Youth
President questionnaire
A review
is currently being undertaken regarding the role of Youth
President. There is a questionnaire online and via the 3Gen App
to survey children and young people for their opinions. It closes
on the 5 February. Children and young people can find the
survey here.
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Audio
and Video Resources
The
Methodist Church are pleased to launch a new resource sharing a
selection of our video and audio content that can be downloaded
and used in online worship, e-newsletters or social media. We are
aiming to update the pages twice-weekly with audio reflections
and prayers from the President and Vice President and interviews
from our weekly podcast. We will aim to give you notice of the
podcast topics, although this is not always possible if we are
responding to a major story. You can find the page here.
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Action
for Children tribute to Rev'd Michael Newman
by
Angela Newey, District Advocate for AfC.
It was with sadness that we learned that Rev Michael Newman, a
supernumerary minister living in Clun, had passed away. Michael
was the last Methodist minister to become Principal of the
National Children’s Home.
After training for the ministry Michael served as a Circuit
minister and became chaplain to NCH before becoming Principal of
the charity. The sweeping changes in society of the 1960’s and
1970’s prompted a re- evaluation of how NCH was working to
provide for vulnerable children and the focus moved towards
preventative action. It was during his time as Principal he
presided over the first crucial steps in the charity’s
transformation. From 1990 NCH was headed by a Chief Executive.
Following his time with NCH Michael returned to Circuit ministry
working among rural churches in Herefordshire and it was the time
spent among the rural communities that prompted him and
Elisabeth, his wife, to retire to Clun.
Michael joined the people of Clun in their support for Action for
Children and became involved in village life.
We remember Elisabeth, their children and grandchildren in their
loss, the people of Clun who will miss his involvement in village
life and their support for Action for Children.
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Coffee
Shop Sunday free Zoom talks
We are
keen to share the story so far of Coffee Shop Sunday – a
new expression of church here in Coventry.
We would like to offer free
Zoom talks including Q an A’s about how the idea of Coffee Sop Sunday
was born 18 months ago; how it worked in Costa Coffee
for four months before lockdown; and the remarkable online
growth we have seen since April 2020. Our CSS Facebook Group
membership has increased more than five fold from 72 members to
388 and now includes members from five continents.
It would be great to share the story in a Zoom session with
groups within UK and of course, well beyond.
The PowerPoint presentation and allowing plenty of time for a
good question and answer session to learn from each other will
take at least an hour.
If you would like to hear the story please get in touch with me
and we can organise a suitable time and date for a Zoom session.
Every blessing.
Jesus
Christ - My Living Hope
Trevor
Gay
Local
Lay Pastor
Coffee
Shop Sunday - “Meeting God in an ordinary place”
Tel:
02476 221719
Mobile:
07966 388195
(Coffee
Shop Sunday is part of Coventry and Nuneaton Methodist Circuit)
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Free
Webinar - Bringing People Together to tackle isolation during
Lockdown 3
Lockdown prevents groups meeting, which affects us all, causing
more people to be isolated affecting their mental health.
Bringing People Together is a network of groups that welcome
everyone by telephone, mobile or computer all from the comfort of
their own home. There are now over 14 groups meeting weekly or
fortnightly in the Black Country, Staffordshire and Shropshire.
Each group is run by two hosts and a partner organisation who
provide the safeguarding and GDPR.
On 12th February at 10am we are holding a free webinar
called ‘Bringing People Together to tackle isolation during
lockdown 3’. When we started in July 2020 Bringing People
Together had questions that we needed to answer
- How do we get
people together when our venues are closed?
- How do we use the
new technology when not everyone has the right device or the
knowledge to connect?
- How do we grow in
confidence that we can keep people safe online?
The
National Lottery Community Fund enabled us to answer these. We
will share our learning in this webinar, where there will be an
opportunity to have your questions answered. Some of our groups
are now very well established, having been running for many
months, and we are learning the advantages of meeting online
which we hope will continue after the restrictions have lifted.
To book your free tickets bpt-webinar.eventbrite.co.uk
We still have funding to support more groups and to find out more
about joining please look at our website http://www.BringingPeopleTogether.org.uk
or contact Su Parker 07791044311
I have attached a poster if you that is useful.
All the best
Su Parker
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Lent
Retreat from Jesuits in Scotland - District Prayer Group
This
year the Jesuits in Scotland have organised an online retreat for
Lent called “Knowing Jesus". The Sunday Service on BBC
Radio 4 will be linked to this material. Each day
participants are provided with an image, a piece of music,
scripture verses, and an imaginative prayer exercise. These
are already available to see here: https://www.onlineprayer.net
The Chair is leading a weekly sharing group for up to ten people
who have committed to this daily retreat. No previous experience
of imaginative prayer is necessary to join the group.
