An A-Z guide to all the UK's Christian festivals and conventions, large and small.

Creation

Rock bands thundering out the riffs in leaking tents or packed congregations lifting up hands and hearts to God in worship; seminars on the social relevance of the Gospel or intimate times of Holy Spirit ministry; hamburgers of questionable origin or the Lord¹s Supper in a throng of communicants ­ festivals and Bible weeks come in a wide variety of styles and emphasis. To accompany our festivals listing in 2003¹s Cross Rhythms Christian Music Directory we¹ve asked the organisers of the events, large and small, to give us the lowdown on these modern day places of pilgrimage. We would urge you to visit some of these events; beyond the entertainment, the skate parks and the doubtful toilet arrangements, they represent an amazing opportunity for Christians young and old to catch a blessing.

1 NIGHT IN THE SUN
Date/s: July 2003
Title/Theme: Christian Music Festival
Location: Glasgow ­ various
Cost: From £10
Target: All ages
Confirmed speakers/artists: Superhero, Indigoecho
Vision: ³Glasgow has many world famous music festivals, Gig On The Green, etc. We are putting on a festival of music to rival these great festivals, the difference being that the music is by Christian artists and the focus is our faith in God. There will be a mix of music from heavy rock to contemporary praise and worship from established names and up and coming new faces.²

CHRISTMAS ROCK NIGHT GLASGOW
Date/s: December 2003
Title/Theme: Rock orientated Christmas festival. Extreme enjoyment!
Location: Glasgow
Cost: from £7
Target: Sk8ers, punks, moshing crowd, surfing freaks, anyone who likes their music hard and fast!
Artists: TBC
Vision: ³FUN FUN FUN! Bring your skates, bring your mates. Lets SLAM some kids into the Kingdom!²

CHRISTMAS ROCK NIGHT LONDON
Date/s: 3-7 December
Location: The Garage, London
Cost: £30; £8 day ticket
Target: 16
Confirmed speakers/artists: TBC
Vision: ³The Fourth London CRN takes place over five days in North London's Garage venue. The Sunday is an all dayer featuring the best Christian rock acts and DJs in the UK. In addition Asylum and Skankweb will be running an event. The festival also features mainstream bands and nights and raises money for the local YMCA and Y-Care International.²

Crossover

CREATION
Date/s: 1-3 August 2003
Location: Woolacombe Bay, North Devon
Cost: Free
Target: Youth outreach
Confirmed speakers/artists: MiC, Julissa Neely, Smithfield
Vision: ³Creation Fest is a free outreach music festival aimed at reaching the youth. The event will begin at 4pm on Friday August 1st and come to a close after a Sunday morning worship service on 3rd August.²

CROSSOVER
Dates: 13-15 June 2003
Title: The biggest Christian Youth Festival in Scotland
Location: Cultybraggan Training Camp, Comrie in Perthshire
Cost: From £40; Day ticket £10/£15
Target: 12
Confirmed artists/speakers: TBC
Vision: ³Crossover, now in it¹s fifth year, allows young people to see that fun and faith can sit side by side in a safe environment. Through the provision of a varied programme they are given a chance to explore their faith without pressure while at the same time having the opportunity to hear some great music and participate in a number of fun activities. Everyone coming to Crossover has a freedom to choose what they want to attend with an opportunity just to chill out if that is what is required.²

CROSS RHYTHMS
Date/s: 18-20 July 2003
Title/Theme: Gideon¹s Heart
Location: Risdon Farm, Okehampton, Devon
Cost: From £24; Day ticket from £10
Target: All ages
Confirmed speakers/artists: Pete Greig and the Revelation Warehouse ministry team, Danny Brierley, Tony Fitzgerald, thebandwithnoname, DJ Andy Hunter, Cathy Burton, Sabio, Steve, DJ Soulcure, V12, Psalmistry, Superhero, Escapade
Vision: ³We¹re calling this year¹s festival Gideon¹s Heart and in many ways it¹s a response to what I believe God is doing in the Church in this nation. You¹ll remember the story in Judges 7, Gideon has an army of 32,000 about to do battle against the Midianites. But God trims the army down to 10,000! Now, I don¹t think we¹re down to the 300 yet. But I do believe we are beginning to identify the 10,000 ­ Christians who aren¹t trembling with fear at the thought of the spiritual battle ahead. God¹s not into numbers, he¹s into faithfulness, and I firmly believe we¹re being led into a season where God will achieve his purpose in this nation not by a huge mass of church goers singing the latest choruses and telling everyone how cool Jesus is but by a radical, hand-picked band of fighting men and women. That preparation for battle is now underway and I believe 2003¹s Cross Rhythms Festival is an event which will prepare some for that battle. These artists and speakers may have different styles and come from different generations, but they all carry the same heart ­ a Gideon¹s Heart for the times in which we are living. The festival this year is going to be a cracking music and ministry event with an emphasis on truly encouraging those with a passionate desire to live a strong faith in our nation today.²

