ST. JOHN'S MISSION PARTNERS

St. John's Church maintains close association with various individuals and families who are currently undertaking Missionary work abroad. 

Below is the story of one family, currently residing in Egypt.

For information about our other Partners, please pick up our Mission Partners leaflet from the back of Church.

The Chorlton Family

(CMS - Church Mission Society - www.cms-uk.org)

Chris & Angela are mission partners in Egypt.  Having worked in Beni Suef, a town 70 miles south of Cairo, supporting the practical and spiritual ministries of the Coptic Orthodox Church - a new venture for CMS, they now reside in Cairo itself.

Chris is Director of the Language Centre and Angela runs a short English teaching slot in the mornings (all children are Egyptian, with the exception of one or two). Together they are involved in youth work, speaking at various meetings (in the words of one priest, the youth in the Orthodox Church "need to hear the message of the grace of Christ, that they are accepted and forgiven in spite of their sin") and are in the process of setting up a marriage preparation course (the first of it's kind here - with the support of the Bishop and priests). The family attend the Anglican Church in Maadi (www.maadichurchst.john.org) where services are held in English and Arabic (yes, there are a few Egyptian Anglicans out there!).

Chris & Angela's desire is that they can encourage the Christians of Egypt to grow in vision, wisdom and boldness by reaching out to the nominal orthodox amongst them, as well as to their Muslim neighbours.  They also see their role as encouraging a more ecumenical outlook on the part of the Orthodox, promoting a biblical 'one church, one body' model.  They want their presence to be an encouragement to the minority Chrisitian Community as they work out their faith in an increasingly Islamic Country, with all the pressure and discrimination that can bring.

Living in Eqypt is a challenge and can be draining, but there is never a dull moment. People are friendly and many from the Christian and Muslim communities really appreciate having 'foreigners' who choose to live there.

In Chris & Angela's 'own word's (Feb 11th 2009) -

"We are looking forward to Chris's parents coming to visit in two weeks and we are enjoying all the new opportunities Cairo offers for ministry/fellowship/education.  We feel God really has prepared the way for us and that the timing was right.  We are daily grateful for the last four years in Beni Suef - the tough but invaluable introduction it provided with regards to local life, language and culture".

Angela & Chris have three children - Anna (b.2003), Issac (b.2005) and Noah (b.2008).

The Mission Link for the Chorlton Family is Linda Howell - (tel: 020 8317 7623 - linandel@yahoo.com). Linda has spent 16 years working with CMS on the home staff as Enquiry & Prayer Assistant and is therefore familiar with Mission situations.