| Cafecchurch - it's church but not as you know it! |
 Cafechurch – it’s church but not as you know it! Fans of the TV series Friends will remember just how important the coffee shop, Central Perk, was in the community. Friends socialised there, met new neighbours, and took guests there for a well-earned post-shopping break. In these cash-strapped times, a coffee out may have become an occasional treat, but what if it had added value. What if you might discover something really important – even life-changing?  Now you can at Cafechurch in a Costa Coffee or another high street coffee shop. And the idea is catching on across the country and overseas. There are over 50 meeting regularly from the north of Scotland to the Isle of Wight and the number is growing fast. The Cafechurch Network is led by the Rev Cid Latty, who started the first in his local Costa in Welwyn Garden City just three years ago. As the buzz grew, other churches asked for advice on doing the same. Now Cid is keen to see many more churches join the national network. So what happens at Cafechurch? They’re all different but you might find yourself discussing an issue like fair trade, the environment, stress, adoption, parenting, debt and divorce, together with quizzes, interviews, round table discussions, live music with great coffee and great chat! How Cafechurch got started ‘For many in our society the church building is seen as a symbol of “religion” and the meeting place of “religious people”, old fashioned, out dated and without relevance,’ says Cid. ‘Whatever is going on in there they are not going to come in to find out! ‘So we started to think about the places where we did meet our friends, where they did feel comfortable. We started to ask ourselves if Jesus was here today in our town where might He sit with people, talking and listening. And it seemed that one of those places might be a coffee shop.’ After a successful Home Counties pilot, Costa made a bold decision. ‘I was given the OK to put a Cafechurch in every suitable Costa in the UK, and I obviously saw this as a great step forward. A briefing went to 600 Costa Managers to say that they could have a Cafechurch if they want one. Churches were asked to come through the Cafechurch Network for training, support and approval to use a local store. ‘We deal with issues from a faith perspective,’ says Cid. ‘What we find is Christians and people who are not Christians are learning from each other. The Bible calls it iron sharpening iron; people are discussing and finding out things together. It’s all part of the adventure of us moving closer to what God would have us think about an issue.’ Events range from a packed 80 to smaller events of 15-20 people. ‘It’s not really about the numbers,’ says Cid, ‘it’s about engaging with people who don’t go to church. We encourage Christians and those who don’t have a faith to see faith as a journey, as a life-long learning experience with God in the mix. ‘That really is an amazing thing to do. We’re seeing people say “I haven’t got it all together, I don’t know all the answers but I do know the person who does. Join me on that journey.”’ Cafechurch: consider life and the world from a faith perspective. It’s fun, it’s real and it could be happening in a Costa Coffee near you. Look out for local adverts see www.cafechurch.net for your nearest venue and training events. Go on – it must be time for a coffee… |
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