Good News Travels in Leuven
Sometimes we overcomplicate things and a simpler approach is better. I am sitting in a coffee shop with new chaplain, The Revd Sarah-Jane King, who serves at St Martha and St Mary’s Leuven, a university town in Belgium. It is her first post, and she’s showing me a picture of twenty-five plus people who have started attending midweek groups, including a home group and an Alpha course. They are made up of people from Malaysia, Belgium, Sweden, Canada, Germany, the Netherlands, Hungary, Lithuania, Slovenia, and one English person. I asked her how she managed this? The simple answer was ‘word of mouth’, people talking to their friends, which of course makes me ask why? What have you done to make this to happen?
As she explained, it seemed so simple. They made themselves visible, they had a stand at the local freshers event, and they have a rather good website. But it seems to me that it is something about the culture: why wouldn’t you invite your friends? The answer is they have Good News to share, a good community and a generous welcome. Being part of this community is good news. The message that comes across is: ‘Welcome!’, ‘come as you are, explore with us’. People there know that when they bring their friends along they will be in a warm, welcoming environment. It’s also a place where Jesus is at the centre of what happens.
It doesn’t take much for good news to travel, for a friendly community to invite others to a gathering or service that sensitively welcomes people in. I sat in the coffee shop looking at the picture, thinking it’s the simple things, the basic things, that create the opportunity for people from all backgrounds to come together, learning to walk with Jesus.
The Revd Canon Richard Bromley
ICS Mission Director
Sarah-Jane King is the Chaplain of St Martha and St Mary’s Anglican Church in Leuven. M&M's was planted in 1997 by Holy Trinity Pro-Cathedral, Brussels and was recognized by the Belgian State as a separate Anglican parish in 2011. The church is attended by expats, Leuven residents, and students from KU Leuven and ETF Leuven. Dutch and English translations of the order of service are provided. A variety of musical styles is enjoyed, as is a tradition of intellectual preaching and warm fellowship. Services are always followed by coffee!
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