Coming through Covid with a building to bless
Can existing buildings be re-purposed in our brave new post-pandemic world?
CRE exhibitors CPL Architects think so and are taking up the challenge under their new Building to Bless initiative.
‘It has been wonderful to see churches developing a vision for their local communities within the constraints of social distancing,’ said CPL’s Phil Winch. ‘They are delivering new outreach projects through innovative building projects, meeting the new needs of our world.’
With online streaming of services a necessary form of collective worship under lockdown, the gradual relaxation of government restrictions has required a fresh look at how existing physical buildings can be re-purposed.
‘Social distancing requirements effect many aspects of the built form,’ explained Phil, ‘including access, egress, circulation, ventilation and spacing between seating. It all means larger areas are needed for the same number of people.’
Many churches are reviewing their building portfolios to see how they can be modified to meet these important new requirements, suggests Phil. At the same time, some churches are seeing this crisis as an opportunity to achieve a more aspirational vision – to bless their communities with new ventures delivered through exciting building programmes.
A Building to Bless project in Beckenham (pictured) envisages a brand-new facility on the high street, providing a safe and attractive offering to the night-time economy with music events, fine coffee and other social activities to meet community needs.
‘If you have a vision for your community in these challenging times, we would love to hear about your ideas for Building to Bless,’ said Phil. Click here for more information.
• CPL Architects are exhibiting at CRE South West 2021 (Westpoint, Exeter, 17-18 Mar) and CRE National 2021 (Sandown Park, Esher, Surrey Oct 12-14)
Join our mailing list to make sure you receive a free copy of the CRE At Home 2020 handbook, which will be posted in October
Our next exhibitions
CRE South West 2021 – 17-18 March 2021
Westpoint, Exeter
CRE National 2021 – 12-14 October 2021
Sandown Park, Surrey
Let your light shine (and don’t be LED astray)
Most of us fail to consider how much oil our church lighting burns – not the refined hydrocarbon found in traditional oil-burning lamps but the environmental cost of the energy used by everyday light bulbs.
‘On average, churches in the UK use between 22,000 and 30,000 kWh of electricity annually,’ said David Burch of CES, a lighting design and installation practice with teams dedicated to re-lighting heritage churches. ‘To put this in perspective you could make two million cups of coffee with this energy, which in the C of E is probably about right!’
Worryingly, this is also equivalent to 2,800 litres of oil being burnt and expelled into the atmosphere. And although the UK government has made inroads into green and renewable energies, the jury’s still out on whether we’ll meet the 30 per cent target by the end of 2020. So how can churches play their part?
‘New technologies can allow us to cut lighting energy consumption by 90 per cent,’ said David. ‘At CES we understand the importance of system longevity with minimal maintenance. Churches are charities and we appreciate the importance of value for money where budgets are tight. We also understand how lighting can be used architecturally and impact worship for good.
‘New LED lighting should not be entertained without careful consideration and professional assistance. Many quick swaps or poorly-designed schemes are a false economy!’
• CES Lighting are exhibiting at CRE National 2021 (12-14 Oct 2021). For more information click here.
Join our mailing list to make sure you receive a free copy of the CRE At Home 2020 handbook, which will be posted in October
Our next exhibitions
CRE South West 2021 – 17-18 March 2021
Westpoint, Exeter
CRE National 2021 – 12-14 October 2021
Sandown Park, Surrey
It’s back – to brighten up the summer
A paper bringing much-needed good news in a disrupted summer is now available for distribution in your locality.
The monthly eight-page newspaper, Good News, which includes a variety of encouraging articles, has returned after the May edition was cancelled due to COVID-19. Its front page gives a message of hope and other articles include a story on the miracle of Dunkirk in May 1940, when thousands answered the call to prayer and thousands of troops were rescued from the beaches of France.
Boxer Tyson Fury talks about his faith and remarkable comeback. Villagers in Whaley Bridge tell of how they believe prayer stopped last summer’s dam from breaking.
Good News editor Andrew Halloway hopes churches will return to door-to-door delivery (bearing social distancing in mind) and points out that scientific experts have said that newspaper is a safe agent and does not pass on the virus.
