Street Ministry: Showing up with Faith — OneSpirit Interfaith Foundation
OneSpirit tutor Una Devine mentioned a former student to me recently. A minister who writes an insightful newsletter and offers truly inclusive street ministry. His name is Andrew Ramage, and I’m delighted to share more of his story:
‘I was ordained by One Spirit in July 2020 but have been the Pastor of a Christian Church since 2015.
I have always felt there was a power, or presence watching over me, but it was only later in life that I gave it an identity. I spent a large part of my adult life in the Forces, serving in both the Royal Navy and the Army but it was only when I was forced to stop working that I found my true path.
Once the drive to trade up in jobs, make more money, progress, was taken away, I was able to stop, listen and start to follow the feelings I had been ignoring for many years. A pull, like the tugging of a chord, towards a more spiritual life. It has taken me many years and a lot of hard work to allow myself to follow that pull, to listen to and accept the quiet small voice that was trying to guide me.
Currently, I spend a lot of my time working with the street community in Brighton and Hove, with people that feel invisible, unheard and even demonised. It is challenging, and at times heartbreaking, but it is also rewarding and incredibly funny. No day is the same and after years of “Turning up” I have been accepted as an honorary member of that community. Over that time, I have learnt more about faith from people on the streets than I ever did in a church.
I am a Christian, not because of any theological beliefs but because I have given my life to trying to follow Christ’s teachings and ideals. That surrender has brought me to a place of comfort with myself and more joy in my life than I could ever have thought possible. I believe True strength comes from being our true selves and, I think, I am getting pretty close to that.’
Andrew writes a regular newsletter for the Metropolitan Community Church (MCC) in Brighton. And features a whole host of topics from ‘Perception’ and ‘Routine’ to ‘Chaos and calm’. I asked Andrew what prompted the newsletter and he replied:
‘The newsletter started following repeated requests from people who wanted to know more about what we were doing and as a way of staying in touch with those who had connected with us but could not attend services or meetings. It went through a number of formats, but we have paired it back to just diary notes and thoughts from the Pastor. It is now going out to people in a number of towns, other than Brighton and Hove, and at least two other countries.’
When I asked how this forms part of Andrew’s work as a minister he responded:
‘The newsletter allows me to raise awareness of issues those I work with are facing, as well as sharing my own thoughts on religion, spirituality and pretty much anything. The idea being it is short punchy messages that both members and, for want of a better word, acquaintances can get something from. Sometimes they are thought-provoking, sometimes more traditional messages, but often they are my own take on experiences I have had. We have had a lot of positive feedback concerning the newsletter, even if the ideas within are sometimes controversial.’
You can read past newsletters that Andrew has written by visiting Want to share your own story? https://bit.ly/3LQCKRc or sign up for the MCC newsletter at https://bit.ly/3H76upm.
Andrew will be running a brand new course, Community Ministry in September 2022. To find out more visit https://www.interfaithfoundation.org/community-ministry.
Originally published at https://www.interfaithfoundation.org on February 23, 2022.
