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| 2103: Leeds
Central Citadel, Leeds, England |
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Mystery
Worshipper: Sunbeam.
The church:
Leeds
Central Citadel, Leeds, England.
Denomination:
The
Salvation Army.
The building:
Two modern red brick buildings connected via a glass atrium.
The church:
They maintain a busy roster of programmes, including Sunday
worship, hospital and nursing home visitation, Sunday school,
a special worship service for shoppers, a luncheon club, and
a snack and chat group. They also have a good student support
group. And, of course, being the Salvation Army, they give food
to the homeless and needy.
The neighbourhood:
Leeds can trace its origin back to the fifth century and is
named after Loidis, a forest covering most of the area at that
time. The Venerable Bede, in his Ecclesiastical History
of the English People, described a church "in the
region known as Loidis" of which only the altar survived.
Leeds was a market town during the Middle Ages and developed
into an important manufacturing centre during the Industrial
Revolution, specialising in woolen finishing and flax mills,
and later printing, engineering, chemicals and clothing manufacture.
The decline of local industry in the early 20th century saw
a brief reversal during World War II, when Leeds was an important
centre for the manufacture of military uniforms and munitions.
Twenty-first century Leeds has become a major electronic banking
centre. The Leeds Central Citadel is in a small industrial area,
just a two minute walk from the bus station. There is a very
nice all-you-can-eat Chinese restaurant across the road. The
Little London area, consisting of high-rise and maisonette council
housing, is a few minutes walk away.
The cast:
Major Andrew Spivey; Major Valerie Spivey.
The date & time:
Sunday, 10 October 2010, 11.00am.
What was the name of the service?
Harvest Sunday.
How full was the building?
There were a large number of free seats in the balcony, but
downstairs was quite full. For some reason the worship band
and choir stationed themselves in the balcony – more about
this later.
Did anyone welcome you personally?
A veritable greeting line seemed to be waiting for me as I entered.
Even after I sat down, people kept coming up and introducing
themselves. They seemed to be quite genuine in wanting to know
me.
Was your pew comfortable?
Lovely seating – padded chairs, wide cushioned for larger people.
How would you describe the pre-service
atmosphere?
Chatty. There was a guy sitting at the piano playing quiet songs,
but everyone was chatting with each other. Suddenly the brass
band started playing, and everyone knew it was time to sit down
and start.
What were the exact opening words of the
service?
"Good morning on this Harvest Weekend."
What books did the congregation use during the
service?
Books were not needed, since all songs were on an overhead screen.
However, there was a supply of Salvation Army song books and
copies of The Source, a weekly publication.
What musical instruments were played?
The brass band played the traditional songs and a worship band
played the modern songs. They also had a children's and adult
choirs.
Did anything distract you?
There was a woman who sneezed. Ordinarily this wouldn't have
bothered me, but I've never heard anyone sneeze so loudly! It
was worth attending just to witness that. Possible record breaker.
Was the worship stiff-upper-lip, happy clappy, or
what?
Something for everyone: older songs, modern choral pieces, and
kids singing to tapes.
Exactly how long was the sermon?
16 minutes.
On a scale of 1-10, how
good was the preacher?
8 – Major Andrew Spivey didn't dig too deep, but got the
message across. My summary really can't do it justice.
In a nutshell, what was
the sermon about?
Matthew 13 (Jesus speaks in parables from a boat on the lake)
was the text. Church is a greenhouse. Christians are the plants.
Our goal isn't just to grow but to bear fruit. Some of us are
seedlings, some are damaged fruit. We all need to grow enough
to be taken from the greenhouse and survive in the field.
Which part of the service was like being in
heaven?
The children's story was full of surprises. Major Valerie Spivey
had several vegetables that she passed out to the children.
She said she liked carrots and that they help you see in the
dark. "So why are you wearing glasses?" one of the
little innocents asked. Then she broke off a piece of celery
and some of the juice landed in a little boy's eye. Suddenly
the microphone made a sound like a loud burp, and Major Spivey
stood up, turned red as a beet, and said, "Excuse me!"
Laugh? I nearly wet myself!
And which part was like being in... er... the other place?
There was a sense that nobody knew what what going on. What
the worship band played and what the overhead projector flashed
didn't always coincide. The microphone was unpredictable (see
above). Later the overhead guy sat there texting instead of
doing his job. Actually the most other-place-ish thing was that
when it was time for the worship band and choir to do their
part, down they came, thud-thud-thudding their way down the
stairs from the balcony. Why? Annoying!
What happened when you hung around after the service looking lost?
I was welcomed again! The guy next to me invited me to stop
for a tea. Another person asked me to stop for lunch.
How would you describe the after-service
coffee?
Tea – strong, hot in a mug. None of those useless little tea
cup things. The only difficulty was getting milk and sugar.
I had to fight through people chatting at the table and several
instrument cases parked on the floor.
How would you feel about making this church your regular (where 10 = ecstatic, 0 = terminal)?
8 – I would strongly consider it, although I doubt I would
want to wear a uniform. (Some did, dome didn't.)
Did the service make you feel glad to be a
Christian?
I noticed a mission statement in the entrance that mentioned
"Joyful Christianity". It certainly was a joyful event.
What one thing will you remember about all this in seven days' time?
The little boy getting celery juice in his eye. |
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| The Mystery Pilgrim |
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| One of our most seasoned reporters makes the Camino pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. Read here. |
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| London churches |
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| Read reports from 70 London churches, visited by a small army of Mystery Worshippers on one single Sunday. Read here. |
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