Nigel Bainbridge first visited Pécs in 2007 and friendships grew each year as he visited. Around 2010, Gábor Horváth shared with Nigel a dream to plant a new church in Kertváros (a large suburb of Pécs with a population of more than 50,000 people). 

In 2019 Nigel and Rachel began to sense God calling them and their family into a major transition. These feelings joined with prophetic encouragement and led to them to moving to Hungary. The Hungarian Apostolic Church officially wrote to Nigel in 2020 to invite his family to serve as missionaries in Pécs.  Nigel and Rachel felt a pull to serve people who were less influential, more hidden – including children, Roma, poorer communities and single mothers. This church planting project was called ‘Mission Pécs’.

Nigel had previously travelled widely in central and eastern Europe visiting church plants and church planters, and Rachel had frequently travelled to Myanmar, before they left Dover to live in Pécs. In June 2021, the Bainbridge’s were joined with intern Cameron Jones for their sending-out service from their home and mother church (One Church Dover). Nigel and Rachel’s children, Emily and Joseph, joined the mission project and they arrived in Hungary in August 2021.

During a prayer meeting in One Church Dover (January 2020), a lady gave Rachel a prophetic picture (the lady drew it on paper). On Rachel’s first visit to Kertváros she saw this prophetic image that had been given to her more than 18 months earlier – it was the flower statue by Csontváry bus stop. This prophetic image became a major marker for Nigel and Rachel – both spiritually and practically. This statue closely resembles a sunflower and the sunflower became a motif for Mission Pécs.

Mission Pécs could only have become established with the help of it’s mother church KikötőKeresztény Gyülekezet (Pécs Apostolic Church). The congregation sang ‘Waymaker’ to the Bainbridge’s in English for one of their first services at Kikötő Gyülekezet.

There was a strong feeling that Kertváros had become a forgotten area and that the Gospel was desperately needed. The meaning of Kertváros (‘garden town’) seemed almost as if it was a word that was impossible to believe – nothing could grow there. Kertváros needed an opportunity to know and meet The Good Shepherd.

Nigel and Rachel investigated contacts and possibilities and gradually the church plant project gained traction: 

• weekly Bible studies in their home (autumn 2021)

• weekly Bible studies in the Nevkó centre in Kertváros (Feb. – May 2022)

• the first summer children’s club in Kertváros (Aug. 2022)

• following 40 days of prayer and fasting (01.09.22-10.10.22) the first worship meeting (Nov. 2022)

• the first food aid parcels distributed (Dec. 2022). 

The theme for the 2022 children’s club was ‘how does your garden grow?’ Nigel, Rachel and the core team had a growing awareness of the important image of garden, and even a greater respect for the natural environment of Kertváros. In the summer of 2022 it was decided that the new church would be called ‘Eden’ (the name ‘Mission Pécs’ remains for English-language supporters and as an umbrella term for the whole project). Timea, one of the core members, had developed a friendship with Andrea, the manager of the local Mosolymanó charity, and this led Eden to discover a community garden space that required regeneration. This was an answer to prayer. A partnership was formed between Eden and Mosolmanó to regenerate this garden.

Mission Pécs is a partnership missionary project. The belief in team and effectiveness through collaboration, pervades Mission Pécs. As well as Kikötő Gyülekezet, Mission Pécs has many supporters and partners in the UK. Ildikó Diofási and Lidia Santa, both residents of Pécs, and neither connected to the Apostolic Church, provided significant support to help the project. Mission Pécs is supported by UK Partners Churches (Connect Church, Kircaldy; All Nations’ Centre in Kennington, London; Burnt Oak Christian Fellowship in Edgeware, London; Maidstone International Community Church, One Church Dover and Community Church Deal).

In March 2023, Nigel and Rachel returned to the UK and day-to-day care of the project was placed in the hands of local believers. A leadership team was formed in January 2024, this team began to make strategic decisions. 21st March 2024 was a special day of prayer for breakthrough. The first Alpha course commenced on Wednesday 24 April 2024. In June 2024, Peter and Dorina Katona, Anita Zsifkovics and Timea Nagy were appointed as the Eden leadership team. Peter is the leader of Eden.