A new church, planted out of Christ Church Southampton, begins its ministry in Winchester in early February.
In 1160, almost 100 years after the Norman invasion, Henry of Blois, the grandson of William the Conqueror, commissioned a Bible that later became known as the Winchester Bible. It is considered one of the finest Bibles ever produced, filled with beautiful and intricate artwork. It points back to a time when the Word of God had a place of central importance to Winchester, the people who lived there and the kings who ruled from there.
A thousand years later, the Winchester Bible is now safely locked away. Like the Christian faith, it is considered by many in Winchester to be an interesting cultural artefact, but nothing more.
Of the 110,000+ people who live in the city and the wider region, less than 3% regularly attend a gospel-preaching church. As with other parts of the country, there is a desperate need. Hence the prayer that God would establish the new church plant, Redeemer Winchester, so that people can be shown the goodness, beauty and necessity of God’s Son and that he would again have a place of central importance in the lives of those who live in the city.
Vision for planting
The story of Redeemer Winchester started back in 2016. Christ Church Southampton sent out about 20 adults to start Cornerstone Church in Portsmouth. From the moment the Portsmouth plant started, the elders and members at Christ Church prayerfully committed to planting again. During 2017 and 2018 attention slowly turned towards the city of Winchester As there was an increasing number of families and students making the 20-minute drive down the M3 on a Sunday and during the week a number of people were commuting the other way to work in Winchester, the elders began to ask the question: is there a need for a new church in Winchester? Discussions took place with those making those journeys and in September 2018, after much prayer, the decision was made, as a whole church, to launch the new work. Plans were shared with other church leaders in Winchester and the response was warm and welcoming. There is a close network amongst churches and Redeemer Winchester is looking forward to striving together with others to make the gospel known. In particular, there are hopes to form a close relationship with another FIEC church that has had a presence in the city for many years.
The city
Winchester is a city full of heritage and history. Once the ancient capital of England, today it is a small bustling city. There are about 45,000 residents, but within a ten-minute drive there are another 50–60,000 people who would see Winchester as an obvious centre to commute to.
As with any area in the UK, there are many gospel challenges. First, Winchester is an affluent city. It has often been voted one of the best places to live in the UK and the idols of money, success and family are widely followed. Winchester seems to offer ‘the best’ that this world can offer and in comparison, the gospel can appear irrelevant. But the failure of money, career and family to deliver is so much more apparent in a place like Winchester, and that failure creates a gospel opportunity. It is one of the reasons the name Redeemer was chosen for the church; it is what, or rather who, Winchester needs more than anything else.
Launch team
Then there is the challenge of being a diverse church. As with any city there is a mix of people. It would be all too easy for the church to only draw in those who are like those who have committed to planting the church, but that would diminish the gospel. Redeemer Winchester wants to work hard at being distinctive by being diverse; by being a family made up of all kinds of people from all kinds of backgrounds.
There is also the challenge of reaching rural communities. Within ten miles there are over 40 villages ranging in size from under 100 to over 5,000. The gospel witness in those villages has declined over the years and there is an enormous opportunity to plant new gospel communities, or revitalise existing ones.
There are currently 24 adults, plus children, and there is a hope that around ten students will also join from the University of Winchester and Winchester School of Art. The team is made up of those who already live or work in the city and one or two are planning to move closer in the coming months. Over the last six weeks all have been meeting together to pray and to plan. They have been times of real excitement and anticipation and the team is quickly beginning to feel like a family.
Encountering Jesus
Given the hub-like nature of Winchester, the vision isn’t just for the city but also the satellite towns and villages. Redeemer Winchester wants to give people in Winchester and the surrounding area the opportunity to encounter Jesus, experience community and be equipped to live their whole lives for Christ. The prayer is that this will be done by prayerfully preaching all of Christ, from all of scripture for all of life.
Please pray with those at Redeemer Winchester that God’s Word and God’s Son would once again have a place of central importance in Winchester.
