Episode 3 Reverse Missionaries

21st-century Britain.

A country where traditional church attendance is plummeting.

Society is becoming so saturated in secularism,

Christianity is now becoming like a second-class subject.

If you put a leaflet through the door

saying there was going to be a fight on Monday,

everybody would turn up.

But if there's the word "church" or "holy"...straight away, no.

But it wasn't always the case.

The 19th century was a golden age for Christianity,

and Britain exported that faith,

despatching missionaries across the world,

to places where today,

belief is booming.

Jesus is walking among you all.

-That we should be saved!

-Amen.

Now, reversing those journeys,

three idealistic Christians are coming here on their own missions.

I have come with a lot of hope and a lot of faith.

But is modern Britain ready for them?

-If you believe God, something can happen.

-Moses could be standing there himself,

and I still don't think they would go into a church.

The atmosphere was very tense. There was no peace about it.

And can their distinctive missionary styles

rejuvenate failing church communities?

He's hoping to fill a church, but people just aren't interested.

Great missionary work needs to be done.

In Mumbai, India,

Kshama Jayaraj runs a church that is thriving.

But will her animated form of worship

help fill the empty pews

in Shankill, Belfast?

Heavenly Father, each day is a gift from you.

Northern Ireland was birthplace to missionary Amy Carmichael,

who worked in India for 50 years, helping vulnerable young children.

Kshama wants to explore Amy's remarkable life story,

to help fulfil her own UK mission.

Looking at this place, being where Amy Carmichael grew up,

I am so encouraged and inspired by this visit over here.

But are the people ready for her message?

God is loving and kind.

He loves everyone, he loves you.

I don't believe in God.

And can she help break down the old barriers of prejudice?

Nobody is going to ask whether you are A group or B group.

They know we're not from there. They're going to start something.

Christianity reached India in 52 AD,

when Thomas the Apostle brought it to the state of Kerala.

It is now India's third largest religion,

with 24 million followers.

In Mumbai, the House of Prayer is a Christian church,

founded by 42-year-old teacher, Kshama Jayaraj,

and her husband, Thomas.

-Heavenly Father, I pray, your Grace.

-Yes, Lord.

Here, they mix pop music and dance with prayer,

and it's proving a hit with teenagers.

The house caters to a lot of young people.

We began with two and what I see today is 100.

MUSIC PLAYS

People need to be saved.

They need to be told there is a Saviour.

For me, preaching the gospel is not an option.

It is a command.

She's a spiritual mother,

she's a friend, she's a sister.

She comes, when at the point of time we need her, she is there.

She's got this ability of connecting to people

of different age groups, different cultures,

so there is no barrier there.

Kshama wants to bring some of her successful ideas

she's using in the House of Prayer,

to Belfast, home of her heroine,

inspirational missionary Amy Carmichael.

Belfast has changed a lot

since Amy started her missionary work here in the mid-1880s.

It's still a city full of churches,

but although religion is important culturally,

church attendance is at an all-time low.

God answers prayer,

but his answer can be one of three -

No,

slow, or go.

Kshama will base herself at the Townsend Street Presbyterian Church

in the Shankill area, where Amy first began her work.

The minister at the church is Reverend Jack Lamb,

who has been preaching here for 16 years.

I'm so looking forward to meeting Kshama,

and I am excited about what might happen

during the next couple of weeks.

I'm quite sure she's in for a culture shock.

There's a big difference between Mumbai and the Shankill Road.

Before leaving India,

Kshama is taking a trip to the southern province of Tamil Nadu,

to visit the legacy of Amy Carmichael.

A devout Presbyterian from a wealthy Irish family,

28-year-old Amy arrived in India in 1895.

In 1901, she founded the Dohnavur Fellowship

to care for orphaned or abused children.

Today, there are 145 children in the Dohnavur community,

which has a hospital and a school.

Amy is celebrated in India as a social reformer,

due to her pioneering work

protecting vulnerable young Indian girls.

Her biggest battle was against the Hindu practice of devadasi,

where young girls were given away by their families,

to serve in Hindu temples.

For many, this meant a life of prostitution and abuse.

Amy rescued hundreds of these children

and, thanks in part to her efforts,

the practice of devadasi is now outlawed.

Classroom is going on here. Which subject?

I admire Amy Carmichael,

because she got into one of the most difficult areas

of saving little girls

and she went into the thick of the battle,

and I admire Amy Carmichael for her boldness.

Thank you, dear. Thank you. Thank you.

APPLAUSE

Two of the children she rescued in her later years

are Nessa and Sura,

who still live at Dohnavur.

I adored her.

Even hero-worshipped her as I grew up.

She's such a lovely,

perfect mother

and embraced everyone who came to her.

She would just cuddle everyone.

She said that our aim should be

to lead people to Christ.

That should be our motive always.

Amy remained in India for 56 years

until her death in 1951, aged 83.

