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Overview Missional Initiative Fund

Across our diocese, parishes and ministry teams are exploring new ways of sharing the love of Christ in their communities. Missional initiatives often begin with prayer, listening, and small experiments that respond to the needs and opportunities in a particular place.

Being missional means joining in the work that God is already doing in the world — building relationships, serving neighbours, and inviting people into the life of Christ and Christian community.

This page gathers resources to help parishes imagine, discern, and experiment with new forms of ministry in their local contexts.

What Makes a Good Missional Initiative?

Missional initiatives are not simply new church programs. They are intentional efforts to build relationships, serve communities, and explore new ways of sharing the love of Christ.

While every initiative will look different depending on the local context, many fruitful projects share several common characteristics.

  • They Focus on Relationships
    Missional initiatives are primarily about people and relationships, not just activities. Successful initiatives often create opportunities for genuine connection with people who may not already be part of the church community.
  • They Engage the Local Community
    Missional projects begin by paying attention to the unique context of the neighbourhood or community. Rather than importing a model from elsewhere, they respond to local opportunities, needs, and relationships.
  • They Start Small
    Many meaningful initiatives begin as small experiments rather than large programs. Trying something simple allows parishes to learn, adapt, and grow over time.
  • They Involve Lay Leadership
    Missional ministry is most sustainable when it involves a team of clergy and lay leaders working together. Many initiatives grow out of the passions and gifts of parishioners who feel called to serve their community.
  • They Are Open to Learning
    Missional initiatives are not about immediate success. They are opportunities to explore, listen, and learn. Some ideas will grow and flourish. Others may change or end after a season. Both are part of the process of discerning how God is leading.
  • They Look Beyond the Church Walls
    Missional initiatives seek to build connections beyond the existing congregation, engaging neighbours, community partners, and people who may not have a church connection.
  • They Reflect the Gospel in Action
    At their heart, missional initiatives express the love of Christ through hospitality, service, justice, compassion, and community.

A Helpful Question

When considering a missional initiative, it may be helpful to ask:

Does this help us build meaningful relationships with people in our community and join in the work God is already doing there?

If the answer is yes, it may be worth exploring further.

Missional Initiative Fund

The Missional Initiative Fund provides seed funding to help parishes and ministry teams explore new ways of connecting with their communities.

Projects supported by the fund often focus on:

  • building relationships beyond the walls of the church.
  • responding to local needs.
  • creating spaces for conversation, hospitality, and spiritual exploration.
  • forming new Christian communities.

Missional initiatives often begin as small, local experiments rather than large programs. MIF Grants are usually no larger than $1,500. To apply, contact Canon Shawn C. Branch with a summary of the event/need.

Getting Started

Missional ministry usually begins not with a program, but with listening; paying attention to our neighbourhoods and noticing where God might already be at work.

Some helpful starting questions:

  • Who lives around our church?
  • What are the hopes or challenges in our community?
  • Where do people naturally gather?
  • What small step might we take to build relationships?

Resources

  • Listening to Your Community – A simple guide
  • Discerning Missional Opportunities
  • Starting a Small Missional Experiment
  • Reflecting on Missional Projects

Fresh Expressions and New Christian Communities

Across the Anglican Communion, many communities are experimenting with new forms of church life, sometimes called 'fresh expressions'.

A Fresh Expression is a new form of church that emerges within contemporary culture and engages people who are not currently part of a church community.

These communities often grow in places where people naturally gather — around meals, shared interests, neighbourhood activities, or service in the community.

Examples include:

  • Café church or dinner church
  • Messy Church for families
  • neighbourhood prayer gatherings
  • outdoor or seasonal worship
  • community service initiatives that grow into spiritual community

Learn More

Tools for Parish Leaders

Missional initiatives are often led by small teams of clergy and lay leaders who are willing to experiment, learn, and adapt.

The following tools can help parish leaders begin:

  • Missional Planning Worksheet
  • Community Listening Guide
  • How to Build a Small Ministry Team
  • Evaluating a Pilot Project

Remember: small experiments are often the best place to begin.

Practical Mission Resources

 

If you are exploring a missional idea in your parish and would like to talk it through, please contact Canon Shawn C. Branch, Director of Mission and Ministry.