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		HISTORY OF FOYER GROUPS Foyer is a French word meaning "hearthside" which implies the warmth of a close small group of friends or family sharing a common love and concern for each other. We owe the origins of our Foyer groups to the church of St. Michael, the Cathedral of the diocese of Coventry, a city outside of London, England. The ruins of St. Michael’s are the consequence of violence which many of us remember. On the night of November 14th 1940, the city of Coventry was devastated by bombs dropped by the Luftwaffe. The Cathedral burned along with the city, having been hit by several incendiary devices. The decision to rebuild the cathedral was taken the morning after its destruction. Rebuilding would not be an act of defiance, but rather a sign of faith, trust and hope for the future of the world. It was the vision of the Provost at the time, Dick Howard, which led the people of Coventry away from feelings of bitterness and hatred. This has led to the cathedral’s Ministry of Peace and Reconciliation, which has provided spiritual and practical support, in areas of conflict throughout the world. Shortly after the destruction, the cathedral stonemason, Jock Forbes, noticed that two of the charred medieval roof timbers had fallen in the shape of a cross. He set them up in the ruins where they were later placed on an altar of rubble with the moving words ‘Father Forgive’ inscribed on the sanctuary wall. Another cross was fashioned from three medieval nails by a local priest, the Revd Arthur Wales. The Cross of Nails has become the symbol of Coventry’s international ministry of reconciliation. The Very Rev. H. C. N. Williams, who served for many years as Provost of Coventry encouraged this ministry of reconciliation, and in 1967 Coventry Cathedral staff began meeting together in small groups to "bridge the divisions which subtly separate us one from another." These were the first Foyer Groups. Two years later, the Foyer movement spread to the congregation of Coventry Cathedral. Within a few years it spread worldwide well beyond Coventry. In the United States it has grown through many churches as an exciting and meaningful avenue for Christian fellowship, sharing and caring.

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