Howard's Blog : Ethos

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 15

Influence II - Mark Jones

It was great to have a meal the other week with Mark Jones who leads City Church Gloucester. We sat in a pub which had been the site of the first ever Sunday School founded by Robert Raikes, and opposite St. Mary le Crypt Church where George Whitfield had been christened (sorry can't say baptised) and preached his first sermon. The historic sense of influence was tangible!

As Mark talked about his church, his influence was not one that measured high in terms of ABC. Attendance is about 70 adults, although recently Buildings now equals a 9000sq ft warehouse aptly named the George Whitfield Centre, and Cash well Gloucester isn't a rich city.

But at a time when so much talk is about influencing culture, as we drank our pints in the sunshine, Mark related a brilliant culture shaping story.

On the 26th of August he saw the headline in The Gloucester Citizen "Sex hotel to be get green light". A hotel just a few yards from all this church history was set to be turned into a private members' lap dancing club, aimed at the gay market, and planning chiefs had recommended it for approval.

Mark rang the council planning department who told him that they were not interested in hearing objections on moral grounds and that the final decision was due to be made at the full council meeting 5 days later.

Mark decided that a do nothing response was the easy but completely unacceptable option, perhaps recalling Edmund Burke a contemporary of Whitfield "All it needs for evil to triumph is for the good to do nothing". He put together a case arguing that the club would create a no-go-area incompatible with the other historic attractions in the area.

City Church run a food bank and have about 40 churches who contribute foodstuffs to be allocated to those in need. Mark mobilised his influnece and contacted the 40 or so church leaders and had them all mobilise their congregations to write to the council. He also sent a press release to the local paper

(http://www.thisisgloucestershire.co.uk/forest/sport/Sex-hotel-create-area/article-1296077-detail/article.html)

By the day of the council meeting BBC Radio 5 Live had got hold of the story and contacted Mark and set up an on air discussion with him and the leader of the city planning department.

That evening the sex hotel was given ten minutes on the council's agenda, as approval was expected to be a formality. However Mark told me that so many people had written letters that it took over an hour to read them out to the gathered counsellors (which I think they are legally obliged to do). Mark and another objector also had the opportunity to speak. The leader of the council in summing up said "they had never had such a large and rapid public response to any planning issue". The counsellors voted overwhelmingly to throw out the proposal.

Mark's church is experiencing real growth towards 100, but for Mark this wasn't about finding some free publicity, it was about living as a citizen of God's transforming kingdom.

Mark thanks for the beer and invite to preach, but best of all thanks for the uplifting story!! Howard