Her grave is marked by a stone birdbath

with the simple inscription, "Amma", meaning "mother",

the name given to her by the children.

I wouldn't believe that somebody could even want a grave like this,

with just a birdbath and a tree.

This is the first time I have seen a grave like this.

I've not even done 2% of what Amy has done,

but this visit has put something in my heart.

Now, Kshama is embarking on her own mission.

She's going to Northern Ireland, home of Amy Carmichael.

For Kshama, this is a big step,

as it will be her first visit to the UK.

It takes courage and risks to travel.

Going to a strange place, a different culture,

and you've got to go and convince them that I am your friend.

It's a challenge and Amy had that in her.

In Belfast, she wants to follow Amy's example

and help the youngest members of the community.

Just as Amy Carmichael was a blessing to the children and the youth,

I want to go to Belfast to talk to the youth, to talk to the children.

Yes, there are clashes over there,

but whether Catholics or Protestants,

they all need a personal relationship with Jesus.

-OK.

-Praise the Lord.

-Praise the Lord.

Belfast. Capital of Northern Ireland.

It's a city with a rich commercial and industrial heritage,

and the past has left its mark on the landscape.

I don't know, but I get this feeling

that it is a very homely place,

pleasant, very attractive,

with old architecture...

But I like this place.

Kshama's first impressions might be favourable,

but behind the facades and shops,

there remain lingering religious resentments.

After Irish independence in 1921,

six counties in the North remained within the UK.

There has been tension since between Protestants,

loyal to Britain,

and the Irish nationalist Catholics.

Although religious divisions persist,

the numbers of people actually going to church is in steep decline.

Kshama hopes to ignite the faith in the younger generation,

who represent the future.

During her visit, she will be staying with Elizabeth McClean,

who attends Townsend Church, where Kshama is going to be based.

-Nice to see you, you're welcome.

-Thank you.

I'm sure you're quite tired after all your travelling?

-Tired, but I'm happy.

-Good, good.

We'll just have a relaxing evening.

'My mission is going to be challenging.

'It's going to be one day at a time.'

Tomorrow we start, so I have a lot of excitement,

just waiting for what's in store for me in Belfast.

'And I am grateful to God for the example of Amy Carmichael.'

The Townsend Presbyterian Church

is in the Shankill area,

where Amy first began her missionary work.

It's a beautiful church.

"Glory to God in the highest."

And on earth, peace, goodwill towards men.

-Good morning.

-Kshama!

-I have been waiting so long for this.

-I have been waiting...

-The day has arrived. I hope that you have a wonderful time with us.

-Yes.

There are about 40 churches, all Protestant, in this area.

In Amy's time, they were full.

Today, just 15% of people attend a service once a month,

and an increasingly ageing congregation do.

60 years ago, coming to church on a Sunday

would have been an opportunity for an evening out or a morning out

as well as coming to worship God.

Whereas nowadays, you can stay in bed,

get up and watch the television...

there are so many other activities,

to take away the attention of people.

The lady, whose name is Kshama, has arrived,

and I would like, right at the outset of this service,

to find out a bit more about Kshama for myself.

Kshama, could you be brave enough to come and join me

for a minute or two?

Four generations ago, my great grandfather,

who was the son of a temple priest,

went to one of the holy rivers of India,

and there was a missionary sitting on the river bank,

and that is why today my family knows the Lord Jesus,

and I believe the same Jesus is going to fill every chair

in Townsend Presbyterian with young people,

and people who need to know him.

So I have come with a lot of hope and a lot of faith. Thank you.

CONGREGATION SING

There weren't many people in the church,

and I do feel that if young people got into the church today,

we would have to re-evaluate our service.

It couldn't be like the one it was today.

It was very formal today.

Probably, we'd have to introduce some contemporary songs,

some loud music, some jumpy music... just get them in.

-It was lovely, you speaking this morning.

-Thank you so much.

-You were lovely. You got very emotional, but you were lovely.

-I'm sorry.

-No, don't be sorry!

-I couldn't control myself.

-It was very meaningful.

Belfast's recent history has been a turbulent one.

In the early 1970s, sectarian tension erupted into violence.

Three decades of vicious conflict ensued,

involving republican and loyalist paramilitaries,

and the British Army.

These have been momentous years for the people in Belfast.

From over 30 years of conflict,

we are now, please God,

coming into a time where we are going to see

far less violence,

and we are going to see a future in which people will work together,

and the future generations will not have the pains

and the sorrows of the past.

So you're on the road which links the two areas?

Yes. Townsend Street links the loyalist Shankill area

with the nationalist Falls area.

Despite the ceasefire agreement in 1997,

there are still barriers in parts of Belfast,

separating Protestant and Catholic communities.

They are known as peace walls.

This looks like a war zone, to be honest, Reverend Jack.

Sadly, you are quite right in describing it that way.

