THE BODY BOOK 2007
EDITION 11

Recently I was privileged to be part of a small group of thirty or so church leaders from different streams, who were hearing the Archbishop of Canterbury talk about ‘Fresh Expressions’ of church within Anglicanism.  He was obviously excited and encouraged by what he saw happening in the church of England and told stories of all kinds of experiments taking place in order to reach different communities, people groups, cultures and sub-cultures.

My mind went back 40 plus years to the early sixties when we held a series of gatherings called ‘The Work of the Holy Spirit in the Church Today’. Those times were not only about charismatic renewal, but also there was tremendous excitement (and not a little opposition) about the possibility of a completely new kind of dynamic, flexible church, just like the one we read about in the New Testament, emerging for today’s world! My, how we have moved on since those days!  The dream is becoming a reality.

I would love to be able to provide a directory which could help us identify the hundreds of groups exploring church in such diverse ways, but that would be a hugely challenging task. Instead, I can offer this new edition of the ‘Body Book’ – our 11th – and say with confidence that many of the churches listed in our pages are at the forefront of creating new shapes of church to meet the rising spiritual hunger in these Islands. True pioneers indeed!

Once again I’m sure you will find this edition just as helpful for travellers, students, holidaymakers and new Christians looking for a place of fellowship.  Thank you for participating in our pages and may the Lord bless you and prosper your efforts to reach the community where God has placed you.