Curvy Casala: Not so shabby at the abbey
When Westminster Abbey were looking for a functional chair that fitted in with the venue’s aesthetics, a CRE 2018 exhibitor took up the challenge.
‘The resulting product is based on our Curvy chair,’ explains Casala’s Jemma Veal. ‘The seat and backrest are made in oak veneer, stained with a predetermined colour that is candlewax resistant and we modified the features to meet the abbey’s requirements.’
The outside of the backrest is engraved with the abbey’s crest. Subtle bump rubbers on both sides of the frame, and sound-stack protection mounted on the underside of the seat, reduce sound during set up, storage and stacking procedures as well as when they are in use during services and ceremonies.
‘We are very proud our chairs are in the most famous cathedral in the world,’ says Jemma. ‘They are used for services attended by many famous people and members of the Royal Family.’
The transport dolly has a storage capacity for 90 chairs. Because of their heavy weight in combination with an uneven floor, castors with a large diameter help to move the transport dolly easily.
A recent report in the Daily Telegraph called on churches to keep their traditional pews. ‘Modern churches are more than just a place for contemplation and reflection,’ maintains Jemma. ‘Increasingly, they are developing into multifunctional buildings for a wide range of occasions: from seminars to concerts, from lectures to workshops. Whatever goal you have in mind with the furnishing of your church, we have the furniture to suit it.’
Click here for a list of more than 200 exhibitors at CRE 2018
Click the button below to pre-register for CRE 2018 for as little as £3
Young respond to the Common good
Visitors to CRE 2018 will enjoy the beauty of The Book of Common Prayer – some for the first time.
‘Many people under 50 have never experienced a church service using the beautiful and traditional language of the Prayer Book,’ explained Prudence Dailey, chair of the Prayer Book Society. ‘Liturgical reform in the Church of England during the 70s meant growing numbers of churches opted instead for contemporary language versions of services.’
Exhibiting at CRE for the first time since 2012, the society will encourage visitors to consider using The Book of Common Prayer (BCP) for worship or, if they are already doing so, to use it more.
‘The Prayer Book is as relevant today as it ever was and increasingly it is being appreciated by young adults,’ said Prudence, who pointed out a growing interest in the society’s activities by people in their 20s and 30s. The society also hosts the Cranmer Awards, a national competition in which hundreds of 11 to 18-year-olds across the country memorise prayers and readings from the BCP and then recite them to an invited audience.
The BCP was compiled by Thomas Cranmer, a leader of the Reformation and Archbishop of Canterbury during the reigns of Henry VIII, Edward VI and Mary I, by drawing extensively on his personal library of 600 printed books and more than 60 manuscripts.
‘While the society is rooted in tradition, we understand contemporary church environments and the pressures clergy face,’ said Prudence, who believes many young clergy will be enthusiastic about using the BCP in services.
‘It is more than just the beauty of the language of the Prayer Book which appeals to me,’ one ordinand told her. ‘I like the fact that it is quite literally a book of common prayer which not only belongs to all people but contains prayers for every stage in our journey through life.’
The Prayer Book Society’s stand will offer an opportunity to examine the Cranmer legacy and its huge impact on the Church – and find out about recent initiatives to encourage its use.
The Prayer Book Society is on stand S148 at CRE 2018
ByCRE
Marilyn returns – by popular demand!
One of the most popular performers at the Christian Resources Exhibition returns to CRE in October.
Blind almost from birth, Marilyn Baker began to write and sing her own songs in the early 1980s, releasing a series of albums which aimed to draw people into God’s healing presence.
Word spread and soon churches were inviting her to do evangelistic and encouragement concerts. She gave up her job as a music teacher and started ministering full time, travelling extensively in Britain and many parts of the world. A familiar performer at Spring Harvest and other major Christian events, Marilyn quickly became Britain’s top-selling female gospel singer.
In 1986 she was joined by Tracy Williamson, whose gifts in speaking and prophecy enriched the music with a new dimension. Marilyn’s recordings and Tracy’s books enabled them to reach an even wider audience.
As well as concerts, Marilyn and Tracy undertake church encouragement weekends, workshops and conferences. They minister to large or small groups or in elderly people’s homes and prisons. Wherever they are, the focus of the ministry remains the same.
‘Our heart is to see people entering into joy instead of mourning, beauty instead of ashes, praise instead of despair,’ said Marilyn. ‘We want them to understand the intimacy of God’s tender love and be empowered by it to reach out to others, that they too may be healed and changed.
‘He has been wonderfully faithful guiding and providing for us over all these years and has brought so much transformation to individuals and groups. We are excited about what lies ahead in his plans for us.’
Marilyn Baker will perform at CRE 2018 on Tue 16 Oct
ByCRE
The power of prayer: how Ignatius is proving infectious
A prayer technique developed by a 16th century Spanish priest is reaching people who wouldn’t dream of darkening a church’s door.
In what began as a small experiment by Methodist minister Rev Clive McKie, Ignatian prayer is being accessed online in more than 46 countries on six continents, through CRE 2018 exhibitor Taketime meditation.
