In 2005 the then Bishop of Chichester initiated a ‘fresh expression of church’ in Brighton.
It was lead by the Revd Carl Chambers who was just finishing a curacy with Bishop Hannington Church of England in Hove.
The team consisted of a dozen people with a commitment to be a gospel-centred, Christ-honouring, fellowship-loving, evan-gelistically-focussed, prayerful church.
The early days were exciting, yet not without suffering. They had the joy of welcoming several people who happened to move to Brighton, who provided key energies to a small team. They ran a ‘church in a pub’ evangelistic meeting. More than once did an ardent atheist bring friends who brought friends – some of whom proved quite interested in Jesus!
They had the blessing of eight apprentices, four of whom were ‘home grown’.
However, in the end, the diocese decided to withdraw Carl’s post. Whilst the church has been financially viable in the past, the fellowship took the difficult and painful decision that it was best, given all the circumstances, to close as a church.