I cannot imagine what it must be like to be a child,

growing up in one of the houses just opposite this wall and looking at it

and asking your mum or dad, "What's on the other side of the wall?"

I say to myself, the Berlin Wall's come down,

and yet this fence is still here.

But was there so much need for it to be...?

Well, there was a felt need.

I long for the day when this fence comes down.

The wall was put up

to prevent violence on the borders between the two communities.

Even today, every evening the gates giving access are closed.

Union flags mark out the fiercely Protestant Shankill area.

In a land where there were so many missionaries,

I wouldn't expect a division like this.

Catholics and Protestants are names given by people, not by Jesus.

It's not mentioned in the Bible at all.

I just hope that this will break down these dividing walls,

and people will come together under the name Jesus.

And not under any other name.

Kshama's keen to get going with her mission,

to get the young people of Belfast back into church.

And she's using her own secret weapon.

These puppets have come from India.

They had different names back in Bombay,

but we've renamed them Annie and Johnny.

The puppets are going to become friends

with the little children in Belfast.

Whose story is in the Bible?

-Jesus.

-Jesus.

-Loves you.

Back in India, Kshama's puppets are a big hit with young children.

-Jesus loves you so much.

-So much.

-All so much.

-So much.

But will they have the same effect on the streets of Belfast?

Oh, my God!

I have come to tell you a story that Jesus loves you.

Have you heard of that?

I heard it in Sunday school.

Understood the power of Jesus Christ?

It was fun just to be with them.

What I saw is that children all over the world are the same.

They long for a hug, they long for a kiss,

they long for the love of God.

Who's going to wear this? Ah! Come!

To engage with the older children,

Kshama is getting them to act out stories about Jesus.

All you have to do is ask Jesus to come into your heart.

Are you ready to do that?

But Kshama is particularly keen to reach out

to the teenage members of the local community.

15-year-old Curtis is just the sort of teenager

she wants to bring into the church.

Hello, Curtis. Good morning. How are you?

Two years ago, he was expelled from school.

They thought I always messed about.

They kept blaming me for stuff that I didn't do. So I just went mad.

-So which year did you drop out of school?

-Fourth year.

And since then, what have you been doing?

Nothing. Sitting in the house.

Kshama wants to persuade Curtis

that the Bible can help him get back on track.

You were wondering, how could a book help you to be successful?

Curtis, I think it will start making a difference.

-Do you have a Bible with you?

-No.

-Can I get one for you?

-No.

-Any time?

-Because if you start...

-Can't read. I'll not be able to read the Bible.

It is a very easy one. No? Then I will read it for you.

God is loving and kind.

He loves everyone, he loves you.

He wants you to grow up to be happy and strong.

It makes God sad when you get hurt or things go wrong.

If you feel that things have gone wrong, Curtis, in your life,

I'm going to begin to pray for you, and things are going to change.

Nothing went wrong, it's all right.

This Sunday evening, I am going to speak

at the Townsend Presbyterian church. 7pm.

-I'll not be up at that time.

-My invitation to you...

7pm to 8pm. Just one hour.

I don't believe in God.

But He believes in you.

Kshama's enthusiasm for her faith

doesn't seem to be translating that well.

I think she really does believe in God and all, but I don't.

She thinks that I was meant to.

But I don't.

I believe that the world was man-made.

Because how can he just throw a lot of houses down?

Road, water, everything.

How could a person who is not alive going to make stuff like this?

Never.

Like Curtis, many teens in the UK

feel Christianity has no relevance to their everyday lives.

They have other things to worry about,

such as education, relationships and community.

Some have even greater concerns.

The UK has the highest rate of teen pregnancy in Western Europe

and in Belfast, teenagers are responsible for nearly one in 12 births.

To understand more, Kshama has arranged to meet 17-year-old Vicky

and her son, Joshua.

Well, hello!

He is one year old!

You were probably how old when you...?

-I was 15 when I got pregnant.

-OK.

Are there many people you know who are teenagers and have little babies?

There is quite a few people that have babies as teenagers, yeah.

I had a certain group of friends at school

and a couple of them have got babies now, yeah.

The school did not educate you all before, like when you were 13,

14, and tell you that things could happen

and that you needed to be wise and take precautions?

There was an optional sex education class,

but my mum didn't allow me to take it.

-Oh.

-So...

-And do you wish you had taken it?

-And now we've got Joshua.

We've got Joshua!

How did you manage going to school and taking care of all your needs?

It was difficult trying to get up in the mornings to go to school

because I had him inside me as well.

Difficult staying in school

because I had really bad morning sickness and everything.

I left school quite a bit.

Tell me something about your family, Vicky. Who do you stay with?

I've basically not got a lot of family over here

because they all live in Manchester now.

That's quite difficult, because we don't see my mum any more.

-She's moved to Canada.

-Oh.

It was with the young girls of Shankill

that a teenage Amy Carmichael started her missionary work.

