeville: Liturgical Press; and (2000), What are They Saying about Theological Reflection? Mahwah NJ: Paulist Press. McAlpin, K. (2009), Ministry that Transforms: A Contemplative Process of Theological Reflection, Collegeville MN: Liturgical Press. Thompson, J., with S. Pattison et al. (2008), SCM Studyguide to Theological Reflection, London: SCM Press.

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3 Action Research as a Response

This chapter looks at Action Research as a response to the problem of studying practice. Action research is introduced and something of its main traditions outlined. Then the scope and scale of action research is discussed before finally some of the weaknesses of this approach to research are considered. Chapter 4 will begin the process of looking at the potential of action research to answer theological questions.

The problem of researching practice The problem of talking about God in practice, outlined in Chapter 1, is not only a problem of theology and its relationship to practice but also a problem of how practice can be researched. Workers in church organizations and faith-based agencies may have a number of problems to overcome in researching their practice. First, they may have a limited perception that their work can be viewed as a set of practices that can be researched. This may be because many of the people doing the work are unpaid and so don’t see what they are doing as work. It may be, for those who have received theological training, that they were not taught to see their practices as the proper focus for theological reflection. Another issue may be one of isolation and not feeling that their practice would be of interest to professional researchers.

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action research as a r e s p o n s e A broader cultural problem is a common understanding of research as seeking ‘best practice’ which is difficult to challenge. Drawing analogies from health sciences there is a view that there is one best way to do something and this can be learned by copying people with the most successful practice and recording it in a protocol. This suggests that work and context are detachable, something which workers in faith-based agencies can struggle with as so much of what they do arises from their context. Academics in theology also have obstacles to overcome in deciding to research the everyday practice of ordinary people. They may have students at Masters and Doctoral level who have researched their own practice and are sympathetic to the value of this. However, their own work is remote from the day-to-day realities of such practice and so it is difficult to know what problems of significant theological interest are being experienced by practitioners. In some university theology departments, located in humanities faculties, there may be a concern that academics will lose status by dealing with real-world problems. It is hard to be confident that writing from such research will be readily classifiable for the purposes of research assessment. There can also be concerns that working closely with faith-based practitioners will lead to their approach being seen as ‘confessional’ and so lacking in academic objectivity. These problems are not easily overcome and it seems to us no coincidence that the ARCS project has emerged from a specialist Theology and Philosophy college in the University of London, a large proportion of whose students work for church organizations and faith-based agencies. From this genesis the project formed a partnership with a research centre based in an Anglican theological college whose primary purpose is training people for ministry. Both these institutions already have a foot in the practitioner world and a willingness to take a risk in acquiring the ‘confessional’ label.   R. D. Herman and D. O. Renz (2008), ‘Advancing Nonprofit Organizational Effectiveness Research and Theory: Nine Theses’, Nonprofit Management and Leadership 18:4, pp. 399–416.

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the problem and emerging r e s p o n s e s

What is action research? Action research is an approach to research rather than a particular set of methods. It has developed in different ways as the next section will describe. Any single definition runs the risk of oversimplification but the conversation has to start somewhere and so here is a list of characteristics of action research derived from both Greenwood and Levin (2007) and Burns (2007). Action research is: • • •

• •

context-based, addressing real-life problems a collaborative process between participants and researchers in which everyone’s contribution is taken seriously an attitude to research that sees the diversity of experience and capacity coming from the contributors as an asset that enriches the process the expectation that meanings derived from the research process will lead to new actions the expectation that reflection upon action will lead to new meanings.

Action research derives its credibility from whether participants’ problems are solved and whether they achieve greater control over their situation. To summarize, action research can be seen as: • • • •

a partnership a process a conversation a way of knowing.

Action research involves a partnership between participants in an organization who are interested in researching their practice or solving a problem and researchers who have an interest in what   D. J. Greenwood and M. Levin (2007), Introduction to Action Research: Social Research for Social Change, Thousand Oaks CA: Sage; D. Burns (2007), Systemic Action Research: A Strategy for Whole System Change, Bristol: Policy Press.

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action research as a r e s p o n s e can be learned from practice. Partnerships are only effective if time has been taken to build relationships of trust and in the process of this a working alliance has been established where each party has sufficient confidence in the other to work through any difficulties that the process might throw up. The collaborative nature of the relationship makes it different from conventional research: the immense importance of insider knowledge and initiatives is evident, making a clear distinction from conventional research that systematically distrusts insider knowledge as co-opted. However, the action researchers must not lose sight of what they bring to the partnership. There is a clear value in the action researcher having a level of outsider status, whether as a newcomer to a group of stakeholders or as an outsider because of experiences or training that set her or him apart from other members of the group. Although outsiders, action researchers are committed to insiders but will challenge their thinking, build their capacity to undertake research and help them defend the conclusions they reach so they can make the desired changes to their practices or to the meaning they attach to those practices. Action research proceeds by using a process that resembles the well-known Kolb Learning Cycle. A particular experience or set of practices is identified, described and explored. This provides the basis for reflection and then the generation of theory or deploying existing theory which in turn influences future actions and meanings. Depending upon the practice under scrutiny a whole range of research methods may be used as appropriate.   Greenwood and Levin, Introduction to Action Research, p. 51.   Greenwood and Levin, Introduction to Action Research, p. 54.   D. Kolb (1984), Experiential Learning: Experience as the Source of Learning and Development, Englewood Cliffs CA: Prentice-Hall.

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the problem and emerging r e s p o n s e s The methods can be quantitative or qualitative with the action researchers training the insider participants so they can gather the data together. The action researcher brings expertise in research design that will mean that the methods used will be appropriate for the questions being explored. Action research is described as occurring in cycles because at the end of each action–reflection cycle there is renewed practice or meaning which can be evaluated by a further cycle of research. A partnership proceeds by conversations, but part of the skill of action research is ensuring that the conversations are sufficiently structured for all to have a voice, that they are undertaken in a language all can understand and that they don’t lose sight of the purpose of the research, which is to renew practice or the meaning attached to that practice. Experienced action researchers are quick to own the value of facilitators who can manage the process of the conversation and also research co-ordinators who ensure that the relevant actors are present in the right place at the right time to gather data and hold conversations about it. Action research is underpinned by a particular epistemology or way of knowing. Action research rejects the superiority of professional researcher knowledge over the practical knowledge of local stakeholders. It asserts the value of both kinds of knowledge and the need to bring them together. AR is based on a rejection of a privileged po­ sition for ‘knowing that’ and privileges instead ‘knowing how’ as the path to valid, credible knowledge and wise action. This is based upon its understanding that reality is messy, complex and ever-changing and so theories are a map of the territory rather than the territory itself. It is sympathetic to those thinkers who argue that systems are a good metaphor for the complexity of human interaction with the real world. This means that   Greenwood and Levin, Introduction to Action Research, p. 53.   I. Macdonald, C. Burke et al. (2006), Systems Leadership: Creating Positive Organisations, Aldershot: Gower.

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action research as a r e s p o n s e philosophically it fits into neo-pragmatism, building on thinkers like Rorty and Habermas who stress the importance of interpretation as a shared human activity underpinning action. This way of thinking can be seen as dismissing canons of wisdom or knowledge from the past – something which theology cannot do. The way in which the ARCS project has grappled with this is set out in Chapter 4.

Traditions of action research Action research (AR) is a diffuse and varied field, more like a social movement than an academic field. It has been used within and across many academic disciplines, although we believe this book is the first time it has emerged within practical theology. One way of understanding that variety is to know something of the main strands of action research and their origins. These are: • • •

Northern Industrial AR Southern Participatory AR Research into professional practice.

Northern Industrial Action Research derives from the industrial democracy movement which developed from the work of Kurt Lewin after the Second World War. His ideas were picked up by the Tavistock Institute of Human Relations in London, who undertook a study of the coal mines showing that changes in technology used to extract coal and changes to the way work was organized   J. Swinton and H. Mowat (2006), Practical Theology and Qualitative Research, London: SCM Press, ch. 8 is called participatory research, and in the conclusion of the book they suggest that practical theology can be seen as action research, a suggestion this book tries to develop. There is some literature indicating that action research can be used in pedagogical research relating to theology and religion: E. Conde-Frazier (2006), ‘Participatory Action Research: Practical Theology for Social Justice’, Religious Education 101:3, pp. 321–9; R. Norman (2008), ‘Theological Foundations of Action Research for Learning and Teaching’, Discourse: Learning and Teaching in Philosophical and Religious Studies 8:1, pp. 113–40; R. O’Loughlin (2008), ‘Pedagogical and Discipline-Specific Research Methods’, Discourse 7:2, pp. 67–120.

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the problem and emerging r e s p o n s e s were inextricably linked, neither a technical solution nor a social solution on its own was workable (Trist and Bamforth 1951). On the basis of this work Tavistock collaborated with Norwegian employer and trade union organizations to undertake a large-scale study of industrial democracy, primarily looking at whether productivity could be improved by giving workers greater control over the way in which their work was designed. These ideas were picked up in Sweden and Japan, where they were used with some success to redesign the way in which industry worked. Some of the original impetus for this strand had been the democratization of large-scale industrial workplaces to give workers greater control over their daily lives. As the ideas spread, the emphasis on what increased productivity and therefore profitability took over. Southern Participatory Action Research (PAR) is an umbrella term for a number of strands of activity that sought to undertake development work in countries with oppressive regimes in a way that gave those experiencing inequality and exploitation greater control over their lives. It recognized that no sustained improvement in people’s living conditions could be made if they were not involved in initiating it and deciding what the needs were and how best they could be met. However, the bureaucratizing of funding from donor countries and Northern NGOs means that participatory action research is now often used to reassure northern donors that consultation with the final beneficiaries has taken place rather than to give those communities control over how funds are spent. It is interesting to note that Scandinavian government donors and NGOs have been most enthusiastic in their advocacy of PAR. PAR has also travelled back from the South to the North and been used in community development with marginalized communities in wealthy countries. Finally, action research has been used in a sustained way to investigate professional practice, particularly in the fields of health and education. In these fields professional practice is embedded in a complex array of institutional and political structures and it can be easy for the needs of the end user (patient or student) to fall from view. This strand of AR has been less overtly concerned with power differentials, by and large accepting the embeddedness of 40

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action research as a r e s p o n s e the practices they were studying. This type of AR has had a sustained place in the academic study of public sector practice.

The scope and scale of action research Part 4 of this book gives three examples of action research, but it is worth indicating from the action research literature something of the scope and scale on which the approach can be used. Reason and Bradbury, in their introduction to their edited Handbook of Action Research, talk of action research in the first person, second person, and third person. By first-person action research they mean action research as an approach an individual can use to reflect upon their practice. By second-person action research they are talking about the exploration of issues of mutual concern to others whether in a particular organization or community. Third-person action research denotes a wider community of enquiry, perhaps with a number of parallel investigations that are part of the same wider social system. The ARCS project did not set out to mirror these three descriptions, but there are some resonances with the ways in which the project developed. In some of the partnerships with case organizations we focused on work with a single practitioner who needed support in researching their own practice. More commonly we worked with teams in organizations who had identified an issue they wished to pursue. Some of the organizations we worked with could only investigate their practice by looking at its impact on participants in the organizations they worked with. This involved a chain of relationships in the research partnership and a need to manage feedback and data sharing accordingly. Burns in his book Systemic Action Research proposes that the true potential of action research is realized when it is used to investigate whole systems.10 This Large System AR may cross   P. Reason and H. Bradbury (eds) (2007), Handbook of Action Research: Participative Inquiry and Practice, London: Sage. 10  D. Burns (2007), Systemic Action Research: A Strategy for Whole System Change, Bristol: Policy Press.

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the problem and emerging r e s p o n s e s organizational boundaries in pursuit of a complex web of social interactions that have a common theme. The ARCS project can been seen as having this dimension in that it partnered with church organizations and faith-based agencies that worked with Roman Catholic and Church of England parishes in London. At any one time the ARCS team was working with a number of different groups. At two points in the project, summer 2008 and summer 2010, meta-analysis was undertaken across the groups and the results fed back to the groups to give them a wider sense of their social and theological context. Groups were embedded in complex denominational relationships between dioceses and parishes and faith-based agencies. This was taking place mainly in the shared geographical context of London, which, as a global city, had a rapidly changing religious landscape, which favoured newer over more established forms of Christianity.

The potential weaknesses of action research In introducing this chapter it was explained that the structure of academic life makes action research difficult to undertake. The intellectual claims it makes are also contested. This final section of the chapter summarizes some of the more common criticisms offered: • • • • •

knowledge generated is ephemeral its pragmatism excludes values power relations are replicated rather than democratized time and trust are not invested false boundaries are put around the messiness of everyday life.

The knowledge generated is ephemeral Because the knowledge generated by AR is particular to a context there are concerns that it is not generalizable beyond its immediate context. AR practitioners would respond to this by saying that 42

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action research as a r e s p o n s e all action is contextual and so relies upon understandings that make sense in that context. Also that the learning from AR can be offered to other contexts as part of their exploration of their experience – it cannot be imposed as best practice.

A pragmatism that excludes values Although the classic expositions of AR emphasize its ability to generate changed meanings as well as changed practices there can be a concern that AR becomes purely interested in ‘what works’ and ignores the espoused value base of the organizations taking part. This is a criticism that needs particular attention in the context of Theological Action Research where the beliefs and values underpinning the action are central.

Power relations are replicated rather than democratized Many strands of AR have their genesis in political concerns to democratize practice and give workers and citizens greater control over their lives. This can be with either a reformist or radical agenda but in either case suggests some disruption to existing power relations. There can be a desire to set this aside in the interests of improving practice within the status quo. So for example, Participatory Action Research becomes consultation and is about ‘empowering’, suggesting that power remains outside the community and is offered on the basis that it can be withdrawn again. A key element in designing AR must be to anticipate the decision-making structures it will encounter and whether its findings are likely to challenge or disrupt those structures in any way.

Time and trust are not invested At the heart of AR is partnership, and the intention to form a partnership cannot presume that one will be established. Part 3 43

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the problem and emerging r e s p o n s e s of this book talks of a relationship which is neither baffling nor patronizing and which can overcome setbacks. The pace of contemporary working life can mean that time invested in relationship building is seen as wasted time rather than an investment that will pay dividends. The ARCS project thought carefully about how this time should be spent and this is described in Chapter 7. The collaborative nature of action research means that the research can only proceed at the pace which the real work of the organization or practitioner allows. This can make it difficult to fit into academic timescales or the requirements of research grants.

False boundaries are put around the messiness of everyday life A concern about action research is that in embracing the complexity of practice it becomes diffuse. Most human systems are open to influence from the context in which they are set and so it can be difficult to put a boundary around the practice to be studied. Action research is comfortable with an emergent research design that starts with where practitioners think the most pressing problem is and then moves the enquiry out from that point as new insights arise. Each cycle of enquiry should result in changed actions or meanings that can be revised as wider insights arise. The ARCS project has encountered all these potential weaknesses and wrestled with them as the TAR methodology developed. Particularly challenging have been the ethical dilemmas about whether to work with or risk disrupting the existing power relations in the Church and its agencies. The quality of the partnerships built have significantly influenced the possibility of risktaking in the service of a shared understanding of justice. This chapter has offered a brief introduction to AR. Part 3 will offer sufficient detail on how to undertake Theological Action Research to get you started, but if your interest in AR itself develops the books below will help you explore it further. 44

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action research as a r e s p o n s e

Further reading Burns, D. (2007), Systemic Action Research: A Strategy for Whole System Change, Bristol: Policy Press. Coghlan, D. and T. Branwick (2001), Doing Action Research in Your Own Organisation, London: Sage. Greenwood, D. J. and M. Levin (2007), Introduction to Action Research: Social Research for Social Change, Thousand Oaks CA: Sage.

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part 2

A Fresh Response

The single chapter in this part of the book acts as a hinge, moving from the problem and current solutions to a first exposition of Theological Action Research (TAR). TAR combines features of prac­ tical theology and action research and adds a new way of thinking about the voices in conversation in theological reflection. Having offered this initial explanation of the characteristics of TAR, Part 3 will move on to a detailed description of the methodology.

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4 Characteristics of Theological Action Research

Both practical theology and action research methodology de­ scribed so far are significant and important responses to the difficulty of speaking about God in practice. The first of these has been seen as concerned especially with the making of con­ nections between theology and faith practice, and between the Christian tradition and the present. Action research, on the other hand, brings to the problem processes and skills by which practice itself can be spoken of, and its significance reflected upon. That both these approaches are, in some sense, reflective on practice is significant. In this chapter we present a particular approach that is indebted to both practical theology and action research approaches. The methodology described here has been developed by the ARCS (Action Research Church and Society) team, an ecumenical and interdisciplinary research team. It is a vision for better understanding and articulating the mystery of ‘God in prac­ tice’, developed through co-operation with twelve Christian out­ reach initiatives. We have called this method ‘Theological Action Research’ (TAR). This chapter describes the major characteristics of this fresh response to the problem of speaking about God in practice.

Theological Action Research: a familiar pattern of reflection? One of the ways in which Theological Action Research can be de­ scribed is through the Figure 4.1. 49

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a fresh response

Figure 4.1.  The Action–Reflection Cycle

Such a patterning of reflection clearly relates closely to other cycles of theological reflection. In this way we can recognize TAR as a form of theological reflection, standing alongside other such practices, as described in Chapter 2. What makes TAR methodology distinctive is how each of the different stages of the method are worked out. For example, ‘ex­ perience’ is articulated and documented using an action research process and social science methods of gathering data. The experi­ ence of the practitioners is thus embodied in a text, shared for reflection both by the practitioners themselves and also, rather differently, by the ARCS team. This partnership of reflection, in teams, and across teams, is carried through in our method into the area of learning, where both practitioners and researchers iden­ tify significant learnings from their particular perspectives, and make suggestions for renewed action and theology. This shared and conversational approach is a significant feature of TAR, and will be explained more closely below. A key characteristic is the role of theology in TAR. While there is a stage in the process in which the ‘reflection’ step is the focus, it is not just at this stage that the ‘theological’ nature of the research is considered. Rather, as its name suggests, theological action 50

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characteristics of theo l o g i c a l a c t i o n research is explicitly theological from its first stages. For the ARCS team this insistence, that theology does not just come in at the reflection stage, has led to the development of a particular frame­ work for theological understanding, which informs our practice of TAR from the outset of a research project. This we have called ‘theology in four voices’, and it is set out in what follows. While we do not believe that this framework is the only one that might be used in TAR, we offer it as an example of a way of ensuring the theological integrity of theological action research. We can now describe Theological Action Research in more detail through setting out five characteristic features.

Characteristic feature 1: Theological all the way through TAR’s primary characteristic is its fundamental conviction and commitment to the idea that the research done into faith practices is ‘theological all the way through’. This means that theology can­ not appear after the data has been collected as if it were simply ‘the icing on the cake already baked in the oven of social analysis’. Rather, researchers employing TAR consider all the material – written and unwritten, textual and practical – as (potentially) ‘theology’, as ‘faith seeking understanding’. This means that the practices participated in and observed are themselves bearers of theology. Practice is its own proper ‘articulation’ of theological conviction and insight. Practices of faithful Christian people are themselves already the bearers of theology; they express the con­ temporary living tradition of the Christian faith. This idea of ‘living Christian tradition’ as a way of understand­ ing Christian practice is key to the methodology set out here. It is an idea that can be recognized within established theologies of tradition and revelation. For example, the Second Vatican Coun­ cil was able to speak of Christian tradition ‘making progress’ through contemporary practice and faith expression:   Equally, we believe that the ‘four voices’ description of theology may have ben­ efits beyond TAR in other areas of theological work.

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a fresh response For there is a growth in the understanding of the realities and the words which have been handed down. This happens through the contemplation and study made by believers, who treasure these things in their hearts (see Luke, 2:19, 51) through a pen­ etrating understanding of the spiritual realities which they ex­ perience, and through the preaching of those who have received through Episcopal succession the sure gift of truth . . . The words of the holy fathers witness to the presence of this living tradition, whose wealth is poured into the practice and life of the believing and praying Church. Through the same tradition the Church’s full canon of the sacred books is known, and the sacred writings themselves are more profoundly understood and unceasingly made active in her; and thus God, who spoke of old, uninterruptedly converses with the bride of His beloved Son . . .  This quote was worth setting out at length, not only for its sense of contemporary practice as a part of the ongoing dynamic of God’s revealing life, but also for the ways in which it seeks to establish continuity between apparently disparate voices of tradi­ tion within the ecclesial community. The experience and spiritual wisdom of all believers is held together with episcopal authority, and these are both seen as bound up with apostolic traditions, written and unwritten, handed down through the generations. While understanding of the relative significance of these different voices of ‘living tradition’ will vary between denominations, there is something of this vision recognizable within most Christian traditions as the gospel is reflected upon and its living discerned in contemporary life. The conviction that practice is itself theo­ logical not only says something about the proper attention due to practice, but also about the proper complexity of revelation and theology that is implied by such a position. One more thing should be said about practices as bearers of theologies. As practices of faith the practical actions of Christian groups being researched and reflected on are generally always and   Second Vatican Council, Dei Verbum 8.

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characteristics of theo l o g i c a l a c t i o n already consciously aligned to an articulated theology. This is the ‘espoused’ theology of a group. It may well be that the espoused theology of practitioners is less well developed than their actual practice; or that the relation between it and the actions carried out is not always clear or coherent. Discovering such tensions is part of the task for TAR work. The recognition of both the explicit and implicit ways in which Christian practices are theology of themselves opens up the way for a clearer account of ‘theology in four voices’.

