Silent Auction works wonders!

The Silent Auction held at Caversham heights Methodist Church for the relief of the people of Haiti raised £1,500 and the church is grateful to all those who donated items for auction and to all who helped to make it such a success.

This brings the final total raised in aid of Haiti at this church to £3,400, which includes Gift Aid, the 5 Shelterboxes (at a cost of £500 apiece) that were sent as quickly as possible, and the remainder which will be channelled through the Methodist Relief and Development Fund that has been at work in Haiti for many years.

For those who didn't see my earlier blog, each Shelterbox includes everything needed to help a family or group of ten people to survive a disaster. The following is lifted from their website and reduced to be more suitable for short items of news.

At the heart of every ShelterBox is a ten-person tent. Every box contains a children’s pack containing drawing books, crayons and pens. In addition to the tent, the boxes contain a range of other survival equipment including thermal blankets and insulated ground sheets, essential in areas where temperatures plummet at nightfall. Where malaria is prevalent mosquito nets are supplied, as well a life saving means of water purification. A basic tool kit containing a hammer, axe, saw, trenching shovel, hoe head, pliers and wire cutters can be found in every box. The box itself is lightweight and waterproof and has been used for a variety of purposes in the past - from water and food storage containers to a cot for a newly born baby.
A key piece in every box is either a wood burning or multi-fuel stove - that can burn anything from diesel to old paint. This provides the heart of the new home where water is boiled, food is cooked and families congregate. In addition, there are pans, utensils, bowls, mugs and water storage containers.

Family treasures

this post is to share some of the joys that Christmas with my two great grandchildren, Louisa and Toby, brought me.

Young men find church too girly

Church services and interiors need a more macho makeover if they are to attract men aged under 30, Christian Vision for Men (CVM) believes. A questionnaire on the movement’s website found that men cringe with embarrassment at much of church culture. Songs declaring Christ to be the ‘beautiful one I love’ use words ‘many men wouldn’t sing to their wives,’ CVM director Carl Beech explains. ‘Feminine’ decorations such as banners and flowers, robed vicars, action songs and kid’s plays, and ‘pastorally driven’ sermons and discussions all alienated young men who ‘want to know about (Jesus’) great decision making and leadership’. CVM has launched two Christian-themed men’s magazines and is calling churches to host big screen transmissions of the World Cup this summer to boost churches’ flagging male attendance.

Source: The Times (27/1)

Church establishes independent Education Commission

Church establishes independent Education Commission

Revd Dr John Barrett appointed as Chair

The Methodist Church is establishing an independent education commission, responsible for reviewing Methodism’s approach to education in Britain.

The Commission will be responsible for identifying a set of principles and a theological rationale, which underpins Methodism’s engagement with education. It will include all forms of formal education, including the Church’s responsibility for 64 state-maintained Methodist day schools and 14 independent schools across England and Wales, as well as its involvement in further education and higher education. It will also consider the Methodist approach to and involvement with informal education, including links to the Church's work with children and youth, and all forms of chaplaincy in education.

Revd Dr John Barrett has been appointed as Chair of the Commission. “Education is central to the development of both children and adults, and Methodism has always been passionate about accessible, high quality education provision,” he said. “It is important to review our approach to education and assess whether our commitment of our resources is appropriate for the responsibilities we have and to determine what our priorities should be for the future.”

John is a Methodist minister, and has extensive experience in education, having taught in a Methodist college, a theological college and having worked in schools in the UK. He recently stepped down after five years as the first Principal of the Anglo-Chinese International School in Singapore. Additionally, John is also Chair of the World Methodist Council Executive Committee, and was the first chairperson of the World Methodist Council’s Education Committee.

John would like to hear from anyone who would like to be considered for membership of the Commission or who feels they have a contribution to make to its work. Those interested are invited to register their interest by contacting the Methodist Church through the Projects, Research and Development Cluster by email: projects@methodistchurch.org.uk

The Commission will report to the Methodist Conference in 2012.

Source: Methodist News Service 25/01/2010

Methodist Haiti appeal passes £80,000 mark

A joint appeal launched by the Methodist Church and MRDF for Haiti has smashed the £80,000 barrier, which means that more than £100,000 will be donated to Haiti.

Donations to the Church’s World Mission Fund have reached more than £37,000 by this morning. The Fund gave an immediate grant of £20,000 on 13 January, and the money raised through this appeal will allow for continued support. So far, donations to MRDF have reached £46,000. Donations have come from the Methodist Church in Ireland and people all over Great Britain and will go directly to the Church in Haiti, which is distributing aid to those most in need.