DAWN PATROL
Date/s: 26 July-2 August 2003
Title/Theme: Pushing the boundaries of innovative mission
Location: Newquay and Camborne, Cornwall
Cost: £60 love gift
Target: 14
Confirmed speakers/artists: Andy Frost, Andy Sampson, Jem Bunce, Paul Wilcox, Maggie Simpson, Mike Robins, Phil Williams, Jo Wells, Mark Williamson, Narrow Path, Obsessive Behaviour, DJ Indian Rubberman, Ejectorseat (tbc)
Vision: ³Dawn Patrol is a prophetic mission to Cornwall that reaches out to the extremes of contemporary culture, reaching the sun-bleached surfer and the streetwise skater alike. The calling is simple - listen and then reach out.²

Dawn Patrol

DAY ONE
Date/s: 13 December 2003
Title/Theme: The Best Of Christian Music
Location: Colston Hall, Bristol
Cost: From £8
Target: 12
Confirmed speakers/artists: Sabio, Mercy
Vision: ³Day One is an annual event bringing the best of Christian music to the Bristol area. As well as the large Day One event we also hold three other themed events throughout the year called Gig Two. The overall idea of Day One, which is now in its fourth year, is to be an event which will encourage Christians but be cringe-free, enabling non-Christians to come along, be entertained and more importantly, hear the Gospel.²

DESTRUCTION FESTIVAL
Date/s: August 2003 (exact dates TBC)
Title/Theme: A Weekend Of Metal, Punk, Hardcore, etc...
Location: London (Underworld, Camden, plus another TBC)
Cost: TBC, Weekend and Day tickets available
Target: 16
Confirmed speakers/artists: TBC
Vision: ³A weekend of teaching, music and fellowship designed to break down barriers between God and man and Christians and non-Christians, and to destroy existing stereotypes and anything that keeps us from knowing Jesus more closely.²

DETLING
Date/s: 16-21 August 2003
Title/Theme: Light Of The World
Location: Kent Showground, Detling
Cost: From £80; Day ticket £18
Target: All ages
Confirmed speakers/artists: Dr RT Kendall, Tony Campolo
Vision: ³Our vision is to call the Church to be the bride, who in unison with the Spirit cries, 'Come Lord Jesus in your revival power, in your eternal reign'; to preach and teach the Word of God from the Scriptures in the power of the Holy Spirit in the context of Spirit filled worship; to be led by the Spirit in worship so that God is released to reveal his glory, to revel among his people and to reign in our world; to join the Word and the Spirit in our lives individually and corporately so as to release great and lasting revival; to equip the saints with Bible teaching and personal acquaintance with the Holy Spirit, to carry the revival message to their own churches and to non-Christians; to release the groups that attend into a corporate experience of the moving of the Holy Spirit, so that their churches can be impacted; to network, making personal contact with others throughout the world who share these values; and to provide for the Lord a means of unleashing revival power to the nation, the continent of Europe and to the wider world.²

EASTER PEOPLE
Date/s: 22-27 April 2003
Title/Theme: Essence¦ A Journey Towards Christian Spirituality
Location: Llandudno, Scarborough, Torquay
Cost: From £58
Target: All ages
Confirmed speakers/artists: Rob Frost, David Wilkinson, Dr RT Kendall, Paul Smith, Adrian and Bridget Plass, Mark Greene, Clive Calver, Dawn Reynolds, Noel Richards, Sue Rinaldi, Steve Chalke
Vision: ³Easter People is a Christian holiday event for all ages. We shall be exploring the theme of Christian spirituality as a journey towards a more effective prayer life, a Jesus-centred spirituality and an holistic Christian lifestyle through Bible study, seminars, interaction, worship celebrations and entertainment. An opportunity to allow God to speak and plenty of time for fun, relaxation and chill!²

Day One

ENCOUNTER
Date/s: 7-9 November 2003
Location: New Life Christian Centre, Kingston upon Hull
Cost: Free
Target: Christians
Confirmed speakers/artists: Dr Tayo Adeyemi, Jarrod Cooper, Days Of Wonder Band
Vision: "Encounter is the annual conference of the New Life Christian Centre in Hull, an inspiring time of meeting God for all believers. Previous years have seen powerful ministry from the likes of prayer minstrel Godfrey Birtill, worship leaders David Hadden and Jarrod Cooper. Speakers have included Sharon Stone, David Shearman, Gerald Coates, guests from abroad and the late Bob Gordon. This year the conference aims to be bigger and better as the venue has almost doubled its seating capacity."

FESTIVAL: MANCHESTER
Date/s: 25-31 August 2003
Title/Theme: The World Is Watching
Location: Manchester
Cost: £75
Target: 14-25ish!
Confirmed speakers/artists: Luis Palau, The Tribe
Vision: ³A week long Christian event combining the best of two wonderfully fresh and highly effective approaches to mission from opposite ends of the world. The Message Model ­ mobilising huge numbers of passionate young Christians to put their faith into action practically, in deprived inner city communities, transforming the look and the feel of the area. Inviting the residents contacted to participate in friendly, fun evening events where they have opportunity to consider the place of God in their lives. The LPEA Model ­ presenting vast crowds of people with the message of Jesus in the context of a high quality free family weekend festival which includes contemporary Christian music, extreme sports area, food courts, kids area and much more.²