Monica Hill was a marvellous woman. Innovator, organiser, networker, pioneer, warm-hearted and solicitous, a teacher - plus being a wonderful wife, mother and grandmother. She was an administrators’ dream. She seemed to have it all!

Early days of the BCGA

My first encounter with Monica was in early 1980, right at the formation of the movement for the study of Church Growth principles as they applied to the British Isles. Cliff and Monica had just moved back to London from Cheltenham and that placed Monica right at the centre of things. Soon her networking skills drew together a range of influential church leaders and theologians, under the Chairmanship of the Rev Dr Derek Tidball of London Bible College, to formulate the embryonic British Church Growth Association (BCGA), which became a legal institution in 1982.

Most of these committee members, it should be added, were men. Monica was usually the sole female voice at meetings, but it never seemed to intimidate or bother her. Her progressing of the Church Growth movement in the UK spoke for itself and she never had any need to be defensive or prickly about her gender.

Despite all those temporary homes, Monica manged to be on top of an amazing number of pioneering productions.

Monica’s networking skills extended to the hustling up – for free – of a variety of meeting places for the newly formed committee. I remember meeting at such rendezvous as the Evangelical Alliance offices, the Methodist Leysian Mission, London Bible College, the Bible Society H.Q., Swindon, the Baptist Union H.Q. – and even in an empty shop in Bedford! Eventually we came to rest in permanent offices at Moggerhanger Park.

Despite all those temporary homes, Monica manged to be on top of an amazing number of pioneering productions. Conferences were convened (including the first ever UK Church Planting Conference), books were commissioned via Monarch Publishers, and Monica engaged in the editorship of a regular, eagerly-read Church Growth magazine and the encouraging of the formation of a European Church Growth Association (ECGA).

A move to Moggerhanger

I eventually took over as Chair of the BCGA (Derek Tidball became its President) and thus had opportunity of witnessing at first hand all of Monica’s industrious activity. All of it, it should be emphasised, being for the extension of God’s kingdom and never as an aim in itself. Equally, it should be stated, that the BCGA was never obsessed by quantity i.e. numbers. Monica fought long and hard to centralise quality, i.e., spiritual fruit as the goal of church growth.

Monica and I travelled extensively in Europe to encourage the movement there with weekend conferences, book production and regular magazine production. Monica was elected as Executive Secretary – all on top of her other commitments.

Equally it should be stated that the BCGA was never obsessed by quantity i.e. numbers. Monica fought long and hard to centralise quality i.e. spiritual fruit as the goal of church growth.

By now, early 1990s, Moggerhanger Park had been purchased, and Monica – at long last – had her own permanent office. This allowed her and Cliff to develop another vision they had – for a Centre for Contemporary Christianity (CCM). As teachers, both Cliff and Monica had longed for a hub wherein God’s mission might be taught and enthused in a topical manner. Being a listed building, however, brought all sorts of limitations with it; several builders went bankrupt before the work could be completed. But that didn’t stop Monica from planning ahead, organising CCM Committee Meetings and building up a library in readiness. I eventually took on the role as Chair of the CCM and again worked with Monica at close quarters – even staying overnight in the Hill’s home.

An understated aspect of Monica’s role in birthing and growing the BCGA is that she did it all for FREE! There was no salary, just (rather limited) expenses and massive overwork! It was this freely-given offering of all her gifts that kept the movement going and growing. Only when she stood down from being the BCGA Executive Secretary and a new incumbent needed to be paid that it was realised what a total sacrifice she had made. In the end, the need to find a salary brought the movement to its knees and in 2003 it was dissolved. But by then Monica’s generosity and bountiful-giving had placed Church Growth principles firmly in the understanding and teaching of the British Church.

Inverted triangle

Was Monica perfect? Of course not! As Chair, on many an occasion, I had to terminate Monica’s occasional rambles (she had so much to share!) and committee members didn’t always appreciate or accede to the sacrifice Monica herself was making when she demanded the same open-hearted, generous approach to ministry among them that she was showing. That caused some frustration on her part.

