The Message Trust
Encyclopedia
The Message Trust is an award-winning Christian charity working to improve the lives of young people in Greater Manchester
, UK and beyond through the Eden Network.
Working in schools, in local communities and in prisons, The Message is in contact with around 100,000 young people across Greater Manchester each year.
The Message was founded by well-known speaker, author and current chief executive, Andy Hawthorne
OBE
.
in 1988, Message '88.
Founder and current CEO Andy Hawthorne
together with his businessman brother Simon felt stirred to present the Christian gospel message relevantly to the young people of Manchester and organised a week of mission gigs at the Apollo. Message ‘88 attracted over 20,000 young people to hear live performances by bands and artists and a presentation of the gospel message.
A repeat run in 1989 attracted similar numbers and led to the brothers being approached by a member of one of the bands involved about forming a full-time youth mission to schools.
‘Message to Schools’ was the result, formed with the express purpose of taking the gospel to young people in schools through hip hop and dance music.
The Tribe disbanded in 2004, but The Message's schools work multiplied with new full-time bands, LZ7
, BlushUK (until 2010) and Twelve24, and theatre company In Yer Face working in high schools in and around the Greater Manchester area.
, was launched in 1997. Others followed and today there are 19 active partnerships in key areas of urban challenge in Greater Manchester, London, the North East and Yorkshire. The history and philosophy behind Eden is explained in Matt Wilson's book Eden: Called to the Streets. In 2009, the Eden Network was formed with the aim of spreading the Eden vision to other urban areas across the UK.
Around 10,000 young Christian volunteers worked in partnership with Greater Manchester churches on social, environmental and crime reduction projects.
The project was hailed as a success, not least because during the 10 days of work in one estate, Swinton Valley, there were no recorded incidence of crime. Since the summer of 2000, police have reported a sustained reduction in crime.
In the summer of 2003, The Message partnered with the Luis Palau
Evangelistic Association, to put on another week-long city-wide venture, Festival:Manchester.
Over 5,000 young people got involved in a total of 317 local community projects, many in association with the Greater Manchester Police.
Around 55,000 people from across Manchester attended the open-air festival that took place in Heaton Park the following weekend, featuring Luis Palau
, and performances from The Tribe, Michael Tait
and TobyMac
.
Supported by police, schools and councillors, Big Deal and Hope 08
brought together local communities to deliver social action and community-building projects in the ten boroughs that make up Greater Manchester. These range from environmental clean-ups, painting, car washes, barbecues, children’s activities, fun days and youth concerts.
scored a UK Singles Chart
hit in October 2010 with the campaign's theme song This Little Light.
, Reflex works mainly with young offenders between the ages of 18 and 21 but also works with juvenile offenders aged 17 and under.
Their work spans first-contact detached work on the prison wings through to help with resettlement back into the community.
Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2.6 million. It encompasses one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United Kingdom and comprises ten metropolitan boroughs: Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan, and the...
, UK and beyond through the Eden Network.
Working in schools, in local communities and in prisons, The Message is in contact with around 100,000 young people across Greater Manchester each year.
The Message was founded by well-known speaker, author and current chief executive, Andy Hawthorne
Andy Hawthorne
Andy Hawthorne, OBE is a British evangelist, author and founder of The Message Trust, a Christian mission organisation based in Manchester, England....
OBE
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
.
History
The history of The Message is told in Andy Hawthorne’s book, Diary of a Dangerous Vision (Survivor, 2008).Message 88 and 89
The Message Trust has its roots in a week-long youth event that took place at the Manchester ApolloManchester Apollo
O2 Apollo Manchester is a concert venue in Manchester, England. Locally known as The Apollo, it is a listed building, with a capacity of 3,500 ....
in 1988, Message '88.
Founder and current CEO Andy Hawthorne
Andy Hawthorne
Andy Hawthorne, OBE is a British evangelist, author and founder of The Message Trust, a Christian mission organisation based in Manchester, England....
together with his businessman brother Simon felt stirred to present the Christian gospel message relevantly to the young people of Manchester and organised a week of mission gigs at the Apollo. Message ‘88 attracted over 20,000 young people to hear live performances by bands and artists and a presentation of the gospel message.
A repeat run in 1989 attracted similar numbers and led to the brothers being approached by a member of one of the bands involved about forming a full-time youth mission to schools.
‘Message to Schools’ was the result, formed with the express purpose of taking the gospel to young people in schools through hip hop and dance music.
Schools work
A band was formed to run the schools weeks, dubbed the World Wide Message Tribe, later shortened to simply The Tribe. Demand for the band to play in schools and further afield quickly increased and the Tribe went on to record albums which brought international success and critical acclaim.The Tribe disbanded in 2004, but The Message's schools work multiplied with new full-time bands, LZ7
LZ7
LZ7 are a Christian rap and dance group from Manchester. The band was formed in 2005 by Lindz West, a member of dance band The Tribe, who had split up the previous year...
, BlushUK (until 2010) and Twelve24, and theatre company In Yer Face working in high schools in and around the Greater Manchester area.
