Mission and festivals
Festivals can be a great way of local churches cooperating in mission to bless their local community. Material from the Methodist church as a starting point can be found here. In the Devon
Brite festival organised every year by TUFC and other local churches is a great example of a free community festival that engages local people. Free prayer tents, great music and partnership with local vendors created an excellent day for young and old.
Other really helpful material can be found through
HOPE’s website .
Another example from a few years ago can be seen from Marty Woods from Fusion Youth and Community, an international network supporting churches working together in mission and evangelisation.
Fusion YAC, alongside Share Jesus International, provide resources for churches to hold Open Crowd Festivals. Open Crowd Festivals became a feature of the Big Lunch and the Queen's Diamond Jubilee, when thousands of church groups held a street party. Three million people attended The Big Lunch events organised by the churches in 2012.
The 2012 Olympic Games provided another opportunity for the churches in England to work together. Again thousands of churches organised festivals - from the village green to the local park.
Weymouth and Portland ran a festival alongside the Olympic Sailing program. In Ayelsbury, the churches hosted a festival at Stoke Mandeville on the opening night of the Paralympic Games.
Marty Woods, an Australian, has stayed in the UK to encourage churches to work together in running Open Crowd Community Festivals in 2014. He speaks to Churches Together in the video.
Watch Marty Woods from Fusion Youth and Community talk about community festivals.