‘We have produced 70,000 copies of the paper and trust churches will grasp the opportunity to engage with people in their local area,’ he said. ‘We have also sent double our usual quantity of copies to prison chaplains, knowing that prisoners, having to spend longer in their cells during the lockdown, could be glad of extra reading matter.’
Good News is ideal for door-to-door distribution, or leaving in hospitals, doctors’ and dentists’ waiting rooms. It is also an excellent resource for visitors to services or people who attend parent and toddler groups, senior citizens’ luncheon clubs and so on.
With more than 30 years’ experience in Christian publishing, Andrew’s first issue as editor was in October 2007.
Find out more by visiting Good News
Join our mailing list to make sure you receive a free copy of the CRE At Home 2020 handbook, which will be posted in October
Our next exhibitions
CRE South West 2021 – 17-18 March 2021
Westpoint, Exeter
CRE National 2021 – 12-14 October 2021
Sandown Park, Surrey
Collecting cash a problem? Tap the app!
With cash collections currently proving a problem because of Covid-19, one innovative company is rolling out the solution.
The Givt app enables members to give anonymously using their smartphones (iOS or Android), without payment terminals or expensive hardware.
‘You simply open the app and choose your amount,’ explains Givt’s Sjoerd van Oort. ‘You then select giving based on location and the app knows where you are. That’s all there is to it! After COVID-19, you will be able to move your smartphone past the collection bag. People joining the service via a livestream can scan a Givt QR code displayed during the service. In this way, all people can give, wherever they are.’
Sjoerd, who first brought Givt to CRE National in 2018, is convinced that giving is more than a financial transaction – it is also relational.
‘All current solutions for donations only provide the financial side of the transaction,’ he said.
‘We are sure that if we optimally support the person donating, that person will give more freely. Giving becomes fun.When I donate, I want to have one solution for all situations – to the guitar-playing busker on the street, to the charity coming to my door. When I donate, I want it to be fully anonymous and still add Gift Aid.’
Givt provides an overview of where donations have gone. For all charities and situations, only one registration is needed. No complicated logins, long lists of possible charities or annoying top-ups.
‘The speed, ease, and joy of giving cash are retained,’ said Sjoerd, ‘so that people can just keep on giving.’
Find out more by visiting Givt
Join our mailing list to make sure you receive a free copy of the CRE At Home 2020 handbook, which will be posted in October
Our next exhibitions
CRE South West 2021 – 17-18 March 2021
Westpoint, Exeter
CRE National 2021 – 12-14 October 2021
Sandown Park, Surrey
Your church and CAVS: it’s the stream team
More people viewed your online church service in lockdown than would normally attend in person – so what do you do in the future?
Creative Audio-Visual Solutions (CAVS) experts are willing to offer church leaders some helpful advice.
According to a poll by Savanta ComRes for Tearfund in April 2020, one in four of the UK population claim to have visited an online service during the COVID-19 pandemic. Service streaming allows those attending the service to enjoy being back in church but also gives others still wary of stepping over the threshold of a church building, or are housebound, a chance to hear the worship and message.
‘Streaming is a vital way for churches to keep communicating to their congregations and wider world,’ said Rob Alvis, a director of CAVS. ‘A simple-to-use, reliable and high-quality online streaming system will allow your church to be ever present when fellowship is more important than ever.’
CAVS can design the ideal system for your church, from a single fixed camera to a multi-camera broadcasting set-up.
‘A camera system can also provide the added benefit, when linked to your installed projector or display system, of showing activities for those with limited view on the “big screen” – such as baptisms and children’s activities,’ said Rob.
Consultations are possible online or on site where social distancing can be maintained.
Find out more by visiting Creative Audio-Visual Solutions
Join our mailing list to make sure you receive a free copy of the CRE At Home 2020 handbook, which will be posted in October
Our next exhibitions
CRE South West 2021 – 17-18 March 2021
Westpoint, Exeter
CRE National 2021 – 12-14 October 2021
Sandown Park, Surrey
Addiction ‘supercharged’ by isolation
Isolation fuels porn addiction – and it has been supercharged by the lockdown.
