threat perceived from alternative, but still orthodox, beliefs or practices, or even from other Christian traditions. This may reinforce perceptions of individual church members that the way their own church does things is the only way to think and act.
Largely due to lack of encouragement such disempowerment has had several unfortunate results for many of the laity [51]: • Some cannot imagine how a process called education could in any way help them to lead better, happier or more fulfilled lives – and thus have no expectation of this
• Others come to accept that faith and learning do not mix, and are therefore unreflective about their faith
• Still others have learned a different lesson – that the church lacks interest in their private concerns or struggles
• There are also those who to have come to believe that what they hear on Sundays is unrelated to what goes on during the rest of the week
• And there are those who have learned to cope with such negative learning, and establish their own integrity and development as adults by alternate means
These can be part of a vicious cycle, where disempowerment accompanying poor learning experiences within the church leads to abandonment of any further potential learning.
5.4 The Nature and Availability of Resources
Significant structural barriers to adult Christian learning result from the availability of specific material. This is experienced in various ways: • Absence of any relevant material • Duplication of effort producing material when sharing would be more appropriate • As a result of duplication, reduced overall resources for production of future material • Reluctance to use relevant material from other denominations or theological positions • Lack of access to information about already available relevant material • Inability to judge what is suitable from a range of potentially relevant material.
5.5 A Rural Case Study
The “What Can We Learn?” report [52] described the mapping of adult Christian learning in England and Wales. This included several case studies, one of which was rural and identified barriers experienced by participants in lifelong Christian learning. Seven key areas were highlighted.
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