I am so excited about what the Lord is doing in outreach beyond Athens...to other communities in Greece...that I wanted to revisit some of those places on this verbal journey.
"Fusion was invited by local Churches to work in 3 of the Olympic cities outside Athens. It was their first attempt at a Festival and took place when the soccer began 2 nights before the official opening ceremony. A team travelled to Iraklion, Crete where over 1000 people came to a Festival that was run by two Churches working together in the main square of the
city. The Festival was filmed by a Crete TV station and the local people greatly appreciated what Fusion was able to offer their community. One believer commented as he watched the Festival he believed that this was the most effective way he had ever seen to make contact with Greek people.
In Volos, large crowds turned out for a festival on the waterfront in front of a number of local taverns. One of the local pastors, working in conjunction with the local council and the local Orthodox Bishop commented that he couldn't believe how simple and effective Festivals were. It provided an ideal atmosphere where they could distribute New Testaments to
people who asked for them and they were able to give out more than they ever had before. A local Greek Orthodox priest, when asked by one of his Church members if they should take one, commented that he was going to take one and they should also do that and be reading their Bibles.
At Thessaloniki 500 people came to a Festival at Kalamaria where local Christians worked in co-operation with the Fusion team on the waterfront. When the locals were asked if they would like to see this happen more often, there was an overwhelmingly enthusiastic response. Many were disappointed that we were not coming back the next day and throughout the evening there were many significant conversations about faith.
Churches across Athens hosted 3 Opening Night Festivals. All had stages and promotion provided by the local councils and all were enthusiastically received by both the council and the local people. Festivals began at 6pm and drew large crowds till 8.45 pm when the Opening Ceremony began.
At Marousi, less than 2 kms from the Olympic Stadium, 1200 people attended a Festival in a perfect setting in an open area near the train station. Music and dance was provided by the Creative Arts team with artists from across the world. The council was delighted by the success of the evening and Fusion was given the opportunity to return again the following week to run 2 Festivals before the giant "Light the World Parade" where the Council
blocked off the street so the celebration could proceed unhindered. Restaurants were so delighted by what they saw that they provided free meals for some of the team.
At Ilion Park, the largest park in Athens, the local Church was uncertain about how many would come. They would have been delighted with 100 so when 800 people came to be part of the celebration they could hardly contain their joy! The local Church is still coming to terms with the impact that they can have in the community as they work together with the council. The Deputy Mayor has asked them to run another Festival as soon as they can!
At Rafina, the Church running this Festival couldn't believe both how may people turned up (over 1500) and how easy it was to find a way to connect with people. Many of the team were invited home for a meal; many discussions were had about faith and people wanted to connect further. From the stage the MC spoke about young people needing purpose and community and it received wholehearted support. There is a clear sense that the closeness of the local community was splintering and what we were offering was a way to reverse this trend.
Since Opening Night Festivals the team have been running Festivals across Athens. They helped begin a massive celebration in the heart of the city, Omonia Square, where they worked with local Churches on the "Tribute to the Unknown God". 5000 people came to this event, a first event on this scale run by the Churches in Athens. Amazingly, it had the full support of the Mayor of Athens and the Olympic authorities who used the event as the start
of the Olympic cultural program.
In the relaxed and welcoming setting of Festivals there have been many opportunities for the team to share their faith and talk to local people about how to join God's family in a new way. Many by simply turning up night after night at the Festivals are finding a home amongst the team. Some are returning with other family members. The team is growing! There are
conversations on buses, in trains and restaurants. Others just ask can they meet to talk further."
Most of my on-site sources have left Athens by now and are on their way home. However, I will still have a few stories to add tomorrow...and some wrap-up thoughts.
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