Countdown to the Millennium

TAKE STOCK, EVALUATE AND CELEBRATE CONTRIBUTION OF THE CHURCH
By John Drake, director general of the Norwich YMCA.

" The opening verses of the book of Genesis reveal our God to be not only creative but keen to undertake an evaluation of His labours after which he is able to rest.
Similarly every business conducts it annual audit and management evaluation occasionally followed by a shareholders celebration. A national church census of 1851 revealed three non-conformist churches for every Anglican church and concluded that the spiritual health of the nation was far greater than many appreciated.
Perhaps the coming weeks prior to the dawn of the new Millennium gives the church in Norwich the opportunity to take stock, to evaluate and then celebrate its contribution to this great city.
This thought was prompted by a remark at our AGM by the current Secretary of State for social security, Stephen Timms. He quoted some Home Office statistics and noted that in East Anglia it was the Christian organisations that were making a huge contribution to the social fabric of the region.
In the last ten years we've seen the growth of the Matthew Project, the Magdalen Group, Hebron House, the Pregnancy

Crisis Centre, the Christian Counselling Centre as well as the more established oganisations like the YMCA, all born out of the Christian ethos, culture and compassion.
The end of the Millennium is firstly an ideal opportunity to audit what is being done, secondly to declare our agenda for the future. The value of pooling ideas would not only be a form of proclamation but we could then ensure that we are sharing responsibilities and resources and not unecessarily duplicating or competing in one area and leaving another area completely bereft of resources and witness.
What I would like to see is a group of people coming together, not to boast of what they've achieved but in humble appreciation of each other and of what God has done and then being able to declare their agendas for the future.
Finally, we live in an age of dramatic and rapid change in areas of information technology and knowledge. The demographic structure of our society is going to change dramatically. We need to see how the radical message of the cross can be made relevant to a society where an appreciation of Biblical knowledge is virtually non-existent. "

CATHEDRAL AT HEART OF CITY

Norwich Cathedral

By The Rev Canon Pastor Richard Hanmer sees Norwich Cathedral at the centre of the City's Millennium celebrations.
"I have a vision of the Cathedral at the heart of the Millennium celebrations.The programme will begin in the early evening of December 31st when light-bearing rafts will be floated on the river at Foundry Bridge. Early evening has been chosen so that children and older people can be present.
The rafts are part of the Norwich City of Light theme and will be adopted and decorated by various faith groups from Norwich with flowers, winter greenery and candles or lanterns. The project will involve a peaceful ceremony with messages and reflections of hope for the Third Millennium.
Should any group wish to reserve one of the 20 rafts they are advised to get in touch with Helen Selleck at Norwich City Hall, although many are already booked. The arrangements on the rafts should be on display in the Cathedral Close during the afternoon before the launch. There will be a connection between this event and the City of Light beacons being lit in and around the city.
The City of Light theme will have the Cathedral as one central focus. Floodlighting will illuminate the Cathedral spire and will link light with the castle and other churches in the city.
As the Cathedral represents the last 900 years of Christian worship in the city, I think that the visual impact is something that people will remember. The spire pointing skywards against the darkened sky - heavenwards - lifting our thoughts and expectations to God. If the plan to project a cross of light into the sky comes to fruition it will have an added impact.

I see the Cathedral standing at the heart of the old city centre, which seen on a map is heart-shaped and that will make the spiritual impact much more impressive. The cross is at the centre of our celebrations and of our lives.
The Cathedral itself will be open as usual during the day on New Year's Eve and then on into the evening and night. It will be staffed by volunteers for visitors who

wish to come in for quiet reflection and prayer right up until the midnight act of worship, a Watchnight Service which will run over the period of the Millennium change from 11.30 till 12.05.
I'm sure that lots of people will want to come to that and I can think of no better place to be at the Millennium Moment than on my knees with some of the Christian community in the city in prayer and worship. "

PROJECT TO SERVE THE POOR AND HOMELESS

By Goff Hope, pastor of Norwich Community Church.

" What are you doing for the Millennium?' has become a much repeated question and possibly even something of a pressure for church leaders.
With so many expectations and opinions, not to mention the hype of the secular scene, it can be quite challenging to know what our response as Christians should be to mark the new Millennium.
Some may feel that they should celebrate the occasion in a dramatic way to make the Christian response known amidst all the revelling, but for us, we feel that we would like to mark the occasion by beginning something that will carry on long after the fireworks and lasers have gone out, something that will convey the heart of the gospel in a more lasting way, well into the new century.
Following a programme which will be implemented in several centres across the country by the New Frontiers family of churches, the Norwich church intends to start a project to serve the poor, the homeless, the underprivileged. We feel that God spoke to us very clearly at the New Frontiers Brighton '98 Leaders Conference that we should 'remember the poor', a crucial part of the apostolic commission.

We expect to set up at the King's Centre, in King Street, a facility which will offer a range of provision for people in need. Starting with simple things like giving the opportunity for the homeless to have a shower, or to get their washing done. Then, as our contacts and involvement grows, we could look to meet further needs that we encounter.
Under the title of 'Act 2000 - help where it is needed' many of the New Frontiers churches will be developing their own programmes depending on the needs in their particular community. My associate, Graham Hall, is visiting other parts of the country encouraging local churches to develop initiatives to demonstrate the love of God in a practical way. "We want to declare God's grace and demonstrate it in a practical 'no strings attached' way to those who are disempowered," he says.
The fact that the city centre will be closed to traffic during Millennium Eve means that it will be difficult to have a big central celebration at the King's Centre, so the Christians of NCC are being encouraged to get involved with their own circles of friends and neighbours, being salt and light where they are. "

Back to Good News for Norwich