A QUESTION OF FAITH
With Peter Bolton of the Hope Community Church
IT is sad to say that this is a phrase used so often today. The Church is no longer relevant, sadly it is often said by those who have had no connection with Church.
I remember recently listening to a Church leader who was speaking about his experience on a flight to America. He entered into a conversation with a woman he had never meet before. She was travelling to America on business and she spoke about what she did and was hoping to do. Then she asked the Church leader what he did for a living. He responded by saying that he worked for a worldwide organisation. It had branches in every country. It ran schools, provided medical care for many people who wouldn’t otherwise receive any. It ran soup kitchens, helped homeless people, offered debt advice and much more. Basically it cares for people from the beginning of their life until the end. The woman was impressed and asked what was the name of the organisation, the reply came, ‘the Church’.
The Church has played a big part in the life of this country, many social reforms, such as putting an end to young children working long hours up a chimney, in factories or in the coal mines, came through Christians such as Lord Shaftesbury. Great scientific breakthroughs came through Christians. The laws that protect us, came from Christian values. The Church is often one of the organisations that are there at the scene of a tragedy bringing comfort and support.
Locally Churches can be seen serving the community, with its many activities, for people of all ages, whether they be young children or the elderly being provided with an opportunity to get out of their four walls and interact with others, loneliness is a common problem for many.
All this, and from the Church comes volunteers for Street Pastors and the organisers of Food bank, again the list goes on.
This is love in action, which the Church is called to do, it isn’t perfect unlike it’s founder, Jesus Christ. He is the reason for the Church’s existence. There is more evidence for him than for many other people in history around the same time. Jesus is the message of the Church. Many people today echo the words of the lead singer of Queen, Freddie Mercury who wrote in one of his songs on ‘The Miracle’ album ‘does anyone know what we are living for? He had wealth and fame, but was lonely. The Church is relevant through its community projects and through it’s message of Jesus Christ, who helps us make sense of this life.