Detling Summer Conference, or Detling, is an annual summer gathering of
Christians
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
at the
Kent Showground
The Kent Showground, formerly (and still colloquially) known as the Kent County Showground is an area of land in Detling, Kent, England, north of the county town of Maidstone. Stretching along the north side of the A249 from the top of Detling Hi ...
, near the village of
Detling
Detling is a village and civil parish in the Borough of Maidstone in Kent, England. The parish is located on the slope of the North Downs, north east of Maidstone, and on the Pilgrims' Way.
History and features
The ''Cock Horse Inn'' was used ...
,
Kent
Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...
, UK, from which the conference takes its current name. It was formerly known as Revival Fire.
[What's on 2007]
''Church Times''
Event
The event was founded by the Rev. Eric Delve and Christian musician Russ Hughes in 2000. Hughes left the organisation in 2006.
The conference consists of music, seminars, keynote speakers and groups for children of all ages, attracting families. Late night music events and comedy are also featured.
[Detling: 2009 event speakers announced]
''Woman Alive'' Although people choose to visit daily, half of the 5000 daily visitors camp on site.
Each year's event has a different theme including ''The Spirit and the Bride'', ''Your Kingdom Come'', ''After God's Own Heart'' (2008) and in 2009 ''Nothing is impossible''.
Over the years Detling has attracted many well known Christian speakers including the former Westminster Chapel pastor
Dr. RT Kendall, the General Director of
Evangelical Alliance
The Evangelical Alliance (EA) is a national evangelical alliance, member of the World Evangelical Alliance. Founded in 1846, the activities of the Evangelical Alliance aim to promote evangelical Christian beliefs in government, media and societ ...
Rev. Joel Edwards,
missionary
A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...
Jackie Pullinger MBE,
Adrian Plass
Adrian Plass (born 1948) is a British author and speaker who writes primarily Christian humour, but also short stories, Bible commentaries and novels with a more serious tone. His most popular books are a series concerning ''The Sacred Diary of ...
and J John.
Music
A number of 'live worship' music CDs have been released, including ''Let Every Step We Take'', ''Your Kingdom Come'' , "As It Is In Heaven", ''Rhythms of Grace'', "Nothing Is Impossible" and "Rise, Run, Reign". Also released are recordings of live 'ministry' music from the River Event, ''The River'' (2002)
and ''Return to the River''.
Organisation
The event was jointly organised by a UK Limited Company - Revival Fire Conferences Ltd - and a Registered UK Charity, The Spirit and the Bride Trust. The main aims of the charity were to 'make grants to other organisations'. From 2008 a non-profit
company limited by guarantee
In British, Australian, Bermudian, Hong Kong and Irish company law (and previously New Zealand), a company limited by guarantee (CLG) is a type of corporation used primarily (but not exclusively) for non-profit organisations that require legal pe ...
called People without Limits took over.
In July 2008 to raise funds for the event, Eric Delve spoke for 24 hours, setting a world record for the longest outdoor preach.
[Vicar in record-breaking sermon]
''BBC News'' 26 July 2008
The organisation has created several offshoot organisations, including All Saints Praise and Eurofire. All Saints Praise has been held on
Halloween
Halloween or Hallowe'en (less commonly known as Allhalloween, All Hallows' Eve, or All Saints' Eve) is a celebration observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Saints' Day. It begins the observanc ...
at
Canterbury Cathedral
Canterbury Cathedral in Canterbury, Kent, is one of the oldest and most famous Christian structures in England. It forms part of a World Heritage Site. It is the cathedral of the Archbishop of Canterbury, currently Justin Welby, leader of the ...
since 2000 and consists of singing and a speaker.
[Outlook October 2007]
p3 In 2008, it was also held at
Guildford Cathedral
The Cathedral Church of the Holy Spirit, Guildford, commonly known as Guildford Cathedral, is the Anglican cathedral at Guildford, Surrey, England. Richard Onslow donated the first of land on which the cathedral stands, with Viscount Bennett, ...
, led by Rev. Andrew Delaney.
[http://www.guildford-cathedral.org/worship/services/2008-10-31]
See also
*
New Wine
New Wine is a not-for-profit Christian evangelical organization based in the United Kingdom, that assists Christian churches with organizational leadership training and fundraising. The organization also holds its own annual summer conferences, ...
*
Spring Harvest
Spring Harvest is an inter-denominational evangelical conference and gathering in the United Kingdom that started in 1979.
The festival arose in the late 1970s at a time when evangelicalism was growing in the UK and there was uncertainty as to ...
References
External links
Detling WebsiteKingdom FaithCharity Commission entry No. 1081762{Dead link, date=October 2022 , bot=InternetArchiveBot , fix-attempted=yes
Registered Company No. 03537980
Evangelical Christian conferences
Christianity in England
Christianity in Kent