Expressing his gratitude for the initial grant, Revd Gesner Paul District President of the Methodist Church in Haiti, said; “We thank you for standing near us at this time of severe difficulty and continue to count on your support by any means as we try to recover from this very traumatic disaster.”

Revd Tom Quenet, Methodist Partnership Coordinator for the Americas and the Caribbean said; “We continue to be amazed by people’s generosity. While Haiti will remain in the news for a little while, we are in it for the long haul. We will continue to work with the Methodist Church in Haiti, helping them to rebuild their lives and communities long after the news crews have gone.”

In February, Tom hopes to lead a visit by a group of British Methodist representatives to the country. This will also include Lord Griffiths of Burry Port, who was ordained in Haiti, and Haitian minister Revd Marcus Torchon, whose family have been affected by the disaster.

Donations to MRDF will also support the work being carried out by the Methodist Church in Haiti, as well as the relief efforts of the charity’s emergency partner, Action by Churches Together (ACT) International. ACT is providing counselling services and water and sanitation engineers, who will construct water purification systems and latrines that will help in the fight against cholera and other water-based diseases. Donations through both ACT and the World Mission Fund will provide food, water, blankets and tents to thousands of people, as well as other essential support to those affected by the disaster.

Kirsty Smith, MRDF Director, said; “We are deeply grateful to everyone who has supported our appeal. These gifts will help to reinforce the relief efforts on the ground. The earthquake has caused major devastation to a country that was already battling extreme poverty. Key services and institutions have been totally destroyed. We will continue to do all that we can to make a difference.”

People can donate via the Methodist Church by visiting www.justgiving.com/Methodist-Church-Haiti-Appeal, or sending a cheque payable to the World Mission Fund to Dave Bennett, Fundraising Coordinator, at Methodist Church House, 25 Marylebone Road, London, NW1 5JR. Postal donations should be labelled ‘Haiti Appeal’. For further information visit www.methodist.org.uk or contact Revd Tom Quenet on 020 7467 5160.

To donate via MRDF, visit www.mrdf.org.uk or call 020 7224 4814 to give by debit or credit card, or send a cheque made payable 'MRDF (Haiti emergency)' and to MRDF, 25 Marylebone Road, London NW1 5JR.

Source: Methodist news Service 25/01/2010

TV's Religious output

Synod motion to criticise TV’s religious output

The Church of England’s governing body is to debate the ‘sensationalist and unduly critical nature’ of TV coverage of religion. Noting that the quantity of religious programming has declined, a lay member’s motion will also lament its quality. Former BBC producer Nigel Holmes will claim at the Synod in February that even the ‘few remaining programmes’ are being marginalised. He says that the BBC’s percentage of religious output has dropped by a third in the last ten years, while ITV’s has reduced to ‘next to nothing’, and broadcasters have ‘a lack of sympathy for, and ignorance of, religion’. The Guardian commented that our ‘sneering’ media as a whole is ‘almost uniquely out-of-touch with the world of religion.’

Sources: The Guardian (18/1, 19/1); Daily Telegraph (18/1); Church Times (22/1)

http://www.guardian.co.uk/
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/

"Enough for Everyone"

THE BAPTIST UNION OF GREAT BRITAIN

THE METHODIST CHURCH IN BRITAIN

THE UNITED REFORMED CHURCH

Churches say “There is enough for everyone” - Homelessness and Poverty Action Week

There is enough for everyone – that is the message of Poverty and Homelessness Action Week beginning on January 30.

The Methodist Church in Britain, the Baptist Union of Great Britain and the United Reformed Church are supporting the awareness-raising week run by Church Action on Poverty and Housing Justice. The three churches have recommended resources produced for the campaign to be used in worship services.

Paul Morrison, Policy Adviser for the Methodist Church in Britain, said Poverty and Homelessness Action Week was especially important this year as the country prepares for a general election.

“Poverty is not just the problem of some people having too little; it’s also a problem of some people having too much,” he said.

“From the very start, Methodism has been about sharing the gospel, and sharing was not just about telling people stories, it was about having compassion for who they are and the situation that each person finds themselves in.”

Revd Dr Rosemary Kidd, Faith and Unity Coordinator of the Baptist Union of Great Britain, said: “It is quite clear that some people are paid too much but we have no mechanism by which we measure what is too much. There is enough for everyone, it’s just that wealth is poorly distributed.”

Frank Kantor, Secretary for Church and Society at the United Reformed Church, said: “We want to hear from people who wish to contribute to the debate on incomes and inequality in the UK which will be a key issue in the run up to the next election”

You can find out more on Poverty and Homelessness Action Week, and contribute to the debate via the Methodist Church website or by visiting the Homelessness and Poverty Action Week homepage: http://www.actionweek.org.uk/html/home.html

Source: Methodist News Service 22/01/2010