On the walls of one of the old mills,

Kshama has found a tribute to Amy.

One can give without loving, but one cannot love without giving.

In the late 1800s, Belfast was the world's biggest linen producer,

employing thousands of girls in the local mills.

Working long hours for little pay, they were poor and badly educated.

Amy held Sunday morning classes to help them improve their lives.

I've read in Amy Carmichael's biography about the shawlies,

the mill workers, the girls with the shawls.

Look at her.

She's a simple girl, made to work like an adult,

when she hasn't yet reached adulthood.

Somewhere, there's a lost childhood in that face.

Many of the mill girls felt

they weren't dressed smartly enough for formal church services.

Amy wanted to do something to help them.

Still only 22 years old,

she purchased derelict land with money given to her

by a wealthy family friend and three months later, in January 1889,

a building was officially opened for the mill workers to worship in.

It was called the Welcome Hall and it's still a working church today.

The current minister is Pastor Jonathan Clarke.

Very pleased to meet you,

lovely to have you here at the Welcome Evangelical church.

The building has been modernised over the years.

The original Welcome Hall had a tin roof.

It used to be called the Tin Tabernacle

back in Amy Carmichael's day.

Some of these girls would have been going to work at 14 years of age

and they would have been working maybe 12 hours a day,

14 hours a day, and they worked in very poor conditions.

They would have worked maybe without shoes on their feet.

Amy had a real social conscience.

-She had a wonderful empathy for people.

-Empathy...

Yes, there was a spiritual attachment.

Yes, she had her prayer meetings, she had her evangelistic meetings,

but she also had the social, practical context as well to the work.

She had sewing classes, where she would have learnt girls how to sew.

-Right here in this place?

-Yeah, in this place.

She actually had education nights

where she learnt some of these girls how to read and write.

She didn't ever think about marriage, do you know?

I think she considered it but then she realised that, you know...

-Her call was different.

-Her call was different.

She was to live the life of a single woman.

I've come to Belfast to retrace the steps of this lovely missionary.

Even my being here has spoken to me a lot,

that God and his grace will help me raise up many Amy Carmichaels

to go from here, to bring the gospel to many people.

Amy Carmichael's secret was to tailor her Christianity

to the needs of the congregation. Kshama wants to do this shame.

She has ideas about how to make Reverend Jack's church

more appealing to youngsters.

-I want them to come to a contemporary service.

-Using the more modern hymns?

-Modern hymns.

-I'm happy with that.

It will be a little noisy

but probably more attractive for the youngsters.

OK, well, let's give it a go!

Maybe what we could do, Kshama, is we could get you to preach.

-How about getting you to preach this Sunday evening?

-Oh, I'd love that.

For many years, Reverend Jack's congregation has been declining.

Today, sometimes as few as 25 will attend a service.

It is a tiny congregation

when you consider that this building would still seat 1,100 people

and in the 1950s, it was seating 1,100 people.

The other thing we've got to face up to is the dramatic decline

in the available numbers of people in the Shankill area,

because during the '50s, the population of this area

would have been topping 79,000 in the Shankill area.

Now, it's down to something like 29,000,

so we've got a smaller number of people to draw on.

Kshama wants to reverse the trend

of Reverend Jack's falling attendance and the next day,

she's back on the street to drum up support for her first church service.

Hi, Darcy!

I need girls to wear flowers, girls to give out flowers.

She's brought Jack along to help.

A young service with young people...

Kshama is truly a breath of fresh air.

I never dreamt that she would be so full of enthusiasm.

In fact, she's a whirlwind of energy and dynamism.

I think this is actually a challenge to myself.

Maybe I should be taking a leaf out of Kshama's book

and being a bit more upfront, but more public.

I don't feel that I have won them over yet.

I am worried that the ones who said they'd come might just probably have

something more interesting to do, but I hope and I pray that some will.

In India, Kshama's church has focused on a more relaxed approach

to bring in a younger congregation.

It's a tactic that has been hugely successful.

She's hoping this more approachable style

will also appeal to the young in Shankill.

But like the rest of the UK, Shankill on a Sunday

is no longer just about church.

From sport to car boot sales,

there are many other activities competing for people's time.

But Kshama's enthusiasm for her mission has had the desired effect.

A number of the children she met on the streets have turned up

-and are getting involved.

-Thank you very much.

-Lovely!

-Thank you.

-Oh, wow!

-Thank you so much.

Amy Carmichael thought the church should embrace everyone

and Kshama's using Amy's "come one, come all" approach

to make people feel at home.

Welcome, each and every one of you.

Why don't you look your neighbour in the eye and say, "I welcome you."

Shake hands with them and say, "Well, good you came to church."

To keep the younger children involved,

Kshama's made some flags for them to wave and introduced new songs.

It's an idea she's brought from her own church in India.

# So good

# God is so good

# God is so good

# He's so good to me...

The church isn't full, but it's a start.

