The call to discipleship lies at the heart of what it means to be Christian. Jesus calls women and men from all walks of life to be his disciples – to follow him in faith, hope and love (1 Corinthians 13:13). The call to be a disciple is one of learning and formation into the likeness of Christ.
This commitment to following is foundational to the life and culture of our parishes, congregations and Fresh Expressions of Church. Being a disciple involves serving one another and our communities, and underscores our witness and work in the world. There are many resources available online to help you deepen your discipleship.
Growing in Faith and Life
Growing in Faith and Life is a one-year course run by Southwark Diocese for anybody who wants to be more confident about what they believe, read the Bible with more understanding, and reflect on their journey as a Christian. It has six modules. Those who complete the course are awarded the Bishop’s Certificate in Discipleship.
Beginning in faith
These resources are useful for helping those new to the church or who are exploring Christianity for the first time.
Alpha – A well-known 10-week course used by many churches and originating from Holy Trinity, Brompton. One of its features includes participants eating together to discuss what Christians believe. You can find out much more about Alpha on its website. Also available as Youth Alpha.
Christianity Explored – This seven-week course exploring the Gospel of Mark gives you time and space to think through who Jesus is and why it matters. You can find out much more about Christianity Explored on its website.
The Why Course – This course offers a more Catholic perspective. Further useful resources can be found at the Evangelium website.
Christian Enquiry Agency – The Christian Enquiry Agency website is a fantastic place for people to explore and ask questions about faith through articles and videos and to ask questions of a trained team via e-mail.
The Diocesan Mission and Evangelism pages of this website also contain helpful faith-sharing resources.
Growing in faith
These resources focus on helping people to explore more about knowing God and where God is active in their lives.
Pilgrim – This is a major teaching and discipleship resource from the Church of England. It aims to help every local church create a place where people can explore the Christian faith together and see how it can be lived out each day. Much more information about Pilgrim can be found on its website.
Discipleship Explored – This eight-week course based on Philippians follows on from the Christianity Explored course (see Beginning in faith, above). You can find out more on the Christianity Explored website.
Life on the Frontline – This six-session DVD resource for small groups aims to inspire and equip Christians to make a difference on their front lines – in the workplace and their local communities.
Are you ready? – This is a book of 19 ready-to-use interactive sessions aimed at young people who are preparing for confirmation. Are you ready? (SPCK, 2015) also includes a full programme for a pre-confirmation retreat and a liturgy for the enrolment of confirmands. Works well with the confirmation gift book Living your Confirmation (SPCK, 2012).
Why on earth…? – This collection opens up some of life’s hardest questions in an accessible way. Each session offers simple first steps in exploring a difficult subject. It does not aim to give final answers, just starting points.
Faith Pictures – This Church Army course helps Christians to talk naturally to friends, neighbours and colleagues about what they believe. The heart of the course is about helping people to identify a single picture or image that embodies something of their faith.
Table Talk – Table Talk is a game of conversations. It has editions for many different groups, but they all begin by turning over cards and discussing the important (and not so important) issues of life.
Leading Your Church Into Growth – This course is run by Southwark’s Mission and Evangelism Team. It is aimed at church leaders (lay and ordained) from all kinds of traditions and contexts, and asks them to look at principles and practices that stimulate growth.
Growing Leaders – Some people might also find the Growing Leaders course a good way of developing and sustaining leadership across larger churches to help these thrive and innovate.
Fan the Flame – This course offers a way for congregations in the Catholic tradition to rekindle their faith through a week of teaching and renewal.
Serving in discipleship
The call to discipleship is also a call to love and serve our communities. These sites will help you to think through the opportunities and challenges of mission as loving service.
The Cinnamon Network – Resources to help you to think about understanding the needs of your community and planning to meet them.
The Discipleship Team also runs many events during the year, which can be found on the events page. You might also like to sign up to our monthly newsletter, Discipleship News by e-mailing Helen Medland (contact below).