‘Christians are finding a fresh breeze gently blowing through their faith,’ said Clive, currently minister of Reigate Methodist Church in Surrey, ‘but what is more striking is how the technique is welcomed by agnostics, atheists and those who have wondered about faith but found church too daunting.’
The trickle-down effect is that people are experiencing God’s love and encountering Christ – their changed lives affecting others with a slow but steady movement for good.
Clive is now training churches of all denominations to run local Taketime Together groups, accessible to all – especially those with no church background. You can find out how on the Taketime stand at CRE 2018.
‘It is an invisible, community venture,’ said Clive, ‘with no big event, no bunting, no fanfare… just God’s word quietly going out into the world and transforming it.’
Taketime are on stand S149 at CRE 2018
ByCRE
Dare to disciple – and see your church grow
Our commission is to make disciples, not church attenders.
That will be Rev Cris Rogers’ message at CRE 2018.
‘It is vital we help churches activate a thriving discipleship culture,’ said Cris, rector of All Hallows in Bow, east London. ‘Some of us struggle with the term “discipleship” and use “spiritual formation”. I will look at the differences between the evangelical understanding of discipleship and the more Catholic understanding of spiritual formation. Neither deliver biblical discipleship on their own but when the two merge we get a biblical picture of Jesus’ understanding of discipleship and formation.’
Developed by Cris, Making Disciples is an assessment tool to help churches, small groups and individuals interested in developing as disciples of Jesus. Churches developing a discipleship action plan have found people serving in and outside the church has gone up, financial giving has risen and disciplines of personal daily prayer have grown.
‘I will also look at how the modern school system has killed how we do discipleship within the church because our education is teaching rather than apprenticeship based,’ said Cris. ‘I will also look at the way we need to grow leaders, another important part of building a discipleship culture.’
Cris took on the leadership of an Anglican Church in Tower Hamlets, one of the most ethnically and religiously diverse areas of London. The church had shrunk to seven people before his arrival. He is also part of the Spring Harvest planning group.
Rev Cris Rogers will speak on ‘Making Disciples’ at CRE 2018 (12 pm, Wed 17 Oct)
Building community starts in the kitchen
They have already produced several lunches for more than 60 people, hired the place out for children’s parties and are now looking to put on a film club and a meeting place for young people. And members of Carpenders Park and South Oxhey Methodist Church in Bushey are grateful to Nelson Dish & Glasswashing Machines for helping to make it happen.
‘Because we were building a new church, it made sense that a proper, commercial kitchen should be included at the same time and Nelson did a great job on the installation,’ said Alan Bryant, one of the committee members responsible for overseeing the work.
Currently celebrating their 40th year, Nelson will be at CRE 2018 displaying dishwashers and glasswashers with a very low carbon footprint and sophisticated energy and water-saving features. Despite growing in size over the years, the company has never become complacent.
‘Every customer, however large or small, deserves the best advice and service we can provide,’ said managing director John Nelson. ‘This is one of the reasons we have been embraced by churches. We’ve advised on and installed many of our dishwashers in churches and their associated buildings to help ensure crucial health and safety legislation is met. And, via our sister company, Nelson Catering Equipment, we’ve helped a lot of churches enjoy the many benefits that a well-designed commercial kitchen can bring to the community.’
Nelson will be on stand S105 at CRE 2018
Inviting people to church: turn your thinking upside down
The National Weekend of Invitation (June 15-17) saw thousands of people invited to church – and in the process an untold number of Christians began to overcome their fear of rejection.
‘These are the first steps of a much-needed cultural change, moving churches at best from being welcoming, to being welcoming and inviting,’ said National Weekend of Invitation founder Michael Harvey. ‘We are already hearing stories of people becoming Christians over the weekend or wanting to explore the Christian faith after simply being invited to church.’
The National Weekend of Invitation came about after Michael discovered that about seven out of 10 Christians feel God may be prompting them to invite someone to church. However, eight out of 10 have no intention of doing so.
‘We fear rejection, of failing and getting it wrong. We imagine God is only pleased with success,’ he said. ‘We hope the weekend will be part of a paradigm shift in church thinking about invitation and, in particular, the vital role of the inviter. At CRE 2018 I will highlight the power of invitation in igniting a congregation to follow the call of God. And I’ll show visitors how a church can become invitational.’
Michael will be joined by Saltmine Theatre Co who will present a series of sketches on the subject of invitation.
The National Weekend of Invitation is on stand B3 at CRE 2018
Photo: Some 2000 came to Joy@KemptonPark on Sun 17 June: a day of family, food, faith – and acrobatics from Duggie Dug Dug! Pic by Rix Banga
Introducing an alternative to ‘cut-down, child-friendly’ Christian comics
A new product has been launched that grabs the attention of those unlikely to sit down and read a book – let alone the Bible.
The Word for Word Bible Comic combines the original words of scripture with in-depth historical research to make the illustrations as accurate as possible.
‘I have tried to convey aspects of culture, history, locality, ethnicity as well as meanings, subtleties and emotions,’ said author Simon Amadeus Pillario. ‘Bible commentaries and encyclopaedias can take pages to explain the same level of detail.’