# Jesus Christ said

# He took my sin

# He's so good to me. #

We'll give a hand to Jesus.

APPLAUSE

Well, I was thrilled that so many children came along

because Kshama had worked so hard, knocking doors, talking to children,

running round the estate and we must have had easily 20 children

in that church this evening and 20 children who have never,

some of them, been in that church building at all before.

So that was tremendous.

Reverend Jack might be pleased with the numbers,

but Kshama is disappointed more teenagers didn't come.

Well, there were, if I actually count on my fingers, four teenagers.

I thought it would be easier.

I thought I'd get this congregation of people

who would the next Sunday, go and get youth,

and I'd be talking to 65 to 75 youth who would say,

"Wow, terrific!"

And I really thought it would be easy.

So far, Kshama's mission hasn't gone as well as she'd hoped.

Looking for strength and inspiration from her heroine,

she's come to Millisle, 20 miles east of Belfast.

It's the place where Amy lived as a child.

-Good morning, sir.

-Good morning.

-I'm Kshama.

I need to know, where is the church where Amy Carmichael was...?

-Over there.

-Oh, right there. OK. Thank you.

Shore Road...

Amy was born here in 1867, the eldest of seven children.

Her father, David, was a wealthy mill owner

and a great philanthropist.

The family built the first schoolhouse

used by the town's children and the adult mill workers.

And that's the church over there, where David Carmichael

and his family, that is Amy's dad, would worship every Sunday -

the Millisle and Ballycopeland Presbyterian Church.

I'm sure Amy Carmichael must have come to collect seashells.

She must have heard the sound of the sea.

And that's what made her a lover of nature.

It makes me relive how she must have spent her childhood,

just running along the beach with the wind in her hair,

with the gulls in the sky.

Although Amy's home has long since gone, a family house still stands.

This is Amy's uncle's house.

Probably, she played around in this garden.

When their business could no longer compete with flour mills in America,

the Carmichael family sold up and in 1888,

moved to Belfast to start a new enterprise.

Coming to Millisle has given Kshama a chance to reflect

on how her mission is going.

Things have been tough.

It's not been exactly how I expected it to go or I wanted it to go.

But I've moved on and just looking at this place and being here,

where Amy Carmichael grew up,

I am so encouraged and inspired by this visit over here.

My mission in Belfast is going to continue

with greater hope and enthusiasm.

# She slipped into the night and she was gone... #

Kshama's halfway through her time in Belfast.

With renewed energy, she's continuing her mission

to introduce more teenagers to Christianity.

She's been invited to a youth centre in the Shankill,

which offers a safe place for youngsters to hang out.

Ruth Pettigrew left her job as deaconess at the Townsend Street Church to run the centre.

I needed to come out of the church and go into community,

because for a lot of people here, the churches are irrelevant.

They perceived the churches as not caring,

the church doesn't understand, the church doesn't really want them,

and we could have all kinds of programs

but they just weren't coming in.

Ruth is a Christian but she doesn't believe in preaching to the kids who come to her centre.

She's advised Kshama that she must first win their trust

before she discusses her faith with them.

I have hardly seen 16, 17, 18 around,

but I saw them around Ruth today at the community centre.

I like the way people connect to her.

A bunch of boys and said "Hi, Ruth,"

and they started talking to her.

Hi, boys, welcome.

Kshama has taken Ruth's advice.

Instead of preaching, she's engaging the boys

by introducing them to Indian cookery.

-Can you cut the garlic?

-Me?

-Yeah, so I'll fry...

In the UK, 45% of 16 to 24-year-olds have never attended church.

-The seeds are spicy?

-The seeds are VERY spicy.

-I'll eat that in one bite, no sweat.

-Go for it.

-Oh, I can't.

-No, don't!

-You do it.

-No, no, no.

-You go half and I'll go half.

-No, no, I'm not going half!

What about I go half and you go half?

-No, it's very spicy. Don't try it.

-I'll eat that bit, right?

I don't know why he's doing this. Give him sugar in his mouth.

Holy BLEEP!

-Is that warm?

-HE MUMBLES

Please drink water!

I am happy. I'm just so happy and delighted.

My mission is to tell young boys and young girls that Jesus loves them

in any which way I can connect.

And it's not me just trying to connect to give the gospel,

it's making good friends.

Do you not eat them with rice or chips, no?

-Chips?

-Rice.

-Rice and curry.

Kshama's experience at the youth centre has taught her

that she needs to understand and connect more with the community

before offering spiritual help,

just like Amy Carmichael did at her mission in southern India.

She's come to the home of teenage mum, Vicky,

to see if there's anything she can do to help.

This time, she's also meeting 16-year-old Ben, Joshua's father.

Ben, when you found out that

you were going to get a little baby on its way,

what were your emotions and what did you go through?

Well, at first it was more a shock.

