In October, Christ Church Jebel Ali is hosting an event described as a three-day pilgrimageof worship, discernment and missionary discipleship, with the title Dusty Sandals: Deep Faith.
For the first time in the Diocese, the event is being organised with the help of Anglicans Ablaze, a South African inspired Anglican movement describing itself as a group of Anglicans who desire to be set ablaze with God's love and power in order to build up the church and to serve God in the world. Anglicans Ablaze is the single largest gathering of Anglicans in the Anglican Church of Southern Africa. Its message of renewal and revival will be central to the event in Jebel Ali. Fr Jim Young, parish priest at Jebel Ali, does not see this this as a smaller version of a conventional conference. He says it should become a different kind of gathering altogether—a three-day pilgrimage of worship, discernment and missionary discipleship.
The event is planned to coincide with the fiftieth anniversary of the Diocese. Its mission document bears witness to the Church's work throughout that time. "For half a century, generations of clergy and lay people have planted churches, welcomed strangers, cared for the vulnerable, proclaimed the Gospel, and borne witness to Christ across a region marked by extraordinary diversity and constant change. We give thanks for their faithfulness. We honour those whose dusty sandals have prepared the way for our own." It goes on, "The Church here cannot depend upon cultural Christianity. It must form disciples intentionally: Christians who live faithfully as minorities, love neighbours of other faiths, build community across cultures, practise hospitality, and carry the Gospel into their workplaces and homes."
Fr Jim believes that it is important for the weekend to be rooted in the worship life of Christ Church. Bishop Sean will preside at an opening Eucharist at which Bishop Julius of Thika, our sister Diocese in Kenya, will preach. Bishop Sean will also lead a closing Choral Evensong. Other participants and leaders will be provided by Anglicans Ablaze.
The event takes place from October 23rd - 25th.
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