Action to Avert October Hunger

This is an appeal for Zimbabwe as the aid ban is lifted and nearly 4 million people will go hungry in October if no action is taken

As the ban on aid agencies operating in Zimbabwe is lifted, the Methodist Relief and Development Fund (MRDF) is supporting an appeal by ACT International that will deliver food and agricultural support to some of the country’s most vulnerable people.

Over 2 million people were in need of urgent food supplies when the Zimbabwean government ordered all aid agencies to suspend their humanitarian and development work on June 4. The ban only worsened an already desperate situation in a country with growing political instability, 85% of the population out of work and inflation levels that were spiralling out of control.

Amanda Norman, MRDF Supporter Relations Director, said: ‘We might think that the financial situation in Britain is grim, but the economic disaster faced by those in Zimbabwe puts things well and truly into perspective. Millions of Zimbabweans have been caught up in this complex humanitarian crisis and it’s hard to know how to even begin to make a difference. This appeal enables us to work with others to alleviate some of the suffering in the short term, and empower people to begin rebuilding their lives.’

It is estimated that nearly 4 million people could go hungry in October, with this number peaking at 5 million between January and March 2009. Now that the ban has been lifted, many will now be able to access much-needed food supplies.

The appeal through Action by Churches Together (ACT) will distribute monthly food rations of maize, cooking oil and beans to over 26,000 people in some of the most vulnerable communities. Farmers will be able to rebuild their livelihoods thanks to the provision of seeds, fertilisers and training in conservation farming that will help them to guard against the impact of drought.

Donations to MRDF’s appeal for Zimbabwe can be made by debit or credit card on 020 7224 4814, or by cheque, payable to “MRDF (Zimbabwe emergency)”, posted to MRDF, Methodist Church House, 25 Marylebone Road, London, NW1 5JR.

Taxpayers are encouraged to gift aid their donations where possible, adding a value of 28p to every pound they give, at no extra personal cost.

MRDF makes small miracles possible for people living in the world’s poorest communities. For more information, visit www.mrdf.org.uk


Source: Methodist Church News Release 26/09/08

'Under the Tree of Life'

Last Monday, 12 of us - 9 from the Reading and Silchester Circuit and 3 from the Slough Circuit - began the 34-week Disciple 4 study course entitled 'Under the Tree of Life'. There was a buzz of excitement as we old friends from the earlier Disciple courses met together again. After a year off we are ready to get stuck into our studies again and grow in faith and fellowship once more.

This course will concentrate on the Writings - Ruth, 1 and 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon, Lamentations and Daniel - and, in the New Testament, the Gospel of John, 1,2,3 John, James, Jude, and Revelation. Each week we begin with a video that introduces the week's subject and explains its background, and then we discuss our homework, which comes under 3 headings - Fruit from the Tree of Life, Marks of Faithful Community and The Radical Disciple - and there is extra reading to be done each week.

This week we have an easy introductory week because we are studying the lovely, human story of Ruth, but in the next two weeks we are set the task of studying the 65chapters of Chronicles 1 and 2! So don't be surprised if I find that my time for blogging is very limited. It also coincides with a host of church meetings that expect me to be present and it's the apple-picking season! I have 5 apple trees and, though I will get help with the picking, it takes time for me to sort them out and store them properly.

Questions to be discussed this week include -

What threatens relationships of lovingkindness in families?

How does your experience of faithful community strengthen or weaken your family's cohesiveness?

What determines the effort and/or the sacrifice you are willing to make to maintain connections with extended family?

Identify some of the inconveniences that keep us from including the outsider in our family life?

What actions and attitudes overcome barriers of inconvenience?

Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust

Last Saturday, as a member of the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust, I was invited to a Membership Open Day tour of three areas of work at the Royal Berkshire Hospital - Renal, Cardiology and Therapies - with a light lunch to follow. These Membership Open Days highlight the Trust's strategy, which is -

"Exceeding our customer and patient's service requirements
Providing more services, in more places, closer to home, for more people
Investing in success so that our services will be in the top 10% nationally
Bringing together key providers to form a viable modern healthcare system
Making sure that people know what we do and why we are the best."

The Trust is based on several Hospital sites -

The Royal Berkshire
Prince Charles Eye Unit - Windsor
Renal Unit - Windsor
West Berkshire Community Hospital
plus community based services e.g., maternity, respiratory, children's services.