So says Mike Genung of CRE exhibitor Blazing Grace.
‘On March 17 Pornhub, the largest porn website in the world, announced that worldwide porn downloads were up more than 26 per cent – in just one month,’ said Mike. ‘To put this in perspective, Pornhub’s 2019 Year in Review revealed that the site was visited 42 billion times in 2019 – that’s 115 million searches a day. Remember, Pornhub is just one site. There are thousands of other similar sites.’
Mike points out that Google Trends consistently shows the regions with the highest percentage of porn searches are in those with high concentrations of religious organisations.
‘Quarantine restrictions resulting from COVID-19 are pushing many Christians deeper into bondage to pornography,’ claimed Mike. ‘It’s not that the church wasn’t already isolated. When I speak at churches, I ask those who meet with another believer weekly for the purposes of support and prayer to raise their hands. Usually only 15-20 per cent do so. Now isolation, the fuel that breeds and feeds porn addiction, has been supercharged.’
According to Mike the UK is the second largest consumer of pornography in the world, and upwards of 70 per cent of UK Christian men are viewing it.
‘This adds more urgency to the need to face the porn epidemic in the church and provide God’s people with effective answers for freedom and healing,’ he said. ‘Every marriage and family infested with pornography is at risk. The COVID-19 pandemic will lessen but the decades-long porn epidemic in the church will not without sustained, effective steps.’
Blazing Grace is a ministry to persons and couples who want healing and recovery from pornography and adultery. It offers counselling, group sessions and other resources for men and wives.
For more information visit Blazing Grace.
Join our mailing list to make sure you receive a free copy of the CRE At Home 2020 handbook, which will be posted in October
Our next exhibitions
CRE South West 2021 – 17-18 March 2021
Westpoint, Exeter
CRE National 2021 – 12-14 October 2021
Sandown Park, Surrey
Online services: keep it simple at the start
When it comes to starting church services online, keep things as simple as possible.
That’s the advice from Andy Pidsley, managing director at CRE exhibitor API Sound and Visual. ‘Phones and tablets have built in microphones and cameras and generally just work,’ said Andy. ‘Plenty of helpful YouTube videos will help you get started.’
There are several ways to broadcast services and meetings, he believes, each with their own set of advantages and disadvantages. ‘Live streaming is like a radio broadcast, offering one source to many listeners,’ he said. ‘Video conferencing, however, is more like a council meeting with a chairperson and a number of participants.’
There are pros and cons to each.
‘With live streaming the potential for congregational feedback is limited to a text message and it doesn’t allow users to see each other,’ said Andy. ‘Platforms such as YouTube and Facebook are well suited to a Sunday service format. They can also be promoted and anyone can join the service without a specific invitation. While they are free to use, you should have the correct CCLI licence to cover streaming to the public.’
Video conferencing platforms, however, such as Google Meet, Microsoft Teams and Zoom, give users the opportunity to see and hear everyone in the gathering as well as the chairperson.
‘They also offer the facility to share the users’ desktops so you can run a Powerpoint presentation or song words for example,’ said Andy. ‘Many of these platforms offer a free service but subscriptions are very reasonable.’
This type of service is ideal for smaller churches of 50 or less, however strict discipline is necessary as people can talk over the top of each other.
‘If you have a paid-for Zoom account you can also stream to Facebook or YouTube direct for those who want to watch but not interact – or visitors who don’t have the login details for the Zoom meeting,’ said Andy. ‘Our church has a Sunday meeting on Zoom weekly with around 40 participants. We led worship from our lounge and someone else operated Easy Worship, church presentation software, in their kitchen! There was a great sense of togetherness with many contributions and we even had coffee and chat afterwards.’
Dates for your diary
CRE South West 2021 – 17-18 March 2021 Westpoint, Exeter
CRE National 2021 – 12-14 October 2021 Sandown Park, Surrey
Zooming in on the Psalms
A new journal has been launched that looks at 10 psalms in depth and offers space for users to colour as well as reflect and write.
