The Eagle's Nest Church in Arnold is holding a fortnightly 'church in a pub' at the Maid Marian on Coppice Road in the town.
 | | Maid Marian Pub in Arnold |
Church leader, John Fahy, says that it is an attempt to reach those who might not otherwise feel comfortable in a church but are much happier at their local. John and Tony Weightman, a regular member of the congregation, tell us more... The 'service'? "It's not just that we use the pub as a venue for what we normally do. We try to put on an event that we think works in a pub. "The way the evening works is that people get there, we serve them some food and they get a drink from the bar, and over the next hour or so we play some quite raw music, the sort of stuff that you'd get in a pub anyway but... the sort of music that is God focused...
 | | John Fahy |
Tony: "I'm involved in the music, the band that play there." John: "We put some images up on the screen, we have a couple of slots where people talk for no more than five minutes and we just encourage people to think about God, enjoy the evening and relax." The reaction John says that when it was first mooted: "The most surprised person was the pub landlord who wasn't quite sure what we were going to do in the place... but after the first few evenings he grew to love it... and a lot of the locals did too." A new clientele John: "We're trying to make it an evening where people who wouldn't normally consider going to church, but are relaxed in a pub, will come and enjoy an evening with us." Disrespectful?
 | | 'Church in a pub' entertainment |
John: "I don't think we're too bothered about being respectful, we just want to be relevant." Tony: "Our church has held a lot of events over the years in other venues and I think 30% of our church members are from those events. I hope that what we are doing at the Maid Marian pub in Arnold will fill the church up even more." Eagle's Nest church, a Pentecostal Church open to all, is usually based at Red Hill School NG5 6GL. If you're interested in attending the 'church in a pub' then get along to the Maid Marian pub on Coppice Road in Arnold. The 'service' will be held from 8.00pm on Sunday 30th October, Sunday 13th November and Sunday 11th December 2005. From then on it'll be every second Sunday evening. For more information contact Eagle's Nest Church on 0115 955 2421.
| 
