Pictured from left to right: Rev Lukas, Rev Kortleven, Rev Willem van 't Spijker
In early September, Rev Gert Kortleven and Rev Willem van 't Spijker paid a working visit to the Evangelical Presbyterian Church of Northern Ireland (EPCNI). Mission supports this small denomination with an annual contribution to the missionary work being done here.
Since 2016, mission deputies have been supporting a number of mission projects in Western Europe. We were already introduced to the work in Girona (northern Spain), Paris and northern Italy. The fourth project we are involved in is the missionary work of the EPCNI.
Bible study with tea and sweets
The denomination is small: nine churches spread across Northern Ireland. In Londonderry, a city that for years has been in the middle of the firing line of strife between Protestants and Roman Catholics, the Rev Andrew Lucas is the regular at a weekly Bible study held there with a number of seekers in the small hall of the local theatre.
Rev Lukas is pastor in the town of Omagh, about an hour's drive from Londonderry. Every week he makes sure the room is in order, and welcomes seekers with tea and coffee. We discovered that in Ireland, tea is never just tea, but is always accompanied by lots of goodies. Through a rota, the various ministers of the EPCNI come to Foyle, as the district in Londonderry is called, where the Bible studies are given.
Worker wanted
The participants are people who live close to the theatre. With great faithfulness they come, and with similar faithfulness the pastors gather. What we discover in conversations is that a worker in Foyle would be needed. The EPCNI would love to see that happen. Sending one of the pastors there is possible, but also challenging: in that area, a surname and an accent often already betrays whether you are Protestant or Roman Catholic, and that is still very sensitive in that area. We hope that someone will be found who can contribute to reconciliation in this area on the basis of the Gospel.
