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Bulletin 94 Date : 17th Apr 2007
Easter People 2007

We have just returned from Easter People 2007 which, for those who don’t know, is Methodism’s equivalent of Spring Harvest. This year was the very last Easter People as Rob Frost, the driving force of Easter People for the last 20 years feels it is time to ‘lay it down’. Over 6,000 people met at the Winter Gardens, Blackpool for this final event which was in many ways, quite remarkable.

Charles Price – is Senior Pastor at the People's Church, Toronto. Charles is a remarkable Bible expositor and has an amazing gift for taking complex theological issues and explaining them with clarity and simplicity to a gathering of ordinary Christians who don’t have a theological training. His 4 studies focused upon Romans 8:18-39 and touched on issues like assurance, hope and the substitutionary death of Christ on the cross. Charles had to fly back to Canada straight after the Saturday morning Bible study in order to baptise 30 new converts at his church.

CARGO – is Paul Field’s latest work and it commemorates the work of William Wilberforce and other abolitionists in this the 200th anniversary of the abolition of the trans-Atlantic slave trade. This was the first full production involving professional musicians and dancers alongside a choir of attendees of Easter People which came together for the first time just one day before the performance! It was a stunning performance and Paul himself was deeply moved at the end of the evening. I was greatly encouraged as we have a number of CARGO concerts scheduled for the district this year.

The Pavilion – is one of the rooms in the Winter Garden which was not scheduled for use. However, as the attendance at Easter People was far larger than expected, Rob Cotton (former Methodist minister in Arnold) was asked to organise an extra set of events. He did this magnificently and one of the highlights was seeing people like Liz Babbs, Simeon Wood and Paul Field leading worship in what proved to be a quiet and meditative alternative to the Opera House and Ballroom.

Headway / MET Reception – Headway is the evangelical group within the Methodist Church which has given a significant amount of support to Easter People over the years. This year it was re-launched and refocused as Methodist Evangelicals Together (MET). The Ballroom Link room which holds about 150 people was the venue for the reception. However, over 300 people turned up for this unique occasion and enthusiastically welcomed the arrival of MET. Paul Smith who has been a mainstay speaker at Easter People is handing over the chair to Paul Wilson at the end of the year.

The Future – Surprisingly, we did not come home with a sense of loss and sadness at the thought of Easter People being over forever. This is due to the fact that Rob Frost and his team will be moving ahead with Pentecost 08 in London and Ashley Cooper will be heading up ECG (Equipping, Calling, Going) in Llandudno next year on the same dates as Easter People use to take place. Information on both of these will emerge shortly.

There were many other highlights, not least of which was the enthusiasm of the young people in the Emerging Culture sessions. Rob Frost and the team have given Methodism an incredibly valuable gift over the last 20 years. Hundreds of people have been brought to faith and some called into ministry of different types as a result of Easter People. Methodism has profited immensely from the annual events and people have taken the experience back to their churches and seen transformation taking place because of it.