CROSS-LINKS DOVER


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			We are a fresh expression of church sponsored by:

Church at Cross-Links

When the Cross-Links project started, there was no thought that it would become ‘church’ but our understanding of this has been challenged and is being changed as we see the Spirit of God at work in communities like ours today.

The key dynamic for the project has always been an emphasis on being Good News rather than proclaiming it by words first. At the heart and core of the project is a small dedicated group of Christians who express their faith through the outreach activities that Cross-Links runs.

Christian - Who or What is a Christian?

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Reaching out and engaging with the community as Christians continues to be the key means of expressing faith. Most contacts have been amongst people who have a very traditional view of the church, many would only attend for a christening, wedding or funeral. The Christian message is taught well in the primary schools and so it is amongst the adults that little is known of Jesus.

Opportunities to encounter and share the faith are largely through the Christians working as part of the Cross-Links team (paid and voluntary) and opportunities to explore the message are being developed as part of the mission strategy.

In expressing ‘church’ it has always been intended for worship to be appropriate to the context and is expressed creatively through art & crafts, visual displays and acts of witness, eg the annual Dover Carnival procession. It has been our experience that occasional public worship events have been met with a mixed response and so we have tried a variety of worship events. Since May 2008 we’ve been developing a monthly Messy church which has proved popular. We have tried developing a cell church structure, but as of yet this hasn’t taken root. The insights from Messy Church (developed by the Bible Reading Fellowship’s Lucy Moore) have been invaluable for us.

For a handful of local people, Cross-Links Dover is their ‘church’.


	Worship, Fellowship & Discipleship Opportunities are provided through: Messy Church– a monthly worship event for adults and children alike; most weeks there is a shortened version we call Messy Thursday! Cafe Church - a monthly worship in a cafe setting for people with little or no experience of ‘church’. Fitzwalter Court Worship (FCW) – a monthly worship for older people. Monday Chat - a weekly discussion group looking at how to follow Jesus today. Junior Church Camp – annual event for children and young people.

		Our Mission Statement As a fresh expression of church situated at the heart of Buckland we seek to communicate the Good News of Jesus’ message of love and hope in all we do. We will work in partnership with others as part of a common effort striving to ensure that people of all ages realise their full potential both individually and as part of the wider community. Note: A fresh expression of church is a form of church for our changing culture established primarily for the benefit of people who are not yet members of any church. It will come into being through principles of listening, service, incarnational mission and making disciples. It will have the potential to become a mature expression of church shaped by the gospel and the enduring marks of the Church and for its cultural context. Source: www.freshexpressions.org.

		A Church for the Future Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury speaks of the need for the Church of the Future to have a mixed economy in the sense of offering both traditional forms of church and fresh expressions that will complement the Mission of ‘mainstream church’. At Cross-Links we acknowledge this and seek to provide an alternative ‘fresh expression’ of being church alongside the two traditional churches that are also present on the Buckland estate: Our Lady of Dover (Roman Catholic) Church and St Nicholas’ (Church of England) Church. We wish to affirm and encourage the Christian congregations of these two churches and would wish to promote their Ministry and Mission in the community. Some details below:

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St. Nicholas Church, Buckland Valley

Denomination:

Church of England

Rector:

Fr Tim Foreman

Telephone:

01304 201304

Website:

www.bucklandchurch.org.uk

For details of services etc, contact Fr Tim or click on the website link

above & then click on St. Nicholas Church.

Our lady of Dover Church

Denomination:

Roman Catholic

Priest:

Father John Panario

Telephone:

01304 823402

Regular Services:

Sunday Mass: 10am & 6pm

Weekday Mass: 10am.

Confession:

10.30am & 5.30pm Saturday

Other enquiries:

For funerals, baptisms, weddings or any other

enquiries please contact Fr John


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	Site designed & built by John Dixon.
	Maintained by John Dixon & Nigel Collins.
	Last update published 30th March 2009

	Comments or suggestions to: webmaster@cross-links.org.uk