Characteristic feature 2: Understanding of ‘theology in four voices’ The conviction that Christian practice is, itself, ‘faith seeking un­ derstanding’, a kind of theology, leads to a properly complex view of theology as such. The naming of faith-full actions as a theologi­ cal voice, draws practice into a dynamic set of other theologies, which are often more recognized as such. Most immediately, the theology that is practice needs to be attended to in relation to the espoused theology that will accompany it through the reflec­ tive and faith awareness of the practitioners themselves. It must also be clear that such espoused theologies do, themselves, ‘come from somewhere’ – whether they draw their sense of things from Scripture, or from an aspect of church tradition, or liturgy, or from the influence of a theological movement, such as liberation theology. This already makes present the formal and normative aspects of theology, albeit usually in rather limited and partial forms. We can begin to see already from this description, and from the diagram of interrelatedness (see Figure 4.2) that TAR locates itself within a dynamic of distinct, but interrelated and overlap­ ping ‘voices’. It does so in the conviction that there is, in all this diverse articulation, a certain coherence – a coherence of faith, of the truth being revealed to faith in the Spirit. The present authors have used the ‘four voices’ as a device for making this complex­ ity manageable as a heuristic and hermeneutic framework within 53

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a fresh response NORMATIVE THEOLOGY Scriptures The creeds Official church teaching Liturgies

FORMAL THEOLOGY The theology of theologians Dialogue with other disciplines

ESPOUSED THEOLOGY The theology embedded within a group’s articulation of its beliefs

OPERANT THEOLOGY The theology embedded within the actual practices

of a group

Figure 4.2. The Four Voices of Theology

which to understand the TAR processes. Other descriptions might be equally useful. Recognizing the four voices as a working tool, rather than any kind of complete description of theology, is im­ portant. We must be clear that these four voices are not discrete, separate from one another; each voice is never simple. We can never hear one voice without there being echoes of the other three. This needs constantly to be borne in mind as we describe further the normative and formal voices. The idea of the normative voice of theology is concerned with what the practising group names as its theological authority – an authority which may even stand to correct, as well as inform, operant and espoused theologies. As such the normative is often related to the ecclesial identities and relationships of the group. The acceptance of a theological voice as normative will be condi­ tioned by the nature of the practitioner group. For example, a Ro­ man Catholic movement for evangelizing young people may set great store by allowing papal teaching and the sacramental and devotional traditions of Catholicism to exercise a normative func­ tion in thinking and practice; a more liberal Anglican parish may wish to incorporate both Scripture and the hermeneutic of the particular community into its sense of normative theology. For others, again, it may be that ‘orthopraxy’ in some form becomes the normative voice of theology. 54

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characteristics of theo l o g i c a l a c t i o n That the normative is varied in this way adds to the complexity of the four theological voices we are working with. It also makes clear that the normative is part of an interdependent dynamic of scholarly readings of church history and doctrine, approaches to Scripture, and the traditions and practices recognized by the com­ munity over generations as being authentic to its gospel living. Sometimes the very question of what is normative theology for a particular practitioner group becomes the question for attention: it is a question that highlights issues of authenticity, legitimation and identity for the practices carried out. These reflections bring us to consideration of the fourth of the theological voices – the ‘formal’. This is, if you like, the theology of the academy, of the ‘professional’ theologian. From what has already been described it will be clear that this is a theological voice, which may already be being heard through the espoused and normative voices. However, the formal voice also has its own distinct role in the conversation: it can be seen as offering a spe­ cifically ‘intellectual’ articulation of faith seeking understanding, through practising a form of thought which engages in critical and historically and philosophically informed enquiry, regarding the ways in which faith is, and has been, expressed. In so far as for­ mal theology is a critical voice in this dynamic quartet, it shines a light on practice and on accepted authorities (locally espoused, or more ecclesially normative), from the perspectives of academic enquiries. These may challenge existing assumptions, drawing at­ tention to different readings of things in the Christian tradition, historically and contextually. But formal theology also has a posi­ tive role to play, in constructively offering developed modes of thought that can enable reflection on practice, and the articulation of an espoused theology. For example, the tension felt between work with the homeless in a church building and the celebration of the Eucharist in the same building can be worked through with at­ tention to sacramental theologies of eschatology, or of ‘eucharistic ethic’. The formal voice, which has had the privilege of the study of traditions, can offer gifts to the processes of TAR.   See Chapter 12 for a fuller discussion.

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a fresh response So far, however, we have offered a picture of the four voices that only deals with the ways in which the normative and formal may be related more or less critically to the espoused–operant axis. To leave things here would be to fail to make clear a central convic­ tion of TAR as the present authors have developed it: that is, that the forms of theology articulated by practices have a criti­ cal role in informing and forming both formal and, ultimately, normative theologies. If it is the case, as we have suggested, that Christian practices are themselves bearers of embodied theology, then it must also be that such practices have their own author­ ity within the properly complex dynamic of theological voices. TAR seeks to enable not only a formal and normative questioning of the espoused and operant theologies of practitioners, but also a proper challenge to the normative and formal voices from the theological wisdom of practice. What becomes essential in this task is a practical and attitudinal commitment to a complex theol­ ogy disclosed through a conversational method.

Characteristic feature 3: Disclosing theology through conversational method As will be seen particularly in the chapters of the next section, this commitment to a complexity of theological voices carries with it a number of practical implications: careful attention to the es­ poused theology of a group; appropriate forms of data collection in o­rder to describe practice faithfully; shared practitioner– researcher discernment of an appropriate question for exploration – all these things are rooted first of all in this theological methodol­ ogy, and then need to find strategic and practical methods in the work. In this there is one particular methodological observation that can usefully be made: that the commitment to a complex, multi-voiced understanding of theology requires of TAR that re­ searchers and practitioners commit to a conversational way of going about things. It is, if our theological reading is right, only in the conversation between voices, carefully attended to, that an a­uthentic practical-theological insight can be disclosed. 56

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characteristics of theo l o g i c a l a c t i o n This commitment to conversational approaches is based in a theology of revelation and truth that not only recognizes the variety of authentic theological voices (including those that do not use words), but also recognizes that there are particular skills and wisdom involved in allowing these different and distinct voices to be heard together, and in conversation with one another. An ap­ propriate method has to be worked out, which not only allows a proper place to the variety of theological voices, but also enables a genuine openness to hearing those voices, even when they might seem strange or contradictory. Central to such a view is a vision of a certain humility before the voicing of the other – a humility that allows the possibility of sitting with certain difficulties and misunderstandings, or differ­ ences, because of a conviction that there is, none the less, a shared seeking after the truth of faith. As one church text describes it: Truth, however, is to be sought after in a manner proper to the dignity of the human person and his [sic] social nature. The in­ quiry is to be free, carried on with the aid of teaching or instruc­ tion, communication and dialogue, in the course of which men [sic] explain to one another the truth they have discovered, or think they have discovered, in order thus to assist one another in the quest for truth. In practice this means that the theological reflection that takes place in TAR is always of the person-in-the-group. So, in the ARCS team, a set of ‘formal’ expertise is brought to bear in reflect­ ing theologically on the data describing practice. This is carried out across the different Christian traditions and areas of expertise of the group, gathered as persons seeking together. Similarly, and initially in parallel, reflection by the practitioner participants is a group activity, informed by shared practice and experiences, as well as at least some shared espoused theology. Ultimately these sets of conversations become one conversation, as insights across par­ ticipant and researcher groups are shared, and new conversations   Second Vatican Council, Declaration on Religious Liberty, Dignitatis Humanae 3.

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a fresh response unfold. It is in these conversations that insights for renewed prac­ tice and learning arise, and are recognized. The details of this prac­ tice will be set out in Chapter 9. For now we briefly describe it as an example of how theology in four voices draws all involved in TAR into an ongoing, and in principle open conversation, which is always more about attention to possible insights and points of learning, than it is about firm conclusions or fixing anything.

Characteristic feature 4: Theological Action Research (TAR) as formative transformation of practice This last observation raises the question of what kind of practical change TAR envisages as an outcome. A great deal of practicaltheological literature stresses the importance of practical theology as concerned with making ‘a real difference’, as bringing about ‘practical transformation’. As a practical theological method TAR needs also to be challenged as to its potential to effect change, especially in light of the rather open-ended sounding model of conversation just described. TAR as a form of action research names as one of the key loci of change the learning and changed attitudes of the reflective practi­ tioner. It is, in this way, a kind of practical theological pedagogy, a development of reflective practices in and for the practices of faith. The central conviction is that, by naming and recognizing theological connections across the four voices, the theological em­ bodiment at the operant level in particular will be renewed as its own authentic message comes to light and is more clearly under­ stood by those living it out. In part this happens through the em­ powerment of discovering and forming a language for the often hidden depths of what we do. This language – or naming – enables better the necessary conversation between embodied and formal or normative theologies; and it makes possible a wider sharing of the meanings made real in practical Christian faith. A further point that has arisen in TAR is the ways in which these methods can contribute to the theological/spiritual forma­ tion of those involved, especially enabling practitioners to grow 58

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characteristics of theo l o g i c a l a c t i o n in theological fluency with regard to understanding and sharing their embodied theologies. TAR is a form of learning in faith – a learning that can take concrete forms in terms of capacity build­ ing for reflective practice, theological reflection and renewal of practices. The claims of TAR to enabling faith-led change in practice is based on this conviction about the power of education, language and insight to renew, and so bring about effective change from within the practitioners’ own contexts. The extent to which this can be demonstrated is a task for our subsequent chapters, as will be seen.

Characteristic feature 5: Method allowing practice to contribute to the transformation of theology However, perhaps in a way distinctive among practical-theological methodologies, TAR claims not only to effect change of practice through theology, but also to effect change through practice of theology. We are some way off so extensive an experience of TAR such as demonstrably might be having an effect on either the theo­ logical academy or church teaching. Nonetheless, the methodolo­ gy as worked with so far illustrates the ways in which the theology that arises from practices can offer fresh insight and questions to both these areas of theological articulation. The details of this will become clearer as particular examples are discussed in later chapters. For now this commitment to en­ able embodied theology to contribute and shape formal, and even normative, theologies is simply flagged up as a necessary approach to the four-voiced theological vision. Certainly insights from prac­ tices concerning the ordering of Christian communities, questions of sacraments or authority, and issues of church identity, are all, already, present to a greater or lesser extent in the workings of TAR to date. However, it is also important to recognize a certain asymmetry with regard to how the different voices may effect change in each other. The extent of such asymmetry will vary from context to 59

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a fresh response context: for example, a Roman Catholic Justice and Peace group will be bound in a particular way to a normative theology of, say, the centrality of the Eucharist, which will, because of the norma­ tive ecclesial context, need to be given a place in the espoused and operant theologies that inform their practices. Alternatively, an Anglican social outreach group may feel less bound by ecclesial norms in its work, and feel open to a variety of interpretations of Scripture, which may be critically informed from the experiences of particular contexts and work in the contemporary setting. The point is that the ‘normative’, to a greater or lesser degree, enjoys a privileged position in terms of a certain structural authority. Al­ though this doesn’t necessarily mean that the normative is simply a superior authority, it does suggest that there is here ‘a tradition held in common’, which is different in kind from the insights of the particular or the local. These sensitive questions of change­ ability and normativity will need to be worked through in any particular example of TAR.

Working with TAR The current authors believe that TAR, as described above, rep­ resents a significant and helpful step in better enabling properly theological-practical research and development. What this chap­ ter has done is set out, in outline, a methodology and, perhaps more importantly, an approach or way of thinking. We thus ar­ rive at a pivotal point in this book. It is a point at which we are now in a position to set out how TAR has been, and can actu­ ally be, carried out, through exploration, first of the methods and skills needed (Part 3), and then of selected case studies (Part 4).

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part 3

Theological Action Research: The Process Explained

The chapters in Part 3 of the book set out what we have learned about TAR in a way that others can follow in designing their own projects. Our expectation is that new people coming to the approach will develop it in different directions and we look forward to learning from these new developments. Chapter 5 gives a brief definition and summary of TAR and acts as an overview for Part 3. Chapter 6 explores the type and number of people needed to undertake TAR. Chapters 7, 8 and 9 set out the different stages of the process. Part 3 makes references to two types of appendices. The first are key documents that we have used in the ARCS project to ensure we are covering all aspects of the process systematically. The second are examples of research instruments we have used. These examples are particular to the piece of research they come from and shaped by the research question and context. As such they are less readily adaptable than the key documents but illustrate the variety of research methods that can be used in TAR.

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5 What Is Theological Action Research?

This chapter offers a concise summary of TAR. It starts with a statement of its purpose and then summarizes its key features as a partnership, a process and a theological conversation. Finally the chapter evaluates some of the costs and benefits of using TAR.

The purpose of TAR The ARCS project was initiated to help church organizations and faith-based agencies find renewal in their own lives and in their relationship with society. Its aim was to help these organizations deepen their theology and improve their effectiveness. It also hoped to develop contacts between different traditions. An earlier project with Roman Catholic evangelization agencies had shown that there was a desire to find an approach that connected theology and practice and so the ARCS project set out to explore action research. TAR as an approach has been developed in an iterative way by working with twelve groups since the project started in January 2007. See Appendix 1, which lists the groups that have taken part. We now feel ready to propose a single-sentence definition of TAR. Theological Action Research is a partnership between an insider and an outsider team to undertake research and conversations answering theological questions about faithful practice in order to renew both theology and practice in the service of God’s mission. 63

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the process explain e d The main purpose of developing TAR was to overcome the problems of talking about God in practice set out in Chapter 1. We felt that within practical theology there were the resources to do this but they needed bringing together in a way that was neither patronizing nor baffling for practitioners. The features of practical theology that we have tried to incorporate into TAR are the following: • • • • • • •

collaborative working between practitioners and academics taking practice seriously as already faithful to the gospel but seeking greater faithfulness in a changing context asking theological questions about the work of church organizations and faith-based agencies gathering data systematically rather than anecdotally doing theological reflection allowing practical theology to act as a gateway to the wider theological task facilitating change in belief and action.

The following sections deal with the key aspects of the definition: TAR as a partnership, a process and a theological conversation.

A partnership Chapter 6 sets out the nature of the partnership involved in undertaking TAR. The aim is to have two teams working collaboratively. To distinguish between them the terms insider team and outsider team are used. The insider team owns the practice that is the subject of the research and has a commitment to exploring and reflecting upon that practice. The outsider team facilitates the research, builds the capacity of the insider team to take part in the research and broadens and deepens the reflection by bringing different knowledge and perspectives. In the ARCS project, the ARCS team have acted as the outsider team and partnered with insider teams in a number of organizations. However, Chapter 6 will show that TAR can be initiated by an insider team as well as 64

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what is theological act i o n r e s e a r c h ? an outsider team as long as they form an effective partnership and commit to the work involved. So for example, we can imagine practical theologians based in universities seeking to act as outsider teams and partner with insider teams in areas of practice which they wish to investigate. We can envisage that agencies that work alongside the local church, such as dioceses or para-church agencies, might offer to be an outsider team providing TAR as a service to local churches. It may be that organizations from different parts of the Christian tradition wish to work in partnership, taking it in turns to be outsider and insider in order to enrich their practice with insights from another tradition. The purpose of renewed theology and practice is the more faithful service of God’s mission (see further reading at the end of the chapter). Building the partnership relies upon each team’s confidence that the other team values that missional telos for their theology and practice. The reason for deliberately establishing this insider–outsider dynamic is to generate a range of perspectives that will stimulate reflection. One of the insider teams working with the ARCS project was Housing Justice, a Christian housing and homelessness agency. The insider team brought expertise in policy-related housing issues, church-based social action, an awareness of the organization’s overall direction and capacity to effect change, with one member having some formal theological training. The outsider ARCS team, on the other hand, brought expertise in systematic and practical theology, sociology of religion, qualitative research methods, as well as theological insights from across the range of ARCS projects. This resulted in a strong partnership, with rich and diverse reflections emerging from the data.

A process Chapters 7 and 8 set out the process of undertaking TAR. Examples from the ARCS project are included and the appendices give documents that can be adapted for your own use. 65

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the process explain e d We are aware that research often disappoints. People invest time and money in commissioning research and then are frustrated when the report sits on the shelf and no change occurs as a result. Action research is an approach that argues that research only makes an impact if it is embedded in a process that presupposes that the outcome will be change. This does not make more faithful belief and practice an automatic outcome, but the two teams hold each other to account for achieving the original purposes of the research. Action research deals in both chronological time and kairos time. For the research to be completed in a timely manner it needs to be well co-ordinated, with dates booked for meetings and data collection and, where possible, hold-ups anticipated. However, real life does sometimes knock action research off course and the teams need to be alert to renegotiating the process if the need arises. The data collection usually involves sampling the practice of the insider organization and so it can only take place when the practice takes place. This affects the pace and duration of the research. Action research also relies upon kairos time – the right moment, the unplanned insight, the conversation that takes off when participants ‘lose track of time’. Too rigid enforcement of chronological time can squash these moments which are often decisive for the research. Experienced facilitation can help strike the right balance between these two types of time. The aim of TAR is discernment of a renewed theology and practice and this is likely to arise from the quality of the relationships built and the quality of the time spent together.

A theological conversation Chapter 9 focuses on the theological conversations that are part of TAR. Practitioners often feel isolated and that no one outside their immediate circle is interested in their practice. They can often yearn for a theological conversation about their work rather than 66

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what is theological act i o n r e s e a r c h ? one that is pragmatically interested in effectiveness. The dilemmas of being both effective and faithful can be difficult to articulate, and it is not easy to discern an appropriate course of action. Practitioners have often been attracted to the organization they work for because of its values and beliefs but struggle to have the conversations that relate belief and action. Those who have been theologically trained often find it difficult to connect the language and ideas they have learned with the daily practice of faithful Christians. They are concerned that Godtalk outside the classroom and liturgy will be seen as ‘playing the expert’. TAR offers a systematic process that establishes relationships, turns practice into text and offers a structured way of having theological conversations. It does not guarantee that misunderstandings will not occur but starts with the expectation that uncovering differences between belief and action will be creative rather than crushing.

Costs and benefits TAR is a tower that shouldn’t be built without counting the cost but its flexibility as a process means that it is possible to harness a lot of the resources needed from the existing resources of the two teams. It is important when designing a TAR project to be realistic about how much can be done with the resources available. A smaller piece of research that yields outcomes is better than something on a larger scale that runs into the sand. The main costs can be identified as:

Time • • •

The work needed to co-ordinate the project. The work needed to gather the data. The work in preparing for, attending and following up the meetings associated with the project. 67

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the process explain e d Money • • •

Paying for any of the work that cannot be accommodated within team members’ existing roles. Travel costs for field work and meetings. Venue costs for field work and meetings.

Energy •

•

More is needed than turning up for meetings; team members need to have done the necessary preparation and be ready to contribute to the conversation. Those with access to the subjects of the research need to be prepared to motivate them to take part.

Risk •

The outcomes of TAR cannot be predicted at the outset and for some organizations that are averse to risk this is a step too far.

The main benefits are •

• • • • •

enhanced understanding and development of practice in the service of mission for church organizations and faith-based agencies enhanced confidence in thinking theologically about practice enhanced confidence in developing espoused theology and seeing it as a work in progress enhanced confidence in collaborative processes of discernment a broader network of collaborators a renewed sense of faith seeking understanding.

This chapter has attempted to offer a brief overview of TAR before the more detailed description in Chapters 6 to 9. 68

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what is theological act i o n r e s e a r c h ?

Further reading On the relationship between faithful practice and mission Bosch, D. J. (1991), Transforming Mission: Paradigm Shifts in Theology of Mission, New York: Orbis. Cameron, H. (2010), Resourcing Mission: Practical Theology for Changing Churches, London: SCM Press. van Gelder, C. (2007), The Ministry of the Missional Church, Grand Rapids MI: Baker Books.

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6 Who Do We Need to Be to Do Theological Action Research?

This chapter explains the way in which TAR involves insider and outsider teams working in partnership both to undertake the research and in the reflective conversations that follow from it. Most theology is produced by individuals rather than groups and so this chapter works through the issues involved in working collaboratively. It looks at whether you need qualified theologians or qualitative researchers and acknowledges the skill in facilitating meetings. Examples from the different organizations who worked with the ARCS team are offered, and Appendix 1 summarizes this work.

TAR is best done in teams TAR is a partnership between an insider team and an outsider team. The insider team owns the practice that is the subject of the research and has a commitment to exploring and reflecting upon that practice. Their aim is to change the practice or develop their theological understanding of that practice or both. The insider team will usually be led by the person with responsibility for a particular area of practice, although this can be delegated. They will seek to involve other people who undertake the practice or whose work is affected by it. For example, the research with Westminster Agency for Evangelisation focused on adult faith formation. It was led by the co-ordinator of the adult faith programme, who also had personal experience as a researcher. She 70

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who do we need t o b e formed an insider team consisting initially of her and the head of the agency and this team was expanded in cycle two to include other staff members. The outsider team facilitates the research, builds the capacity of the insider team to take part in the research and broadens and deepens the reflection by bringing different knowledge and perspectives. The outsider team will be led by the person responsible for the relationship with the insider team, although in practice they may delegate day-to-day co-ordination. For example, the research with the Church of England parish of St Mary’s Battersea was set up and overseen by the ARCS team member who worked for an Anglican theological college. However, the ARCS fieldworker maintained most of the day-to-day communication with the insider team. At every stage of set-up, data gathering, and data reflection all members of the outsider ARCS team were kept fully informed of developments by email and they shared insights and undertook reflection at their team meetings. The partnership between insider and outsider teams described is the classic balance seen in writing on action research. Each team brings something distinctive to the research and it is through the partnership that the research and eventual change in practice takes place. However, in the ARCS project we did some successful work (for example, CAFÉ) where the outsider team took the lead in designing the research, gathering the data, and feeding back reflections, which were discussed with the insider team. We called this the ‘reflective practitioner’ model. It was part of our exploration as to the ways in which classic action research partnerships could be stretched to encompass situations where the practitioner organization had very limited resources. To describe this as a partnership would be to say that it was outsider-team led. Some organizations we worked with (Diocese of Portsmouth, Housing Justice) invited us to do capacity building with them or already had seasoned researchers working for the organization (London Jesuit Volunteers, CAFOD). Where organizations already have or have developed capacity for qualitative research 71

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the process explain e d and theological reflection it should be possible to develop a partnership that is insider team led where outsiders are brought in to assist with framing the research questions and working through the reflective process. We also envisage that organizations who have gained confidence in the TAR process by being an insider team will develop the capacity to act as an outsider team to other organizations. For example, a diocese could have a number of staff trained in this approach and then go alongside parishes in their diocese to help them undertake TAR. Chapters 7 to 9 will describe the classic model of partnership but there will be a note at the end of these chapters suggesting what the different issues for an outsider- and insider-led partnership might be. The size of teams will depend upon the people available and the scope of the research being undertaken. Although an individual could act alone in either an insider or outsider team it would be difficult for them to do the reflection upon the data. Two people working together as a team would be fine. The numbers involved depend upon the resources available to the research and the complexity of the practice being studied. In compiling the insider team it is worth thinking about how the different voices or perspectives on the practice will be represented either in the team or in the sources of data gathered. Members of both outsider and insider teams can have different levels of involvement and contribute different skills to the work. However, in the set-up phase described in Chapter 7 and the reflection phase described in Chapter 9 it is important to ensure that people can be available for key meetings and have the time to read any necessary documents before meetings. Key qualities needed by team members include • • • •

an interest in the practice of the insider organization and a willingness to ask questions about it acceptance that their voice will be one among a number willingness to change their views as well as play a part in changing the views of others trustworthiness with confidential documents 72

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who do we need t o b e • •

willingness to make mistakes and forgive the mistakes made by others willingness to articulate one’s own position.

It is helpful if the teams contain someone who is good at suggesting connections between what people say.

