Buy a bus shelter for Christmas

Churches across the diocese are being invited to join in a nationwide advertising campaign in the run-up to Christmas. Churches can sponsor a bus shelter that would carry a special poster of the nativity, over the last three weeks of December, with the message ‘Christmas Starts with Christ’.

Your church can buy a poster for a bus stop near you for £105 by entering your postcode at www.ChurchAds.net. Radio ads to accompany the campaign can also be sponsored.

Mike Elms, from ChurchAds.Net, said: “If churches all over the country buy 2000 bus shelters and fund 2500 airplays of the radio commercials, the campaign would be seen or heard by around 60% of the UK population. Imagine the impact that will be created by this powerful gospel proclamation.”

Recent research by Theos reveals that only 12% of adults know the facts of the Christmas story in any detail. So, to keep Christmas focused on Christ, we need to constantly tell the story of his birth in ways that engage positively with the public.

Visit www.ChurchAds.net to download free posters.

Christmas Radio Adverts to be heard on Leeds' Radio Aire FM

Meanwhile churches across Leeds are joining forces to place ChurchAds Christmas radio adverts on local commercial station Radio Aire FM. The humorous , thirty second commercials have been produced free of charge by ChurchAds.net and will be heard in the Leeds and West Yorkshire listening area in the two weeks leading up to Christmas Day itself.

Around £1000 has been pledged so far by church leaders towards the ecumenical campaign, and like the bus shelter posters, each of the adverts will end with the message, "Christmas starts with Christ". Any churches wishing to join in the campaign should contact John Carter at jhgcarter@aol.com

To listen to the adverts visit www.churchads.net/2009/radio.html