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Game changers

After the Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Canadian churches felt they’d missed the boat and could have done much more to engage. How can we make the most of the greatest show on earth when it comes to Britain next year?

On 6 July 2005 Trafalgar Square played host to scenes of wild celebration. Elite athletes mixed with excited fans as it was announced that the Games of the XXX Olympiad (the 2012 Olympics and Paralympics to you and me) would be held in London. The capital was to become the first city to host the Games for a third time.

But the excitement was soon forgotten. A day later the city was the focus of the world’s attention for all the wrong reasons as terrorists attacked the London transport system. Fifty two members of the public, and four suicide bombers, were killed by bombs on the buses and tubes.

Soon after that, the now well rehearsed arguments against the Olympics began to surface. Why should we pay for such an extravagant event? What about the disruption to the daily lives of local people? Why should those who don’t care about sport have it foisted upon them?

It was an inauspicious start for the London 2012 Games. The financial crisis didn’t help, with more concerns about how much was being spent and whether we could afford it. But slowly and surely as the summer of 2012 has approached, excitement levels have grown – 1.8 million people applied for tickets, and 20 million have already been allocated. With a year to go, reservations are being put on the back-burner. The biggest controversy that remains is the number of people who didn’t get tickets. As Olympic fever takes hold and the national mood turns once more to jubilant optimism, the inevitable question is: what, if anything, can the Church do to get in on the act? How can we be play a positive part in the biggest cultural event of next year?

The sky’s the limit

Local Christian organisations and churches have made a concerted effort to be involved since the 1996 Games in Atlanta. Peter Meadows, spokesperson for More Than Gold, an umbrella organisation of Christians which is trying to get Christians involved in all aspects of the Games, says their mission was crystallised by a visit to the Winter Olympics in Vancouver last year. ‘The story we heard time and again was church leaders saying, “If only I’d known it was going to be like this, we’d have been involved. We’ve really missed the boat.” So we’re just flat out, trying to minimise that happening here. This is the greatest opportunity for churches to engage with their communities in living memory.’

So what kind of thing can churches do? Meadows says the sky’s the limit. ‘The opportunity is much less about sport than community engagement...Putting bunting up, showing hospitality on the streets, giving cold water out to visitors, funding portaloos, having drop-in centres...’

The list of churches and Christian groups working together under the More Than Gold banner is impressive. The urgency of preparing for a looming event means those from many different traditions are mucking in together. Rev Dr Martyn Atkins, general secretary of the Methodist Church, picks up the theme: ‘We’ve got a shared vision, we feel we can work together...what a wonderful opportunity the

Olympics is for groups of churches all over the country.’ His message is echoed by James Parker, the Catholic coordinator for the Games: ‘More than ever before it’s vital that we’re seen to be united in our witness... It’s important that the Church is seen to be relevant, but also full of the Spirit and ready to have a good time.’

A month long Royal Wedding

Of course, the organisers have been busy trying to persuade us that the Olympics is truly national. There’s some truth in this, with football matches taking place in Glasgow, Cardiff, Newcastle, Coventry and Manchester. Other events will happen in Kent, Berkshire, Essex and Dorset. But to all intents and purposes, it’s a London event. This means there are different ways in which churches can engage. Those based in East London will have the most obvious opportunities, being so close to the main Olympic village, stadium and other facilities. But other parts of London will have events too, and those visiting during the Games will stay all over the city. The major transport hubs will be busier than ever, and every hotel, hostel and guest house will be full.

Churches in other parts of the country may not be interacting with competitors and fans, but there will still be a big opportunity to minister to the local community. Meadows says the level of excitement in most local communities will be akin to a month-long version of the Royal Wedding. ‘Churches can run their own celebrations for the opening and closing ceremonies with children’s fun events, a big screen in a local park, a hog roast in the evening with music... How about running a sports quiz, a school assembly, or even your school holiday club with an Olympic theme?’

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