The insider/outsider relationship Once the insider and outsider teams have formed there is a need to establish the partnership between them. The warm-up meetings described in the next chapter are an important part of this and need to allow time for relationship building as well as following the agenda. The relationship between outsiders and insiders in research on religion is much debated (Arweck and Stringer 2002). Some would argue that the insiders in a religious organization are too immersed in its culture and beliefs to be objective about their practice. Others would argue that outsiders can never fully understand what is going on and will only pick up on the things that seem ‘strange’ to them. TAR tries to make creative use of this tension by building it into the design of the research. The insiders need to build sufficient trust with the outsiders to regard them as partners in the gathering and interpretation of data. The outsiders need to be sufficiently different from the insiders to stimulate reflection that goes beyond current assumptions. The relationships need to be sufficiently robust for each to challenge the other without feeling diminished. There can be added complexities in researching religious organizations that are internally diverse. How is the internal team constructed so as to be representative? How do members of the outside team deal with the fact that they may have greater empathy with some parts of the practitioner organization than others? This diversity may be discussed at the beginning or only become apparent as the research proceeds but it needs to be acknowledged if the work of reflection described in Chapter 9 is to be accomplished. 73

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the process explain e d In Theological Action Research, the spiritual and theological for­ mation of the researchers is relevant. Nesbitt notes that being a Quaker researcher carries with it perceptions of Quakers as liberal and accepting. This was valuable in encouraging some research participants to open up, but for others it created a suspicion that they had insufficiently firm beliefs to understand the participants’ faith. There is value in researchers from both teams having had experience of working with Christians from other traditions. In the ARCS team we had members who had ecumenical experience as teachers, researchers and participants in ecumenical groups. In practice, the members of the ARCS team had a variety of experiences of insiderness and outsiderness during the project. In some settings, as the outsider team, they were seen as outsiders because they were academics and not practitioners but also insiders because they came from the same Christian denomination. In other settings, they were assumed to be of the same Christian denomination because of the academic institution they were working for, and viewed as honorary insiders. In TAR, the use of the terms insider and outsider team is in order to be clear which group is being described. However, the experiences of outsiderness and insiderness may be much more complex. Where they are noticed or commented upon it is worth noting what they reveal and how the differences uncovered can be harnessed in stimulating reflection.

Do you need qualified theologians on the teams? Chapter 1 shows the problems the ARCS project has encountered in helping people to talk about God in relation to their practice as practitioners in the Church or faith-based agencies. Chapter 4 offered our proposal for overcoming these problems by understanding theology not as a single thing but as a conversation involving four voices, the formal, the normative, the espoused and   E. Nesbitt (2002), ‘Quaker Ethnographers: A Reflective Approach’, in E. Arweck and M. D. Stringer (eds), Theorizing Faith: The Insider/Outsider Problem in the Study of Ritual, Birmingham: University of Birmingham Press, p. 186.

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who do we need t o b e the operant. This proposal also involves a shift in who ‘counts’ as a theologian. Theologian is often used to describe people working in universities writing books about aspects of the Christian tradition. In this book these people are called formal theologians and seen as experts on the Christian tradition able to offer insights to the work of theology that goes on in the Church and among practitioners. ‘Theologian’ may also be used to describe people who train others for various forms of ministry in the Church. These theological educators usually have a particular interest in that part of the Christian tradition which is regarded as normative for the ministry of those they are training. There is likely to be a canon of the writing of historical figures or text books particularly written for that tradition. These theological educators often produce books to make this canon more accessible to ministers in their tradition. In some denominations there is a practice of referring to people who have had formal or normative theological education as being ‘theologically trained’. This is seen as giving them a particular role in helping the church or faith-based agency in which they work articulate its espoused theology. This may be in the form of mission statements, statements of values or purpose, or acts of worship that affirm the beliefs of the organization. However, not everyone who gets involved in articulating espoused theology is theologically trained and they may be relying on personal reading in theology and secular sources. There are growing numbers of people who have doctorates and masters degrees in practical theology and they may be willing to join insider or outsider teams. TAR benefits from the involvement of formal theologians, theological educators and the theologically trained. However, their participation is not as experts but as participants in the conversation. No one voice should drown out the others even though the search is for a renewed espoused theology that makes the best use of normative and formal sources. The aim is that members of both teams should enter the process willing to learn from each   In the Church of England, most dioceses will have Canon Theologians attached to the cathedral, who will have a particular interest in normative and formal theology.

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the process explain e d other, interested in the insights to be gained from studying practice and from listening to the Christian tradition. The aim of TAR is to generate sufficient insight for changes to be made in belief or action through the collection of data and reflection upon it. The level of qualifications required in the outsider team will depend upon what the insider team regards as sufficient. The ARCS project was complex in that the ARCS team was acting as the outsider team to a number of insider teams in both Roman Catholic and Anglican settings. The project also had the aim of generating ideas that would influence formal theology. The ARCS team had members who were formal theologians, and all team members had normative commitments. This complexity is not an essential part of TAR. We envisage TAR as something that a diocese could undertake with its parishes or a faith-based agency with its client organizations. In this case there will be locally understood norms about what counts as ‘theologically trained’ and existing networks that could be used to draw in theological educators or those with postgraduate qualifications in theology. It is likely that insider teams will have on them people who are theologically trained, but that need not necessarily be the case if the organization in which the practice is located does not have this among its recruitment criteria. There are particular challenges for faith-based organizations that have to make a case for a particular post requiring someone to be an adherent of that faith. Because of the way in which university theology and ministerial training have developed, it may be possible that there are team members who are theologically qualified but who have not studied practical theology or learned how to undertake theological reflection. The further reading section at the end of this chapter suggests some books they may find useful. Reading the first four chapters of this book would be a good starting point.

Do you need qualified qualitative researchers on the teams? TAR encourages practitioners to ask theological questions about their practice and then be involved in a process of gathering data 76

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who do we need t o b e that will help to answer those questions. As Chapter 3 showed, action research exists in many forms, but a shared feature is gathering data about existing practice. The level of expertise required in qualitative research needs to be sufficient for the research to be credible with the insider team and their organization. The use of qualitative research in practical theology is still very much under development in the UK and the ARCS project has been a substantial contributor to those developments. Studying Local Churches published in 2005 gives a basic indication of how qualitative research can be used to study local churches. Practical Theology and Qualitative Research, published in 2006, gives a more detailed discussion with some worked examples. Chapters 10, 11 and 12 of this book give worked examples of TAR. It may also be useful to attend a short intensive course on research methods. Many people with postgraduate qualifications in the social sciences will have had some training in qualitative research methods and design. It is worth asking around to see who might be available with the necessary training. However, these people may not understand the link between theology and qualitative research and so reading the first four chapters of this book will be a helpful introduction. It is impossible to anticipate every problem that may occur in designing qualitative research but here are some of the more common ones: • •

•

not having a clearly phrased research question that requires the collection of data to answer it using methods to gather data that are unlikely to produce the type of data you need. Here the most useful test is to ask: if I were to experience this research method, would I be likely to provide the sort of data needed in response? not trying out the research method in a pilot to iron out the bugs. These may include: questions which seem clear to you but not to the respondent or methods which are going to take too long to administer.

  For example www.rcc.ac.uk and see research pages.

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the process explain e d •

collecting data that you don’t know how to analyse or that doesn’t contribute to answering the question.

TAR benefits from the involvement of people trained in the design and execution of qualitative research. However, their role is to contribute expertise rather than control the questions that are asked and the data gathered to answer them.

Recognizing and using skills in facilitating meetings Gathering data is only part of the process of TAR. Another key element is the reflection that goes on both within the insider and outsider teams and then jointly. When these meetings involve small numbers of people, say up to four, the conversation may flow freely with no need for a chair or facilitator. However, given the stages of the process and the benefits from being systematic, it is likely to be helpful to have someone guiding the discussion. This may be a specific skill that the outsider team contributes or there may be a number of people identified who can take on this role. The advantage of a facilitator is that they can make sure all aspects of the process are covered in the time available; they can offer verbal summaries of the discussion to check for agreement and to help the note taker; they can identify blocks in the conversation and ask people to clarify the points they are making. All this work frees up the other participants in the conversation to be creative and make connections sparked by the data. If there is no one who feels they have these skills, then the book by Catherine Widdicombe called Meetings that Work is an excellent guide and it may be possible to go on a short course in facilitating theological reflection.

Locating your conversation partners We are aware that some readers of this book will be on their own, thinking about how this approach to research could be used either in their dissertation or in the place in which they work. After 78

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who do we need t o b e reading a chapter on teamwork there may be a sense of either wondering ‘can I go it alone’ or ‘maybe this is not for me’. This final section is one of encouragement to find others who will get involved. If you are a student wondering about whether you could use this approach in a dissertation there are a number of points to bear in mind: • • •

It may be possible to get permission to work with another student or students on a collaborative project using TAR. It may be possible to build TAR into your existing work or placements related to your course. Action research relies upon studying real practice and involving real human collaborators; as such it is subject to all the normal contingencies of life such as unexpected events, missed deadlines, and cancelled meetings. If your research has a pressing timescale and needs to be completed before you change jobs, have a baby, get ordained or some other such life event then you may want to think particularly carefully about what is manageable in the time available.

If you are a practitioner wanting to research your own practice you might want to bear in mind: •

•

•

Don’t underestimate how interesting others may find your practice. There may well be those whose work no longer gives them much contact with practice who would welcome involvement. There may be theological educators or formal theologians who would welcome or may be actively seeking some ‘real world’ involvement. There may be people you know doing other types of work who have a similar interest in researching their own practice and will take an interest in what you are doing. If your immediate colleagues are not interested in forming an insider team, there may be colleagues doing similar jobs in other parts of the country or in other denominations who would be interested in collaborating. 79

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the process explain e d If you are a formal theologian or theological educator wanting to gain experience in researching practice you might want to bear in mind: •

•

Don’t underestimate how many practitioners feel isolated and that their practice is of no interest to the wider Church and who long for someone with whom to have a theological as opposed to purely pragmatic conversation. There may be colleagues in other disciplines who have had experience of researching practice that you can draw upon.

Ecumenical conversation partners The ARCS project has been enriched by working across the Anglican and Roman Catholic traditions. As we have discussed data, different insights have come from different team members because of their different formation in faith and theology. However, it is important to take on board the discussion of normativity in Chapters 4 and 9. Different traditions will be decisive for particular practice, and the way of taking account of the Christian tradition may vary. Sensitivity to this needs to be part of the reflective discussions.

Conversation partners from other academic disciplines A feature of practical theology is its willingness to be in conversation with other academic disciplines that shed light on the human condition. In the ARCS project we deliberately set out to include sociology of religion as a conversation partner because the insider teams were all located in London and we were interested in the way in which globalization was changing religious practice in London. We were able to bring in sociology of religion as a conversation partner in some of the reflective work we did with insider teams, but often it emerged in the meta-reflections we conducted across the different research projects. The need to listen to another ‘voice’ placed time pressures on the reflection meetings, but it enabled the team to see if that voice complemented or 80

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who do we need t o b e .

challenged the theological insights that emerged. Two of the ARCS team members had training in the sociology of religion and were active participants in the sub-discipline. It would have been difficult to include sociology of religion in the conversation without that expertise located in team members.

A note for outsider-team led TAR If you are working with a lone reflective practitioner or a small number of practitioners it is important to check that they have support from their organization for undertaking the research. This can be time consuming but it gives them the legitimacy they require to enable data collection to take place and to commit time to the reflection process. Without this preliminary gathering of support it is unlikely that they will be able to make changes to their practice arising from the research.

A note for insider-team led TAR If you are bringing in a lone external reflector or a pair of external reflectors check that between you you have all the expertise you need to undertake the research. Ensure that the external team are fully briefed on TAR so they understand how best to make their contribution to the research.

Further reading On theology Bevans, S. (2002), Models of Contextual Theology, Maryknoll NY: Orbis. Cameron, H. (2010), Resourcing Mission: Practical Theology for Changing Churches, London: SCM Press. Killen, P. O. C. and J. de Beer (2006), The Art of Theological Reflection, New York: Crossroad. 81

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the process explain e d Thompson, J., W. S. Pattison et al. (2008), SCM Studyguide to Theological Reflection, London: SCM Press.

On qualitative research Cameron, H., P. Richter, et al. (eds) (2005), Studying Local Churches: A Handbook, London: SCM Press. Denscombe, M. (2007), The Good Research Guide: For SmallScale Social Research Projects, Buckingham: Open University Press. Swinton, J. and H. Mowat (2006), Practical Theology and Qualitative Research, London: SCM Press.

On facilitating Widdicombe, C. (2000), Meetings that Work: A Practical Guide to Teamworking in Groups, Cambridge: Lutterworth.

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7 Setting up Theological Action Research

The process outlined in Chapters 7, 8 and 9 has evolved over the course of four enriching years of partnership and development. It is not fixed in stone. Each TAR project is unique and repays thoughtful attention to the design of the process to suit the context. What we offer here are guidelines from our experience, which have been positively evaluated by the insider teams we have worked with on the ARCS project. This chapter covers the two warm-up meetings, the questionnaire used to help insider teams establish their starting point and the remit document used to record the agreement between the outsider and insider teams.

Establishing a working alliance – Warm-up meeting 1 Because TAR is a conversational approach to doing theology, it is important that those who are going to take part in the conversation meet each other and assess whether the project they want to undertake is realistic and whether they have the energy to take it forward. It is common for practitioners to be hard pressed for time and this can squeeze out time for reflection and the extra work involved in a research project. It is common for those undertaking research as part of their job to have other responsibilities such as teaching and administration that can drive out the time needed for research. Action research can often seem rather open ended and unable to predict precisely what results will be obtained by a particular date. This can 83

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the process explain e d make it a counter-cultural activity in some settings. These points are made not to be negative or discouraging but to be honest about the challenges that all types of action research face including TAR. The experience of the ARCS project has been that a genuine curiosity about practice, a desire to understand it theologically and some energy from team members is sufficient to take a TAR project forward. This needs to be accompanied by realism about what can be achieved with the people and time available. There also needs to be sufficient rapport between the insider and outsider teams that the prospect of undertaking theological reflection together is met with anticipation rather than dread. Sometimes personal chemistry suggests that this is someone I would find it difficult to share my views with openly and to challenge and be challenged by. So the phrase warm-up meeting indicates both the warmth coming from the energy that both teams can commit to the project and the warmth of relationship that it is possible to establish. There should be no embarrassment on either side in deciding after the first warm-up meeting not to proceed. The main aim of the first meeting is to establish a shared understanding of what TAR will involve and what type of practice might be the focus of the research (see sample agenda at Appendix 2). It may be at the first meeting that neither team is fully formed but that sufficient mutual understanding is achieved for the two partners to go away and recruit the team members they need to make the project work. This is likely to include people with appropriate levels of skill in theological reflection, qualitative research and facilitating meetings (see Chapter 6). TAR is a research approach that can be used in a range of contexts. However, it may be that either the insider or outsider team approach the research with certain restrictions. It is important that these are shared at this first meeting and discussed to see whether they present an obstacle to the research. The ARCS project had the following criteria for the organizations it worked with linked to its funding: the practice had to take place in London, the insider team had to be within the Roman Catholic Church or the Church of England (or an agency working with them), and the practice being researched had to link church and society. 84

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setting up If the TAR process is being initiated by a student as part of a course of study then they will need to be clear about the constraints which that will place upon the research. It may limit the timescale, the amount of data that can be gathered, the confidentiality of the data and what happens to the interpretations developed in shared reflection. The other parties need to be given a chance to think about whether they can confine the process within these constraints. In reaching a shared understanding of what TAR will involve, it may well be that one team (often the outsider team) starts with a greater understanding than the other. The aim should be to share sufficient information for the other team to be happy to take the next step rather than use technical terms that may be off-putting. As the opening chapter described, there can be substantial difficulties about talking about God in practitioner settings and many of these are linked to the perception of theology as being a complex language that will be difficult to understand. The sample Set-up Questionnaire appended (see Appendix 3) shows how the four voices can be introduced without using their technical names. If this first meeting has gone well it can be tempting to push on and reach an agreement about the research question and methods. However, our experience is that both teams need time to reflect and that the second meeting goes better if both teams have had time to prepare for it. If ideas for research questions emerge it is good to note them so they can be returned to at the next meeting. The final act of the first meeting is to set the date for the second meeting and agree when the insider team will send the outsider team the Set-up Questionnaire.

The Set-up Questionnaire This questionnaire is completed by the insider team between the first and second meetings. Its most obvious aims are to gather factual information about how the relationship will work and to start the process of the insider team articulating their espoused theology and any normative and formal influences they perceive to be important. Less obviously, the questionnaire is an opportunity for the insider team to 85

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the process explain e d form, undertake a shared task involving some level of reflection and respond to a deadline. If they find this difficult then there is a need to revisit the energy levels and practicalities surrounding taking part in research. If it is accomplished there is a sense of achievement right at the beginning of the project. The Set-up Questionnaire used in the ARCS project can be found at Appendix 3. You are welcome to adapt it for your own project. The questionnaire aims to establish the following information as a basis for discussion at the second warm-up meeting: 1 who will act as the main contact in the insider team 2 the espoused theology of the organization, which may well be expressed as beliefs, values or mission/purpose 3 any sources the organization regards as normative 4 any writers or practitioners who may have a formal influence on the organization 5 questions that clarify the organization’s relationship to any project criteria such as location 6 initial ideas about the research 7 skills and knowledge the insider team can draw upon 8 what outcomes the organization would like from taking part in the research.

Identifying the research question and designing the research – Warm-up meeting 2 The second warm-up meeting needs to involve the key contacts in both insider and outsider teams and the people who will take responsibility for gathering the data and facilitating the theological reflection. A phone call or email before the meeting is due to take place has proved helpful in clarifying who would need to be there and the timescale for the meeting. It is important to confirm that the Set-up Questionnaire had been received. The agenda for this meeting includes: 1 talking through the Set-up Questionnaire to ensure a shared understanding of the information in it 86

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setting up 2 identifying a research question about practice 3 designing the research needed to answer the question 4 agreeing who will gather the data and what training, if any, is needed 5 agreeing who will be involved in the reflection upon the data 6 agreeing a clear action plan that can go in the remit document (see sample agenda at Appendix 2). Here are some issues that can come up during this agenda.

1  Talking through the Set-up Questionnaire to ensure a shared understanding It may be that the situation has moved on since the first warm-up meeting. As a result of further reflections by both teams new factors that need to be taken into account may have emerged for discussion. The response of the insider team to the questions about espoused, normative and formal theology will indicate their fluency with theological conversation and so enable the meeting to proceed using theological language in a way that is appropriate for both teams. This may be the moment to introduce the idea of doing theology in four voices but again it is not essential if this will be off-putting.

2  Identifying a research question about practice It is important that the question is a genuine one for the insider team. What do they most want to find out? There may be debate about whether the research question is sufficiently theological. The box below shows the range of research questions used in the ARCS project. Some are more obviously theological than others but greater theological awareness will often be developed as the research proceeds. If the practice of the faithful practitioner is seen as graced, then the theology implicit in that practice will emerge, even if the initial language used to describe the practice is not overtly theological. 87

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the process explain e d Examples of research questions How does the Youth 2000 retreat enable conversion to Christ and a deeper understanding of the Catholic faith for young people? How does the practice of being involved in a Cold Weather Shelter Network influence the theological outlook of parishes and the faith practice of individuals involved? What impact does St Mary’s Alpha course have on the personal faith lives of participants? How can Westminster’s Justice and Peace Commission develop ways of equipping parishes to reflect theologically upon the impact of their justice and peace work?

3  Designing the research needed to answer the question This is the point at which input from someone with experience of qualitative research is most important. It is worth thinking creatively about the type of research subjects that will need to be involved, the methods they are likely to co-operate with and the time they will take. In the ARCS work with London Jesuit Volunteers, the insider team suggested asking participants to undertake some reflective writing about their practice. This is not something we would have suggested, fearing it was too onerous, but in fact it produced data of a high quality, which the participants involved enjoyed producing. It is worth asking, will these methods if used with these people give us the data we need to answer this question? Once it has been agreed who will need to be approached for data and by what methods, responsibility for designing the research instruments and how they will be piloted should be confirmed.

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setting up 4  Agreeing who will gather the data and what training,   if any, is needed In the classic model of action research one of the aims is that the outsider team will build the capacity of the insider team by offering them training in the research methods to be used. This means that the data is gathered either jointly or wholly by the insider team. A benefit is that once the research is over there are people in the organization who feel equipped to research practice and could move to an insider-team led model of TAR. In the work with London Jesuit Volunteers it was agreed that some of the participant observation would be done by people already working with the participants. This made the observation less intrusive and also enriched the observers’ understanding of the role they played by observing colleagues. See the box for the outline of the training session by way of example. Methods training for co-researchers (example of session at London Jesuit Volunteers) Training four experienced reflectors in participant observation so they could make observations of each other’s groups. 45 minutes available at the beginning of a team meeting. Step 1 – I asked the group to tell me about the challenges and joys of facilitating reflection groups. Step 2 – While they discussed this I noted down value words they used including any that were ambiguous. Step 3 – I gave a simple definition of participant observation and reminded them of the research question.   Participant observation is a research method in which the researcher takes part in an activity, but with the consent of the participants also makes observations that are later recorded as data.

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the process explain e d Step 4 – We discussed what an observation schedule might contain. Step 5 – We discussed any difficulties we could foresee in undertaking the observations and I used examples from my observation of their conversation to illustrate the issues we discussed. Step 6 – We agreed who would take the next practical steps to schedule the observations and feed the data back.

5  Agreeing who will be involved in the reflection on data It is important to agree who will be involved in the reflection meetings at this stage so that dates can be set up and team members set aside time to read data and write up reflections.

6  Agreeing a clear action plan that can go in the remit document Flowing from the meeting should be an action plan that sets out the stages in the research and gives timescales and who will take action. There are likely to be tasks such as preparing information sheets and consent forms, research methods training, setting up data gathering, setting up reflection meetings.

The remit document We found that a remit document agreed by the leaders of the insider and outsider teams was a helpful way of setting out what the research was seeking to achieve and how it would be undertaken. We experimented with different ways of drawing up this document, but see Appendix 4 for the final format we arrived at. The remit document became a collection of three documents: 1 the research action plan 2 the Set-up Questionnaire filled in by the insider team 90

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setting up 3 an information sheet about their aims and composition by the outsider team. The remit document was a helpful guide to team members who came on board after the warm-up meetings. It was also a helpful tool for evaluating the research once the cycle was complete.