We'd been arguing a lot,

so we'd stopped talking for quite a while

then when he came along, that was it.

Started talking again.

Do you want some time where both of you go out?

I can take care of him.

-I'll be more than happy babysitting your young one.

-Yeah.

No, I'm not going to lift them. You play with this one.

I feel as if here is a young girl who has lost her youth.

She was made into a mother, she was made into a caregiver

when she's too young for it.

We can't point a finger at any three of them.

We have to extend hands of help and hands of compassion.

Kshama wants to show Vicky and Ben

that there's more to Christianity than church services

and has offered them respite from their day-to-day lives.

She's treating the teenagers to a day out.

She'll be responsible for looking after Joshua so they can spend time together.

Some people will take time to know Jesus

but your practical help will be that one thing which will draw them.

You may be the only gospel some people will ever read.

They may not read Matthew, Mark, Luke and John but when they see you,

they can see Christ.

With Kshama looking after their baby,

Ben and Vicky have been able to spend quality time together.

We'd never like be able to hold hands and walk together or anything

-and we are doing it now, so it's really weird.

-And she's taking him away.

Come back!

But like Amy Carmichael, in India,

the practical help goes hand-in-hand with the spiritual

and Kshama has a proposition.

Ben and Vicky, I've been praying for Joshua

and also thinking that if it's fine with you all,

can we just bless Joshua

and bless him for the future and all that God has plans for him?

-I don't mind.

-I think it's quite good.

We could have it in the Townsend Street Church,

because that's the place I know and I could take permission,

so that we could have your friends or your family

and people whom we love who care for him.

I think it's a great idea. It would be really nice.

Yeah, I think it's a really good idea to get him blessed.

It's nothing that we've ever thought of, really,

but we did think about getting him christened

and this isn't getting him christened

but it's like getting christened.

She said, like, it's not Catholic or Protestant,

so that's OK because we're not religious people, are we?

I'm not a very churchy person.

-Definitely not.

-Definitely not.

The very fact that they both said yes is a beautiful beginning

where Christ is invited into their home.

Kshama's approach of going out into the community

to introduce people to the church is directly inspired

by the work of the Victorian missionaries.

Amy Carmichael was an advocate of this approach.

In India, she worked with a group of female Christians,

known as the Starry Cluster.

They would travel for days at a time to reach remote villages

to offer help and spread the word.

In Belfast, Reverend Jack is enthusiastic about this approach.

I think that one of the key things that Kshama has taught us is the importance of listening,

especially listening to young people,

because they're at the stage in their lives where they feel misunderstood.

They feel that nobody cares sometimes,

nobody understands what they're thinking and how they're feeling.

Kshama has brought home

that listening is as important as talking.

The reminders of Northern Ireland's turbulent history

are to be found in the murals which adorn Belfast's walls.

Many of them honour paramilitary figures killed during the Troubles.

I see so many murals and they all have a message,

but some of them have these soldiers in black

and sometimes the message is quite unnerving.

Believe it or not,

the ones that you see now are a lot more positive than they used to be.

-They're not about religion, it's about many other things.

-Oh, yeah.

The same murals are in the nationalist area?

-Same...?

-I mean, same kind?

Same kind of thing, just to sort of intimidate people and go,

"Be very afraid."

To further her mission,

Kshama plans to paint a mural with a more positive message.

-I want to get a message of peace across.

-OK.

The message of the love of Christ and the peace of Christ on this

big wall with colours, with writing

and so whoever passes by can see it.

Sure! But what are you going to put on?

-You need to be careful in how you portray this, OK?

-OK.

So you need to choose something that's going to be eye-catching,

get the message across but without preaching at them.

Share the word of God, tell the truth, but don't preach at them.

A peace mural might seem a small thing,

but Kshama's taken Amy Carmichael's philosophy as her inspiration.

She was only a girl of 17.

We find her on her own initiative

visiting the streets behind College Gardens on Sunday afternoons,

gathering children around her and bringing them

back to her own home for a children's meeting.

I have been inspired by what Amy Carmichael started.

She started with very simple things.

She didn't start with a great pompous meeting,

she began with prayer and she began with children.

She started small and she ended big.

So we start simple, we start small, and God gives us the victory.

Amy also believed you should care for people

regardless of their background.

She fought against the caste system in India

by treating everyone as equal.

Kshama wants to do the same in Belfast

by bringing different sides of the community together.

She's keen to get youngsters from all sides of the divide

to help paint her mural.

For the first time since she's been in Belfast,

Kshama is taking a trip to one of the predominantly Catholic parts of the city.

The Falls Road is less than a mile away from the Shankill,

but for many, it's a world apart.

To be on the Nationalist side, for me, doesn't make any difference.

The same people, same smiles, same Northern Irish accent

only, of course, a wee bit of difference.

The placards and the nameplates are in the Irish language also.

Human beings are the same.

It's only ideologies and philosophies that divide

and men that divide people from each other.