One of the gifts Monica had which I have not seen elsewhere was her ability to compartmentalise issues.

One of the gifts Monica had which I have not seen elsewhere was her ability to compartmentalise issues. She was able to deal with problems by setting up different task forces or agencies, often with herself as administrator. She could thus put problems under a microscope to deal with them separately.

Together, with Cliff, Monica was always at the cutting edge of new issues and passions in the world-wide Church. Besides Donald McGavran and church growth she also introduced me to Dr Peter Wagner and Mega Churches, to Rick Warren and Purpose Driven Churches, to the so-called Kansas City prophets, to Christian Schwarz and Natural Church Development, and so on.

The British Church Growth Association was a classical 'inverted triangle' organisation i.e. a big institution resting on a very small base. And that base was Monica Hill. As I noted at the outset, she seemed to have it all!

Rev Dr Bob Hunt – formerly Vice Principal of All Nations Christian College, Ware, Herts 

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Monica was an extraordinary and very special person, who will be much missed in her zeal in promoting church growth as well as many other things, including the great support she gave to her husband Clifford.

Fresh initiatives

Monica and Clifford talked with, and ministered to, many church leaders. During the 1970s, Monica sensed the wind of the Spirit for seeking to stimulate an increasing urgency to reach the population for Christ, perhaps partly a legacy from the Billy Graham and Luis Palau Crusades. As a result, Monica established the British Church Growth Association (BCGA) in 1981.

During the 1970s, Monica sensed the wind of the Spirit for seeking to stimulate an increasing urgency to reach the population for Christ.

The BCGA was a networking organisation that promoted church growth principles and influenced churches, denominations and seminaries. Colleges like the All Nations Christian College under Bob Hunt was one of the early enthusiastic supporters.

The BCGA published a quarterly journal called The Church Growth Digest, which was edited by Monica. The BCGA was based on the work of Donald McGavran, the first Professor of Church Growth at the influential Fuller Theological College in Los Angeles.

Under Monica, the BCGA established the Church Planting Initiative, the Small Church Network and Natural Church Development, the last stimulated by some German research. In time, other Church Growth Associations began in other European countries (especially in Germany, Finland and the Netherlands) and the European Church Growth Association (ECGA) was started, with Monica as its President.

I had the privilege of speaking at several of the ECGA bi-annual conferences, and joined the BCGA Council in 1994. Jörg Knoblauch, author of books on time management, was a keen German advocate.

Monica had an extraordinary ability to recall incidents of church growth she had come across in her wide ministry, and a wonderful way of getting alongside people, helping many church leaders think through challenging questions.

Helper and encourager

Monica had an extraordinary ability to recall incidents of church growth she had come across in her wide ministry, and a wonderful way of getting alongside people, helping many church leaders think through challenging questions. She could recall their names with accuracy, and kept detailed notes of many meetings and conversations.

The 1990s were declared ‘A Decade of Evangelism’ by the then Archbishop of Canterbury, George Carey. But the Christian Research English Church Censuses of 1989 and 1998 did not show overall growth – rather, decline, although many individual churches had seen some growth in numbers, especially some (but not all) of the evangelical churches. Interest in church growth faded and eventually in 2003 the BCGA had to close for financial reasons.

Serving to the end

That did not stop Monica continuing to encourage and stimulate church growth whenever possible, and in her 80s she sought to rationalise and put in logical order some of the many papers which BCGA had accumulated, a work left to be completed.

Monica was a friend and a confidante – a source of wisdom and understanding of both national happenings and local changes

Monica was a friend and a confidante – a source of wisdom and understanding of both national happenings and local changes, with diverse interests feeding into her fervent longing to see the Church grow.

She didn’t stop working on her computer until she literally collapsed over it as the Lord took her to glory. It was a great privilege to have known her and to have worked with her.

Dr Peter Brierley, Brierley Consultancy, ex-Director of Christian Research