A note for insider-team led TAR It may be tempting to go it alone as a group of insiders and not bother with an outsider team. The logistics of identifying, warming up and securing the commitment of outsiders may seem too great. However, we feel that good quality reflection rarely occurs without someone from outside the situation to ask the obvious questions and challenge assumptions. They can also help sharpen up the research question and suggest creative sources of data and methods of gathering it. It also provides the opportunity to work with people from another part of the Christian tradition or to involve theologians in a context that is faith-based but does most of its work in a secular language.

A note for outsider-team led TAR The set-up phase is the key part of the process for assessing the realism of the project for the insider team. The insider team need to ensure that they have the organizational support they need and that access for the purposes of data collection will be given. It will be important to be clear what input is needed from the insider team even if it is the outsider team that will undertake the data collection. Without their commitment to reflection, changed practice and changed espoused theology is unlikely. This chapter has discussed the preliminary meetings and documents that are required before TAR can be undertaken. Appendix 5 summarizes the process in a flow chart. 91

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8 Doing Theological Action Research

This chapter moves on to the process of doing the research. It covers negotiating access and ensuring informed consent prior to data collection and data sharing. It offers some initial thoughts about data analysis and creating feedback documents but this is expanded upon in Chapter 9. The flow chart at Appendix 5 may be a useful summary.

Negotiating access and ensuring informed consent The warm-up meetings will have identified what access to the organization is required to gather data and the action plan will say whose responsibility it is to negotiate access. In some organizations it may be that the data is being gathered on the practice of members of the insider team and so this involves no third parties. However, in church organizations and faith-based agencies it is more likely that data will need to be gathered from participants in the organization in order to give a rounded picture of the practice. Negotiating access tends to be either straightforward or unexpectedly time consuming. On initial contact, gate keepers may feel that they can give the go ahead but then subsequently decide to take the request to a higher authority. If this higher authority is a committee then it may be necessary to prepare a paper making the case and wait for the next meeting of the committee. Sometimes that item on the agenda is not reached or a request for further information is made and so the process can become prolonged. Seeking informed consent from participants depends upon the organization having agreed to access and so there is no short cut to gaining the appropriate approval. 92

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doing theological act i o n r e s e a r c h Consent from individual research participants is usually gained by giving them an information sheet about the research and asking them to sign a consent form saying they are content that their data should be used in the ways stipulated. There may be participants for whom written information is not appropriate and some sort of verbal briefing is needed before reading out a consent form and requesting signature. In TAR helpful insights often come from single phrases that encapsulate a particular issue. Where these will come from cannot be anticipated in advance and so ensuring appropriate consent from all participants is important. Appendix 6 contains an example of an information sheet from the ARCS project and Appendix 7 contains the standard consent form used in the project. Most universities have protocols for information sheets and consent forms on their websites that can offer a helpful template.

Information sheets Questions that can be used to frame an information sheet include: • • • • • • • • • •

What is the purpose of the research? Who is organizing the research? Why have I been asked to take part? Do I have to take part? What will happen if I do take part? What are the advantages and disadvantages of taking part? Will what I say be kept confidential? What will happen to the data? Who is funding the research? Who do I contact if I have questions about the way the research is conducted?

Usually the most difficult question to answer is about confidentiality. Religious organizations are notoriously particular in their identity and seemingly insignificant facts can disclose a person’s 93

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the process explain e d identity. In many cases participants are not concerned about their identity or that of the organization being made known; in other cases there will be sensitivities that need to be dealt with. It is important not to promise more anonymity than can realistically be delivered. In some cases it may be helpful if those involved in reflecting upon raw data sign a confidentiality agreement.

Consent forms These usually deal with the following issues: • • • • •

that participation in the study is voluntary and withdrawal does not need to be explained that sufficient opportunity has been given to find out about the study confidentiality how the data will be used permission to record or film.

Sometimes people in church settings feel that the situation is informal enough not to require consent. Although it can seem bureaucratic, writing information sheets and consent forms can help check that both teams have a shared understanding of what is going to happen. They can also help show participants that their views are being taken seriously and that the time they contribute is valued. Research taking place under the auspices of a university will require ethical approval, which will include the production of information sheets and consent forms.

Data collection In action research, data collection may be done entirely by one of the teams, but more often it is a shared activity. Chapter 7 discussed the possibility that in some cases the outsider team may offer some training in research methods to the insider team.

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doing theological act i o n r e s e a r c h In addition to training, it is important that all research instruments are piloted. This is to ensure that they are easily used in practice, that they take an appropriate amount of time to administer and that they are understood by participants. In action research, research instruments will often have been designed or commented on by several team members and so there is the possibility that some clarity will have been lost in that process. Piloting involves finding someone who is a valid representative of the research participants, trying out the research instrument on them, timing the process, asking for their feedback on the experience and then evaluating it asking: Did this produce the type of data we want to answer the research question? There is not the space in this book to offer detailed guidance on designing research instruments. Examples from the ARCS project are appended of: a questionnaire (Appendix 8); an interview schedule (Appendix 9), and a focus group schedule (Appendix 10). The book by Denscombe in the further reading section offers concise advice on research design. Not everything that happens in qualitative research is planned, and the unexpected can often yield interesting insights into the practice being studied. It is helpful if those conducting the research keep field notes of their own observations, their reactions to the way in which they are received, and instances where they are aware of their own bias and projections. These field notes can be shared with members of their team as data. An example of the usefulness of this in the ARCS project was when during the course of participant observation it became evident to the Roman Catholic participants that the observer was an Anglican. This surprised them and turned the direction of the conversation, indicating that although the activity being observed was seen as evangelization, there was no expectation that non-Catholics would participate. This led to some important reflections about the understanding of ad extra activities in the parish. Qualitative research can generate a surprisingly large amount of data. Transcribing, storing and labelling the data, research instruments and field notes needs to be tackled systematically if the data analysis and reflection is to proceed smoothly. 95

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the process explain e d Interviews and focus groups are usually taped so that the interviewer can concentrate on conducting the session. Transcribing tapes can be time-consuming or if contracted out it can be expensive. Part of the planning for the project needs to include how many hours of recorded material might be gathered and how it will be turned into text. Given the conversational nature of the reflection, there needs to be a shared text that all team members can access. A compromise may be to use a computer package such as NVivo, which allows snippets of the tape to be labelled for playback or the most salient parts of the tape to be transcribed. However, the cost of the software and learning how to use it needs to be factored in. Storing data needs to be undertaken in a suitably secure and backed up way. If personal details of participants are to have a limited circulation then anonymized versions of the data need to be circulated to other team members. Having all the data backed up on a secure server and not just on a single desktop or laptop is vital. In the ARCS project we regularly updated memory sticks with the data for each team member so there were multiple copies of the anonymized data. A side effect of teamwork is that some documents go through many drafts. Data may also be saved in an initial form and then a modified form. Further documents may be produced in the process of analysing the data and then documents recording reflections will also be created. Action research will often take place across more than one cycle and so there can be similar documents that refer to different cycles of the research. To help us avoid insanity, the ARCS fieldworker devised a labelling system that was used for all project documents: Team name_action research cycle_document name_ author initials _date of production Where the document was one that was circulating by email for comment then the author’s initials would go before the date of production, then the initials of the person commenting and the dates of their comments. From reading this section of the book 96

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doing theological act i o n r e s e a r c h you will see that we also developed conventions about what some documents were called, and this made recognition easier. When working as an individual researcher, good filing with clearly labelled folders can overcome these problems. When documents are in circulation between team members who have preoccupations other than filing, a labelling system is invaluable.

Data sharing The foregoing lecture about data labelling appropriately precedes a discussion of data sharing. An early surprise of the ARCS project was the power of raw data presented as text. It was as if seeing practice transferred into text in itself generated the distance that triggered reflection. Hearing participants in their own words was powerful for those who were not in touch with the day-to-day realities of the practice. Often phrases or sentences would leap out of the data as offering new insights into the practice. We also became aware that when we did presentations about the project it was the extracts from the data that helped people understand what we were trying to do. This caused us to encourage both teams to work with raw data but raised issues about the protocols of data sharing. It became more important in designing the information sheets and consent forms to think about who would need to see the data and what their relationship to the participants was. If there were ethical issues or perceived or actual disadvantage for the participants then consideration was given as to how the data could be anonymized. There could be tensions between the organization wanting it to be known that they had taken part in the research yet needing to protect the identity of participants. These issues were worked at on a case-by-case basis. Where there were any concerns then consent was double checked before quoting data in publications. There were also instances where it was only really the insider team that was able to recognize identities from details and so they would give an undertaking of confidentiality in their work. 97

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the process explain e d

Data analysis The process of data analysis in action research has multiple stages which may blur into each other. Initially there is reacting to the raw data and finding strategies for reading it. Then there may be a phase of data analysis designed to make further sense of the data. Then there is the important reflective work that interprets the data and identifies how it might shape future practice and espoused theology. This blurring is evident in the last two sections of this chapter and the first two sections of Chapter 9. There is some overlap between them, with the emphasis in this chapter on analytical processes and in the next chapter on reflective processes. In the early stages of the ARCS project we either met with the insider team to undertake shared reflection or we presented to them reflections that ‘we had made earlier’. We gradually realized that this had a disempowering effect on the insider team, who found it difficult to challenge our perceptions as outsider ‘experts’. This problem needed to be overcome because it was reducing the value of the reflection and it was important that the insider teams own the reflections if they were to use them to change their practice and/or espoused theology. We tackled this by devising a ‘guide to reading the data’, which we asked insider teams to use before then meeting for a joint meeting to share reflections, theirs first and ours second (see Appendix 11). There was variation between the organizations we worked with as to how much analysis was undertaken of the data. With one early organization considerable analysis using grounded theory was undertaken and then a theological reflection written upon the analysed data. With other organizations we experimented with using raw data. Qualitative data analysis at its most simple involves coding snippets of data, that is, giving them a label that relates to a specific theme. These themes may have been established before the research started, either by reference to what key writers have said or from the prior experience of the research teams. The data is read deductively to provide evidence for those themes. Alternatively, 98

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doing theological act i o n r e s e a r c h themes may emerge inductively from the reading of the data and snippets of data coded to illustrate that emerging theme. In the ARCS project both strategies were used to good effect. If there is a desire to listen to the voice of another discipline or tradition in analysing the data then it may be helpful for the team member with that role to read through the data and code insights that seem to emerge for them. So for example in the ARCS project, the sociological theme of the changing relationship of the individual to the parish was evident in some of the data. The guide to reading the data which we developed is found in Appendix 11. It offers a sequence of questions that move from analysis to reflection. An important starting point is to consider whether the data answers the original research question. It is easy to get side-tracked from this in the often unexpected issues that arise from the data.

Creating feedback documents All the work described in this chapter prepares the way for the joint feedback meeting between the insider and outsider teams. As the next chapter describes there is much to be achieved in this meeting and so it is important to be realistic about the use of time. As a matter of good practice the ARCS team would summarize its data analysis and reflections in a feedback document. However, we learned that the lessons of good feedback apply to this document as much as they do to verbal feedback. These include: • • • •

starting with points that affirm the practice of the insider team and their organization not making too many points to be absorbed in the time available phrasing challenges as questions rather than assertions not omitting the challenges for fear of offence.

It was also evident that it was helpful for the insider team to produce a feedback document summarizing their reflection meeting. 99

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the process explain e d Even notes answering the questions on the guide to reading the data were helpful. Again the power of turning conversation into text was that it made it easier to go back to what had been said and question it. Reading qualitative data tends to result in observations that are nomothetic and ideographic. Nomothetic observations show how the data conforms to wider patterns; these observations often come from the outsider team with their greater distance from the data. Ideographic observations highlight the particularities of the context and tend to come from the insider team. Both are valid approaches and the danger of seeing either one as more valid than the other needs to be avoided.

A note for outsider-team led TAR It is important to judge how much support the insider team needs in reading the data and undertaking some preliminary reflections. The ‘guide to reading the data’ sheet may be sufficient or it may be helpful to offer to facilitate a session. If the insider team do not own their own readings of the data there is a danger they will be swamped by the ‘expert’ readings of the outsider team, and this may diminish the energy for making changes based upon the reflection.

A note for insider-team led TAR This is the most important contribution that the outsider team will make and so it is important that they are properly briefed and have set aside adequate time to digest the data, contribute to its analysis and undertake preliminary reflection. It is important to check if the skills to facilitate and record the reflections are present in the team. Where the outsider team is contributing an ecumenical or inter-disciplinary voice it is important to know how the distinctive things they have to say will be captured rather than creating a homogenized record of the meeting. 100

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doing theological act i o n r e s e a r c h

Further reading Bazeley, P. (2007), Qualitative Data Analysis with NVivo, Los Angeles and London: Sage. Denscombe, M. (2007), The Good Research Guide: For SmallSale Social Research Projects, Buckingham: Open University Press. Gibbs, G. (2007), Analysing Qualitative Data, London: Sage.

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9 Reflection Leading to Renewed Practice and Theology

Introduction The last two sections of Chapter 8 discussed data analysis and the early stages of reflection. This chapter focuses on the theological re­ flection element of TAR. There are some overlaps and blurring but the focus in this chapter is the way in which the research leads to working with the four voices of theology introduced in Chapter 4. The stage at which both outsider and insider teams start using the ‘four voices of theology’ language needs to be judged care­ fully. There is a danger that in producing this book we give the im­ pression you can only be a team member if you have read it cover to cover. In reflecting upon faithful practice the most important thing is that the conversation makes sense to the practitioners. We have already emphasized the barriers to theological conversation that practitioners can face and we recognize that the language of the four voices can add to the difficulty in the early stages. In our experience, insider teams learn by doing and seek to deepen the conversation as their confidence grows. There is a fine judgement to be made between being patronizing and being baffling. The value of the working alliance discussed in Chapter 6 is that the relationship should be sufficiently robust to survive an apology in either direction. This chapter describes the sequence of insider team reflections, outsider team reflections and then the meeting for joint reflection. 102

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reflection leading to re n e w e d p r a c t i c e It looks at how reflection leads to renewed practice and theology and how a second cycle of research might be developed.

Insider team reflections The ‘guide to reading the data’ introduced in the previous chapter and found in Appendix 11 is recommended to the insider team to guide their reflective discussion. Looking at it again, it is pos­ sible to trace a sequence of engagement with the four voices in the questions asked. How does the data help answer the research question? This first question is to establish what insights the data offers. The second question: Is there anything that surprises/strikes you about the data? seeks to elicit what is being learned about the practice that wasn’t known before. From this it is possible to move to: What kind of beliefs and values are embodied in this data? This question starts to describe the operant theology embedded in the practice. The next two questions invite a comparison with the espoused theology: Is there anything that seems to affirm the beliefs and values of your organization? and Is there anything that seems to challenge the beliefs and values of your organization? At this point it may be helpful to return to the Set-up Questionnaire (Appendix 3) to see what was stated at the outset of the research. This discussion should identify both where operant and espoused theology align and where they differ. The differences are crucial as spurs to further reflection. The question: Where do you see God in the data? is designed to draw in team members who may not think in a linear way but who may have more instinctive reactions to the data or be hearing voices which other team members are marginalizing. It also ac­ knowledges that the data will be read with both mind and spirit. What learning might you be keen to draw from this material for people involved in your organization? What actions would you be keen to take forward? These final questions are for the activ­ ists who find it difficult to engage with reflection if they can’t see 103

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the process explain e d where it might lead. Ideas generated at this stage can be discussed further at the joint meeting. This sequence of discussion stops short of working with norma­ tive and formal theology which is a focus of the joint reflection meeting. The meeting needs to be recorded – perhaps using the ‘guide to reading the data’ as a framework for note taking. This means that the key points of the reflective discussion are available as a text that can be used to anchor the discussion in the joint reflection meeting.

Outsider team reflections In the classic model of TAR, more formal and normative theo­ logical expertise is likely to be located in the outsider team. This team is also likely to contain members from other disciplines and traditions whose contribution needs to be heard. It is suggested that the outsider team works through the se­ quence of questions in the ‘guide to reading the data’ but then summarizes: • • • •

their understanding of the operant theology their understanding of the espoused theology the gaps between the two they identify issues that those representing a particular voice identify in the data.

The team then need to return to the Set-up Questionnaire to see what the insider team has said about normative theology. This should lead to a discussion that generates suggestions both about what normative sources might be helpful to the insider team and about how they might be deployed. This will involve some discus­ sion of appropriate ways of engaging with the tradition in theo­ logical reflection. The contribution of normative theology is to help the insider team decide on whether their practice should move closer to their espoused theology or whether they should renew their espoused 104

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reflection leading to re n e w e d p r a c t i c e theology in response to the insights gained from articulating their operant theology. This discussion may also be able to make some assessment of the relationship with formal theology and of whether at this stage it would be a helpful element in the discussion. It is also important to discuss how the insights provided from other disciplines or other traditions can be put into dialogue with the operant and espoused theology. A final part of this meeting is to take the various insights that have been generated and discuss how they can most effectively be fed back to the insider team. Someone needs to write a first draft document (of feedback,) which is then circulated by email for comment.

Joint reflections The aim is that both teams will arrive at the joint reflection meet­ ing with prepared documents that summarize their preliminary meetings. The purpose of the joint meeting is to share reflections, engage with normative theology and move towards a renewed practice and espoused theology. The meeting will also decide whether a second cycle of TAR should be considered or whether an evaluation of the impact of the research at a future point is more appropriate. The sequence of the joint meeting is set out in the ‘agenda’ doc­ ument found in Appendix 12. A note taker and facilitator need to be appointed. Welcome and introductions ensure that everyone understands the purpose of the discussion and the different roles people have had in the research. A timescale for the meeting needs to be agreed and a facilitator appointed to monitor the progress of the meet­ ing. If the reflective work is providing rich insights there may be a preference for having a second session at a later date to confirm action and the scope for a second cycle. It is important that the insider team goes first in sharing its reac­ tions and their being discussed. They may be keen to hear from 105

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the process explain e d the outsider team but as they are closest to the practice their re­ flections take priority. If a feedback document has been prepared it is important to give time for silent reading and then questions of clarification. The next stage is for the outsider team to share its feedback document and for it to be discussed. Again time for silent reading and questions of clarification is helpful. It can be helpful for the facilitator to break down the discussion into stages: 1 establishing what has been learned about the operant theol­ ogy; 2 establishing what has been affirmed in the espoused theology; 3 agreeing what gaps between espoused and operant theology have been identified; 4 discussing each of these gaps in relation to normative the­ ology and identifying modifications in practice or espoused theology for consideration; 5 identifying specific actions and renewed theology which the organization can consider; 6 identifying whether a second cycle of action research or a later evaluation should be considered.

From reflection to renewed practice and theology In most organizations, it is unlikely that new insights will lead to commitment to action in the course of a single meeting. Ultimate responsibility for changed practice and renewed theology lies with the insider team but it is easy for the outsider team to withdraw before the insider team have fully considered the options and com­ mitted to a course of action. Hopefully by this stage in the cycle the partnership will be sufficiently robust for the insider team to say what work they need to do before reaching a decision and for the outsider team to offer support (whether moral or practical) in helping them get to that point. It is important to document planned changes to practice and espoused theology as they form the key outputs of the research and will be crucial in evaluating its impact. 106

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reflection leading to re n e w e d p r a c t i c e

Considering a second cycle For some organizations action research is an iterative process where what they learn in cycle one leads to questions they im­ mediately wish to explore in a second cycle. An example is the research with Housing Justice. Reflections from cycle one illumi­ nated significant disparities between the experiences of homeless guests at a church cold weather shelter as compared to volunteers. Volunteers seemed reluctant to associate with the faith-based di­ mension of their work. These findings raised further questions for the insider team at Housing Justice which they wished to explore in a second cycle of TAR. This second cycle enabled deeper explo­ ration of volunteers’ motivations, and theologically rich quota­ tions from cycle-one homeless guests were used as a ‘live’ tool to stimulate learning and discussion among volunteers. For other organizations, the scale of the changes emerging from the first cycle mean that work is needed to implement and em­ bed the changes before further research can be contemplated. In some action research the changed practice would be subject to a further cycle of action research to test its robustness. In many cases a more straightforward evaluation, perhaps using the pas­ toral cycle or other tool, may be sufficient to gauge the impact of the changes. An example of implementation following a first cycle is the research with Westminster Justice and Peace Commission, which involved one full cycle of TAR. The feedback from cycle one identified a significant disconnection between parishioners’ understanding of the theological underpinnings of justice and peace work in a Catholic parish. As a response, the Commission decided not to carry out more qualitative research but instead to take stock and concentrate its efforts on developing ‘reflection days’ in the diocese to train socially active parishioners and to stimulate theological reflection. The experience of working together may lead either or both teams to identify needs for capacity building they could undergo to strengthen their skills in research and theological reflection. Or­ ganizing this is an important outcome of the research. After two cycles of TAR, the ARCS work with the Diocese of Portsmouth 107

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the process explain e d culminated in a 24-hour capacity-building workshop in which the insider team from the Diocesan Stewardship Programme at­ tended a training session on integrating theological reflection into their work; this was led by two members of the ARCS team. See Chapter 11. If a second cycle of TAR is contemplated immediately then a recontracting meeting, similar to the second warm-up meeting, needs to be held and a revised remit document drawn up. The Set-up Questionnaire needs to be amended to include the insights gained from the first cycle.

A note for outsider-team led TAR This chapter discusses the reflective phase of TAR with the as­ sumption that the outsider team takes the leading role while seek­ ing to maintain the balance in the partnership and not dominate the joint meeting with its ‘expertise’. It may be that the outsider team has provided facilitation for the insider team reflections and that this can help the outsider team construct their feedback in the most useful way possible.

A note for insider-team led TAR It is important that the outsider team get feedback on the changes the insider team has made to practice and espoused theology as a result of the TAR. This will complete the learning from the action research cycle for them and help motivate them to take on this task in future.

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part 4

Worked Examples of Theological Action Research

The following three chapters provide worked examples of Theological Action Research in a parish, a diocese and a faith-based agency. We are not suggesting that these case studies are typical of their groups. Each case of TAR has its own particular features deriving from the questions being asked and the relationship between the insider and outsider teams. The aim of these chapters is to show something of the potential of the methodology. Research always also teaches about the research process itself, and this was clearly the case with these pieces of research. They took place at different points in the development of the ARCS project and so they were part of our learning process that eventually gave birth to TAR as described in this book. The documents to guide the organization in its own internal processes, the procedures for the formation and workings of insider teams, and the four voices of theology framework all came about in their final form in the course of these projects. We hope that the fact that these are examples of TAR as a work in progress, and that none is a finished product, will encourage the further development of TAR. We have deliberately chosen one Church of England organization, one Roman Catholic organization and an agency that worked with both Roman Catholic and Church of England parishes. This reflects the ecumenical nature of the project, which was welcomed and seen as enriching by insider teams.