The membership catchment area includes Reading and Wokingham, West Berkshire and District, Southern Oxfordshire and East Berkshire and District. Membership input is sought and valued because it helps with -

Market research -
- members have some experience of the organisation
- good geographical coverage to test more local issues
- to reduce risk in decision making

and in generating local interest in local ownership and the role of Governors.

So we began our tour in the renal unit, where it was explained that there are two forms of dialysis to treat kidney failure - Peritoneal Dialysis and Haemodialysis. Peritoneal Dialysis differs from Haemodialysis in the instead of the blood being purified OUTSIDE the body with an artificial kidney, the blood is purified INSIDE the body using the PERITONEUM (the membrane that lines the abdominal cavity) as a natural filter. The abdomen is filled with dialysis fluid via a catheter. The fluid then removes toxins and water from the blood through the peritoneum. The 'dirty' fluid is then drained out and replaced with new, clean fluid for further dialysis. With the equipment we were shown, this dialysis can be caried out at home by the patient. Then we were taken to the bedside of a patient who was undergoing haemodialysis and could see for ourselves how his (toxic) blood was being extarcated and replaced with new, clean blood. This form of dialysis requires regular visits to hospital, when it takes 5 hours to complete the dialysis.
We could see that the patient was happy, although he said that 5 hours was sometimes tedious.

In the cardiology unit another patient acted as 'guinea pig' so that we could be shown how the medical staff can monitor the different sections of the heart, so that abnormalities could be detected and treated. We were also shown the procedure for diagnosing disease by ultra sound, and then we saw an angiogram on screen and how angioplasty (to treat furred arteries) is carried out. One member asked, 'Does it hurt?' and those of us who had had angioplasty were able to assure him that it doesn't!

Lstly, we were shown the kitchen in the therapies unit, which we found to be very interesting indeed. Here there were all kinds of ingenious devices to ensure safety in the kitchen for patients newly-discharged from hospital, some of them with disabilities. For the visually impaired, there is a simple gadget to slip on the lip of your beaker that rings a bell when the water you are pouring into it reaches the right height. I was amazed at the progress that had been made in this section since the days when I was being discharged with my leg in plaster, etc. For instance, in order to be able to cary things when I was using my zimmer frame, I used to hang a net over the front of the zimmer frame. Now they offer patients a specially-designed plastic bowl that fits neatly on the front of the zimmer frame. This is much more accident proof! There were oddly shaped knives for patients who can't grip and use a normal knife and non-slip mats to prevent dishes sliding around on the table. I could go on about this therapeutic kitchen for ages! Then we went into the 'gym' and a member of staff used the 'treadmill' - or should I say 'walking machine' - to show on the screen how the different speeds affect the heart and indicate the degree of abnormality and the treatment required. We were assured that they wouldn't put a 90-year old on this machine!

As one member said to me over lunch, 'The more I learn about the hospital, the more i want to learn'. there is a Theatres seminar on Tuesday 23rd September, a Cancer services departmental tour on Wednesday, ist October and the Annual general Mebers' meeting on Thursday 27th November at Madejski Stadium. The Trust is keen to recruit more members and governors.

CHURCH SUPPORTS AXED FINANCIAL WORKERS

As financial districts in London and New York reeled from the collapse of investment bank Lehman Brothers and the rescue of Merrill Lynch and AIG, local church leaders opened their doors to give pastoral support. Revd Marcus Nodder, Senior Pastor at St Peter’s Barge, a floating church in Canary Wharf, said the congregation was echoing the prayer of Psalm 46, asking that shocked workers would find God to be ‘their refuge and strength’. Docklands chaplain Revd Fiona Stewart-Darling said many would be affected by the crisis ‘and it’s the Church’s job to be there for people’. In New York, Trinity Church, Wall Street is offering daily services and quiet spaces alongside career workshops for those who have lost their jobs.

Source: Church Times (19/9)

My Journey North

I've been longing to write about my trip up North for the wedding in Newcastle of my great-niece to a descendant of John Wesley (and also an exciting few days after that exploring my ancestry - but more of that later). The mother of the bride was my eldest sister's daughter, who died in 1984. I was the fifth in a family of seven!