Meetings will be on Zoom every Tuesday evening at 7pm
beginning with an introductory evening on 16th February.
The purpose will be to share reflections on the week’s
experience of prayer and to learn from one another. If you
are interested in joining, please contact the District Office as
soon as possible saying, briefly, who you are and why you would
welcome being a part of the group. Priority will be given
to people within the District and anyone is welcome to apply, lay
or ordained.
Otherwise, it’s possible to ask to join a group through the main
retreat page, or to offer to be a group leader.
Thanks
Rachel
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News
from Action for Children
Happy
New Year!
Although 2021 started with the lockdown still in place, we’re
grateful that we can continue to support children and families
through the pandemic. We cannot count our blessings without
mentioning our Methodist family. Thanks for your prayers and
bountiful support.
To read more about what your support has helped us achieve in
2020, visit our
blog on our website.
All
things Christmas – Thank you
Our heartfelt thanks to you for supporting us over Christmas. We
marvel at how churches and individuals defied the pandemic and
came up with creative ways to raise funds for us.
We were delighted to know that so many Methodists tuned in to
Starry Night, our first-ever virtual carol service. We’re
thrilled to say that overall we sold tickets to 882 households
and raised £31,453!
Our Secret Santas will also be pleased to know that our 2020
appeal raised over £1 million. By getting festive and supporting
our appeal, you’ve made a life-changing difference to children
and their families.
Our Chief Executive, Trustee and the children we support recorded
this video message for you: http://bit.ly/AfCThankU
Count
Your Blessings
What will you be doing this Lent? We’d like you to join us for 40
days of making life better for children across the UK.
We’ve created an inspiring calendar
of activities. Each day, you’ll be asked to do
something meaningful. It might be giving money to those in need,
saying a prayer for a child, or spreading the word about our
work. So, download your copy from our website: http://bit.ly/AfC-Lent.
Blessings and peace,
Karis
Kolawole
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District
Resources for Racial Justice Sunday
“Who is
my neighbour? What is my Calling?”
The District is producing resources to mark Racial Justice Sunday
thanks to the work of Equality, Diversion and Inclusion (EDI)
advisers Rev’d Molly Chitokwindo and Liz Dean. A full
service of worship will be available on Youtube for churches and
Circuits to adopt in its entirety. Separate elements of the
service will also be made available for those who would like to
incorporate these into their own planned act of worship.
Please contact Richard at admin@wsmethodist.org.uk to find
out what will be on offer and to register to receive various
elements as they become available.
Many people from across the District will be taking part.
The address will be delivered by the Rev’d Dr Paul Nzacahayo and
a reflection on the way forward for the Church will be offered by
Dr Rachel Starr, a member of the Wolverhampton Circuit and Tutor
in Biblical Studies at the Queen’s Foundation.
Materials will be available by the end of the month. Separate
resources from Churches Together in Britain and Ireland (CTBI)
should also be available from the end of January on their website
https://ctbi.org.uk
Racial Justice Sunday is normally observed on the second Sunday
in February. With this being Valentine’s Day this year, we
recognised that some churches may wish to move this to Feb
7th. However what matters more than the specific date is
that churches recognise and reflect upon God’s call to racial
justice within the context of worship.
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New
round of "God is with us" grants
Every
Circuit responded to the District invitation to bless their
communities at Christmas through the availability of small grants
and 27 different projects were enabled. In this short video
https://youtu.be/KDYwJ3Diu7I
a sample of these are celebrated and a new round of grants is
launched to coincide with Valentines Day, Thinking Day and
Mothering Sunday. Anyone with a creative, missional idea
which will bless people on the fringes of, or beyond the usual
congregation* can apply for a grant of up to £150 with the
agreement of the Superintendent Minister. Grants are
limited to 3 per Circuit. It’s essential that activity does
not breach lockdown restrictions nor increase chances of
Coronavirus transmission but, with careful planning, much may
still be achieved.
Click here
for a grant form.
*We recognise the huge importance of offering support and
pastoral care to Church members and recognise the value of the
work that is being done across the District . However these
grants invite churches and Circuits to go beyond that.
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District
Children's Support Fund
The funding allocated
specifically to the support of children and families in the
District - particularly those experiencing some form of
deprivation - is still open to accept applications at the moment.
Are there projects you might consider which could offer
support even during the lockdown?
The
maximum amount of any claim is £500 and a Church can apply at any
time using the attached form
and send it electronically to Tim Lorimer who will process your
application and give a decision within six weeks of receipt. The
application will need the support of the hosting Church and
circuit superintendent. Church’s cannot apply for retrospective
funding.
We would hope that individuals and groups that have contributed
in the past to the Holiday Fund will still wish to do so knowing
that there money will still be used for Children’s Projects.
For more information please contact Tim Lorimer
on lorimertim@yahoo.co.uk
07971899084.
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