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worked examples Each chapter • • •

introduces the setting and explains how the research was set up and undertaken shares some of the learning from the reflective conversations that led to renewed theology and/or practice and concludes with what was learned about TAR in the process.

This structure mirrors the contents of Chapters 7, 8 and 9. As Chapter 5 explained, TAR can take place over one or a number of cycles. Chapter 10 is an example of a single cycle after which the parish developed a new process for theological reflection. Chapters 11 and 12 describe two cycles of research.

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10 Theological Action Research in a Parish

The work reported in this chapter started in February 2008 at the point at which the ARCS project became an ecumenical Roman Catholic and Anglican project. St Mary’s Battersea was the first Anglican group to engage with the ARCS project. A parish (or its equivalent) is the focal institution for the life of faith of the majority of believers and has a special down-to-earth quality as a context for TAR. When this work started the TAR methodology had developed into a process with different steps for the set-up and conduct of the research and for reflection and feedback, but had not yet finalized all the specific procedures for working alongside an insider team or applying the four-voices theological framework.

The parish St Mary’s Battersea is a Church of England parish in the Diocese of Southwark. The church, built in 1777, is a Georgian grade 1 listed building on the banks of the River Thames in the South London borough of Wandsworth. St Mary’s describes itself as an inclusive church of the liberal Catholic tradition, A Church with an open heart and an open mind . . . welcoming all people regardless of age, relationship status, colour or sexual orientation, and regardless of how much or how little faith people have when they join us.

  St Mary’s Battersea, parish website http://www.stmarysbattersea.org.uk

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worked examples Key words flagged on the website include: ‘Forward looking and friendly’ – ‘Inclusive and diverse’ – ‘Musical and historical’. The sense of inclusivity and a cherished progressive outlook sits alongside the parish’s heritage and musical interests. These highlighted features were treated, in effect, as indicators of the parish’s espoused theology since we had yet to develop a procedure to enquire into this aspect more fully. St Mary’s congregation has a regular turnover in membership (about 30 per cent every ten years), as young couples move out of central London once children are born, and many of those in employment have mobile jobs. This raises a challenge for the church in thinking about how to incorporate newcomers into the life of the church. Since 2005 the parish has run the Alpha course, led by local speakers, as part of its outreach.

Setting up TAR St Mary’s responded very positively to an invitation from ARCS to parishes in the Southwark diocese that were conducting Alpha courses, to undertake research on how the course was working in parish life. Two warm-up meetings were held with the vicar, the Revd Paul Kennington. These were facilitated by two members of the ARCS team: one took notes and the other guided the discussion. The first meeting explored what would be involved in taking part and the issues the research might deal with. At the second meeting the aims of the research were refined and methods of data gathering established. It was agreed that the results of the research would be fed back to the Parochial Church Council (PCC). The aims established in the remit document were very clearly theologically focused; from this specific renewed practice could be expected to follow. The aims were:

  For information on the Alpha Course see: alpha.org and for an evaluation read A. Brookes (ed.) (2007), The Alpha Phenomenon: Theology, Praxis and Challenges for Mission and Church Today, London: CTBI.

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a parish • •

•

to examine the impact of St Mary’s Alpha course on the personal faith lives of participants to explore participants’ views about personal faith, church and community commitment, particularly in terms of theology and ecclesiology to encourage new processes for theological reflection in the parish and to look at how these could be strengthened.

The research was carried out by interviews with selected individuals, eight in all, recommended by the vicar as representing a cross-section of the parish.

Doing the research After access had been negotiated through the vicar, the interviews were conducted by the ARCS fieldworker; they each lasted about half an hour and took place in the parish buildings or at the interviewee’s home, with informed consent being sought explicitly in each case. The interviews focused on participants’ personal experience in the parish, including the experiences of belonging and commitment, and their experience of the Alpha course (interviewees were from different Alpha cohorts). It is noteworthy that in addition to these interviews, and as a by-product of the ARCS project, the vicar designed a questionnaire that covered residence in the parish, involvement with the church (including courses), responses to worship and knowledge of church finances. It was completed by 122 respondents and then analysed by the vicar, by the PCC and at the Annual Parochial Church Meeting in 2009.

Reflection leading to renewed practice and theology The ARCS team reflected on the interview data in order to tease out the operant theology it disclosed. As a result, six themes emerged: A Church of Welcome; Theology of Hospitality; Where is Jesus?; Commitment to Church; Ways of being Church; and The Holy 113

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worked examples Spirit. A feedback document was prepared on these themes to be presented to the parish insider team at a PCC meeting, together with a series of questions to prompt discussion. The origins of the themes in the data and the vividness with which they emerged varied. Issues about commitment to church arose from the parish’s self-questioning. But it was in response to an apparent and surprising absence of explicitly Christ-centred or Jesus-centred language in the data that the ARCS team raised the Christological ‘Where is Jesus?’ question. In other words, the theological themes which the ARCS outsider team teased out of the data came both from interviewees’ operant and espoused theologies and also from an interaction of this with normative and formal theological voices. To give a feel of what the ARCS team fed back and the issues highlighted for the insider team, some of the key points and reflection questions (including a few quotes from the interviews) are given below.

A church of welcome The parish has an encompassing propensity towards inclusivity and unconditional willingness to embrace the outsider. There was a true sense of giftedness about the parish’s sense of welcome; however, such a gift also comes with its proper challenges and demands. The parish emphasizes the welcome of individuals regardless of their level of belief or particular stage on their faith journey. The data suggested this was somewhat echoed within the parish Alpha course itself: participants were seeking relationships and social interaction as well as, if not ahead of, the content. This appeared to be leading to a process that emphasized first belonging and then believing. These practices of friendship and welcome can be seen as responses to experiences of loneliness and societal fragmentation in a modern, urban context.

Reflection questions • • •

What are the gifts of being an inclusive church? What are the challenges? How can St Mary’s deepen its understanding of inclusivity? 114

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a parish •

• •

Where do you see inclusion/exclusion in the gospel? How is this translated in terms of parish life at St Mary’s? What does inclusivity look like when you shine the light of the gospel on it? How do parishioners at St Mary’s make the journey from belonging to believing? Are there any Scripture stories/passages that illustrate what such a journey might look like?

Theology of hospitality The welcoming parish ethos at St Mary’s is expressed through a clear language of invitation (rather than obligation) and friendship. Emphasis on participation through invitation rather than expectation was valued by participants. The only expectation I think St Mary’s places on people is to be present in a Church and to celebrate God as you understand him. It’s so non-expectational that it’s magnetic! Alpha course participant Participation in Alpha involves moving from the role of being a guest or participant, to the more active role of becoming a host and committing to service and action. The data suggested that some parishioners remain as ‘permanent guests’ and do not necessarily follow through with commitment to the parish. When I first started coming to St Mary’s I was still working then. I came to recharge my batteries, and I tended to come to the 8 am, where it was quiet and there were no children, and I didn’t necessarily have to talk to anyone if I didn’t want to, so it was an oasis! But as the years have gone on, you realize that it is not all about pleasing yourself and that it’s also about being part of the body of Christ so that you need to meet and make contact with and understand and be there for 115

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worked examples other people, not just for yourself, however pleasant it is, so that’s the difference. Alpha course participant

Reflection questions •

• •

How is the journey to be made from guest to host in this inclusive and mobile (changing) community? How does this link with commitment? In what ways are these hospitable practices related to what we know about Jesus’ ministry? How would further reflection on this help the parish? Would it contribute to the building of community for example?

Where is Jesus? It was noted that while interview participants gave rich and complex accounts of personal and human concerns, they were not talking in explicit faith language. Even though it was observed that there was a strong sense of people describing the reality of God in their lives, the interviews revealed a lack of language describing personal relationship with Jesus Christ, or little reference to the gospel. Implicit Christological links may be made with the examples of table fellowship in Alpha, which links with the theme of hospitality. (The need for further probing on this point is reflected in the question.)

Reflection question •

Where is Jesus in the process?

Commitment In the interviews participants were asked for their opinion about what levels of commitment to church life they felt should be 116

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a parish expected at St Mary’s and whether it was feasible to draw up guidelines for newcomers to St Mary’s. Participants expressed strong contrasting views. Some stressed obedience, duty and discipline in reference to parish commitment. Others felt that guidelines for newcomers may be too ‘business like’, and as already quoted, the magnetic appeal of the non-expectational nature of the parish was a drawing element. A sociological reading of this tension reveals the influence of a prevailing culture of choice and autonomy. Many participants seemed to have had a prior period of non-attendance at church and wanted to choose a church that reflected their need for inclusion, or reflected their reaction against a stereotype of church as conservative (both morally and politically). Also of importance were questions about what parishioners are actually asked to commit to or be incorporated into within the parish. For example, there is a strong and positive sense of participants’ journeying into community activism at St Mary’s and an emphasis on community fellowship. Incorporation into the parish occurs through different and multi-faceted layers. The data collection revealed different expectations of how this incorporation should happen – incorporation through human community, or incorporation into a sacramental way of living.

Reflection questions • • •

•

•

Who does the ‘inviting’ in the parish? At what point are issues of discipline and personal faith commitment introduced to ‘guests’? How do people make their journey from ‘guest to host’? Is this an area for further discussion? Can a healthy tension be maintained between the two? What implication does a desire for freedom to choose (a reaction against the feeling of having something imposed) have for questions of faith commitment and questions of teaching? What are newcomers to St Mary’s Church being incorporated into? 117

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worked examples At the presentation of this feedback, the external team’s reflections were welcomed with great openness of spirit and a sense of wanting to learn, even on the potentially sensitive issues. One PCC member likened it to having the parish reflected back in a mirror; it was a reflective, self-revelatory, almost therapeutic exercise. The PCC members quickly got the point about naming the parish’s operant theology, and holding it up to critical inspection by bringing it into conversation with the other theological voices. The challenges in the feedback did not go unrecognized. For example, a PCC member agreed about Where is Jesus? and acknowledged: ‘We’re not a very Jesus (focused) parish’!

Renewed theology and practice The importance of an appropriate theological language quickly became clear. This was recognized as helpful in naming current realities. In addition, finding the right language was seen as helpful for unlocking tensions and opening new paths. The language of ‘guest to host’ and the move from one to the other spoke strongly; it pointed the way beyond the ‘liberal ethos versus commitment’ tension or ‘commitment versus inclusivity’, and it interpreted the situation of people who appeared to want simply to be ‘permanent guests’. The PCC found this a ‘breakthrough language’ that could be developed in specific motifs of feasting, Eucharist and the heavenly banquet. The theological language ‘set them free’ from some of the anxieties their research questions hinted at; it allowed these tensions to be worked on from within the Christian tradition. In the light of this learning, the PCC felt the need for further discernment on how best to proceed to future action; the parish needed to ‘do their homework’. Internal transitions were taking place in the St Mary’s leadership team, so it was decided to set up a separate parish ‘Think Tank’ group to carry forward the questions the research had raised, with particular emphasis on the ‘guest to host’ theme. TAR inspired the PCC to be more outwardly focused; they were keen to learn from the experience of the other ARCS projects and 118

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a parish saw value in being part of ‘something bigger’. Although the decision was not to proceed immediately to a second formal cycle of TAR the parish remained in touch with ARCS.

Lessons for Theological Action Research •

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•

•

This was an early, exploratory experience in TAR, and a number of lessons were drawn from it. First of all, it was clear that much could be learned from even a small data set; new intuitions emerged that were quite powerful and transformative. This did not depend on comprehensive data but arose from ‘revelatory’ data. The critical importance of the theology in TAR was confirmed. The shift in language to new theological categories was more than just new theory; it became the start of a new way of acting. The effect was to lever in another horizon of meaning, and to unleash a new response. The shared reflection between the insider and outsider teams confirmed the conversational element of TAR. There was a positive rapport between them; all was done in a collaborative manner, stressing the joint nature of the venture and without any over-emphasis on the outsider team as ‘research experts’. The feedback on the data from the outsider team was less an exercise in external facilitation than a shared exercise with mutual learning on both sides. The ARCS group as the outsider team was especially helped in this conversation to be more sensitive to differing levels of theological understanding. They recognized the need to gauge this carefully. They became aware that their over-familiarity with their own theological discourse led at times to the use of technical terms not familiar to the PCC members. The ARCS team’s sense was that sharing reflections on another group’s life in an atmosphere of mutual respect was a move onto ‘sacred ground’. 119

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worked examples •

•

A key learning was about the significance of using the four voices of theology. At this point this was still emerging; its potential as a hermeneutic of theological practice was becoming clear. A further learning was about the benefit of encouraging the insider group to do a reflection by themselves as well as jointly with the outsider team. This would mean establishing more clearly at the outset of the research the identity of the insider reflection team, and the need for some guidance as to how the reflection could be done. The ARCS team felt that the insights from the interviews and the questionnaire would have been better integrated if this had happened.

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11 Theological Action Research in a Diocese

This chapter reports on the ARCS project’s work with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portsmouth. This work followed on from previous research in which the Portsmouth diocese participated between 2004 and 2006, which was a forerunner of ARCS and examined the evangelization and renewal practices of the Roman Catholic Church in England and Wales. When ARCS started in 2006 the diocese was already a trusted and sympathetic partner as the team took its first tentative steps in using action research for theological enquiry.

The diocese The Roman Catholic Diocese of Portsmouth covers Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, the Channel Islands and parts of Berkshire, Dorset and Oxfordshire and comprises 91 parishes. Since 1989 the diocese has been led by Bishop Crispian Hollis. In 2005, the diocese published an internally generated pastoral plan Go Out and Bear Fruit, which was significantly described by those involved as ‘Spirit-led’. The plan dwelt on the contemporary needs of the diocese around two themes, Communion and Mission. It had two focal points: the centrality of the Eucharistic

  J. Sweeney, C. Watkins et al. (2006), Going Forth: An Enquiry into Evangelisation and Renewal in the Roman Catholic Church in England and Wales, Cambridge: Von Hügel Institute and Margaret Beaufort Institute for Theology.

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worked examples celebration in the life of the diocese, and the creation of pastoral areas to restructure parish life to enable them and the diocese to be more mission focused. The bishop and diocesan administration focused on these theological themes in their response to the strategic challenges facing the diocese, including, as a backdrop, those brought about by falling numbers of clergy and the difficulties the diocese would be facing in coming years in staffing parishes. A significant feature of the diocese’s planning was the way it kept the strategic and administrative intertwined with the pastoral and theological. Those responsible for developing the plan always saw it as more than an organizational procedure, and their testimony is that it emerged ‘under guidance of the Holy Spirit’. In the process of developing the plan, and as a result of the ongoing consultation, a particular pathway emerged – a focus on stewardship: Christian stewards . . . receive God’s gifts gratefully, cultivate them responsibly, share them lovingly in justice with others, and return them with increase to the Lord. In implementing a ‘stewardship process’, the diocese drew inspiration and help from the 1992 Pastoral Letter of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Stewardship: A Disciple’s Response. Diocesan members participated in the annual conferences of the International Catholic Stewardship Council. Stewardship is described as participating in the world and the Church with new eyes, discerning how best to use one’s resources for the building of the kingdom; it is a way of life, a ‘disciple’s response’ of conversion to Jesus Christ. It involves the responsible and generous disposal of ‘our time, our treasure, our talents’. The Stewardship

  Bishop Crispian Hollis (2004), Growing Together in Christ, Diocese of Portsmouth.   United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (1992), Stewardship: A Disciple’s Response, http://usccb.org/stewardship/disciplesresponse.pdf, p. 42.   Go Out and Bear Fruit: A Pastoral Plan for the Diocese of Portsmouth, http:// www.portsmouthdiocese.org.uk/plan/plan2005.pdf, p. 28.

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a diocese process aims to encourage all members of the diocese to reflect on and discern their use of their time and personal talents and how to make the best use of their individual gifts within their pastoral areas and in the wider society. Specific structures were established to support the Stewardship process as it was applied across the diocese and its pastoral areas and schools: a Pastoral Plan Implementation Steering Group, the Diocesan Trustees Stewardship Committee, a part-time Advisor to the Clergy on Stewardship, a Schools Stewardship Group, and a full-time Advisor for Stewardship and Collaborative Ministry in the Department for Pastoral Formation. A number of pilot stewardship parishes were selected so that lessons learned in practice might then be shared with the other parishes of the diocese.

Setting up TAR The Stewardship process became the focus in 2007 for collab­ oration in Theological Action Research between the diocese and the ARCS team. The set-up phase was relatively straightforward because of the prior contact, but working with a large diocese and its many levels is complex. The head of the Department for Pastoral Formation acted as the primary point of contact and was adept at ensuring that the research was known about by appropriate committees and officers. A volunteer co-researcher was recruited by the diocese and she was energetic in setting up and conducting fieldwork. Negotiating the focus of the research and the methods took place in an iterative way as both sides felt their way towards what would be helpful. The Pastoral Plan Implementation Steering Group was identified as the appropriate body to approve the remit document and to receive and reflect upon the feedback. Over the course of the research the Diocesan Trustees Stewardship Committee also became directly involved in the reflection process. The remit document determined the purpose of the research in a simple statement: 123

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worked examples To describe and reflect upon the practice and theology of the Stewardship pilots with a view to influencing the full implementation of Stewardship in the Pastoral Areas.

Doing the research The first cycle of action research explored the implementation of Stewardship in five pilot parishes. The internal co-researcher carried out in-depth interviews with key personnel at diocesan level and in the parishes. One of the members of the ARCS team then undertook a grounded theory analysis on this data and on the dio­ cese’s published materials, and a theological paper was prepared and fed back to the Implementation Steering Group, the heads of department and the Trustees Stewardship committee. The theological observations were received with great openness and a real sense of the value of the theological perspective. It was recognized that in a complex process organizational demands can easily divert attention from more substantive issues. This feedback and reflection led to a second research cycle which looked at the reception of Stewardship in particular worshipping communities and pastoral areas. This involved questionnaires and interviews with parish participants. The purpose was to enquire if and how practice and theological thinking had been influenced by the first cycle of research. The ARCS team met with the co-researcher to review the research data, and after the ARCS team reflected on it feedback was given to the diocesan groups. Instances of changed practice began to be seen at this point, including the adaptation of some of the published formation mater­ ials to reflect an increasing theological depth of understanding of Stewardship; in particular, these materials were given a clearer Christological focus.

  The original intention in ARCS was to use a grounded theory methodology to do a first reading of the data, and to proceed from that to a theological reading, but this became too time and resource intensive and simpler methods of collating the primary data (for example using NVivo software) were adopted.

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a diocese A major result of the second research cycle was that diocesan personnel recognized that the pastoral plan and Stewardship process implied a deepening of theological understanding; theological reflection and formation became a priority. A first step was a 24-hour capacity-building workshop on theological reflection in January 2009 held with the Pastoral Plan Implementation Steering Group and facilitated by members of the ARCS team. Towards the end of the second action research cycle the diocese’s schools were being introduced to the Stewardship theme. This brought up a specific issue of how to handle the religious impulse of Stewardship in an environment beyond the core faith community – the school being an ecclesial but also a secular and social institution – but exploration of this was beyond the ARCS research remit and capacity at that point.

Reflection leading to renewed practice and theology The pastoral plan and Stewardship process and the reading materials associated with them were rich evidence of the espoused theology; interviews teased out the operant theology. The normative theology of the Catholic Church, of course, was also reflected in the materials; the themes of Eucharist, Communion and Mission correspond to strong contemporary ecclesial impulses. The bishop’s teaching role was clearly in evidence; he personally initiated the process and gave it its orientation (Growing Together in Christ) and took an active part throughout. Key issues that emerged from the data were highlighted for discussion with the diocesan groups under a number of headings.

Eucharist Eucharist was central in the diocesan pastoral plan, and this was followed through in the Stewardship process. But significant changes took place as the diocese restructured around the new pastoral areas and former parish boundaries were changed. This meant that the actual eucharistic celebrations were deeply affected. The where and 125

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worked examples the when of eucharistic celebration began to change as the pasto­ ral areas began to work together in an increasingly interdepen­ dent way. Questions to reflect on were: What difference does the centrality of the Eucharist make to Stewardship? How is the centrality of the Eucharist actualized in practice? A further issue needed clarification. The data from the process showed that the Eucharist could be talked about without much explicit reference to the person of Christ. It could be assumed that to talk of Eucharist was to talk of Christ, even if not named; but might this be lacking in attention to the actual person of Jesus? Might the figure of Jesus be somehow obscured in the sacramental usage? Has there been an appropriate Christ focus in the understanding of Eucharist and in eucharistic practices? Or was the Christological element glossed over in a missionary emphasis on the nature of the Eucharist?

Theology of Orders Stewardship meant embracing a new way of being Church. This was challenging for both clergy and laity, and raised questions about ecclesial structure and order. Increased levels of communication, trust and structural clarity were in demand. This touched on the roles of the ordained and the lay Christian, their relationship to each other, and the theological significance of the practical questions that then arise, including the issue of the power of the ordained person to enable or hinder the process. The central vocation of the lay faithful, including their secularity, had to be recognized, as had the essential role of the ordained ministry; the challenge of this for regular working relationships was evident from practice. When the theological significance of insights derived from practice is acknowledged, these issues can then be worked on at a deeper level; a new theological understanding of Orders and of the variety of Christian vocations can be worked on; blockages in relationships can be surmounted, and getting trapped in merely pragmatic organization avoided. 126

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a diocese Stewardship as a way of life The implications of Stewardship as a way of life could be observed at many levels: in the lives of lay people and clergy; among those who attended the Stewardship conferences in the USA; in the collective experience of the pilot parishes and the wider pastoral areas; in the ongoing reflection of diocesan personnel on their own personal experiences of transformation. Community and relationship building were clearly welcome by-products of the Stewardship process even if not its main focus. The dialectic of believing and belonging was present in a vivid and complex way.

Stewardship as a religious/cultural symbol One intriguing feature of the Stewardship theme that the ARCS team noted is its cultural resonances. As a way of talking about the disposal of resources it might risk being uncritical of competitive capitalism and materialism. Can such cultural ‘baggage’ deflect religion’s prophetic function? How well does ‘Stewardship’ galvanize a truly missionary focus – which is one of the main aims of the diocesan pastoral plan? These questions, of course, were deliberately challenging and even provocative.

