Church Army gives thanks and celebrates at Jethro Centre
Bishop Harold led the devotions at a special Church Army Celebration and Thanksgiving event at the Jethro Centre on Tuesday 10 September.
The organisation’s Chief Executive Mark Russell addressed the gathering and described Church Army as, ‘a provocative organisation,’ both in calling the church to mission and in drawing people to ask about God and as a ‘movement of mission’. He also said that, over the next year, Church Army would be creating resources ‘to help clergy and parishes do evangelism better.’
Other contributors included Sister Myrtle Morrison, Church Army Evangelist in Charge in St Saviour’s, Portadown, in Dromore Diocese. She spoke about Church Army’s Craigavon Centre of Mission and gave examples of her wide engagement in community work in an area which is in the top 25% most deprived in Northern Ireland.
Willowfield parishioner and CA Evangelist, Jasper Rutherford, who works for Summer Madness, shared about his work with young people and their experience of spiritual renewal at the annual youth event. He also said that he was hoping to extend his work from the teens/20s to the 20s/30s age group.
A full account of the event and an editorial can be found in the forthcoming issue of The Church of Ireland Gazette. Mark Russell gave an interview to the editor, Canon Ian Ellis, which you can listen to here.