Sunday, September 9, 2012

Northern Irish Catholics and Protestants Cycling Across America Showing The Love of Christ


New Life City Church is often referred to as “The Church on the Wall” as it is located on the main Dividing Wall in Belfast; it's a church that not only reaches out to both sides of the wall, but to the entire City of Belfast and beyond.
 
And now Jack McKee, the senior pastor of the church, is planning an extraordinary marathon cycling and cross-carrying peace trip across America, to show how Catholics and Protestants can work together under the shadow of the cross of Christ.   “New Life City Church is a large warehouse that literally straddles the 20 foot concrete dividing wall in Belfast, with the building on one side and half on the other side,” McKee explained.

“We have people coming to church from both sides. “My life has been threatened several times and I've been shot at numerous times. I've even had my car bombed and destroyed. Our home has been attacked at 3.30 in the morning while my wife and I were in bed.”  

Yet despite all of this, Pastor McKee, who has many times risked his life as has a peacemaker during the “troubles” in Northern Ireland that claimed so many lives from both sides of the divide, has told the ASSIST News Service (www.assistnews.net) that he is bringing four cyclists to the US; two from the Catholic side of the wall and two from the Protestant side.

 “We will be doing a venture called Cycle CROSS America from Santa Monica, CA, to Jacksonville, FL, ending with an event called CU @ the CROSS in Washington DC on Thursday October 25, 2012. I will be bringing a 7 foot cross with me that I carried for 40 Days and at other times around the Dividing Wall in Belfast.
 
“We will launch the cycle part of the trip from Santa Monica Beach in Southern California on Saturday, September 22 at 11 am. At 2 pm I will do a Cross Walk along most of Sunset Blvd where Arthur Blessitt started out in the 1960's (I brought Arthur to Belfast in June 2011 and walked with him through Belfast). I will do several Cross Walks in cities across America while the lads are cycling.”  Continued


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