CRE is a 'Christian Supermarket', says Williams

|PIC1|The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, has called the National Christian Resources Exhibition a "Christian Supermarket" as he opened the massive event earlier this week.

Helping to celebrate the richness of Christian organisations throughout the UK, Dr Williams led the launch of the event saying, "For those who say 'We have nothing to wear, nothing to eat, nothing to excite us' it says 'Let me show you'."

The head of the Church of England told hundreds of Christians gathered at Sandown Park in Esher: "God wants his people to be resourced - and the church in this country is richly blessed. There are helpful resources everywhere you look. And in many ways they mirror the divine richness that God pours out for us every day."

The Archbishop was presented with a stole, made especially for him by clerical vestment designer Juliet Hemingray, as well as a piece of framed calligraphy containing wise words from historical figures from William Wilberforce to Tony Blair.

The Church of England this year is presenting a walk-in mini TV studio as a must-see for Christians at the CRE. The feature reaches out to those wanting to raise the profile of their church programmes or ministries or who simply want to highlight the good works they are involved in.

|QUOTE|Gillian Oliver, Head of Communications Development for the Archbishops' Council, says that the stand - the first that the Church of England has put together for the CRE - is designed to help the churches communicate with their communities.

"Local churches are sitting on some great news stories, with loads of events and activities taking place throughout the week, but the skills needed to tell those stories to the community are constantly changing.

"We're here to help churches to pass the message on about their energy and vitality."

Once in the 'vox pop' studio, the visitors will take part in a two minute interview, where they will be quizzed on a range of topics, such as how their church or organisation is engaged in promoting the Christian faith, how they see the future of the Church, or their views on topical social issues.

Professional media trainers will be on hand to run the interviewees through their performance as they watch tapings of the interviews, offering helpful hints and tips on how they could come across better in future.

This year's National CRE will conclude on 18 May 2007.