THE first ever Messy Church version of the board game Monopoly
was played for real on the streets of London by teams from churches
from around the UK.
Eight teams took to the streets of the capital with the aim of
visiting 22 different streets and sites from the board game, and
taking photos in each one. To prove that each photo had been taken
that day, it had to feature the day's mascot - a pair of yellow
rubber gloves.
In place of the utilities and railways stations on the original
Monopoly board, teams had to find four different sorts of church,
and also, using placards displaying the five Messy Church values,
take photos of examples of each of these, or become an image of one
of the values: hospitality, creative, celebration, Christ-centred,
and intergenerational.
Andrew, a team member from St Mark's, Tattenham Corner, who was
celebrating his 12th birthday, took a birthday cake and candles
with him on his journey.
Photos included the Salvation Army's handing out hospitality to
the crowds waiting for a view of the royal family, and policemen
releasing two members of one team from arrest, as a "Get out of
jail free" card.
The day began and ended at Oasis Church, in Waterloo, with a
prayer for the day said over the teams by the creator of the
original Messy Church, Lucy Moore.
All the teams finished with a meal together six hours later. The
day sought to raise money for the central Bible Reading Fellowship/
Messy Church team, to enable them to support more Messy Church
start-ups. The team from St Mark's won the day's challenge.
Martin Payne, from Messy Church, said: "How appropriate that the
game of Monopoly . . . should be the focus for Messy Churches'
coming together to support Messy Churches. It's a game that's . . .
often played when the generations come together on special
occasions.
"In the same way, Messy Church is bringing children, parents,
and grandparents together around the story of Jesus, helping to
create new intergenerational communities."