Theological capacity building Renewed theology spurs new practice. Perhaps the most fundamental breakthrough in the Portsmouth Diocese TAR was the revaluation of theology and theological reflection. Discussing the feedback from the ARCS team, one of the diocesan team passed the light-hearted comment that they had ‘outsourced the theology’. Now, however, it had to be taken into local ownership; for this to happen efforts at theological capacity building would be required. The Diocesan Trustees Stewardship committee recognized the need for a ‘Stewardship vocabulary’ and ‘language’ to sustain its adoption in practice. It was noted that some parish Stewardship 127

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worked examples teams needed encouragement ‘to be on the edge, not in the comfort zone’ to make the move to Stewardship practice; ‘conversion’ is needed. The ARCS team observed, however, that the stress on conversion lacked a Christological emphasis – it was not explicitly stated as conversion to Christ – but more generally as a move towards an effective and affective – ‘from head to heart’ – personal engagement with faith. Subsequent to the research process there has been a renewed emphasis on communicating the spirituality and theology underpinning Stewardship and a group now produces resources to support this at parish level. Four dioceses who are working on Stewardship have formed a network for mutual support and learning.

Learning for Theological Action Research •

•

•

At this stage of the ARCS project our procedure was to present our own reflections on the data to key insiders and then discuss with them how they might change their espoused theology and practice. The practice of having separate insider and outsider team reflections before a joint reflection was still not in place. We came to see the value of that as a result of what we learnt in this case study. Probably the most important insight from this research work for the developing methodology was that TAR needed to be theological all the way through, and right from the start. The comment about having ‘outsourced the theology’ and the laughter it provoked was revealing and led, as is so often the case, to fresh insight. The ARCS team realized the importance of setting up TAR as a shared theological research process. Had the capacity-building workshop been held earlier it could have created a more equal partnership between insiders and outsiders. The ARCS team’s work, of course, was always following on behind the Stewardship implementation process, and they relied on the insider team to be kept up to date. Accessing grassroots data took time, and research fatigue among 128

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a diocese potential interviewees had to be kept in mind. Caution was needed to avoid imposing research demands during the rollout of the Stewardship process – if only to avoid the research interfering with the business of getting on with the action. The work with Portsmouth diocese took place over a lengthy period – two cycles of action research, and a prior research phase as well. It bore fruit, both for the diocese and for ARCS and the better articulation of TAR.

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12 Theological Action Research with a Faith-Based Agency

The work with Housing Justice described in this chapter started in February 2008 as the shape of the TAR process was starting to come together. By the time the second cycle of Housing Justice research finished, the ARCS team had come to a clearer understanding of how the reflective discussions should best be structured although we were still feeling our way in facilitating and recording them.

The agency ‘Housing Justice is the national voice of Christian action in the field of housing and homelessness.’ The charity is the result of a merger of several individual denominational bodies in the first decade of the twenty-first century in an ecumenical partnership. Its role is to support churches and church-based homelessness action projects. It campaigns for affordable housing, raises awareness about homelessness and inadequate housing, seeks to represent the voice of the churches to government and within the voluntary sector, and promotes innovative Christian responses. Although Housing Justice is solidly based in the Christian churches it interacts directly with society in all its diversity: ‘We embrace partnerships with people of all faiths (and none) who share our values of social justice and compassion.’ By being f­ocused   Housing Justice website www.housingjustice.org.uk

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a faith-based a g e n c y on a very specific social and political issue, and because of the diversity of its partnerships, Housing Justice brings a Christian voice to the market place and public square.

Setting up TAR The contact with ARCS came about, rather unusually, on the initiative of the Housing Justice leadership rather than an approach from ARCS. They got in touch with ARCS because they wanted to engage in theological reflection. So there was a match of energy and interest with the ARCS team. The leadership of Housing Justice saw that theological reflection was essential to sustaining the organization’s identity and ensuring workers’ and volunteers’ motivation. The decision after two ‘warm-up’ meetings was to develop a TAR project focused on the Islington Churches’ Cold Weather Shelters scheme, run by CARIS supported by Housing Justice. A network of seven churches in Islington, London participated in this scheme, together providing accommodation for homeless people from January to March. The research involved several of the participating parishes (Anglican and Roman Catholic) in two cycles of research, winter 2008 and winter 2009. The insider research team consisted of three Housing Justice employees and the co-ordinator of the Cold Weather Shelter. Data collection was shared between the ARCS fieldworker and a Housing Justice co-researcher. This collaboration worked well, ensuring a healthy balance between insider facilitation and outsider note-taking, offering constructive input where appropriate.

Doing the research The enquiry centred on two issues: •

How does the parishes’ involvement in the Cold Weather Shelter influence the theological outlook of the churches and the faith practice of individuals involved?

  CARIS website www.carisislington.org

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worked examples •

How to develop ways of enabling the churches to reflect theologically on the impact of their involvement with the Winter Shelter.

In cycle one focus group meetings were held with volunteers (those who came to run the shelters) and the ‘guests’ (the homeless residents). In-depth interviews were conducted with the church leaders and the night shelter co-ordinator. Reflection on this data was undertaken by both the ARCS team and the Housing Justice team. In cycle two, two further focus groups were held with volunteers in two of the participating parishes. In these focus groups, quotations from the cycle one focus groups were used to great effect as a tool to trigger theological reflection. A previous volunteer group at an Anglican parish was revisited and a new Catholic parish was included. The focus groups explored volunteers’ motivations and whether volunteering had an impact on their faith and spirituality. Responses were elucidated on the different ways the guests and volunteers described their experiences of the shelter. Cycle two also involved further interviews with clergy. Reflection on the data was undertaken by the Housing Justice team and the ARCS team before two joint meetings were held.

Reflection leading to renewed practice and theology The variety of participants in this Housing Justice research – volunteers and guests, clergy and the Shelter co-ordinators and the Housing Justice leadership – produced a kaleidoscope of intuitions, theological and otherwise, which were some of the richest the ARCS team encountered. These issues and questions are given below, including some striking quotes from the interviews. The research questions were focused on the theological awareness of those involved in the winter shelters – Housing Justice workers and parishioners, guests and volunteers – but it was the guests’ perceptions that were most provocative, as this quote indicates:

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a faith-based a g e n c y Compared to other shelters, in these churches it’s the only place where there are no questions asked about where you come from. Sometimes if you have connections with places they don’t offer services. But the churches don’t ask questions. They keep your dignity here. Questions sometimes just destroy people. There is also this kind of human touch that makes people safe and accepted in a way. (Guest’s comment) But strong contrasts in the perceptions of the guests and the volunteers became obvious: If you want to look at it in a deep way it’s like God has said come into my house and get out of the cold . . . We are guests walking in the house of God. (Guest’s comment) I don’t think I make any sort of direct connection in my mind between my personal Christian values and what I do when I come here. I’m not quite sure why . . . It’s more sort of human compassion. (Volunteer’s comment) The volunteers used little or no explicit faith language about the work, whereas some of the guests could be eloquently Christ-centred: despite the difference of the churches here, actually they’re coming together as a body, as it should be, in the Body of Christ and actually working together. (Guest’s comment) The difference was also visible in their thinking about prayer and liturgy. I will just miss Mass, or come out of Mass early. I could stand there through the Mass, and I enjoy Mass, and I’m there for different reasons and values, but I’d much sooner do this (help out in the kitchen if they’re short staffed), if I had the choice between the two – in terms of importance. (Volunteer’s comment)

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worked examples If it wasn’t for Christ, or for this Church or this house of the Church or altar of the Church then I’m afraid you wouldn’t be sleeping under this roof or you wouldn’t be fed by the grace of Him who is providing it and He wouldn’t be covering you with His wings. (Guest’s comment) The latter comment’s directness about Christ and grace speaks with an immediacy of faith that other more ‘considered’ reflections tended to mask. These quotations sparked a lively theological discussion within the ARCS team and in their joint reflection with Housing Justice. Why did this unexpected difference between guests and volunteers exist? And questions were provoked about how theological awareness arises. Who is enabled to see and recognize Christ? Where should we be looking to find emerging and embodied Christologies? To whom do we listen? How can workers and volunteers encounter Christ in faith from within practice, in sometimes unexpected ways and places? The Housing Justice leadership recognized the marginal prophetic quality to be found among the guests, one that carried an evangelizing potential. The guests were a sheer gift in this sense, an example of the poor evangelizing the rich. It was decided to follow up the first cycle findings with a second cycle of focus groups with volunteers; in this exercise anonymized quotes from the earlier data were shared. When the volunteers read the quotes from the guests that disclosed their religious feelings, they were struck by the contrast: Going back to the question, does it make a difference if it’s in a church? Very clearly to them it does. It matters much more than for us. (Volunteer’s quote, second cycle) Nevertheless, while the volunteers could recognize at a cognitive level the links, for example between the meal for their homeless guests and the Eucharist, they remained resistant to seeing any particular religious significance to their volunteering.

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a faith-based a g e n c y

Operant theologies One way of analysing such differences as manifested at the level of practice is not as a theological view versus a humanitarian view, but as different operant theologies. The guests go directly to religious language to express their feelings, and this becomes explicitly theological; but the volunteers, framing their approach in terms of compassion, give voice to a ‘practical Christianity’, and are perhaps concerned not to use the Shelter for proselytism. Such reticence would be coherent with Housing Justice’s espoused theology, which is framed in the terminology of social justice rather than explicit religious terms: The worth and dignity of each individual – Caring for the whole person Belief in social justice – Priority to the poor and marginalised Professionalism – Working for the highest quality in all we do Authority – Being recognised as a trusted source of expertise and information Valuing difference – Welcoming diversity in staff, services and those whom we serve Working in partnership – Recognising the strength of working with others, both internally and externally Integrity – Accountability to each other and to all our stakeholders (Housing Justice website) The ARCS outsider team were intrigued by these issues. They saw two possible lines of theological interpretation. Leaving the eucharistic table to serve the needs of the poor and hungry could be a case of the Temple ‘passing away’ as the Kingdom breaks in; or it could be a summons to make the traditional and powerful connection between Eucharist and the giving away of ourselves in service, the connectedness of liturgy and life.

Housing Justice looking to the future The Housing Justice research opened up creative opportunities for deepened dialogue and theological reflection; a befriending

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worked examples scheme was developed to maintain mutually supportive relationships between guests and volunteers. The Housing Justice leadership team were able to use the research findings to inform their organizational policies, and also their work of advocacy with the government on behalf of homeless people. The research was also used as a resource in volunteer training programmes for the London Boroughs Churches Cold Weather Shelters. The beginnings of changed practice in the participating parishes became evident; for example, volunteers starting to eat with guests as a sign of hospitality rather than service from one group to another.

Learning for Theological Action Research What lessons can be drawn from this experience of TAR with a faith-based agency? •

•

Because agencies such as Housing Justice follow profes­sional standards of organization and administration they tend to be amenable to the demands of research; they understand the need for it and how it can be put to use. As faith-based, these agencies provide a special opportunity for TAR in that they are positioned at the interface between the religious and the secular. The theological voice that emerged in Housing Justice was of church and world, faith and culture, and an ‘operant’ theology expressed in very clear actions. A research approach that is both theological and action-oriented suits their needs precisely because it deals in the lived dimension of faith rather than a simply speculative theology. This case study also shows the value of a second cycle of action research in following up questions raised by a first cycle. The fact that this happened nine months later illustrates the sustained commitment needed by both insider and outsider teams to capture practice at the right moment rather than design research to fit a predetermined timetable. 136

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a faith-based a g e n c y •

It was evident that the agenda prepared for the joint reflection meeting (Appendix 12) was an ambitious one. In this case the meeting was adjourned once the reflective work was complete and resumed to discuss future changes that might take place as a result of the research.

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part 5

Theological Action Research: An Initial Evaluation

This final part of the book offers a preliminary evaluation of what we have learned from the ARCS project and the TAR methodology. The conclusions take us back to the problem this book has tried to tackle and suggest some possible future lines of development for TAR. We have hesitated to publish when the methodology we describe is still being refined. However, we feel that the evaluations of others will enrich our learning. Whenever we have presented this material we have found people keen to take up TAR for their own purposes and so we gladly invite them to contribute to its development. As a team we are sure we have further to travel but will welcome the companionship of others.

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13 Evaluating Theological Action Research: Learning Points in Theology and Method

The three case studies briefly presented in the previous chapters have been offered as a way of giving a ‘flavour’ to the processes and methods we have been describing as Theological Action Research. As case studies they are particular instances; and as briefly described they appear here only partially and in somewhat simplified accounts. The present authors have chosen to emphasize the particular examples of reflective learning from these case studies, rather than offer highly detailed accounts of the sometimes long and complicated series of meetings and negotiations that took place during the research relationships. The present chapter seeks to build on these accounts and suggest some more general points of learning from Theological Action Research experience, and to offer a preliminary evaluation of TAR. Our chief references in this will be the case studies given earlier; but we will also be informed by the wider experience of the ARCS team, across the range of participant groups with which we have worked.

Working with different kinds of groups: observations on structure, organization and TAR methods Our first remarks concern what we have learnt about working with different types of groups. In particular, it has become clear 141

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an initial evaluatio n to us that a prior awareness of organizational and structural characteristics of groups is important in understanding the challenges and opportunities faced in developing an insider team, and in communicating successfully as an outsider team. The ARCS project has worked with three types of organization: parishes, dioceses and faith-based agencies. Each has presented its own challenges for the TAR methodology, which we summarize below.

Working with the parish For both Roman Catholic and Anglican parishes, the priest is the primary gatekeeper acting as the point of introduction between the parish and initiatives in the wider world. In our work with parishes the first set-up meeting tended to be with the parish priest to explore whether TAR would be of service to the parish. We learned that it was important at this first meeting to explore with the parish priest who might form an internal team. This could be an existing group such as the Church Council or a group relating to a particular activity or a group specially formed for the purpose. Once the group was formed it was important to discuss how its reflections and recommendations could feed into the decision-making processes of the parish. All this makes the parish priest a crucially important participant in the TAR process. To some extent parish TAR work will inevitably be coloured by the ministry and vision of the parish priest, and will carry with it his or her history of relationships within the parish. Some awareness of this, by all involved, is important for the progress of the work. The particular communal nature of the parish also raises questions of discretion in research. Because of the often long-standing relationships in parishes particular care is needed, in looking at data, that anonymity is not compromised where that had been promised to those who had taken part in the research. A further consideration in working with parishes concerns levels and kinds of theological literacy and fluency. The ARCS team has learnt that, as the outsider team, we need to ensure that theological 142

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learning points in theolo g y a n d m e t h o d language is not used in an unexplained way in our feedback to the insider team – a lesson learnt in the feedback to St Mary’s PCC. A concomitant point of learning here regards the need for sensitivity towards the theological and faith language already being used within the parish group. We found that one benefit of the Set-up Questionnaire was that it enabled us to understand the theological language already in use in the case organization.

Working with dioceses Dioceses and their departments/agencies have perhaps been among our most challenging co-researchers in TAR; and, at the same time, have also enabled some of the most fruitful potential of TAR to be realized. The departments and officers of dioceses operate in a complex middle ground between the strategies and expectations of the bishop and the needs and expectations of parishes. Such a positioning ecclesiologically can lead to tensions in espoused positions, as well as particular kinds of tension between espoused and operant theologies. For example, a question arises where different but related departments have slightly differing espoused positions: for Portsmouth there was a work for the diocese in integrating a shared vision of stewardship across the various departments, each with its own espoused selfunderstanding and practice. More broadly, and in relation to other dioceses with which we have worked, a question has arisen about what it means to describe the theology of the bishop to which the diocesan agency is contractually committed, as the ‘espoused’ theology of those diocesan practitioners. How ‘espoused’ is such a theology for the practitioners involved; and how much is it a normative theological reality to which they are obedient? Raising this question puts under the spotlight the way in which bishops and key diocesan workers communicate and work together collaboratively. In Portsmouth the direct involvement of the bishop in the capacity-building workshop was invaluable in aiding this, and symptomatic of the levels of teamwork existing in that diocese. 143

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an initial evaluatio n In practice, the highly complex organizational nature of the diocese, combined with its theological-practical centring around the vision and leadership of the bishop, has particular significance for TAR. If the intention of TAR is to change either practice or espoused theology at diocesan level then it is important to ensure that the bishop or his representative is aware of and endorses the research. If the research requires access to parishes then that too needs to be negotiated as part of the set-up process. The outsider team may need to offer encouragement and support if this access process is prolonged and to reinforce its necessity. Dioceses are complex institutions and so identifying appropriate decision-making processes to act upon the findings of the research is also something that needs to happen at the set-up stage.

Working with faith-based agencies Our experience of working with faith-based agencies was the most straightforward. These agencies usually had limited resources and so were keenly focused upon what they wanted to get from the research. The ‘entrepreneurial’ nature of the leadership in working beyond ecclesiastical structures, but often with church support, seems to provide a culture of exploration and reflectivity which is extremely amenable to TAR processes. So, it was striking that Housing Justice took the initiative in approaching ARCS; subsequent work with London Jesuit Volunteers also demonstrated a high level of reflective leadership and initiative in the research from the insider group. The faith-based agencies with which we worked were able to build upon existing relationships with parishes in negotiating access for data gathering. The main challenge was bringing together the right people for the reflection meetings and ensuring that they had time to prepare. In this the personal knowledge of the insider team in relation to participants was a great strength. In relation to TAR and effective change, the faith-based agencies were often enabled by having fairly direct routes from the 144

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learning points in theolo g y a n d m e t h o d insider team to the decision-making process of the agency. This may be more complex in larger agencies, of course.

Evaluating the five characteristics of TAR in practice In Chapter 4 we set out key characteristics of TAR. In doing so, some claim was made for this research process as an important response to the difficulties of speaking of God in practice. We must now give some account as to whether these characteristics can be recognized as contributing something distinctive and fresh to the work that has been described.

Characteristic feature 1: Theological all the way through The process of setting up research with the different participant groups always takes seriously not only the theological nature of their own research questions, but also the self-understanding that participant groups carry with them. So, in each case space is given for the research question to be articulated in the language of faith: the language of ‘personal faith’ and ‘ecclesiology’ (St Mary’s Battersea), and the significance of a specifically ‘theological’ understanding of practice and vision (Portsmouth, and Housing Justice), are prominent in the setting of the research questions. This faith language is, of course, itself open to interpretation and raises questions from the start; to some it may seem imprecise. But TAR resists attempts to rationalize, or make measurable such lines of enquiry, in the belief that it is precisely by being led by questions of faith that a proper theological action research can take place. Such an openness to the often ‘imprecise’ language of faith gives to the processes of TAR a certain exploratory and educative feel, as the very language in which the research questions are couched becomes a focus for conversation and deepened understanding. For example, the move in the Portsmouth work from the understanding of ‘outsourcing’ theology, to generating theology from within, required a shift in thinking about theology itself – away 145

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an initial evaluatio n from the idea that it is something done ‘out there’ by ‘experts’, towards a deeper sense of the communal and universal call to theology. The preliminary questions concerning ‘personal faith’ for the parish of St Mary’s provided a first point from which the parish team could begin to reflect together on what ‘personal faith’ might consist of – in terms of discipline of life, community commitment, and hospitality. Overall TAR’s commitment to be ‘theological all the way through’ enables faith practitioners to begin with their own faith language – at whatever stage it is – privileging articulation of faith as the basic reality with which research is concerned. This, in turn, provides an effective starting place for learning an increasingly profound, nuanced and connected-up theological language, drawing on personal articulation and experience, in the light of a wider and many-voiced tradition.

Characteristic feature 2: Theology in four voices – a helpful conversational framework With respect to this last point, we need to ask about the role played by our framework of ‘theology in four voices’ in enabling TAR. The evidence suggests that the language of espoused, operant, formal and normative has generally been readily understood by practitioners after a brief introduction, and has been accessible as a way of negotiating the various strands and layers of thinking with which we have been working. In particular, this framework can overcome something of the anxiety experienced by some practitioners when confronted with ‘theology’ as some kind of ‘thing’. Rather, the four voices enable a way into theological discourse which names the beliefs and practice of practitioners as theological voices among others. Perhaps more significant still is the way in which the four voices theology has enabled a fairly straightforward way of disclosing important tensions, and so taking the conversation of all researchers into a fresh place. For example, the operant theology of eucharistic sacramentality evidenced in the Housing Justice data was 146

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learning points in theolo g y a n d m e t h o d reflected on in the ARCS team in the light of both a formal theological consideration of some contemporary aspects of sacramental theology, and normative traditions of research team members’ understandings of Eucharist. The strong theological voice of the practitioners could be described back to them as both reflecting and being in some tension with these aspects of church traditions and formal theological teaching, in a way which could be seen as listening to other theological voices, rather than any attempt to ‘theologize’ or ‘correct’ their authentic practice. Sometimes the tensions disclosed could be awkward. For example, the lack of explicitly Christological language in the data from St Mary’s parish led the ARCS team to challenge the parish leadership in feedback, with the question, ‘Where is Jesus in all this?’ This could have been met with a certain defensiveness, given the fundamental nature of the challenge. In fact, in this case the disparity of language was met with a characteristic laughter of recognition (‘Yes, we’re not a very “Jesus” parish!’), and a new conversation about the place of Christ in their community and faith. In other cases the formal theological voice can be experienced as more difficult for practice. So, the observation from the ARCS team that, systematically, to speak of the centrality of the Eucharist is not exactly the same as to speak of the centrality of Jesus did meet with some resistance from some Portsmouth participants – an experience that, together with others in similarly Catholic contexts (for example, Youth 2000), raised a question for our theological thinking regarding the relationship between Christology and sacramental theologies of presence: can sacrament sometimes obscure the presence of Christ? The fruitfulness of the four voices approach is still being explored as this book is being written, and fresh insights into it are still being gleaned. In particular, we are becoming more and more aware of the complexity of the interrelatedness of the voices, and its implications. There needs to be caution in using the framework as if the four voices were separate or discrete entities. For all that, the possibilities that theology in four voices allows for exploration between practitioners, church leaders and ‘professional’ theologians seem rich and helpful to both faith practice and theological 147

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an initial evaluatio n articulation at all levels. Exploration of this framework among professional theologians and practical theological researchers has also been met with a high level of interest.

Characteristic feature 3: Disclosing theology through a conversational method The case studies reported all witness, in different contexts, to the ways in which the conversational methods of TAR have enabled an appropriation of theological language and understanding that has the potential to refresh both thinking and practice. At the heart of this conversational approach has been the building up of relationships within and across teams in ways that militate against the tendency to see ARCS as the ‘researchers’ and the practitioners as ‘researched’. From initial meeting, through the mutual agreement of the remit document, and into data collection and shared reflection, it is the power of this personal and theological conversation that fuels the process. It is significant that many practitioners involved recognized in the TAR process something of themselves ‘reflected back’ or mirrored in the reflections. Such reflecting back allows a fresh look at things, a potentially transformative gaze. Our own contention goes further than this, however. For what we have seen, and all too briefly reported here, is that this conversational approach is not only about method or process; rather it goes to the heart of the understanding of theology with which TAR is especially concerned. Fundamentally TAR is built on the conviction that the Holy Spirit is moving Christ’s people to an ever deeper understanding of faith, in faith; and that this ‘theology’ is before us, waiting to be ‘seen’ or recognized. Our work with various agencies is full of such moments of recognition: the moment when a Christian community recognizes that their instinctive unease has been about the need as disciples to be called beyond being a permanent ‘guest’, to being, with Christ, ‘host’ to those still outside (St Mary’s Battersea); the recognition that it is in the voices of the homeless, those being cared for, that the clearest witness to Christ and call to the churches is 148

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learning points in theolo g y a n d m e t h o d heard; the dawning realization that the ‘centrality of Eucharist’ is not simply a liturgical and structural norm for Catholic ecclesial life, but carries with it a whole renewal of life beyond the visibly churchy. All these moments – and all the others we have not had space to describe – demonstrate small but significant moments of ‘epiphany’, facilitated in a particular and, we believe, unique way, by conversation across insider and outsider groups, and between different areas of expertise and experience, united in a common sense of service of TAR’s particular vision of theology.

