Looking to the future: families, faith and the next generation

After a joyful first day of worship, celebration and fellowship, day two of the Worldwide Gathering began with a question about the future: how do we ensure Mothers’ Union flourishes for the next 150 years?

The answer, delegates heard, is not simply about attracting younger people. It is about creating a movement where younger generations can belong, contribute and lead, and where every generation can learn from one another.

The day opened with young South African Mothers’ Union leader Liezel Mullah and Anglican Communion Youth Network leader Lulama Ntuta. The conversation offered an honest look at both the opportunities and challenges facing younger members. While there is no single experience that represents an entire generation, the stories shared highlighted the importance of being listened to and trusted. As Lulama said, the way to help younger members is to ‘walk alongside us and help us grow. It’s not about older people walking and younger following. It’s also not about the younger taking over. It’s about walking together.’

Their message was clear: if Mothers’ Union is to remain a truly intergenerational movement, creating space for younger people to contribute and lead needs to be part of its future.

Today’s Family Panels asked delegates to consider a fundamental question: what does family look like today?

Families around the world are changing, shaped by culture, faith, economics, migration, conflict and wider social change. The panels brought together different perspectives to explore the diversity and complexity of family life in a worldwide context.

Rather than seeking one definition of family, conversations encouraged delegates to listen and understand the families they are called to serve. If Mothers’ Union is to strengthen family life, it must first understand the reality of the families around it, without making assumptions about what they need.

‘Family is a verb, not a noun’, Dr Kezia October said. ‘In our research families are more than blood or cohabitation. It’s changing to chosen family. Polices need to include this too.’

The Revd William Banda and Dr Robin Ray continued ‘it takes a village to nurture a faith.’

A sense of belonging is key through the social networks in family. For generations, families have been the first place where faith is introduced, stories are shared and values are formed. But children and young people today are growing up in a rapidly changing cultural environment, encountering competing messages about identity, belonging, purpose and values.

Across the different perspectives, one message emerged: families cannot do this alone. Faith is formed through relationships. Children rarely experience faith simply as information to be taught; they encounter it through people who embody love, trust and hope.

Estelle Dibo added ‘MU must pick up the parenting to support family life in these challenging times.’

From the voices of young leaders in the morning to conversations about family, faith and community in the afternoon, day two returned repeatedly to the importance of relationships.

For Mothers’ Union, celebrating 150 years is not only about looking back at what has been achieved. It is also about asking what is needed for the generations to come. It’s an invitation to keep listening, keep learning and keep walking alongside one another so that Mothers’ Union can continue to be a place where people of every generation belong, contribute and lead.

In the words of The Rt Revd Stephen Diseko of Anglican Church Southern Africa, who hosted the opening Eucharist, ‘Viva Mary Sumner, viva Mothers’ Union. Long live Mothers’ Union, long live!’