What is the biggest threat facing churches today? Not enough young
people? Too little mission and evangelism? Unsustainable buildings?
Unappealing styles of worship? Not enough diversity? Whatever the
reasons, the church today seems to exist in a state of anxiety,
concerned with its self-preservation.↵
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In
this bold and hopeful book, Martyn Percy argues that a being a broken
church is in fact good news, as it is only through the cracks that the
overwhelming abundance of God can shine through. This collection of
essays and reflections considers what it means to be a precarious
church. The term suggests uncertainty and peril, yet it is rooted in the
Latin precatio, meaning prayer. ↵
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It
argues that the Church’s vocation is not to be successful or even to
survive but to be precarious, liminal, unpredictable and mysterious – a
place of encounter with the holy. The questions that should consume us
are not, “how shall we remove the risks and alleviate our anxieties?”,
but rather “how shall we live in this age of uncertainty?” Every age has
had its uncertainties and this inspiring volume explores what
faithfulness to each other and to God looks like in an age of anxiety.