Characteristic feature 4: TAR as formative of practice Much practical theology and action research is concerned with ‘making a difference’; indeed, culturally we can often feel pressured into demonstrating change as a measure of the effectiveness of our work. TAR is concerned with change, but resists any tendency toward quantifying or recommending specific change as a ‘product’ of the research process. Rather, TAR is concerned with the ways in which its characteristic reflective theological processes form and transform both practice and understanding of practice for the practitioners and for theologians alike. With this in mind there are a number of points at which the case studies demonstrate the ability of TAR to form and renew practice. The first point to raise is the way in which, for the majority of groups worked with, the development of the reflective processes required by TAR have continued to form an important part of their own ongoing discernment of action and growth as an active faith group. TAR would seem to have been able to respond to a real need to explore and develop ways of speaking about faith practice. It can also be seen how this formation in a deeper theological fluency does itself bring about change – on all sorts of levels of practice and understanding. For example, in the bringing to the fore in the Portsmouth research certain theological-practical questions about orders and lay vocation, the need for support for the 149

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an initial evaluatio n ordained during the stewardship process was understood. Also the tendency to understand lay vocations as ecclesial ministries, rather than as work in ‘the world’ was critically challenged, and changes to materials used in the parish made. In the case of Housing Justice, shared reflection on Eucharist and hospitality led one group to learn from another the wisdom of volunteers eating together with guests, rather than simply providing them with food while eating elsewhere themselves. This apparently tiny change was recounted as having a remarkable effect on the relationships and community engendered. It also seems clear that – even where immediate change of practice cannot be demonstrated – a change in self understanding and vocabulary through TAR can give a group new impetus and energy to move forward. For the team at St Mary’s the language of ‘from guest to host’ was received as especially helpful in articulating the issues with which they were working as a parish – it was seen as ‘breakthrough language’. The ways in which the discovery of words to describe faith practice is itself formative of a group and its mission should not be underestimated. This seems to be something that TAR has been especially helpful at enabling.

Characteristic feature 5: Practice transformative of theology It is of particular importance to the authors of this book that TAR can – even in a small way – be recognized as contributing to theology. That is to say, the formal and even normative ‘voices’ (or at least, the interpretation of them) is quite properly to be formed by the voices that arise from faith practice as a complex locus for theological understanding. It would be impossible, of course, at such a relatively early stage, to demonstrate any large-scale transformation of academic theology on the basis of what has been learnt from reflection on faith practice. However, one or two key areas of systematic theology arise in the data, and are being given fresh articulation through the ways in which they are spoken of and understood there. For example, we have been very struck by the ways in which sacrament 150

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learning points in theolo g y a n d m e t h o d and sacramentality not only play an obviously key role in the thought and practice of those with whom we have worked, but also have varying and complex relationships with the practices themselves. The ways in which Eucharist can be ‘central’, and yet either obscure Christological language, or fail to be linked to ‘eucharistic practices’ outside of liturgy, all suggests particular directions for a sacramental theology that needs to be clearer in both its Christological and ethical components, in order better to serve Christian living. A second significant theme, evident in all the groups in different ways, is that of order, leadership and laity. A theological approach to this ecclesiological theme that is rooted in and consistently reflective on the real ways in which power relations and structures are lived out in practice, would, we suspect, offer a significant renewed light on some traditional questions and responses. Perhaps most fundamentally the data gathered, and the reflections upon it, offer a possibility for a rare, yet much talked of thing in theology: a concrete, or practically rooted ecclesiology. What TAR enables the ecclesiologist to do is to glimpse the unfolding reality of church in the faithful discipleship of its members, and make this a formative and consistent ‘voice’ within the ecclesiological debates that, too often, abstract and idealize church in ways difficult to connect with ongoing church life.

Identifying the benefits of TAR as a disciplined process The development of TAR and its continuing evaluation through its use is still ongoing, and will, we hope, continue, as others seek to take up something of its thinking and methods. At this early stage the authors would like to suggest, on the basis of the above claims and their evaluation, five clear benefits of using TAR in a disciplined methodological way.

  N. M. Healy (2000), Church, World and the Christian Life: Practical-Prophetic Ecclesiology, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

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an initial evaluatio n First, the experience of TAR suggests that it is especially open to the fresh insights of ‘living traditions’. That is to say, its central convictions and the processes that embody them give ample room for attentiveness to what is going on in some of the ‘hidden’ theological voices of Christian life: voices of practice, and ordinary discipleship. These are the ‘living traditions’ of the Church, awaiting discernment through conversation with the established traditions, which will, in turn, be shaped, renewed and interpreted by them. A second benefit lies at the heart of this whole book: the ability of TAR to empower people with a language with which to speak about faith and practice. TAR opens up possibilities for deep and long-lasting conversations between different kinds of expertise and experience in Christian thought and life, and in doing so enables a pedagogy in speaking about God, where all learn from one another. The repeated testimony of those involved has been to the significance of this growing confidence in articulation, and the liberating opening up of other layers and types of language that mirror, refine and mature our initial struggles to speak truth-fully and faith-fully. It is also clear, third, that the conversational method within teams of different Christian traditions has allowed TAR to enable ecumenically receptive theological learning. Reflection on shared data, from different Christian perspectives, seems to enable a kind of ecumenical learning that is powerful precisely because it focuses not on ecumenical differences and similarities as such, but rather on the common reality of Christian living in a shared context, and with common purposes or mission. A similar benefit can be recognized, through the same conversational team reflection, with regard to the interdisciplinary integration of the reflections and insights offered by TAR. Reflection in a group where different kinds of expertise are held provides an opportunity for the coming together of interdisciplinary insights through inter-personal listening, challenging and learning. A fifth and last benefit must also be recognized in the ways in which TAR can be clearly seen as supporting and enabling learning and growth among faith practitioners. The desire of so many 152

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learning points in theolo g y a n d m e t h o d practitioners involved with ARCS to continue with some kind of ongoing and shared reflection on their work is significant, as the processes of TAR have been recognized by them as contributing to growth in understanding. It has been the great privilege of the authors to be able to see the encouragement and support that TAR has given so many practitioners.

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Conclusions

We hope that we have made some progress in tackling the problem of talking about God in practice. We have tried to develop a methodology that allows Christian practitioners to develop their fluency in the language of faith. We have developed an approach to practical theology that enables it to engage with scholars in other theological disciplines to overcome the distance that can exist between their academic work and practice. We have set out a process and framework for disciplined conversations that lead from practice to doctrine and back again to practice. What is harder to convey in a book is the excitement of developing this process and the rewards that have come from teamwork. The last chapter attempted a preliminary evaluation of TAR, and so now we reiterate our invitation to the reader to develop and r­efine the work we have done. We hope that for those who, like us, have struggled with the problem of generating conversations about God when researching Christian practice, some aspects of the TAR process and the four voices of theology model will be found useful. We want to make three specific proposals in the hope that they might be taken up by some readers and spark off further ideas for other readers.

Proposal 1 – For dioceses in their work with parishes Both Roman Catholic and Church of England dioceses are struggling to resource the advisory services they have traditionally provided to support parish life. Many of these advisory services have been cut or full-time posts have been replaced with part-time posts. 154

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conclusion s Are there dioceses who would be interested in experimenting with TAR as a different way of supporting parish life? The emphasis would be on reinvigorating parish practice through theological r­eflection and then sign-posting parishes to advisory agencies rather than acting as a provider of advice.

Proposal 2 – For faith-based agencies in their work with partners Faith-based agencies are often struggling with an internal secularization of their discourse as they interact with a secular world of funding and politics that requires them to speak in its languages. Where they partner with churches and other faith-based organizations there can be a shared desire to put the faith back into faithbased. Are there faith-based agencies who would be interested in learning how to be an outsider team, offering TAR as a service to their partner organizations? The emphasis would be on developing a shared espoused theology to reinvigorate their practice.

Proposal 3 – Training for collaborative ministry It is frequently said that those training for ministry today (whether lay or ordained) will need to work collaboratively, yet patterns of training persist that assess individual academic performance. Are there training institutions that would be interested in trying TAR as an approach to training people to act as outsider teams to the practitioners with whom they have placements? The emphasis would be on training experiences that were theological all the way through and that integrated practical theology with the wider theological task. Having offered this provisional and partial account of the ARCS project, we will now start to prepare a research monograph that tackles the data in greater depth and sets out some of the engagements with systematic theology that are starting to emerge. We invite you to consult the project website for further developments: www.heythrop.ac.uk/outreach/arcs-project.html. 155

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RC Diocese of Portsmouth www. portsmouthdiocese. org.uk

Principal Aim of the Research

To explore how CaFE resources equip participants and parishes for evangelization and renewal. To reflect upon the practice and theology of the Youth 2000 retreat and how it enables conversion to Christ. Stewardship in To describe and reflect parishes/pastoral upon the practice areas and theology of the Stewardship Pilots with a view to influencing full implementation in Pastoral Areas.

Principal Focus

Catechesis and evangelization in parishes using a variety of media DVD and video resources Youth 2000 Catholic youth www.youth2000.org retreats and prayer groups for young people

CaFE www.faithcafe.org

Name of Project Partner

Began Feb 2006 Cycle 2 Ended Jan 2009

Began Feb 2006 Cycle 1 Ended July 2008

Began Feb 2006 Cycle 1 Ended July 2008

Phase in Action Research Cycle

Participant observation In-depth interviews Questionnaires

Participant observation Telephone interviews Questionnaires

Participant observation Focus groups Questionnaires

Participants involved in pilot Stewardship parishes and key members of the diocese in leadership

Young people Youth 2000 priest

CaFE head office CaFE leaders CaFE participants

Method of Data Types of People Collection Involved

Appendix 1: Grid of ARCS Research Projects

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Adult faith formation at deanery level

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Social Responsibility Network

CofE Diocese of Southwark www.southwark. anglican.org

To carry out enhanced theological reflection upon key themes in London.

St Mary’s Alpha To explore the impact Course of the Alpha Course

To examine the effectiveness of adult faith formation at deanery level and its role in evangelization. To reflect theologically on the impact of one Churches Cold Weather Shelter on parish life, focusing on a Catholic and Anglican parish.

CofE St Mary’s Parish Church www. stmarysbattersea. org.uk

Housing Justice A national www.housingjustice. homelessness org.uk charity, supporting a CARIS Islington cold weather http://www. shelter parish carisislington.org/ network

RC Archdiocese of Westminster www.rcdow.org.uk

In-depth interviews

Began May 2008 Participant Cycle 1 observation Suspended and recording discussion at meetings

Began Feb 2008 Cycle 1 Ended Sept 2009

Began Feb 2006 Participant Cycle 2 observation Ended May 2010 In-depth interviews Questionnaire Began Feb 2008 Participant Cycle 2 observation Ended March Focus groups 2010 In-depth interviews

All members of the Social Responsibility Network

Participants of the Alpha Course

Participants Speakers Agency for Evangelisation representative Homeless ‘guests’ Volunteers Shelter coordinator Priests of parishes

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Justice and peace in parish life

Westminster Justice and Peace Commission www.rcdow.org. uk/justicepeace

Principal Aim of the Research

To reflect theologically on the impact of justice and peace work in one Roman Catholic parish, focusing specifically on fair trade. Cafod The use of To strengthen the http://www.cafod. Catholic Social organizational capacity org.uk/ Teaching by of Cafod in its use Cafod staff of Catholic Social Teaching London Jesuit Providing To strengthen the Volunteers, Mount community organizational capacity Street Jesuit Centre placements for of LJV to enable other http://www.msjc.org. volunteers with organizations uk/ljv.php action–reflection to replicate the model LJV ‘Action– Contemplation– Community’ volunteer model

Principal Focus

Name of Project Partner In-depth interviews

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Began Oct 2009 Reflective Cycle 2 writing Ended Sept. 2010 Focus group Participant observation

Volunteers Reflectors Mount Street Jesuit Centre staff

Cafod staff

Parishioners Fairtrade & catechetical co-ordinator Parish priest

Method of Data Types of People Collection Involved

Began Sept 2009 Focus groups Cycle 1 Ended Oct. 2010

Began Sept 2009 Cycle 1 Ended April 2010

Phase in Action Research Cycle

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Discipleship

CofE I-Church Online http://i-church.co.uk/ theological reflection

Emmanuel Church, Croydon http://www. emmanuelcroydon. org.uk/youth/ messyChurch.html

CofE Messy Church http://www. messychurch.org.uk/

To explore how theological reflection can improve online pastoral care for bereaved pet owners

To reflect on whether and how messy church is making disciples of Christ

Began Jan 2010 Cycle 1

Began Jan 2010 Cycle 1

To be decided

Participant observation In-depth interviews

Online members of I-Church

Messy church families

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Appendix 2: Agendas for Warm-Up Meetings Agenda Warm-Up Meeting 1 between ARCS team and the church organization Note to outsider team: Bring to the meeting any background information sheets or reports about your work and bring a copy of the Set-up Questionnaire to circulate to insider team at the end of the meeting. Note to insider team: Be prepared at the meeting to share background information about your experience and practice and any concerns or particular insights you might have. Bring any printed material you think might be helpful for the outsider team. It is helpful to have a note taker present and share notes by email after the meeting. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Introductions: Insider team background to church organization Introductions: Outsider team background Research: Initial brainstorm of key issues arising in practice Explain about Set-up Questionnaire Date of next meeting

Agenda Warm Up Meeting 2 between ARCS team and the church organization By the second meeting, the insider team will have filled in the Set-up Questionnaire and circulated it back to the outsider team. The outsider team will come equipped to support the insider team with designing the research. It is helpful to have a note taker present and share notes by email after the meeting.  alking through the Set-up Questionnaire to ensure a shared under1. T standing 2. Identifying a research question about practice 3. Designing the research needed to answer the question 4. Agreeing who will gather the data and what training, if any, is needed 5. Agreeing who will be involved in the reflection on data 6. Agreeing a clear action plan that can go in the remit d­ocument

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Appendix 3: Set-up Questionaire Set-up Questionnaire for groups beginning to work with ARCS Having had an initial meeting with the ARCS team, this questionnaire is designed to help you and your colleagues assemble documents relating to the aims and objectives of your organization and to clarify a specific area of research before the second meeting with members of the ARCS team. We encourage you to identify a group of colleagues with whom you can discuss this research and invite participation in the research process. It is important to stress that there are no right or wrong answers to this questionnaire! This is not part of a selection procedure. The ARCS team is delighted to be working with you. Should you feel unable to answer any particular question just leave it blank or email Catherine (ARCS Fieldworker) for clarification: [email protected]. It would be helpful if you could email this completed document to Catherine prior to the second meeting with members of the ARCS team. Who will be the main co-ordinator with ARCS? Name: Email: Telephone: Address: Background to your organization – These questions will help us understand more about your organization What are the aims of your organization? We are interested in your beliefs and values as an organization – do you have a statement about these that you could share with us? Are there any theological sources or church documents that are regarded as authoritative in the work of your organization? Are there any particular Christian thinkers/leaders that inform your work? Are there any examples of Christian practice that inspire you? Is the work of your organization wholly or partly London-based? Some of our funding is designed to support work with churches in London. It helps us to know where you focus your work. What is the relation of your organization to parish life? The research Is there a particular topic you would like the research to focus upon? Which group(s) of people do you envisage being involved in the research?

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appendix 3 Has your organization been involved in any research previously? If so, please give details. Is there anybody in your organization with training in qualitative research techniques or theological reflection? Does your organization have an identifiable group of colleagues who might work together in collaboration with the ARCS team? The outcome What do you hope to get out of ARCS? What are you hoping to do with the research once it is complete? Who in your organization would like to see the data that is gathered? Is there anything else you would like to tell us at this stage?

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Appendix 4: Example of Remit Document London Jesuit Volunteers Remit Document This remit document formalizes an agreement between LJV and the ‘Action Research: Church and Society’ (ARCS) project to work together to carry out one cycle of Theological Action Research. It should be accompanied by a Set-up Questionnaire (completed by LJV) and an ARCS information sheet outlining the practical implications of working with ARCS. This document falls into five sections: 1. Research Aims 2. Research Questions 3. Research Methods 4. Intended Outcomes 5. Sequence of Events

1. Research Aims: The overall aim of the proposed ARCS/LJV research is to build up the organizational capacity of LJV (by developing training resources) to enable other organizations to replicate the LJV ‘Action–Contemplation–Community’ volunteer model, which has proved so popular. To achieve the above, the research aims include: 1.  To deepen LJV’s understanding of its implicit and explicit values 2.  To deepen LJV’s understanding of its volunteer reflection process 2. Research Questions: 1. What are the implicit and explicit values in the ‘reflective talking’ that takes place in the London Jesuit Volunteers community? 2. By what processes do people engage in reflection at London Jesuit Volunteers? This is to capture the essence of the process so it can be made available to other organizations. 3. Research Methods: We are inviting all volunteers at LJV to do some reflective writing about their voluntary placement experience (max two A4 sides), which they wouldn’t mind sharing with LJV staff and the ARCS team. This writing will be kept entirely anonymous. We would request that volunteers email this directly to the ARCS Fieldworker, Catherine Duce, who will collate these writings and email them as one document to staff at LJV and the wider ARCS team for reflection. We are also looking for a group of volunteers to sign up to participate in a focus group, which will take place during the next ‘LJV Community’ day on 28th November 2009 (4–7pm), and this would involve volunteers sharing their views about the reflection process underpinning LJV’s work.

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appendix 4 We are inviting group reflectors to receive training in participant observation at their next staff training evening on 8th October 2009 at 5pm and for two or three group reflectors to attend a group reflection session (other than their own) to take notes about the implicit and explicit values arising in volunteer group discussions. There was a concern that having outsiders come in to do participant observation might cause disruption but if it was a reflector from a different group then the dynamics might not be affected so much. This is all to be decided by each group, and every person taking part would be expected to sign a consent form. People’s reaction to raw data can be powerful at the data reflection stage of the research. The data reflection would take place in early January 2010 and would be analysed in the initial stages by an advisory group at LJV (including Andrea Kelly, Sandra McNally and other members of Mount Street Centre) and the ARCS team. In a cycle two stage of the research, volunteers and reflectors could be invited to reflect upon their own data from cycle one. 4. Intended Outcomes: A broad agreement about the directed outcomes of the research include the following: 1. A production of an LJV ‘How you do it booklet’ or ‘DIY guide’ for organizations keen to replicate the LJV values and process. 2. To develop the role of Mount Street Centre to provide inductions and ongoing training for group reflectors from other organizations? a resource base? 5. Sequence of Events: Phase 1 - Preparation June to September 2009 • Set up meetings to identify the research topic and question • AK to seek support from Mount Street Jesuit Centre staff to participate in the research • Project remit document drawn up by CD, AK • Project remit document discussed and approved by LJV/ARCS teams • AK to send ARCS team – LJV Handbook outlining the organization’s espoused theology • CD to send LJV – ARCS information sheet Phase 2 – Data Collection October – December 2009 • LJV staff & ARCS team to circulate: o Consent forms o Information sheets to participants • AK to help organize volunteers to do and attend: o Reflective writing o Focus group

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appendix 4 • Group reflectors: o Participant observation (training on 8th October) o Reflective note-taking (training on 8th October) Phase 3 – Data Reflection December 2010 • Advisory group at LJV (to include Andrea Kelly, Sandra McNally and other members of Mount Street Centre) to meet separately to reflect upon the data and complete a ‘Guide to reading the data’ questionnaire. • ARCS team to meet separately to reflect upon the data and complete a ‘Guide to reading the data’ questionnaire. • Both groups to come together, exchange notes, share reflections and recommended outcomes. Phase 4 – Action and Change March 2010 (TBC) • Both teams to decide how to work together to achieve the planned and any new emerging outcomes. Planning for a second wave of research Further cycles of research would be subject to renewed agreement by both parties at a later date. Approval: This remit document has been approved by: Dr Jim Sweeney CP (ARCS Project Director)

Angela Kelly (LJV)

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Appendix 5: Flow Chart for One Cycle of Theological Action Research Outsider team action Team leader approves

Step in process Warm-up meeting (1) Set-up Questionnaire completed

Action required with insider team Explain TAR, give Set-up Questionnaire, identify practice to be researched. Insider team sends questionnaire to outsider team.

Team approves Warm-up meeting (2)

Discuss questionnaire, review Research Question, agree mode of participation; agree remit document.

Checked by qualitative researcher

Research design

Clarify espoused theology, identify normative and formal influences, shared design of research, workload, who will do what, any financial arrangements.

Team checks by email

Remit document signed off

Team checks by email.

Checked by qualitative researcher

Data collection

Check appropriate information sheets and consent forms are available, agree who will see what data, offer guidance on data analysis.

Reflection on data by insider team Insider team produces feedback document

Using ‘Guide to Reading the Data’ sheet.

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appendix 5 Team meeting Possibly some initial coding, theological questions raised, themes identified. Using ‘Guide to Reading the Data’ sheet.

Reflection on data by outsider team

Team approve by email

Outsider team produces feedback document

Insider and outsider feedback documents circulated prior to the joint feedback meeting.

Team represented

Joint feedback meeting of insider team and outsider team to share reflections

First an articulation of what the operant theology appears to be. Then a comparison with espoused and normative theologies. Look again for formal influences. Discuss possible actions.

