Profile: Background and Recent History
Pictures 1 & 2: The Church in Winter and in SpringGirton Village
Girton Baptist Church (GBC) is located in the Cambridge necklace village of Girton (population approximately 3,800), best known for its College, part of the University of Cambridge. Once a separate and largely agriculturally based community, Girton is now an outer suburb of the city, but one that retains a proud local identity. It has the highest proportion of older people of any of Cambridge's necklace villages and a core of established families who have lived here for many years. In recent years, however, there has been an influx of younger professional singles and families. In general terms Girton is a prosperous community in a relative prosperous part of the UK. Nonetheless is has its share of those who struggle to make ends meet, in particular, a proportion of its older folk.Recent History
In 1993, when GBC's membership had fallen to only 12, the three neighbouring churches of Histon, Girton and Landbeach began a joint venture, appointing two student ministers (Phillip Staves at GBC) for the four-year period of their training at Spurgeon's College. This initiative was financially underpinned by the larger, well-established fellowship of Histon and then sustained for the following seven years by grants from Baptist Union Home Mission. By 1997, although still supported by Home Mission, the GBC membership had grown to 28 and the fellowship had become financially independent. In 1998 it was in a position to appoint Phillip Staves as its first full time Minister since 1952. In 2001 the decision was taken not to request any further financial support from Home Mission in the belief that the church could now be entirely financially self-sufficient. The church's income for 2001 was over £37,000. In that sense, GBC is a Home Mission success story.With our full blessing and support, our former Minister, Phillip Staves was appointed a full time member of the Chaplaincy staff at Addenbrooke's Hospital, a position he took up at the beginning of October 2002. He and his family have continued in membership and worship with us.
Steve Holland was commissioned as our Student Minister on Saturday 6 September 2003, and was also accepted as a student at Spurgeon's College, London. For a 3-year period, he will spend two days a week in London studying.
The Church Today
Membership
The membership, which is continuing to grow, now stands at 43, with a further 13 regular attenders and 14 children. The church has a Deaconate of 7. Our Minister is Steve Holland.The church is situated at the end of the village furthest from the city. As such it is as close to the neighbouring village of Oakington (population approximately 1,400) as it is to parts of Girton itself. As a consequence, whilst just over half of GBC's members and regular attenders come from the village, we also have members who live in Oakington and further afield, either closer to the city or from other neighbouring villages, reflecting the former close association with Histon. Thus, whilst strenuous efforts continue to be made to ensure the church is fully integrated into village life, the needs of almost half the membership and regular attenders from outside the village must not be neglected.
Our Standpoint
We are a broad church. Our members are drawn from a variety of Christian traditions, perspectives and denominational backgrounds. We are mainly traditional and mainstream in our approach to Biblical teaching, and are evangelistic in our collective desire to win others for Christ. However, we are also tolerant of a range of theological perspectives and social attitudes that range from the conservative to the liberal. The current membership has been drawn to GBC, less for its close adherence to a specific, narrowly defined theological standpoint, than for its powerful sense of fellowship, Christian community, the warmth of its welcome and the genuine desire to make a difference in peoples' lives. We value our diversity.
We are a church that has benefited over recent years from sound, mature, mainstream Bible-based teaching from the pulpit and occasional house groups, in a way that has acknowledged and encouraged a debate around important issues facing Christians today. We all share and delight in the knowledge of Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour.
We believe in, and attempt to practise the priesthood of all believers. We make strenuous efforts to engage the membership in preaching, teaching, worship leading, pastoral care and other key roles in the church. We stress the importance of believer's Baptism, although warmly accept into membership those who have come to Christ via other traditions. Recognising the significance of the members' meeting as a means of divining the will of God, we have devoted considerable thought to making such occasions work effectively. We have an open communion table.
We remain informally committed to ecumenical relations, working in partnership with the only other Christian church in the village, the Parish Church of St. Andrew's, with whom we hold joint services and run an annual summer club for the primary school children of the village.
The Church Building
Picture 3: Church Members building the extension, 2000
The church building is a small (capacity approximately 100) Victorian Fenland chapel, which has been extensively renovated and improved during recent years. The pews have been removed and replaced by chairs; a sound system with loop installed; and the pulpit replaced with platform and modern lectern and communion table. In 2000, a £20,000 vestibule and church office extension was erected on the front of the church. Under the leadership of one of the church members this was done on a self-build basis involving contributions of a financial and physical kind from many members and friends.
Our Worship and Activities
Sunday Worship
At present we hold both Sunday morning and evening services. The style of morning worship (usually attended by approximately 50 people) is a mix of traditional and modern, normally using Mission Praise Combined and a range of more modern songs and hymns available on overhead. Over the past few years this has evolved to include a greater level of congregational participation. We are blessed with an extraordinary breadth of musical talent, with five pianists/organists; nine other instrumentalists; as well as a worship/singing group. The evening service, which is highly appreciated by the much smaller number who attend (usually about 12 people), tends to be more traditional and is more reflective.
Our Sunday School
We are fortunate for a small church in having a thriving Sunday School of 14 children which meets each Sunday morning for the second half of the morning services (apart from one all age service each month). The School follows the Scripture Union material.We also have a creche that meets during the morning service in the vestibule.
Other Meetings
We have a monthly prayer meeting; early morning prayers on Saturday mornings; a weekly Bible Study run in conjunction with the Parish Church; and an active Tuesday Afternoon Meeting (formerly the "Women's meeting", but long since equally welcoming to men!).
Community Action and Outreach
We run the following activities designed to meet some of the needs of our community and to share the Good News with them:Outreach services: monthly services at the local nursing home and at one of the local sheltered housing complexes.
Summer Club: Run in conjunction with the Parish Church, this is a week of activities and learning for primary school children in the village which takes place during the school summer holidays. There is a reunion party each October (in place of Halloween).
Holiday-at-Home: A week of activities for older members of our community, many of whom are unable to afford or cope with a holiday away from home. Followed up with a reunion songs-of-praise.
Coffee House: an offer of friendship and a chance to learn about our faith for the many students from overseas visiting Cambridge to improve their English, the Coffee House meets weekly during term time.
Picture 5: International students from all over the world meet at GBC
In addition to the above, we have church members who take an active role in a wide range of Christian-based community action organisations and projects with which the church associates itself through prayer, financial and other support. These include: Jimmy's Night Shelter; The Cambridge Food Bank; Christian Blind Mission (UK); The Link House Trust (providing accommodation for overseas postgraduate students in Cambridge); Aquaid Lifeline Fund (providing clean water and support for children in Malawi orphaned by AIDS); and Histon Ten Sing (a YMCA-supported creative arts organisation for young people, founded by one of our church members and attended by some of our young people offering 'low threshold' access to the Good News). In addition, our former Minister remains a governor of the local primary school.
Picture 6: Ten Sing in concert at the local secondary school
Picture 7: Some of the children at Namisu, the Aquaid Lifeline supported village in Malawi