Messy Church

Lucy Moore is the founder of Messy Church, a rapidly-growing ministry that is now in over 20 countries worldwide. She is responsible for developing the work of Messy Church nationally and internationally—writing, speaking, reflecting and developing Messy projects. Before working full-time with Messy Church, Lucy was a member of BRF’s Barnabas children’s ministry team, offering training for those wanting to bring the Bible to life for children in churches and schools across the UK, and using drama and storytelling to explore the Bible with children herself. Her books include titles in the Messy Church series, as well as AllAge Worship, Colourful Creation, Bethlehem Carols Unpacked, The Lord’s Prayer Unplugged and The Gospels Unplugged. She also presents Messy Church: the DVD. A secondary-school teacher by training, she enjoys acting, walking Minnie the dog, marvelling at the alien world of her two teenage children and guiltily watching unimproving television programmes. She is a Lay Canon of Portsmouth Cathedral.

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.