These five international conferences received highly positive appraisal from delegates. The adjectives they used to describe them were full of praise and appreciation. For example, although Simon Tugwell could only participate in part of the conference, he was impressed and benefited greatly saying, “Guildford was most exciting, and a blessing”.105 Kevin Rangahan said that the conference was “fantastic” and a
“tremendous gift from God” which made him praise God for what He had done at Guildford whenever he thought about it.106
A Swede, Ivar Lungren, claimed that “the
103
Letter from Michael Harper to David Barlett, 24 May 1973; Letter from Tom Smail to Lesslie Newbigin, 23 April 1979. 104
Letter from Tom Smail to David Pytches, 12 March 1979.
The celebrant at Nottingham was the Bishop of Southwell (John Denis Wakeling), at Westminster 1975 it was the Archbishop of Cape Town (William Burnett), Westminster 1977 the Bishop of Pontefract (Richard Hare), and at Westminster 1979 Michael Whinney. (Letter from Michael Harper to the Bishop of Southwell, 26 July 1972; Letter from the Bishop of Southwell to Michael Harper, 1 January 1973; Letter from Michael Harper, dictated and signed in his absence, to the Dean of Westminster, 3 June 1975; Letter from Michael Harper to the Bishop of Southwell, 28 June 1973; Fountain Trust, Conference Brochure: Welcome to Westminster, Fountain Trust International Conference, 28 July-2 August 1975, p. 2; “Michael Hands over the Reins”, p. 1; “Speaker from over the World”, Westminster Splash: Fountain Trust International Conference, Westminster, London, 28 July-1August 1975 (28 July 1975), p. 2; Joy in the City,London, 30 July-3 August 1979, p. 4; Barbara Holl, Glory in the Church, p. 10; Minutes-Westminster Conference 1977 (20 April 1977), p. 1.
105
Letter from Simon Tugwell to Michael Harper, September 1971. 106
96 conference was wonderful and of great importance for the future”.107 A South African
Pentecostal minister, Dr. F. P. Möller thanked Harper for the “marvellous”, “enjoyable and blessed time” at Guildford and he asserted that “What happened at Guildford is nothing less than a miracle, a doing of God!”108 After more than thirty
years (1971-2005), when Harper recalled what happened at Guildford, he just said, “The Guilford Conference in 1971was awesome and remarkable”.109
In the same way, Westminster 1975 was beneficial and full of blessings for most of the delegates.110 They expressed their thanks for the Trust’s effort in organising it and
also their feelings about it. It was regarded as “wonderful”,111 “super”,112 “splendid”,113
“profitable”114, “an unforgettable experience”115 and “a tremendous encouragement”.116
Some of them experienced a renewal in their lives and appreciated the way it covered “the breadth and depth of the many areas of life”.117 Some of them had not only gained
understanding about renewal, but had also seen how it could be worked out in practice.118 One delegate said that the conference had provided the motivation for
praying for renewal in the local church.119
107
Letter from Ivar Lungren to Michael Harper, 28 July 1971. 108
Letter from Dr. F. P. Möller to Michael Harper, 29 July 1971. 109
Michael Harper’s personal note for the author, 22 July 2005;
Interview with Michael and Jeanne Harper, 8 August 2005, Cambridge. 110
Tom Smail, Newsletter, No. 54 (August 1975), London: Fountain Trust. 111
Letter from S. V. Winbalt Lewis to Michael Harper, 2 August 1975; Letter from Miss J. G. Simpson to Michael Harper, 3 August 1975; Letter from Bill and Gladys Kuty, 4 August 1975;
Letter from Lorna and Ken, 14 September 1975, p. 2. 112
Letter from Beryl M. Parker to the Fountain Trust, 5 August 1975, pp. 5-6. 113
Letter from Edwin to Michael and Jeanne Harper, 8 August 1975. 114
Letter from Mrs Pamela Lucas to the Fountain Trust, 29 August 1975. 115
Letter from Ken to Michael Harper, 4 August 1975. 116
Letter from Beryl M. Parker to the Fountain Trust, 5 August 1975, p.1. 117
Letter from Trevor J. Marzetti to Michael Harper, 8 August 1975. 118
Letter from Mary Alison to Tom Smail, 21 August 1975. 119
97 The Trust also received plenty of positive feedback for Westminster 1977. Most of the delegates praised the conference as “wonderful” 120 and “thrilling”. 121 Others
commented on the practical side of the conference and regarded it as “helpful”, “challenging”,122 “memorable”, “fruitful”,123 and “useful”.124 It was also a week full of
blessings “in no small measure”.125 Tom Walker observed that plenty of the delegates
“were touched deeply”.126 No wonder that a delegate said, “If that is what a Fountain
Trust conference is like, what I want to know is when is the next?”127 Moreover,
having attended Westminster 1975, one delegate noticed the great improvement in the organisation of Westminster 1977, of which he said that there is “left little if anything to be desired in this respect”.128 Other delegates also admired the smooth running of
the conference and they were grateful for the hard work of the whole team behind the scenes.129
That these five conferences won plenty of praise from British and international delegates suggests that they were significant and valuable in terms of promoting the renewal in Britain and overseas. The messages and experiences of the conferences
120
Letter from Mr. D. Whitaker to Rev. and Mrs. Tom Smail, 21 August 1977; Letter from Collin McCampbell to Tom Smail, 5 August 1977;
Letter from Miss J. Martin-Doyle to Tom Smail, 9 September 1977; Letter from Mrs Pauline Ruffett to Tom Smail, 9 August 1977. 121
Letter from Mr and Mrs Mike Carney to Tom Smail, 21 September 1977; Letter from Mr. Philip Sourbut to Tom Smail, 6 August 1977.
122
Letter from Miss J. Martin-Doyle to Tom Smail, 9 September 1977. 123
Letter from Rev. A. K. Pring to Tom Smail, 18 August 1977. 124
Letter from Mr. Philip Sourbut to Tom Smail, 6 August 1977. 125
Letter from Collin McCampbell to Tom Smail, 5 August 1977; Letter from Rev. Gordon V. Clark to Tom Smail,12 August 1977; Letter from Mr. John Forwell to Tom Smail, 8 August 1977; Letter from Mr D. M. Adam to Tom Smail, 6 August 1977; Letter from J. Pereboom to the Fountain Trust, 9 August 1977, p. 2;
Letter from Renale Vetter, West Germany, to the Fountain Trust, 11 August 1977. 126
Letter from Tom Walker to Tom Smail, 6 October 1977. 127
Letter from Mr. D. Whitaker to Rev. and Mrs. Tom Smail, 21 August 1977. 128
Letter from Mr J. Pereboom to Tom Smail, 9 August 1977. 129
Letter from Miss J. Martin-Doyle to Tom Smail, 9 September 1977; Letter from Miss Peggy William to Fountain Trust, 8 August 1977; Letter from Pamela Mellyard to Tom Smail, 8 August 1977, pp. 2-3.
98 permeated the lives of individuals and gradually penetrated their local churches. Thus, their impact on the renewal movement is worth investigating.