The Silk Industry

The slide display in the Macclesfield Silk Museum gave me a feel for the way industry changes over time. At first it was silk buttons for which Macclesfield was famous. Then the town moved on to 'throwing' silk (twisting it together to make it stronger) and weaving it (making it into cloth). Factories opened. Weavers prospered. Workers learned and passed on their skills. Business was booming.

Then disaster struck. Peace with France meant that cheaper silk cloth could be obtained from across the channel. In Macclesfield wages plummeted, unemployment soared, poverty ruined family life. This is something of an over-simplification, and I was pleased to note that even today the town still has a small but profitable silk business. But it made me realise that a way of life can be happy and prosperous for a generation or two, then due to external circumstances it cannot continue. All it takes is for silk buttons to go out of fashion, or for synthetic materials to become cheaper and better, and a whole industry, with its workforce, expertise, tools and premises ceases to be needed.

A decade or so back I was surprised at the number of mobile phone shops springing up. I assumed that once everyone had bought a mobile there would be no further need for them. As it happens, the mobile phone industry is continuing to boom. But for how long? Sooner or later it will cease to be fashionable to carry a mobile, or perhaps some better technology will replace it.

And what about the church? There was a time when we were flourishing. The premises were designed to cope with eager congregations. The leaders were training in preaching and pastoral visiting. We became a prosperous industry. Now circumstances have changed in so many ways. The world of 21st century Britain is very different from the past. Yet all our expertise and the tools of our trade are designed to cope with the way things used to be. No wonder we are struggling.

And on a personal note, I am realising that all my own training and experience has not equipped me to deal with the life of the church today. It's not wasted. I've learned things over the last few decades of ministry which will stand me in good stead for the future. But I need to develop new skills, new ways of leading, new ways of serving. A daunting prospect. So I'll fall back on a very useful prayer I learned as a student: "help!"