CLOSURE ANNOUNCEMENT

 

GAULBY REFORMED EVANGELICAL ANGLICAN FELLOWSHIP

 

CONCLUSION OF MEETINGS

 

The Gaulby Reformed Evangelical Anglican Fellowship came into being following the untimely death of the Rector, Rev A Cheesman, in October 2010.

 

Since that time we have sought to continue Biblical ministry by arranging all Evening Services, Bible Studies, separate Prayer Meetings and the well-known Gaulby Festival of Grace.

 

Major refurbishment work to restore the fabric and to make the church more user-friendly commenced in January 2019 since when the evening services have been held in the local Illston-on-the-Hill Village Hall.

 

Until that time we had an informal arrangement with the Church (Priest-in-Charge) which allowed us to conduct out meetings, largely unchanged for almost nine years, and these have been well regarded and appreciated by many in the county and beyond.

 

However we have always been mindful of the increasingly liberal perspective of the national church which has been seen to embrace changing moral values, whilst challenging Biblical preaching has been in noticeable decline.

 

Before completion of the work we therefore explored the possibilities of continuing the arrangement previously enjoyed, but matters were delayed by them until the work was completed.

 

In August 2019 we were advised to look for an alternative venue for the Festival of Grace, it being unlikely that the work would be completed in time for the 14th September 2019, and we therefore made arrangements to move this at short notice to Countesthorpe Baptist Church.

 

However before the Festival we were surprised to receive notice that the church would be formally opened on the 7th September 2019 prior to which on the 4th September 2019 we received an email outlining the terms and conditions in the form of a 10-page document should we wish to continue using Gaulby Church.

 

The arrangement was now to be on a formal and legally binding basis imposing financial and practical constraints which we considered totally unacceptable and which were rejected at a subsequent meeting of the fellowship.

 

Sadly, therefore, we have had no alternative but to inform the church of our decision and we held our concluding service in the Village Hall on Sunday the 27th October 2019.

 

October 2019