Marshalswick Baptist Free Church, Sherwood Avenue, St Albans, Herts
1st March 2006
Space Age Bible exploration comes to St Albans
For three weeks from 6th March, more than 1,000 St Albans schoolchildren, aged from eight to 11, will be exploring the Holy Land with the aid of modern e-learning technology.
The children, from Sandringham, Skyswood, Sandridge, Wheatfields, Aboyne Lodge, Oakwood, Bernards Heath, St John Fisher and Fleetville Schools, will be visiting ‘The Emmaus Road Show’ - sited first at Fleetville School and then in the Sherwood Avenue car park near Marshalswick Baptist Free Church.
The Emmaus Road Show, owned by a company called Bible Ventures and devised by St Albans resident Howard Roberts, comprises two specially adapted trailers. The Emmaus Road Show regularly travels throughout the UK, attracting both youth and adult audiences, but this is the first time that it has visited the home town of the show’s designer.
The Rev Graham Clarke, minister of Marshalswick Baptist Free Church, which has masterminded the entire project, explained: 'The children find themselves in a spacecraft in orbit around the Earth. While they await transfer to the surface, they explore an ancient databank - the Bible - via animated charts and film clips.
'Having landed safely, they board an ‘aircraft’ video theatre for their onward flight to the Holy Land. They see ‘in-flight’ Bible-related movies; then transfer to a ‘tour coach’ to view key biblical sites and scenes - of Galilee, the Jordan Valley and Jerusalem - in 3D.
'The whole event - which lasts some 90 minutes - meets the requirements of the National Curriculum relating to the need for children to understand religions’ sacred texts,” Mr Clarke continued.
In order to bring the Emmaus Road Show to St Albans, Marshalswick Baptist Free Church has attracted sponsorship from a charitable trust, along with Churches Together in Marshalswick and local churches including St Paul’s in Fleetville, St Mary’s Marshalswick and Hatfield Road Methodist. In addition, Dagnall Street Baptist Church is supporting the visit to the roadshow by children from Aboyne Lodge School.
'Not only is this a way of presenting Biblical stories in a modern context which is designed to interest and motivate audiences but it also a great way for churches to build up their relationships with local schools,” said Mr Clarke. 'It helps schools meet the requirements of the National Curriculum and brings the children into contact with the churches as they pursue their studies.”
During the three weeks or so that the Emmaus Road Show is in Fleetville and Marshalswick, a number of adult groups will also be experiencing the show during the evenings.
For further details of the Emmaus Road Show, contact the Rev Graham Clarke on 01727 857786.
End
Notes for Editors
About Marshalswick Baptist Free Church
Marshalswick Baptist Free Church (MBFC) is actively involved in serving the needs of the local community, including making its premises available to non-members. On a weekly basis, some 15 different organisations and some 1,000 people a week use the church’s premises.
