21 September 2009
27 September is Back to Church Sunday: Come as you are
This Sunday, half a million Christians will be inviting someone
special to come back to church in one of the largest co-ordinated
ecumenical evangelism events staged across Britain.
Churches across the UK and further afield will be offering an
especially warm welcome at church services and events for Back to
Church Sunday (27 September). Church members have been encouraged
to personally invite someone they know to come back to church for
special services and events on the theme of 'Come as you
are'.
A number of churches are combining the event with their harvest
celebrations. "Harvest is a time when some folk return to church
for their annual visit to say 'thank you' and on this occasion they
will find an even warmer welcome than usual," said the Revd Gill
Newton, minister at Cheadle Hulme Methodist Church in
Cheshire.
Derrick Norton, Evangelism Network Development Officer, said; "Back
to Church Sunday is taking many people by surprise, because of the
growing awareness of its success. Here is an event which accords
with some people's interest in spiritual things, and which is an
opportunity for those outside the church to find a way to
return.
"We are encouraged to do what we know we should - to be welcoming.
It starts with prayerfully and personally inviting someone we know
to what is a fairly typical church service, but where we have
planned a warm welcome for visitors. We know there will again be
lots of good news stories, as people step out and allow God to use
their simple acts of hospitality."
In Appleby and Dufton in Cumbria, people who come to church this
Sunday will be invited to attend a 'Come as you are' course later
in the year. Paul Dunstan, District Evangelism Enabler for the
Cumbria Methodist District, said, "The beauty of Back to Church
Sunday is its simplicity".
A 40-second radio advert promoting Back to Church Sunday will be
broadcast on local radio stations around the UK, inviting people to
take part.
Back to Church Sunday is a joint initiative of the Church of
England, the Methodist Church, the United Reformed Church, the
Baptist Union of Great Britain, the Salvation Army, the Church in
Wales, Churches Together in Scotland and Elim Pentecostal Churches,
as well as churches in Australia, Argentina, New Zealand and
Canada.
For more information about Back to Church Sunday, visit www.backtochurch.co.uk.