It has been a tradition in Aston - I don't know for how many years now - that the Christian churches in the neighbourhood publicly show their Christian faith on Good Friday. They hold a Walk of Witness going from one church to another and conducting short services in front of each church. They don't enter the church buildings but remain outside emphasising that the Walk of Witness is meant to reach out to the largely non-Christian population of Aston.
Aston Churches Together (ACT) is behind the Walk of Witness. It does not represent all the churches in Aston, not even half of them. The reason is that a number of Christian denominations are not interested in any kind of cooperation with other Christian churches. Perhaps they see it as a threat to their own identity or they feel that the truth, as they profess it, cannot be compromised.
The Walk of Witness does not suffer from this lack of cooperation, as the attendance this year was better again than that of last year. The glorious weather no doubt was a factor in bringing over a hundred Christians to the streets of Aston but it is certainly not the only one. I have participated in the Walk of Witness three times now and I noticed an increase in attendance every time.
The participating Christian churches are clearly from different traditions and hold different views about sin, grace and salvation. They also have their own particular style of reading scripture texts, and of preaching and praying. Still, these differences are overcome in the desire to commemorate the cross of Christ together and acknowledge him as the living Lord.
The common act of worship binds the participants together. They see through the differences that divide them and sense the sincerity by which each denomination reveres Jesus Christ. The Walk of Witness is an enriching experience and this may be the true reason why it enjoys a still growing attendance.
Ton
