The week continues with various projects running across London, leading up to the ‘Big Event’ at the Carling Academy Brixton on 5th August. In this interview with Christian Today, CEO of XLP and Soul in the City, Patrick Regan gives a quick overview of what Soul Week is all about.
What’s the aim of Soul Week 2006?
Soul Week is about encouraging churches to engage in their communities. It’s about getting people out of the falls of the church and asking the community what their needs are. It’s all about proclaiming the good news of Jesus in word and action.
Where are the projects being held, and what kind of activities will take place?
Most of the projects are taking place where youth provision isn’t quite good. And what happens is a mixture to what the community needs. In some areas, they do a ‘make me a model’ day, talking to young girls about self-esteem, and the way they feel about themselves...in a lot of urban areas, kids are into sports, so we provide it for them.
It’s about going to where the community is. So often, our evangelism is telling kids ‘come to church, come to church,’ but the reality is, these guys are not going to come to church. So we have to come to them. And we have to be accessible, we have to be relevant, and we have to be culturally engaged. This is about taking the good news of Jesus in word and action. That’s why we’re here.
What’s behind the theme of Soul Week 2006: ‘Louder that Words’?‘Louder than Words’ comes from James 2:17, which talks about faith without action being dead. Faith really comes alive when we put it into action, and when we go into the places where Jesus told us to go.