Eden
Continuing the sharp focus on Manchester, and particularly the toughest areas and estates of the city, Andy Hawthorne and team began to have a vision to see Christians moving into these areas to live and work, supporting local churches particularly to reach young people. This initiative was named Eden, and the first Eden partnership, in WythenshaweWythenshawe
Wythenshawe is a district in the south of the city of Manchester, England.Formerly part of the administrative county of Cheshire, in 1931 Wythenshawe was transferred to the City of Manchester, which had begun building a massive housing estate there in the 1920s to resolve the problem of its inner...
, was launched in 1997. Others followed and today there are 19 active partnerships in key areas of urban challenge in Greater Manchester, London, the North East and Yorkshire. The history and philosophy behind Eden is explained in Matt Wilson's book Eden: Called to the Streets. In 2009, the Eden Network was formed with the aim of spreading the Eden vision to other urban areas across the UK.
Eden Bus
An Eden Bus ministry was launched in early 2000, to extend The Message’s reach into local communities. Two mobile youth centres, fully equipped with state-of-the-art technology and staffed by committed volunteers, visit some of Manchester’s most deprived neighbourhoods, working with around 500 young people a week.Message 2000 and Festival:Manchester
In the summer of 2000, The Message partnered with another Christian youth charity, Soul Survivor, to run an ambitious city-wide youth mission, Message 2000.Around 10,000 young Christian volunteers worked in partnership with Greater Manchester churches on social, environmental and crime reduction projects.
The project was hailed as a success, not least because during the 10 days of work in one estate, Swinton Valley, there were no recorded incidence of crime. Since the summer of 2000, police have reported a sustained reduction in crime.
In the summer of 2003, The Message partnered with the Luis Palau
Luis Palau
Luis Palau, Jr. is an international Christian evangelist living in the Portland area in Oregon, United States. He was born in Argentina and moved to Portland in his mid-twenties to enroll in a graduate program in Biblical studies....
Evangelistic Association, to put on another week-long city-wide venture, Festival:Manchester.
Over 5,000 young people got involved in a total of 317 local community projects, many in association with the Greater Manchester Police.
Around 55,000 people from across Manchester attended the open-air festival that took place in Heaton Park the following weekend, featuring Luis Palau
Luis Palau
Luis Palau, Jr. is an international Christian evangelist living in the Portland area in Oregon, United States. He was born in Argentina and moved to Portland in his mid-twenties to enroll in a graduate program in Biblical studies....
, and performances from The Tribe, Michael Tait
Michael Tait
Michael DeWayne Tait is a Contemporary Christian Music artist. Michael Tait met Toby McKeehan and Kevin Max while attending Liberty University in the late 1980s, and formed four-time grammy winning band DC Talk, with whom he released 5 acclaimed studio albums...
and TobyMac
TobyMac
Toby McKeehan , better known by his stage name TobyMac , is a Christian recording artist, music producer, hip-hop/pop artist, singer-songwriter, and author....
.
Big Deal and Hope 08
The model of ‘words and deeds’ evangelism which characterised both Message 2000 and Festival:Manchester continues in the ‘Big Deal’ and ‘Hope 08’ initiatives.Supported by police, schools and councillors, Big Deal and Hope 08
Hope 08
Hope 08 was a united Christian social justice and evangelism campaign that planned to transform Great Britain during the year 2008.-Background:...
brought together local communities to deliver social action and community-building projects in the ten boroughs that make up Greater Manchester. These range from environmental clean-ups, painting, car washes, barbecues, children’s activities, fun days and youth concerts.
Shine Your Light
In 2010, The Message launched a national campaign to spread the model of 'word and deed' evangelism further, challenging young people to complete 15 specific acts of kindness in their local communities during the summer of 2010. Message band LZ7LZ7
LZ7 are a Christian rap and dance group from Manchester. The band was formed in 2005 by Lindz West, a member of dance band The Tribe, who had split up the previous year...
scored a UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
hit in October 2010 with the campaign's theme song This Little Light.
Reflex
Reflex is The Message's ministry in prisons across the North West of England. Originally started as a partnership with Youth For ChristYouth for Christ
Youth for Christ is the name of a number of previously unaffiliated evangelical Protestant religious campaigns which led to the creation of Youth for Christ International in 1946....
, Reflex works mainly with young offenders between the ages of 18 and 21 but also works with juvenile offenders aged 17 and under.
Their work spans first-contact detached work on the prison wings through to help with resettlement back into the community.
Genetik
Genetik is an annual gap-year programme for young people aged 17 and over who wish to train in youth work. The course runs over 10 months and involves placements in The Message's community-based Eden projects. From 2011, an Eden Worship track will feature guest tutors including Matt RedmanMatt Redman
Matt Redman is an English Christian worship leader, songwriter and author based in Brighton.He has worked with Newfrontiers, Passion Conferences, Hillsong London, Soul Survivor, is an artist for Sixstepsrecords and is a member of Compassionart a charity founded by Martin Smith.He appeared with...