06 February 2005

We give the assurance of our thoughts and prayers to all who are unwell, awaiting or undergoing treatment, or anxious or grieving for the loss of loved ones.

Preparing to worship

To help produce a suitably calm & reflective atmosphere before the beginning of formal Sunday worship, it is suggested that the organ cease playing when the Steward enters with the Bible. It is hoped that this will be a signal for a time of general quiet before and as the choir, Steward and Preacher enter.

Church Council Résumé

Last Wednesday’s Council

• appointed Ian as Safeguarding Officer and discussed issues relating to safeguarding, especially for those involved with the crèche & Children’s Group
• noted the annual return of Membership of 85 as at 1.11.04
• heard appreciative report on behalf of those participating in the Come As You Are course, which is commended to others, and the hope for further opportunities for conversational sharing
• received the Worship Group report – a wish was expressed by a Council member for good support at ecumenical services generally but especially on Easter Sunday evening
• received the 5 months’ financial statement, noting steady regular giving and the helpful contributions of fund-raising and use of premises
• agreed that a “fire evacuation practice” take place immediately after the General Church Meeting
• received the Service & Mission report, noting that the Rev Graham Matthews will speak on ‘prison chaplaincy’ on Sunday 8th May when worship will start earlier
• heard reports from the Children’s Group and Link Club
• agreed the following dates
  • General Church Meeting - after worship (which will start at 10.45 am) on Sunday 29th May
  • Worship Group - Wednesday June 8th at 7.30 pm
  • Church Council - Wednesday June 22nd at 7.30 pm

Lent and Easter Ecumenical Study and Worship

1. Lent (9th February – 16th March)
   • Dundee City Centre Churches will hold a series of study groups on Thursdays at Meadowside St Paul’s, at 7.15 pm from 10th February to 10th March inclusive, using ACTS material “Voices from the South” (available from Wesley Owen). On March 17th there will be “Passover”.
   • Broughty Ferry Churches Group will hold a series of acts of worship, based on “Voices from the South”, on Wednesday evenings at 7.30 pm in different Ferry churches, with one congregation as “host” and the other joining in preparing and leading worship. Methodists are paired with Broughty Ferry Congregational friends for the worship in the Congregational Church on Wednesday 16th February. Anyone willing to help in preparing or taking part in this act of worship is asked to contact David & Jenny or Kate as soon as possible.
2. Holy Week / Easter worship (21st - 27th March)
   • Dundee City Centre Churches will share worship:
     • Maundy Thursday at 7 pm in Dundee Congregational Church
     • Good Friday Procession from St Andrew’s Cathedral to City Square at 12 noon, with “Songs of Praise” in City Square at 12.30 pm; evening worship in St Joseph’s (Catholic) Church, Wilkie's Lane, Hawkhill at 7 pm
     • Easter Sunday “Songs of Praise” in Dundee Methodist Church Marketgait at 6.30 pm
   • BFCG Services will take place each evening (21st – 27th March) at 7.30 pm in St Mary’s Episcopal Church, with participation by member congregations. The worship on Maundy Thursday will be a celebration of The Eucharist and include the washing of feet and stripping of furnishings. There will be a Paschal Service on Holy Saturday, and Easter Sunday evening will be a Praise Celebration.

Meetings this week

Support other Organisations

Scottish Bible Society

Our prayerful attention is drawn this week to

• encouragement of literacy projects and translation programmes in Tanzania
• publication of the first Pokot Bible for over 220,000 speakers in the Rift Valley region of Kenya
• demand for Amharic Bibles in Ethiopia
• production of Bible comics in French and Kirundi, read by adults and children, in Burundi
• increased provision of Bibles for thousands of prisoners in Rwanda

Make Poverty History (“MPH”)

• From Christian Aid, to be sent to the Prime Minister, relating to the forthcoming G8 Summit and Trade Justice issues
• From Traidcraft, anent EU EPAs (Economic Partnership Agreements) relating to trade protectionism / tariff issues

Forthcoming events

Prayer Points for this week

• The President-designate, Rev Tom Stukey, and the Vice-President-designate of Conference, John Bell, in their preparations for the future;
• Methodist Council, London Colney, Monday - Tuesday;
• District Local Preachers Conference, Dunblane, this weekend;
• Perth Finance and Property Committee on Wednesday;
• partners and projects in Brazil (Christian Aid);
• post-war conditions and work in Craftshare Vocational Training Centre (CVTC) in Bo, Sierra Leone (Feed The Minds);
• The Leprosy Mission’s work in Nepal and in Uzbekistan;
• Bible Society work in Cambodia;
• we pray with and for the peoples the Philippines, remembering Prechita and Precila’s families;
• we remember fellow Methodists in the Bridgewater Circuit (Plymouth & Exeter District) and in Inverness and the Highlands (Inverness Circuit).

• 30 January 2005
• 13 February 2005

© 2002—2003 Dundee Methodist Church.