# In the name of love... #

Despite the wall that divides them,

the pressures and fears that teenage girls face here

are much the same as those of girls from the Shankill.

Kshama is visiting the Falls Women's Centre,

which runs classes in parenting and sexual health.

First of all, genital warts. I'll just read yous all the facts.

They're caused by a virus

and it's easily passed from one person to another by sexual contact.

-Can babies not get it?

-I'm going to pass round the last one now, which is syphilis.

It can harm the bones and the nervous system

and it will eventually lead to death.

Having kept preaching under wraps

with the boys at the Shankill Youth Centre,

here, Kshama can't resist giving spiritual advice to the girls.

Hi, girls.

What I want to say after I had this wonderful session with you all

is that God made one man for one woman.

I'm not saying don't have fun, you know.

Sex is lovely when there is marriage,

when there is commitment, when there is faithfulness.

How much His heart will break if you mess up your lives.

APPLAUSE

Did you get offended with what I shared with you all?

Some of the things you said

about God making one guy for one girl was good,

but not about the only having one sexual partner

for the rest of your life.

I think that would be a bit hard to do.

Kshama may seem out of step with the girls' way of life,

but she wants them to join her when she paints her mural.

-You have to come to the Townsend.

-Where's that?

Outreach, on the Shankill.

-Outreach centre. Is it fine with you?

-Um...

It's just us and we're in a Protestant place, like,

but we're Catholics.

But that's fine, that's perfectly fine.

Nobody is going to ask whether you are A group or B group.

No, the people know. They know.

They know by our names and the way we talk.

And they'll know that we are Catholics.

But you talk the same way as they talk.

Everybody knows what Catholics and what Protestants are, so...

We never be in the Shankill Road or nothing,

so like, they know that we're not from there

because they've never, ever seen us over there,

so they're obviously going to start something.

Kshama hopes the girls will conquer their fears

and visit the Shankill for the first time,

but she's realising how deep the divisions run.

Before I came to Belfast, I thought,

I'm going to one united country, one united city.

When I came here, I was very surprised.

It was youngsters divided, children divided, adults divided

into two groups on the basis of politics, religion and nationality.

So many barriers have to be just broken down,

just to be friends with them.

Amy Carmichael had her own barriers to break down.

She would often come into conflict with the local Hindu community

and in 1914, faced imprisonment when accused of kidnapping a child

she was trying to rescue.

But she worked hard to be accepted

and found ingenious ways to blend in.

She would put coffee on her arms

to darken her fair skin

and she would wear a sari

so that the villagers would identify with her.

And if she could be so bold in those days,

I think I could wear a tracksuit and start heeding my mural.

The mural will be painted on one of the community centre walls.

Yeah, yeah, that's good. Taking shape as it goes.

The occasion is to be a celebration for the community

and a lot has to be done.

No, you're right coming down like this.

It's four o'clock and I'm getting worried,

because the buntings aren't up, the balloons aren't up,

the mic system's not there and we haven't painted our mural.

-Should I put Amy Carmichael in small writing, joint hand?

-Yeah, yeah.

-I thought we were drawing pictures, right.

-Well, we were...

Kshama seems to have finally made a breakthrough with the teenagers,

successfully getting them involved with a Christian project.

'I'm very happy that this mural will be a message.'

It's got a very colloquial slogan - "What's the craic?"

That is, "What's happening? What's the happening thing in Belfast?"

We'll have, in a beautiful banner, his name, Jesus.

# If you wanna wanna wanna wanna wanna have someone to talk to... #

Three of the Catholic girls Kshama met at the Falls Women's Centre

have been brave enough to come to help paint the mural.

It's their first time in the Shankill

and it's been a huge step for them

to come to such a staunchly Protestant place.

Kshama's perseverance has helped persuade them to cross the divide.

When I saw the girls from the Falls and the youngsters

from the Shankill painting the mural together, that broke the ice.

It was a message of love, a message of Jesus being a friend to all.

It was that togetherness that didn't allow them

to feel scared or threatened by each other's company.

-You having fun, Aisling?

-Yeah.

Michelangelo probably had it as difficult as this,

but it's shaping up. I'm thrilled, I'm thrilled.

With everybody lending a hand to get things ready,

Kshama's hopes for community spirit seem to be paying off.

You're in charge of the spoons. You sit here.

Included on the mural are some of Amy Carmichael's words...

Amy started writing in the last years of her life,

when she was bedridden after a serious fall.

She had 37 books published, many of which are still in print today.

I just need five minutes of your precious time.

I'm from a country which is not a Christian country

but somebody from the British Isles came to my country

and told us about the Lord Jesus.

I want you to all enjoy his love and his peace

and give yourself a big clap.

APPLAUSE

In her own small way, Kshama has succeeded in bringing

back from India Amy's missionary zeal and her ideal of embracing

and supporting younger members of the community.

