They will be hard to miss in their pointy hats and long robes, standing at a train station at 5:00 a.m.
On Sept. 22, Archbishop Fred Hiltz and Bishop Michael Pryse (ELCIC) will visit the Brampton, Ont. train station””wearing copes and mitres””and invite commuters to Back to Church Sunday (B2CS). They will join thousands of Canadian Anglicans who are inviting friends to check out church Sept. 25.
2011 is the third official year of Back to Church Sunday in the Anglican Church of Canada. Founded in 2004 in the Church of England, “B2CS” encourages people to invite just one person to church, whether a friend, neighbour or co-worker.
Umm, Freddie and Mike……it’s a little late to be doing this, don’t you think? Too bad you didn’t do it [i]years[/i] ago!
Better late than never…
B2CS is great. It’s all about one person in the pew inviting another to go to church with him. The first year we did it in my parish, we had 10 visitors, and 2 stayed. It requires quite a shift in mindset for the average Anglican, since inviting others is not something we ever bothered with until recently. As long as the pews were full and the collection plates overflowing, no one gave it a thought. We all need to become more mission-minded and intent on introducing others to Jesus, which is the impetus behind B2CS. And as for people like our primates, they don’t register on ordinary folks’ radars. If they’re welcomed into a warm, inviting local congregation, that’s what matters most to them.
Check out these links: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9NK1RsItAAs
and
http://www.blackburn.anglican.org/images/BTCS Seminar presentation.pdf
I agree, Ian+. I’ve often invited people to “come and see” and sometimes it’s just the little non-threatening nudge they need. Nothing ventured, nothing gained!
People walk around in their own little worlds oftentimes thinking they’re directing their own show rather than seeing themselves as players really in God’s production. So, anything that startles them from their mundane reverie, including bishops in full regalia on a train platform, is worth it!
I admire the principle, and the technique. Not sure I can rejoice in strangers visiting a place where un-Biblical heresy is taught. But a re-kindled interest in God might lead them to a better place.