New Roma church takes shape in Macedonia

2010 has seen great progress in building the new church for the Roma congregation in Bitola, Macedonia.

The site which was purchased is on a strategic junction in the very centre of this historic town. The old ramshackle buildings which were on the site have been demolished.

This process took longer than expected because an electrical junction box, which was decades old but nevertheless served a large part of central Bitola, was discovered in the roof space. This had to be re-sited by qualified engineers.

The new building is now taking shape. It will contain a large church auditorium to serve the growing Roma gypsy congregation in Bitola; with smaller rooms for Sunday school classes and small groups.

There will also be accommodation for the Pastor (click for prayer letter - PDF) and his family and visiting speakers and teams. An outside area will be available for a wide range of fellowship functions.

The church will be a centre to which the wider gypsy community can also come to find a wide range of help and for community events. The growing church will raise the status of the marginalised Roma in the region.

WorldShare, and the Evangelical Church of Macedonia, have invested significantly in this important new building. A total of £65,000 is still needed to complete the construction, decoration and equipping of the new church.

In addition, the new buildings for the church/Bible School in Kumanovo, and new church in Strumica are also making rapid progress.

Click here to read more about the Roma of Bitola.

Click here to find out how you can help Bitola Roma Church.