'Messy Seniors' brings church to the people

Notes: Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Edmonton Alberta has developed "Canada's first Messy Church ministry directed toward senior citizens. ('Messy Vintage', a U.K. initiative offers something similar.) 'Messy Seniors' is held in a high-needs home for seniors with advanced dementia and Alzheimer's. Using the core values of Messy Church -- Christ-centred, for all ages, creativity, hospitality and celebration -- [the Rev. Heather] Liddell and her team adapted the program for a new setting". "In fact, at the 'Messy Seniors' Church, kids lead the service as 'trained volunteers'. Empowering children to lead the church activities 'gives them the opportunity to interact with someone they wouldn't have a chance to in their regular lives. 'Is there any better picture of the kingdom of heaven than a little girl helping a wheelchair-bound man in his 90s -- whose family is far away and too busy to visit very often -- tie knots [that his fingers are too arthritic to make] in a simple star mobile while talking about God's promise to make Abraham's descendants more numerous than the stars ?'"

Subjects: Holy Trinity Anglican Church (Edmonton, Alta.); Liddell, Heather; Messy Church - Anglican Church of Canada; Messy Seniors - Anglican Church of Canada; Church work with older people - Anglican Church of Canada