Our vision

Called Together is our shared vision across the Diocese to change, serve and grow, as we seek first the Kingdom of God.

When Bishop Jonathan Gibbs first came to be our diocesan bishop in 2022, he arrived with three words - change, serve, and grow. Three words he believed were placed on his heart by God as he took on his ministry within the Diocese of Rochester.

Much work has taken place since then to understand what these three themes mean for the life of the Diocese and our priorities, and to define what and where resources will need to be allocated to deliver them. 

Through prayerful engagement and discernment, what has emerged is an understanding that:
 

Seeking first the Kingdom of God, we are called together by God to change, serve and grow
with compassion, courage, and creativity.

• Change is about the need for us to adapt in a changing world so that our churches can play their full part in serving God and drawing people once more to faith in Jesus Christ. 
   
• Serve is about the attitude we need to adopt if we are to earn and gain that cherished place in people’s hearts and at the heart of our communities. 
   
• Grow is about what God wants to bring about in us and through us, as people growing into the likeness of Christ, and as churches where people are being drawn to follow Jesus through our words and through our deeds.

Watch this short message from Bishop Jonathan as he talks about our plan as a diocesan family

Our objectives

Within the overall vision, our key objectives are to grow missional churches, with missional leaders and missional disciples, that are: 

• Growing a safe and healthy culture for all
• Growing younger and more diverse
• Growing spiritually and numerically
• Impacting their communities
• Releasing financial resources for mission
• Planting and growing new missional churches

Four workstreams help focus our work to grow God's kingdom and ensure a flourishing and well-resourced parish structure. They are:

• Missional leadership development
• Children, Young People and Families
• Investment in missionally healthy places
• Revitalising fragile churches.  

All are seen through the lens of growing safe and healthy cultures, because if we are truly seeking God's kingdom, then we must reflect is values of righteousness, peace, wholeness, and fullness of life for all.

This vision was unanimously approved by Diocesan Synod in December 2024 and work is underway to mobilise the plan.

Be part of it

The vision stands on the shoulders of a generation of previous pilgrims of the Diocese of Rochester who, also at a moment of great societal change, upheaval and challenge, had a steadfast belief that through their combined endeavour, generosity, and faith, they could grow the Church and God's kingdom.

This is what we believe we are being called to - let's make it happen. 

Explore more

• Read more about our story as a diocesan family in our latest Annual Report Annual Report and Accounts
• Learn more about the fantastic mission and ministry already taking place around the Diocese to grow God's Kingdom through our Growing the Kingdom films 
• Discover more news and stories - download Together magazine or find our News section.

Key Contacts