The first three books in the series, Judges, Joshua and Ruth, are already available. The next instalment, the Gospel of Mark, will be hot off the press at CRE 2018.
Based in Bristol, Simon has a degree in graphic design and has been writing comics for more than 15 years. He became a Christian at the age of 23.
‘I was struck by how the intrigue, drama and challenging elements are often dropped from retellings of biblical stories,’ he explained. ‘I find cut-down, child-friendly Christian comics unsatisfying. Word for Word does not glamorise or dwell on evil of any kind but covers all the lessons the Bible teaches.’
According to Comixology, the primary consumers within the exploding comics market today are not children but men aged 27-36 (60 per cent) and women aged 17-26 (40 per cent). Word for Word is aimed at teens and adults, with an advisory age rating of 12+ or 15+.
Already, Simon has one major fan.
‘I cannot help being impressed by the thorough-going commitment to the biblical text mixed with dramatic artistic skill, to communicate to this visual generation,’ said Terry Virgo, founder of Newfrontiers, an international network of more than 1,500 churches.
Word for Word Bible Comic is on Stand YZ10 at CRE 2018
After work, what? Now help is at hand for newly retired
Churches are failing to help people prepare for new adventures and opportunities for service in retirement.
So says Peter Meadows, who will help launch AfterWorkNet at CRE 2018.
‘A generation ago, life after work was much the same for everyone,’ he suggests. ‘Your job was done with a gold watch to mark the moment. But how that has changed!’
Today’s baby boomers meet retirement with perhaps 20 – or even 30 – years of life ahead, often in better health and with more money to spend than their parents’ generation could dream of.
‘Today, there’s a lot of active years to make the most of,’ says Peter, programme director of AfterWorkNet.
Research by retirement specialist Cathy Severson points to this longer, healthier and more affluent era as involving four distinct categories:
The Clueless – those who have done the least planning and make up almost half of those no longer in full-time work.
The Aimless – those still looking for a sense of satisfaction in retirement make up about one in five of retirees.
The Directionless – they are happy to adjust to a more relaxed and, hopefully, less stressed lifestyle and make up about another fifth of all retirees. But their agenda has no place for learning or experiencing new things.
The Motivated Redirected – these are people at the other end of the spectrum, having prepared for retirement both by way of their plans and how they can fund them. Surprisingly, they make up only one in five of those coming to retirement. For them, this new period is one with fresh challenges, adventure and personal fulfilment.
What separates the Clueless, Aimless and Motivated Redirected, points out Cathy Severson, is the time taken to think about the future and plan for the life you want.
‘Our parents didn’t need to do this kind of planning because their options were so few,’ suggests Peter. ‘As a result, we’ve no role models.’
In the main, churches fail to see this as an issue, lacking plans and programmes to help those approaching retirement get ready for new adventures and seize new opportunities for service.
‘That being the case, those of us who are heading for retirement – or are already there – need to take personal responsibility,’ concludes Peter. ‘This is not the time to be among the Clueless, the Aimless or the Directionless. After all, life after work is not a rehearsal but the real thing. We’ll only get to do it once.’
AfterWorkNet are on stand S157 at CRE 2018
ByCRE
Hope comes to life with Compassion Experience
See hope come to life in a purpose-built slum – that’s the thinking behind the Compassion Experience, a major front-of-house feature at CRE 2018.
Originally constructed in the USA and inspired by an initiative of Compassion International, the Compassion Experience made its UK debut at Edgeborough School in Farnham when nearly 250 children and over 70 adults past through its doors.
Housing interactive, tactile, audio and visual stories of Sameson, the Experience follows the lives of a boy from Ethiopia and Shamim, a girl from Uganda. Both Sameson and Shamim grew up experiencing the vulnerability, restrictions and dangers that poverty brings in their respective cultures and contexts.
Beth O’Reilly, a Year 3 teacher at Edgeborough, said: ‘We aim to cultivate our children’s global perspectives and to teach them about life outside of Farnham. We want to encourage our children to recognise that not all young people have the same opportunities that we have. By involving alternative educational tools such as the Compassion Experience, we hope to provide the children we teach with an experience that will not only be memorable, but also effective in helping them to develop attributes such as compassion and to contemplate how they might make a difference in the world.’
Compassion is an international child development charity with more than 60 years’ experience working with some of the world’s poorest children. At present more than 1.8 million children attend Compassion’s church-based projects in 25 of the world’s poorest countries.
‘We brought the Compassion Experience to the UK to bring the developing world to our doorsteps,’ said Justin Dowds, CEO of Compassion UK. ‘When people think of poverty, they often think of the lack of material things, but actually poverty is the lack of freedom to make meaningful choices. Poverty narrows children’s horizons and undermines their ambitions. Through our holistic child development program Compassion stirs hope in children. You can witness that hope coming to life through the Compassion Experience.’
‘The Compassion Experience will enable visitors to CRE to experience another world without leaving their own,’ explains Compassion UK’s Caroline Cameron. ‘We hope hundreds of visitors will consider bringing the trailer to their local churches and schools. Most importantly the presentation will offer a message of hope for children sponsored through our world-class child development programe.’