From: The Methodist Recorder - 10 January 2008 For a taste of a realistic appraisal of the needs of the wider Church today, coupled with a wealth of well-judged, practical and supremely usable material, look no further than Messy Church. Author Lucy Moore has drawn on the skills she has employed in youth work, drama, training programmes and creative presentations in order to produce a book so replete with wisdom that it is difficult to know which quote to choose as illustration. One such is: "... This journey to faith involves bits of belonging, a little believing, a certain amount of ownership all swilling around together in a life-changing primeval soup while the Spirit works in us to bring us nearer to Jesus in our many different ways." Hence: "If you juggle with this idea, you soon arrive at a church that not only is a joyful mess but which makes a mess joyfully." The first 64 pages examine the concept and considerations of messiness while the remaining 130-odd contain programmes for the summer, autumn and spring terms, with three more for use throughout the year. A summary of a messy church midweek session, as practised at the Anglican St Wilfrid's church in Portsmouth, begins at 3.30pm with half an hour of board games, drink and biscuit, followed by an hour's craft time, a 15-minute church celebration service and a last half-hour devoted to a hot meal. Messy Church is also featured among a series of short stories on the Fresh Expressions DVD.