All Saints Church Childwall

What does a Church look like when you knock the building down? This was one of the questions that was in my mind as I attended Christ Church, Norris Green for two weeks in February as part of my ongoing training as a Curate.

A few years ago the congregation of this church recognised that their church building which had formed the place of worship for a number of years was now not viable. The Vicar, Revd Helen Edwards, had the difficult but necessary decision of leading the church in closing it down and moving elsewhere. Instead, they decided to hold their Sunday services in the hall at their local primary school.

Not long after the services moved to the primary school, and after year or so of complications in being able to knock down the traditional church building, they decided that they would convert the vicarage (the vicar moved to a house on the estate) into a community centre. This vision transformed the building into meeting rooms, a kitchen, office space and a prayer room. Through this space and their continuing vision to be a presence of Jesus in their community, they now employ a children and families worker, an elderly person’s worker and a community development worker.

To conclude I found the people to be very friendly and welcoming and significantly there was a sense of family amongst the people who I met. In answer to the question I posed at the beginning, the answer is probably that, for this congregation, knocking the building down meant they were reminded that the Church is made up of people, and their church existed regardless of where they met to worship. I got to know a group of people who are living as part of their community and bringing the good news of Jesus to it.

Revd Scott Davies