My journey from Caversham began with a taxi ride that met with all kinds of unusual delays, leaving me with only 6 minutes to catch my train at Reading Station. There, a message was sent to ask the train to wait for my arrival and the porter whisked me quickly to the lift. But there we met another setback. The lift wouldn't come, no matter what the porter did. When it eventually came, it had been loaded up with goods by railway staff and, of course, had to be unloaded before we could get on board. So my train departed, just as I stepped out of the lift on to the platform.

That was a through train, with no changes, and missing it meant that I had to change at Birmingham New Street Station, which is notorious for difficult change-overs. However, the rail staff there, having been alerted of my plight, could not have been kinder or more helpful. I was being met at Newcastle by my nephew (son of my second eldest sister), who also lives in Newcastle, and I was glad that I had my mobile with me to tell him that I would be half-an-hour later than planned. Alas, the jinx on my journey continued when I couldn't get a signal for his mobile phone. Fortunately, he was still waiting for me when my train arrived - to our mutual relief.

My nephew had been a Town Planner for Gateshead before retirement and the first thing he did was to drive me along the quayside, explaining all the bridges and their history and showing me the buildings on the Gateshead side that he had had to deal with at planning stage. As well as the bridges, for which Newcastle is famous, I was most impressed by The Sage, an international home for music and musical discovery, and its extraordinary architecture, enhanced by its reflection in the water of the Tyne. He said he had been concerned that it should not overshadow the nearby church. My nephew then took me to the Travelodge where the bride's mother and aunt and I were to stay the night, ready for the wedding the next day.

THE RISE OF RELIGION AT BRITISH PARTY CONFERENCES

‘God talk’ is a rising phenomenon in the annual conference speeches of Britain’s party political leaders, a new survey shows. While religious beliefs play a much smaller part in UK electioneering than in the USA, an analysis by the Theos think tank reveals a steady rise in religious references over the last decade. Researchers found that Labour leaders led the way, making 98 religious references, compared with 65 for the Conservatives and 23 for the Liberal Democrats.

Last year, while referring to ‘the sermons my father preached’, Gordon Brown made 14 religious references while rallying the party faithful. Theos director Paul Woolley said the increase reflects an awareness that ‘Faith groups represent a growing constituency in society’. However, ‘Talking God is not the same as “doing God”’ in terms of ‘governing with justice and mercy,’ he said.

Sources: The Times (14/9); Church Times (19/9)

Cautious welcome for Zimbabwe power-sharing deal

Zanu-PF have reached a ‘point of weakness’

The Methodist Church and the United Reformed Church have welcomed news of the power-sharing deal reached between the Zanu-PF and MDC political parties in Zimbabwe. But they have also expressed concern about the practical realities of the deal.

Roy Crowder, Methodist Partnership Coordinator for Africa, says, ‘Clearly Zanu-PF have reached a point of weakness and cannot continue to run the country alone, possibly because their funding has run out and they can no longer afford to control the security forces. Both parties are strong in different ways. Zanu-PF holds the reins of institutional power, but the international community refuses to recognise their status. While the MDC has had no institutional control, their presence in government could unlock international aid for the reconstruction of this desperate country. Much will now depend on which party influences and controls the Zimbabwean security forces.’

“Many people have taken significant risks to outline a vision for a new Zimbabwe,’ continues Frank Kantor, Secretary for Church and Society for the United Reformed Church. ‘The country desperately needs courageous leadership to make this vision a reality and to find ways to balance the requirements of justice with those of national healing and reconciliation in Zimbabwe. The people of Zimbabwe are looking for permanent long-term change. It will be difficult for this power-sharing arrangement to deliver fundamental reforms unless it addresses this need.'

The Churches are urging people to pray for the situation in Zimbabwe and have offered the following prayer for use by individuals, groups and congregations:

Lord of order in chaos,
Bring your peace where there is no peace,
Bring your sustenance where there is no bread,
Bring your wisdom where all is in disorder,
Bring your comfort where there is fear,
Bring your justice where injustice reigns.
Bless the people and politicians of Zimbabwe
and guide them to a just and stable future.

Amen.

I have a nephew in Harare who has spent his life serving the people of Zimbabwe and has made it his country, so I watch and wait with a special inerest and concern for the success of this shared government and, hopefully, an answer to this prayer.