May need support from team member

Insider team decide Action recorded for data. on action in the light of reflections

Team meeting approves

Recontracting meeting to discuss possibility of a second cycle and Research Question

Insider team renegotiates with their organization

Team checks by email

Revised remit document

Team checks by email

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Appendix 6: Example of Information Sheet Information Sheet For Participants You, and other members of London Jesuit Volunteers (LJV), have been invited to take part in some research. Before you decide whether or not you wish to participate, it is important to understand why the study is being done, and what it will involve for everyone concerned. Please take time to read the following information carefully, and ask any questions that occur to you, before committing to participate in the research. 1. What is the purpose of the research project? London Jesuit Volunteers (LJV), with the support of the ARCS project, is seeking to deepen its understanding of the implicit and explicit values shaping its work with volunteers. In particular, LJV is keen to capture the essence of its reflective work with volunteers in order to make the model of ‘Action–Contemplation–Community’ more readily available to other voluntary organizations who are approaching LJV with an interest in replicating this work. 2. Why is London Jesuit Volunteers working with the ARCS project? The ‘Action Research Church & Society’ (ARCS) project, based at Heythrop College, works alongside eight Catholic and Anglican church organizations in London supporting them to think theologically about what they do and to focus on a particular aspect of their work that they feel merits attention. Visit our website for more details about ARCS (see above). Participating organizations, such as LJV, benefit from research training in reflective practice and shared learning from across the other church organizations working with ARCS. 3. Why have I been chosen? You have been chosen to take part in this research because of your active involvement with London Jesuit Volunteers, either as a volunteer or as a group reflector. You have first-hand experience of the LJV ‘Action–Contemplation–Community’ model, which is of interest to both the ARCS project and LJV. Hearing about your experiences can help us gain a better understanding of the values operating within the organization. 4. Do I have to take part? It is up to you to decide whether or not you wish to take part in the research. If you do decide to take part, you will be given this information sheet to keep, and asked to sign a consent form. You are still free to withdraw at any time, and you are not required to explain a

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appendix 6 decision to withdraw. Most of the people we work with are new to research and we accompany you, answering questions as they arise, and guiding you through the process. 5. What will happen to me if I take part? We are inviting all volunteers at LJV to do some reflective writing about their voluntary placement experience (max two A4 sides), which they wouldn’t mind sharing with LJV staff and the ARCS team. This writing will be kept entirely anonymous. We would r­equest that you email this directly to the ARCS Fieldworker, C­atherine Duce, who will collate these writings and email them as one document to staff at LJV and the wider ARCS team for reflection. All names will be changed.    We are also looking for a group of volunteers to sign up to participate in a focus group, which will take place on 20th March 2010, and this would involve you sharing your views about the reflection process underpinning LJV’s work.    We are inviting group reflectors to receive training in participant observation and for two or three group reflectors to attend a group reflection session (other than their own) to take notes about the i­mplicit and explicit values arising in volunteer group discussions. 6. What are the possible disadvantages of taking part? There is a time commitment involved in doing reflective writing. We also recognize that writing about personal experiences and sharing them with a wider group may seem intimidating. That is why this will be kept anonymous and you should in no way view this as an assessment. Any length/quality of writing would be welcome! 7. What are the possible benefits of taking part? You have the opportunity to tell your story and have others learn from your experience. This will be of value to the ongoing work of LJV, and to other practitioners, church voluntary organizations and academics who are interested in developing ways of encouraging Christian volunteers to reflect theologically and holistically on their work. 8. Will what I say be kept confidential? Any personal information shared during the course of the research will remain confidential.  You will be asked to sign a consent form. All participants should feel free to ask if they would prefer their comments to be summarized or paraphrased rather than quoted directly. 9. What will happen to the results of the research study? The data collected in the research will be made available to London Jesuit Volunteers to further its work. Members of the ARCS team may also use the data in reports, conferences and publications.

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appendix 6 10. Who is organizing and funding the research? The ARCS project is funded by the Higher Education Innovation Fund (HEIF), which is awarded to Heythrop College to develop knowledge transfer activities. We have funding secured until September 2011. The ecumenical ARCS team comprises: Dr James Sweeney (Director of ARCS and Head of Pastoral Studies at Heythrop College); Dr Helen Cameron (Director of Oxford Centre for Ecclesiology and Practical Theology, OxCEPT, at Ripon College Cuddesdon); Dr Clare Watkins (Roman Catholic systematic theologian); and Catherine Duce (ARCS part-time Fieldworker). If you require further information, or wish to discuss your participation in the Project in greater depth, please contact the ARCS Fieldworker Catherine Duce. [email protected]. Thank you for taking the time to read the information contained in this sheet. We appreciate your participation in this project.

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Appendix 7: Example of Consent Form Informed Consent Form • I the undersigned voluntarily agree to take part in this study. • I have been given a full explanation by the researcher of the nature and purpose of the study, and of what I will be expected to do. I have been given the opportunity to ask questions on the study and have understood the information given as a result. • I understand that all personal data relating to participants is held and processed in the strictest confidence, and in accordance with the Data Protection Act (1998). I agree that I will not seek to restrict the use of the results of the study on the understanding that my anonymity is preserved. • I understand that I am free to withdraw from the study at any time without needing to justify my decision and without prejudice. • I understand that any information shared with the Researcher may be used in the final products of the research, including written and oral presentations. It will also be made available to your organization/ church. • I agree that any individual or group interview/focus group may be audio/video recorded. Name of participant (BLOCK CAPITALS)......…………………………....... Signed..……………………………............................................................... Email/contact number..……………………………....................................... Name of Parish/Organization……………………………….......................... Date………………………………................................................................ Name of researcher/person taking consent (BLOCK CAPITALS)…......….. …..................................................................................…………………… Signed......………………………….............................................................. Date......………………………….................................................................

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Appendix 8: Example of Evaluation Questionnaire Youth 2000 Retreat Evaluation Youth 2000 is doing some research with Heythrop College concerning its retreats and how they may help young people on their faith journey. We would be grateful if you could take the time to fill out this brief questionnaire. All answers are entirely anonymous. If you would like to participate in a short follow-up telephone interview one month after the retreat, please email your contact details to the ARCS Fieldworker: Catherine.Duce@ heythropcollege.ac.uk. 1. Was this your first Youth 2000 retreat?   YES   NO 2. If not, how may retreats have you attended in the past? 3. How did you first hear about the retreat? Please circle: Friends /Family/ Parish Newsletter/ Youth2000 leaflet or flier/ School/ College/ University/ Other? (If other please state where)............................................................. 4. What were your reasons for attending the retreat?........................... .................................................................................................... ......................................................................................................... 5. Which parts of the retreat did you find most helpful? Please circle: Adoration/ Confession/ Discussion groups/Healing Service/ Talks/ Mass/ Music Ministry/ Other (If other please state………………………………….........................) In what ways were the above helpful to you?................................... ........................................................................................................ ........................................................................................................ ........................................................................................................ 6. Which parts of the retreat did you find less helpful? In what ways? .................................................................................................... .................................................................................................... ......................................................................................................... 7. What could the retreat organizers do to make the weekend a better experience?............................................................................. .................................................................................................... .........................................................................................................

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appendix 8 8. What do you think are the real questions that young people are asking? What do you think are their real struggles and difficulties?......................................................................... .................................................................................................... ......................................................................................................... 9. What are the most important topics for young people that should be dealt with in the talks and workshops?..................................... .................................................................................................... ......................................................................................................... 10. Would you invite your friends to Youth 2000 retreat? YES NO If not, why not? ………………………………………………………… ……………………………………….................................................. 11. Would you attend another Youth 2000 retreat? YES NO 12. Please indicate your age: ___16–18___19–23___24–29 ___30–35 13. Your occupation: ___student___working___other 14. Are you ___male___female 15. Are you involved in your home parish? YES NO

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Appendix 9: Example of Interview Schedule Westminster Justice and Peace Commission Interview Schedule for Fair Trade Co-ordinator Interviewer to explain at the start of the interview that this is not an evaluation of the parish’s justice and peace work. Instead, it aims to explore the practical experiences and issues faced by parishes doing this work on the ground. It is hoped to be of mutual benefit to both the parish and Westminster Justice and Peace Commission. All interviews will be transcribed (assuming consent forms have been signed) and these transcripts can be made available at the request of the interviewee. The transcripts will then be reflected upon theologically by the ARCS team and the J&P team, and some shared reflections in summary form will be fed back to the parish.

Justice and peace work in the parish Is there any work being done in this parish to promote justice and peace? If so, what is it? How do these activities relate to the wider mission of the parish? How are these activities reflected or encouraged in liturgy? In small groups? In terms of service in the local area? How do people in this parish respond to justice and peace issues? What type of parishioner tends to engage in this work? E.g. age, class, skills, gender, ethnicity.

Fair trade work Is there any work being done in this parish to encourage fair trade? If so, what is this? Who do you consider benefits most from this work? What are the barriers to enthusing people about fair trade in this parish? What other barriers do you face as Fair Trade Co-ordinator? To what extent do you think parishioners make personal consumer choices (e.g. in terms of which food to buy in the supermarket) based on their personal faith values and practices? How do you think people could deepen the connections they make between faith and practice?

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appendix 9

Personal faith What triggered your own personal involvement in this work? Has this volunteer work had any impact on your own personal faith journey? If so, in what ways? Is there any particular Christian thinker that inspires you most to get involved in this work? Where do you see God at work in this parish in terms of justice and peace work?

Westminster Justice and Peace Commission What do you understand to be the role/mission of the Justice and Peace Commission? Would you describe their resources as being most useful politically, socially and/or spiritually? Have you felt supported in your parish work from the Justice and Peace Commission? In what ways could this support be developed and improved?

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Appendix 10: Example of Focus Group Schedule Focus group schedule for Housing Justice Volunteers Focus Group, Catholic Church, Cycle Two, March 2009

Time: 8pm Duration: 50 minutes Number of participants: 6 volunteers (3 women and 3 men) and the local priest

Beforehand • • • •

Are the chairs seated in a circle in the presbytery? Is there any background noise for the Dictaphone? If so, e.g. shut windows etc. Have I got spare batteries for the Dictaphone? Have I got the necessary documents ready? focus group question sheet, consent forms, ARCS information sheets.

During the Focus Group • • • • • • • • •

Have participants been welcomed? Do the participants know each other? If not, do introductions. Have participants received an ARCS information sheet? Do participants know the aims and purpose of the research with Housing Justice? Have participants been given an outline of the structure and length of the session? Have participants been given a consent form? Have they been collected in? Has permission been requested to record the discussion, explaining that all names will be changed and they can request a copy of the transcript if they wish? Have quieter participants had a chance to speak? Is anyone being over-talkative?

Afterwards •

Have participants been thanked for taking part?

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appendix 1 0

Focus Group Questions for Cycle Two Volunteers 2009 Part 1 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Are you a regular member of this church? How long have you been volunteering here? What is your motivation for doing this? What values underpin your volunteering in this shelter? If not mentioned above: Has there been any impact on your faith or spirituality? 6. Do you make any connections between the Eucharist (Communion) and volunteering at the Shelter? 7. How might you describe the sense of hospitality and community at the night shelter? Is it distinctive in any way? (Circulate volunteer quotations from cycle one and seek their reactions)

Part 2 8. In your experience, how do guests react to being in a church-based setting? 9. Do you think the setting affects your relationship with guests? In what way? (Circulate guest quotations from cycle one and ask them each to read one out)

Part 3 10. 11. 12.

Are you surprised by any of these quotations? Which of them particularly strike you? Why? What can we learn from these quotations? With whom would we like to share this learning? (and how?)

Part 4 13. Would you be interested in doing any further reflection upon the links between your Christian faith and volunteering at the shelter?

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Appendix 11: Guide to Reading Data Guide to Reading and Interpreting Data Collected in the ARCS Project This document is designed to help the internal research team within your organization read and interpret the data gathered from the ARCS research. It provides a framework for this discussion to take place. This is an important step in the research cycle. It enables learning and informs future action. Before your team meets to look at the data, we recommend that you and your colleagues read through the data individually and thoroughly, looking for phrases and quotations that illumine themes and/or issues of importance within the context of your particular role within the organization. It may be helpful to have a highlighter pen and for each member of the internal research team to have a copy of the remit document and ARCS Set-up Questionnaire. In the meeting itself, we suggest you appoint a note-taker to record as much of the discussion as possible. The ARCS team will follow a similar process, before both teams meet together to share the fruit of their reflections. How does the data help answer the research question? Is there anything that surprises/strikes you about the data? What kind of beliefs and values are embodied in this data? Is there anything that seems to affirm the beliefs and values of your organization? Is there anything that seems to challenge the beliefs and values of your organization? Where do you see God in the data? What learning might you be keen to draw from this material for people involved in your organization? What actions would you be keen to take forward?

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Appendix 12: Agenda for Joint Reflection Meetings Agenda for Joint Reflection Meetings between ARCS Team and Church Organization Before the joint data reflection meeting it is hoped that you and other members of your organization will have had the opportunity to meet together to reflect upon the data collected. Please use the ‘Guide to Reading the Data’ document to structure your discussions, and record your reflections into one document. The ARCS team will do the same. If possible, please bring extra copies of your written reflections to share with the ARCS team. The ARCS team will bring enough copies of their feedback for members of your organization. Feedback Session 1. Welcome and introductions 2. Feedback from church organization 3. Implications for future and next steps 4. Feedback from ARCS team 5. Implications for future and next steps 6. Dialogue 7. Joint decisions about further action 8. Disseminating the outcomes of the research 9. Timetable for next steps and new cycle? 10. Date of next meeting if required

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bibliograph y Schillebeeckx, E. (1990), Church: The Human Story of God, London: SCM Press. Schleiermacher, F. (1958), On Religion: Speeches to its Cultured Despisers, New York: Harper & Row. Sweeney, J., G. Simmonds and D. Lonsdale (eds) (2010), Keeping Faith in Practice: Aspects of Catholic Pastoral Theology, London: SCM Press. Sweeney, J., C. Watkins et al. (2006), Going Forth: An Enquiry into Evangelisation and Renewal in the Roman Catholic Church in England and Wales, Cambridge: Von Hügel Institute and Margaret Beaufort Institute for Theology. Swinton, J. and H. Mowat (2006), Practical Theology and Qualitative Research, London: SCM Press. Taylor, C. (2007), The Secular Age, Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Thompson, J., with S. Pattison et al. (2008), SCM Studyguide to Theological Reflection, London: SCM Press. Tracy, D. (1975), Blessed Rage for Order: The New Pluralism in Theology, Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press. Trish, E. and K. W. Bamforth (1951), ‘Some Social and Psychological Consequences of the Longwall Method of Coal Getting’‚ Human Relations 4:1‚ pp. 3–38. van Gelder, C. (2007), The Ministry of the Missional Church, Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books. Walton, R. (2003), ‘The Bible and Tradition in Theological Reflection’, British Journal of Theological Education 13:2, pp. 133–51. Ward, P. (2008), Participation and Mediation: A Practical Theology for the Liquid Church, London: SCM Press. Williams, R. (2000), On Christian Theology, Edinburgh: T&T Clark. Woodward, J. and S. Pattison (eds) (2000), The Blackwell Reader in Pastoral and Practical Theology, Oxford: Blackwell.

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Index

Action(s) 14, 23–4, 27–8, 52–3, 67, 103–6 Action Plan 87, 90, 92, 160 Action Research(ers) 3, 5, 14, 31, 34–45, 49–50, 58, 63, 66, 71, 79, 83–4, 89, 94–96, 98, 106–8, 136, 149 Ad extra 2, 95 Agency 16, 65, 70–1, 75–6, 130, 136, 144–145 Anglican (See Church of England) 35, 54, 60, 71, 76, 80, 95, 111, 131–2, 142 ARCS project 1–3, 14, 35, 41–2, 61, 63–5, 71, 76–7, 86–7, 93, 95–6, 99, 109, 111, 113, 121, 139, 142, 155, 170, Authority 17, 26, 30–1, 52, 54, 56, 59–60 Belonging 22, 113–5, 127 Belief(s) 10–13, 26, 43, 54, 64, 66–7, 73–6, 86, 103, 114, 135, 146, 161, 178 Benefits of TAR 67–8, 151–3 Bible 25–6, 28

Church of England (see Anglican) 1–2, 8, 42, 71, 84, 109, 111, 154 Clergy 9, 122–3, 126–7 Collaboration 1, 123, 131, 162 Collaborative working 64 Commitment 51, 56–7, 59, 64, 70, 76, 91, 113–8 Communion 121, 125 Community 14, 16, 19–22, 41, 43, 52, 54–5, 116–7, 125, 127, 146–8 Confidentiality 85, 93–4, 97 Consent form 90, 93–4, 97, 164, 166, 168–9, 171, 174, 176 Conversation 4, 20, 25–6, 31–2, 36, 38, 47, 50, 56–8, 63–4, 66–8, 70, 74–5, 78, 80–1, 83, 96, 100, 102, 118–9, 146–9, 152, 154 Conversion 88, 122, 128, 156 Costs of TAR 67–8 Cultural Studies 29–30 Culture 5, 9–11, 13–17, 21, 31, 73, 117, 136 Cycle one (see first cycle) 107, 132, 164, 177

Capacity building 59, 71, 107–8, 125, 127–8 Catholic Church (see Roman Catholic) 11, 125 Catholic Method 22 Christology 147

Data analysis 95, 98–9, 166 Data collection 56, 66, 92, 94–7, 131, 156–59, 164, 166 Data labelling 96–7 Data sharing 41, 92, 97 Data storage 95–6

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index Designing research 38, 44, 71, 77, 86–8, 160, 166 Diocese 2, 42, 65, 72, 76, 109, 121–9, 143–4 Discernment 4, 27, 56, 66, 68, 118, 149, 152 Doctrine 14, 16, 26, 28, 55, 154

Grace 22–3, 31, 134 Guide to Reading the Data 98–100, 103–4, 178

Ecclesiology 21–2, 113, 145, 151 Ecumenical 22, 49, 74, 80, 100, 109, 130, 152 Epiphany 4, 149 Epistemology 38 Espoused theology 53–6, 57, 68, 75, 85–6, 91, 98, 103–6, 112, 125, 128, 135, 143–4, 155, 166 Eucharist 55, 60, 118, 125–6, 134–5, 146–7, 149, 150, 151 Evangelization 95, 156–7 Experience 7, 10, 13, 16, 20, 23–8, 32, 36–7, 50, 52, 113, 119, 146, 152 Facilitation (skills) 66, 108, 131 Facilitator 78, 105–6 Faith based organizations (or agencies) 2, 10, 13, 16, 34–5, 42, 63–4, 75–6, 91, 92, 109, 130–137, 144–5, 155 Feedback document(s) 92, 99–100, 106, 166 Field notes 95 First cycle (see also cycle one) 107–8, 124, 134, 136 Focus group (schedule) 95, 132, 134, 156–8, 176–7 Formal theology 53–6, 76, 87, 104, 105 Flow chart of the TAR process 166–7 God 3, 7–8, 12–3, 15–6, 23–4, 31, 49, 85, 103, 115–6, 122, 133, 145, 152, 154, 178

Hermeneutic 19, 53–4, 120 Heythrop College 1, 4, 170 Holy Spirit 26, 122, 148 Hospitality 113, 115–6, 136, 146, 150, 177 Housing Justice 65, 71, 107, 130–7, 144, 145, 146, 150, 157, 176 Information sheets 90–1, 93–4, 97, 160, 163–4, 166, 168–70, 176 Informed consent – see Consent form 92–4, 113, 171 Insider team 64–5, 70–2, 76–7, 79, 81, 83–90, 91, 94, 97–100, 100, 103–4, 106, 108, 160, 166–7 Interdisciplinarity 21, 24, 29–32 Interview Schedule 174–5 Jesus 8, 113–4, 116, 118, 122, 126, 147 Joint feedback meeting 99, 105–6, 166–7, 179 Kairos time 66 Knowledge 14, 17, 22, 25, 31, 37–9, 42–3, 64, 71, 86, 144 Kolb Learning Cycle 37 Language 23–4, 30, 58–9, 67, 85, 87, 91, 102, 114–6, 118–9, 127, 133, 135, 143, 145–8, 150–2, 154 Learning 43, 50, 58–9, 96, 103, 107, 108, 109–10, 118–20, 128–9, 136–7, 141, 143, 146, 152, 155, 178 Light bulb moments 14 Liturgy 21, 53, 67, 133, 135, 151

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index London 2, 42, 80, 84, 111–2, 131, 136, 161

Qualifications (for TAR) 76–7 Qualitative research(ers) 65, 77, 82, 88, 95 Questionnaire 85–87, 90, 104, 161

Ministry 21, 75, 126, 142, 155, Mission 9–12, 14, 63, 65, 69, 86, 150, 152 Negotiating access 92, 144 Normative theology 54–5, 60, 104–6, 125 Northern Industrial – Action Research 39 NVIVO 96 Operant theology 14, 54, 103–6, 113, 118, 146, 167 Orders, Holy – 126, 151 Organization(s)(al) 2, 10, 13, 16, 34, 36, 41, 44, 67, 70–3, 75–6, 81, 86, 92, 98, 103, 107, 109, 122, 131, 136, 141–4, 155 Outsider team 63–5, 70–6, 81, 91, 100, 104, 106, 108, 142 Outsider team reflections 104 Oxford Centre for Ecclesiology and Practical Theology 1, 170 Parish(es) 111–19, 142, 154–5 Participant Observation 89, 95, 156–9 Partnership 36–8, 43, 50, 64–5 Pastoral care 19 Pastoral cycle 27–9, 107 Personal faith 88, 113, 117, 145–6 Pedagogy 58, 152 Portsmouth Diocese 15, 121–129, 143 Power 40, 42–4, 100, 126, 151–2 Practical theology 13, 18–33 Practice 17, 22–24, 34–5, 51–3, 58–9 Process 36–7, 50, 61, 166

Remit Document 90–1, 108, 163–5 Renewed theology 65–6, 106, 118, 127 Research Design 38, 44, 95, 166 Research Question 77, 85–8, 95, 103, 145 Revelation 26, 30–1, 51–2, 57 Roman Catholic (see Catholic church) 1, 54, 60, 80, 121, 142, 154 Sacrament(al) 22, 54–5, 59, 147, 150–1 Sacramentality 22, 146, 151 Salvation 26 Scripture(s) 27–8, 53–5, 60 Second cycle 103, 105–8, 134, 136, 167 Set up Questionnaire 85–87, 90, 104, 161 Skills (for TAR) 14, 57, 78, 100 Social change 10 Social science 23, 31, 50 Sociology 30 Sociology of religion 65, 80–1 Southern Participatory Action Research 39–40 Spirituality 9 Stewardship 122–9, 143, 150 St Mary’s, Battersea 8, 111–120 Systematic theology 22, 150, 155 Team work 70–73 Theological Action Research 49–60, 63–68, 70, 83, 92, 109 Theological fluency 14

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index Theological reflection 25–9, 33, 50, 57 Theology in four voices 53–4, 146–7 Theory 17, 20, 37 Time – kairos & chronological 66 Tradition 25–6, 30, 51–53, 60 Training of co–researchers 89

Voices – see theology in four voices Warm up meeting (one and two – agenda) 83–4, 86–7, 160 Westminster Agency for Evangelization 70 Working documents – see appendices at 156–179

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