# Sha la la la la la la La la da dah de dah... #

That was a very positive thing.

I have never experienced a road come alive.

For me, it was a very big thing that on the road of Belfast,

the name of Jesus is being glorified.

-Did you enjoy the curry?

-Yeah, yeah, it was really nice.

-And did you enjoy coming?

-Yeah, it was brilliant.

-Was there anything to worry about?

-No.

-Did you see that "friend to all?"

-Yes.

Jesus is the one who loves both sides.

He loves you very much and he has a great plan for your life.

Bless you, girls. Thanks very much for coming.

-You enjoyed coming?

-Yeah.

-And you've left your mark on the Shankill,

you tell them that when you go home. Isn't that terrific?

Before Kshama's mission finishes, she's making one more visit

to the home of teenage mum, Vicky, ahead of baby Joshua's blessing.

-Hi, Vicky.

-Hello, Kshama. Hello.

I have a gift for you, Vicky.

This is the Bible.

Talking about Jesus,

Jesus bore our sins in his body.

On the tree means on the cross,

so that we may not sin and live for righteousness.

When you read these, you will be encouraged

because when you are encouraged, you'll be happy

and a happy mother makes a happy child.

How do you feel?

I like that you've given me a Bible, cos now I can read it

and it can help me.

Bye.

-God bless you, and remember that.

-Yes.

She is really religious, but she's like a good religious person

because she's not full on all the time.

She is some of the time, yeah, I'm not saying that she's not at all

because she is sometimes, but not...

Most of the time she's OK and she's fun and she's a good person.

It's Kshama's final day at Townsend Street Church.

Nathan and Nathan!

Today is a special service to bless baby Joshua.

Some of the teenagers who helped Kshama paint the mural

have come to decorate the church.

Ben and Vicky have invited their families

to celebrate Joshua's blessing.

Today is also Kshama's last opportunity

to fill the pews with young faces.

What are you doing, Nathan?

He's welcoming you in his own unique way. He's giving you five.

That's how you say hi in the church.

This is a special service, not just for Kshama,

it's also a very special service for this little boy here, called Joshua.

Let us start our service this evening

by speaking to God in prayer. Let us pray.

Heavenly Father, even as my arms are embracing Ben and Vicky and little Joshua,

it is our prayer that he will come to know Jesus Christ

as his Lord and saviour and forever friend. Amen.

And now, I want the congregation

to just stretch out their hand to bless this boy.

The Lord bless you and keep you, Joshua.

The Lord give you strength and health.

May you be a blessing to your parents and to your family.

I thought that was quite outstanding,

the way in which Kshama was able to speak to a couple

who clearly have little contact with the church and yet,

they have a desire for the best for this child of theirs, Joshua.

It's wonderful they've chosen the name Joshua, of course,

which is the Old Testament name for Jesus - saviour.

I feel Vicky had peace in her heart.

She has done her best in giving Joshua over to Jesus.

And Jesus is faithful. He'll make Joshua into a success story.

I wanted the song from Westlife, You Raise Me Up.

It's a very popular song, but it's a very calming song.

Kshama's success in India is built upon making the church

feel modern and relevant to the young.

Her mission to do the same in Townsend Street has proved difficult

but in only two weeks, she has succeeded in filling

many of the once empty pews with younger people.

I want to ask you, is there somebody here

who has never been afraid of anything?

But I want you to come up in front, just write one fear.

Come, Kirsty, come. Write a fear.

# You raise me up so I can stand on mountains

# You raise me up...

She wants to show the youngsters

that the church is ready to listen to their worries

and understand their needs.

# I am strong when I am on your shoulders

# You raise me up to more than I can be. #

I was scared of so many things in my life.

As a teenager in college, as a student in high school

and as a young lady wondering, who am I going to get married to?

I was so scared, but when I found Jesus, my fears were dealt with.

What does Jesus say?

"I am with you, do not be afraid."

I thought it was going to be with, like, holy water and all that.

No, Kshama said there was not going to be any water involved.

Well, I didn't know, because you didn't tell me.

It was fun and it was nice and it was our family together

and Joshua was getting blessed and it was just nice.

Bye, Ruby! Bye, Vicky!

Before she leaves Belfast, Kshama has invited the teens

and children to sign their names on the mural

so they will always remember their part in its creation.

I met youngsters in Belfast,

youngsters not very different from those in India.

The challenges, the loneliness, the rejection,

the emotions are the same

and I've been able to introduce the Lord Jesus in their own way.

I feel very emotional, I feel like crying,

because I know I'm going to leave people I have received so much from.

I remember Amy Carmichael, when she left Belfast,

she left her shawlies, she left her mill workers

but the mission continues, and I'm going to do the same thing.

She's got the measure of this area.

She knows how to speak to people

and yet she does not compromise on the message that she has brought.

The message that Amy Carmichael took out to India,

Kshama has brought it back to the Shankill.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd