from The Christian Institute
A church that was banned from a university’s freshers event has successfully defended its right to book a stall there, following an intervention from The Christian Institute.
Grace Church Greenwich had been attempting to reserve a place at Goldsmiths University’s Freshers’ Fair, but were told by Native – the external company responsible for the booking process – that “due to a recent update in our company policy, we are no longer able to facilitate bookings for religious groups at these events”.
Good News for Everyone, formerly GideonsUK, reportedly experienced similar problems at multiple universities around the UK.
Restrictions on Christian teaching
The church has paid for a stall at local freshers’ fairs for several years, with the aim of connecting with Christians and interested unbelievers alike as they start university, offering them free coffee and speaking about Jesus.
Minister Andrew Sach said: “Some of these campuses have no Christian Union, so stalls like ours are the only gospel witness to the thousands of students who attend.”