Beer, wine, curry & McCurrie
Orlando Saer
Around 250 visitors from the Southampton community came out for the kick-off event to June’s Real Life outreach programme.
Billed as ‘A Year in a Day’ and intentionally scheduled to take place before the easing of restrictions, the afternoon was a chance for local children – with their parents – to experience what they had missed out on during lockdown: pancake day, birthday party games, bonfire night, and Christmas cheer. The climax was Easter and an activity which illustrated the truth of the resurrection.
THEY’RE DOING IT BY THE BOOK
Orlando Saer
As local councils race to close down community buildings across the nation, one church has spotted an opportunity.
Southampton City Council is one of many that has been forced to make major cuts in response to shrinking levels of central government funding. But when it announced the closure of the Burgess Road Library – immediately opposite Southampton University and 500 yards from the Sunday morning venue of Christ Church Southampton – the members of the church got praying, and wondering…
A church steaming ahead
Orlando Saer
Ask a passer-by what they associate with Southampton, and, if the answer is nothing to do with a football team, it might well be one of its two most famous ships. The ship of doom — the Titanic. And the ship of hope — the Mayflower. Both set sail from Southampton Docks. But while one led to the death of thousands, the other led ultimately to a new life in a new world for millions.
Those who for years prayed for and laboured towards the launch of Christ Church Southampton hoped that God would give the church a fair wind and enable it to chart a steady course. They never dreamed that — on a simple diet of no-frills Bible-study and preaching — it would become one of the fastest growing churches in the country.