History
Monmouth is a small market town in the
heart of the beautiful Wye valley, famous for its Norman bridge which spans the
river Monnow. The town has a population of approximately 8,000 with a small
industrial base and retail trade as well as tourism and educational
establishments being the main source of employment in the town. Being central to
South Wales, the Midlands, and the West Country, many people commute to these areas for work.
Monmouth is divided into four areas and the population has increased over the past ten years with the construction of new housing estates in each of the three suburbs. Monmouth Baptist Church is situated near the town centre.
Monmouth is divided into four areas and the population has increased over the past ten years with the construction of new housing estates in each of the three suburbs. Monmouth Baptist Church is situated near the town centre.
The Baptist church was founded in 1818
in response to several years of gospel preaching by visiting ministers and
missionaries. Initially three local people were baptised in the river Wye after
which the church grew. The first Pastor was called in 1834. The original chapel
stands on the riverbank behind Monnow Street, the present building dates back to
1907.
Evangelism and
Vison
Monmouth Baptist Church is actively
involved with other churches in the area, through the local organisation,
'Monmouth Churches Together'. The Town Prayer Meeting is held once every two
weeks. We also work closely alongside with Wyesham Christian fellowship who,
along with us, are members of the Evangelical Alliance. We are seeking to
strengthen our local Baptist links in the light of the Union’s recent
re-organisation.
Our mission is to reach out into the
community and further afield with the gospel. A number of people have found
faith in Jesus Christ in the past few years through our evangelistic activities.
The Good Friday witness procession and open-air service take place annualy in
the town, and an annual pilgrimage round all the churches and a number of other
activities. We recently ran a pilot project of the Jesus Video and hope to
develop this further. We have been at the forefront in witnesing the gospel with
Wyesham Christian Fellowship at the Monmouth Show and at the Carnival. We run
special evangelistic or bridge-building events through the year and run a
Seeker’s course. We are developing our youth work in the Monmouth along side our
Youth Worker. We encourage each member to be a personal witness in their homes
and workplace.
Our vision is that God's will may be
accomplished through the building up of Christians in Monmouth and this
fellowship. We desire to serve the Lord in His will and purpose for our
individual and collective Christian lives. We feel a great need to witness to
the town and to meet the real and difficult needs of many of the young people of
this area. We recognise that we are in constant need of teaching in many
areas of our Christian lives; in leadership, in giving, in the use of gifts,
worship, and many more areas.
© Monmouth Baptist Church January
2004
MBC History
GTX175210
