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England—Fostering community around ChristmasFriday, December 11, 2009 - rflory
 To many, the holiday season in ‘jolly ole England’ is one of snow-covered cottages, mince pies and chestnuts roasting on open fires. In the urbanized parts of this small island, however, it’s a completely different story – except for the pies. After serving in Leicester for nearly two years, we've come to appreciate a different picture of those festivities that surround Christ’s entrance into the world.
In our city of Leicester, individuals and families celebrate Christmas with different levels of devotion. In an effort to reach out to our community, Central Avenue Christian Church opens its doors each year for a Christmas Fayre complete with book stalls, cake sales and a tombola (raffle) with loads of prizes. There’s even a visit from Father Christmas himself! The gathering draws in dozens of folks from the community to share in a good time of joy and Christmas spirit. This is important because many residents of Leicester come from non-Christian backgrounds.
The church also hosts a much-anticipated Christmas Meal that boasts all the elements of a memorable evening: food, fun and fellowship. To start, everyone breaks open Christmas crackers. These cardboard tubes are wrapped in shiny paper and pop open when two people pull them apart. Inside there is a paper crown, a small toy and a joke or trivia question. Then the feast begins with turkey, ham, potato salad, tuna pasta, quiche, salad, pork pie, pizza, sausage rolls and loads more leave everyone stuffed. Surprisingly, people somehow find more room for cakes, pies and a Christmas pudding.
Pastor Alan Robinson reasons the Christmas Meal is so important for people because it’s about relationships:
“It’s essentially a time when people come together. It’s often the only time of the year folks get together with their whole families. In a place where families aren't particularly healthy anymore, this is a time when our family and friends in and around the church can gather for a genuinely nice time together. It’s a community event, really.”
Along with other church members, we look back on these dinners with fond memories and celebrate the positive addition of Christmas spirit that we shared with our community.
Kyle and Mindy Duncan, NMSI missionaries, have been serving in Leicester, England, since 2008.
Click on a photo below to view slideshow
An English Christmas tree heralding the season
Christmas Tree
- rflory
An English Christmas tree heralding the season
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Colorful crackers are filled with treats and crowns
Christmas Crackers
- rflory
Colorful crackers are filled with treats and crowns
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Celebrating Christmas with paper crowns
Donning crowns
- rflory
Celebrating Christmas with paper crowns
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Church members serve guests from the community
Serving
- rflory
Church members serve guests from the community
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A dear woman sells sweets to delight all
Sweet table
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A dear woman sells sweets to delight all
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There are many nice items for both young and old
Raffle Items
- rflory
There are many nice items for both young and old
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Mindy mans the raffle table during the celebration
Raffle Items
- rflory
Mindy mans the raffle table during the celebration
Downloads: 144
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Filed Under: International
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