‘Exploring the Psalms has been created by Jacqui Grace and is perfect for new Christians and home groups,’ said Anne Stiles, founder of Just Cards Direct. ‘During lockdown we have discovered Zoom conferencing to be an ideal medium through which people share inspiration and reflections from journalling.’
Just Cards are passionate about resourcing churches and organisations with cards and gifts for various occasions and initiatives. Almost 300 women prisoners received a card recently that simply read: ‘Trust me, you are amazing!’ The cards were donated by Just Cards to a church reaching out to their local prison.
‘Many of the women are isolated in their cells at this time, so it is particularly difficult for them,’ explained Anne. ‘The church chose a card which specifically required a non-religious image. What a wonderful message to share!’
The ‘just’ of Just Cards refers to justice.
‘We aim to stand tall in upholding ethical business principles and fairly supporting craft makers in Africa who produce beautiful handmade gifts,’ said Anne. ‘Our fairly-traded products are made by small groups of people in Rwanda, Kenya and South Africa – countries close to our hearts.’
Just Cards offer churches 25 per cent off everything, including pastoral card packs, Christmas and Easter cards and congregational gifts. Create an account for your church here.
Dates for your diary
CRE South West 2021 – 17-18 March 2021 Westpoint, Exeter
CRE National 2021 – 12-14 October 2021 Sandown Park, Surrey
CRE National postponed for 12 months
With large-scale indoor events unlikely to be permitted in the autumn, CRE National at Sandown Park, Esher has been postponed for 12 months – until 12-14 October 2021.
‘Though October is still four months away, we thought it best to make this difficult decision sooner than later,’ said event director Brett Pitchfork. ‘Even if Government restrictions are lifted, we doubt enough people will feel confident about attending an event of this kind in the autumn. We have taken the decision with a heavy heart but feel it is the responsible thing to do and appreciate the thoughts and prayers of our visitors and exhibitors as we plot our way through these difficult times.’
The next two exhibitions are:
• CRE South West – 17-18 March 2021, Westpoint, Exeter
• CRE National – 12-14 October 2021, Sandown Park, Surrey
Before lockdown, 42 per cent of exhibition space at CRE South West had already been taken and organisations considering exhibiting in Exeter are invited to make contact with the CRE sales team. Click here for more information.
‘By March next year we are confident strict new guidelines will be in place to ensure sufficient protection for all our visitors and exhibitors,’ said Brett.
The first in the region for six years, CRE South West has been welcomed by the Right Revd Robert Atwell, Bishop of Exeter.
‘Since CRE was last in the south west lots has happened at local church level,’ he said. ‘There are new worshipping communities, new leaders, new volunteers taking up important roles – and lots of exciting projects in our local communities. I want to help people to be inspired in their faith and get the support they need to make a difference where they are. CRE is a great opportunity to access new resources, ideas and practical tools to meet the many challenges of local ministry.’
In place of CRE National 2020 in October will be a ‘Virtual CRE’ – taking the form of online seminars, interviews and features, accompanied by a specially-printed handbook listing all exhibitors booked in at one or both of the next two exhibitions. The handbook will be mailed out free to thousands of past and prospective CRE visitors, backed up by an extensive online campaign through email and social media.
‘We are grateful for your support of CRE at this unusual and stressful time and look forward to playing a part in resourcing thousands of churches over the next few months and years,’ said Brett.
Struggling for music? We’re at your (streamed) service
A live music option is now available for churches streaming services during lockdown.
Well-established agency Ministry of Music are making musicians available to lead worship in a variety of ways.
‘One of our artists can perform or lead worship live at home and their feed is streamed by a church as part of its YouTube/ Facebook/ Zoom service or event,’ explained the agency’s founder Mike Maidment.
‘Alternatively, they will prepare a short video at home which churches can stream, or perform and lead worship live at home on their own YouTube Live or Facebook Live session – at a date and time requested by an event host.’
Artists available include many who have recently performed at CRE including Christine Asamoah and Tremaine. Already fellow artist Bean Baker (pictured above) has led worship through Zoom at Havering Day of Prayer and Solid Rock, Derby.
‘Although this service is free, any donation will support our ministry and the artists we work with during these challenging times,’ said Mike.
For more information click here