COVID-19 and the Wilding of the Church — What Sort of Leaders Do We Need? Written by: February 11, 2021 Re-imagining was a key word in Newbold’s first Diversity Lecture of 2021 on Tuesday, February 9. After environmental disasters, God works in nature giving it an infinite capacity to bounce back. Similarly, God can work through leaders who model and encourage a re-imagining of the church in the wake of the pandemic. The speaker at the lecture was Dr. Steve Aisthorpe, Mission Development Worker for the Church of Scotland, a specialist in leadership, a committed environmentalist, and an experienced mountaineer! His lecture was an extended exploration of the metaphor of “wilding” as it might apply in these days when the pandemic has affected the Church like an earthquake or other natural shock.