This story illustrates the principles of Loving and serving in the Guide.
Safe Haven is a spiritual home for people who live with mental illness. Held monthly on a Tuesday evening in Waltham Abbey Church, in the Essex town of the same name, the hour-and-a-half long gathering attracts up to nine people across the adult age range.
Safe Haven is one of a number of activities supported by the Mind and Spirit County Steering Group.
The point of Safe Haven is that it sets out to break down distinctions between mental health and spirituality,
explains Waltham Abbey's curate, Di Crook.
It is a safe place for each person to explore their spiritual/existential journey in a framework which is Christian, but accepts people just where they are.
She suggests that around three quarters of those who attend regularly are those with no church or Christian background but who know that they are searching. Some people come each month, others when they can. Guidelines for the meetings are agreed together and everyone is welcome.
Other meeting places have been explored, but it was found that those who attend prefer the 'spiritual' feel of Waltham Abbey Church.
The session is facilitated by Di, a trained counsellor who, before ordination, worked with people with mental illness. Other group members have also helped to facilitate the meetings.
Meetings are simple. They begin with a read meditation, followed by a time of quiet. People indicate they are ready by placing a lit candle in the middle of the group. When everyone is ready, people can share their thoughts.
Writing about Safe Haven, one member commented:
I am sure most of us who came along as facilitators or members never expected that we would receive, ourselves, far more than we were able to give.
Boundaries and barriers have slipped away as we take up the opportunity for personal reflection in the presence of God, and then the privilege of sharing in sometimes very intimate and personal moments, as all seek to express their feelings and needs.
Not all present would recognise or even understand the movement of the Holy Spirit, but that presence is always there, encouraging, lifting up, comforting, healing and empowering.
And skateboarding sometimes forms part of the worship.
Mennonites – Amish first cousins, plain dressing, peaceable types? Well, yes that's the conservative wing of the Tradition but – in practice – Mennonites come in all shapes and sizes. Our Wood Green Mennonite Church is a little left of centre. Not a buggy in sight!
Gradually the church has got more involved in running events for the whole village. In 2012, the old church building – which is the only public building in the village – is being reordered to make it suitable for wider community use. When the work is done there are hopes to re-launch a monthly all age service with a new team and a mission project with an environmental focus.
I did msm South Wales in 2009-2010. It was timely for us to do it as Llantwit Major Benefice has nine churches, three clergy and three Readers! It gave us the kick start to do things, providing a reason to stop delaying and get on with it.
In a new atmosphere of optimism, I started the Messy Church at St James' Wick, which I ran for its first 18 months before handing it over.
Our journey has been one of great joy and constant surprises; all is not perfect but the joys far outweigh the few negatives. With a fresh expression of church I have been struck time and again – not just with the increasing numbers but by the fact that no-one attends because they feel they have to be there. Everybody attends because they want to be there. I certainly don't sense that we have got to the stage where parents are saying, 'Oh it's Wednesday, we'd better go to church.' Often it is the children who urge parents to keep on coming along simply because they enjoy it so much.
Given that any fresh expression of church will draw in and involve individuals who are new to, or simply exploring, the faith – perhaps for themselves and their children – it has been difficult in the early years to encourage people to lead activities, especially for children. We have rotas for refreshments and help with setting up but it is only recently that parents have been willing to come forward to prepare children's activities. The fact that this is now happening is an indication that some are 'growing' and becoming confident enough to step up and begin to engage in their own mission activity.
My understanding of the Eucharist is that all are 'family' occasions and so the concept of a specific service labelled as 'family' is a misnomer to my mind. How then, could we address this age old problem in the parish church?
I have found that communication is a vital aspect of any fresh expression of church. I communicate primarily by email, text and via the Holy Commotion website with posts linked to a Facebook page and Twitter. It is demanding and time consuming – as is the preparation for both Holy Commotion (fortnightly) and Together in Worship.
Blessed in Gosport has been operating for 10 years now, initially growing out of work with an unchurched group of young people, drawing them into a sacred place.
Eventually, the young people asked to do 'that thing' with the bread and wine. They didn't have the theology behind their request, just the language to express their yearning and Simon felt the need to respond to it. Blessed has always pursued an open table policy and with this sacramental outreach, began a process of conversion.
After 10 years, Father Simon has answered a calling to go and establish another similar community in Plymouth. With the blessing of the team in Gosport, Simon moved house in April and has already started the process again with a group of older teenagers and young adults, giving them a new experience and interpretation of the sacrament.