6 February 2011

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.

We give the assurance of our prayerful support to all who work or are involved in the field of education, as students, chaplains, staff, administrators or policy-makers.

Methodist Prayer Handbook : 2011-12

Contributions for next year's Prayer Handbook are invited from all interested. Please send prayers and / or photographs to fit the theme “Run the Race”. For more information, contact the District Office (01786 820295) or see the papers in the plastic folder on the upstairs office noticeboard. The closing date for material to reach the District Office is Thursday 24th February.

Vacancies to be filled as soon as possible please!

There is need to make appointments now to the two following vacant posts:

• Circuit Meeting & Circuit Leadership Team Secretary (to succeed Sue Marshall-Jennings)
• Dundee Church Council Secretary (to succeed Matthew Phillips).

Please contact the Rev Mary Patterson or an appropriate Steward if you can assist with filling either vacancy (or both!)

The Library Area

One of the ways in which Clare Small, whom we greatly miss still, contributed to our life together, was through her tending of the library area. Please take time to look at the books there and borrow any that are of interest to you.

If you wish to donate or lend a book to the library, please do so - we can intimate it through the news-sheet if you wish. As books can be quite expensive, this may be a useful way of sharing resources and “holding things in common” as the Week of Prayer text exhorted! Tom has done exactly this and draws our attention to the following 2 publications he has placed in the library:

• “Unmasking Methodist Theology” of which he says “The chapters are quite short and you can dip in and out of it to hear what various members think on a range of issues - they don't always agree but it can be an interesting way of exploring your faith”
• “Operation World” - “a book with the statistics of every country on Earth in it alongside national prayer points for that country. It can complement other prayer guides and prayer manuals.”

Scottish Churches Parliamentary Office

“The SCPO was created by Scotland's churches in 1999 to help them build fruitful relationships with the Scottish Parliament and Executive (now Government). In 2005 our remit was expanded to support the churches engagement with the UK Parliament and Government”

Our District Office has drawn attention to the SCPO's recently published advice for churches wishing to hold or facilitate hustings for the forthcoming (May) Scottish Parliamentary elections.

The SCPO also provides information through

• Briefing Papers (latest on the Comprehensive Spending Review)
• Parliamentary Updates (latest - January 2011)
• Interviews (latest with Mary Scanlon MSP)
• Publication of Official Responses by the Churches (including the Methodist Church, through Bill Reid as Connexional Liaison Officer, Scotland).

For more information and to register for regular updates, see wwwactsparl.org.uk, or tel: 0131 558 8137. The Scottish Churches Parliamentary Officer is Chloe Clemmons.

Year of the Bible 2011

For MP3 users : The Bible Society campaign, “You've got the time”, is releasing the whole of the New Testament as MP3's, free for people to download and listen to. Each MP3 is 28 minutes long - users could listen to the whole New Testament in 40 days. Access via http://www.biblesociety.org.uk/support-us/ygtt-2010/

Another useful webpage is http://www.biblegateway.com/ - online copies of the Bible in many different translations and languages. Lets you quickly compare a verse or passage or search for a word in the Bible.

This week's Bible questions:

• Who made the first published German New Testament (1516) and Bible (1534)?
• Who completed an influential Greek translation of the New Testament in 1516?
• Who completed a translation of the New Testament into Bengali in 1801?

(Answers next week)

Meetings this week

Support other Organisations

Scottish Bible Society

Our support through the Bible-a-Month Club is invited for work in February for work in the Democratic Republic of Congo. See noticeboard in library area for more information.

Our prayerful attention is drawn this week to

• opening of a new depot in Sierra Leone, also positive responses hitherto to the audio Scripture and Good Samaritan programmes;
• launch of the Faith Comes by Hearing programme in Guinea;
• land for new Bible House in Mali, fundraising, peaceful elections and internal stability & security especially along the northern border;
• the new General Secretary of the United Bible Societies, Michael Perreau.

Forthcoming events

Prayer Points for this week

• The Vice-President of Conference at the Ecumenical World Development Consultation, High Leigh, next weekend;
• staff and work of Church Action on Poverty;
• all Preachers and Worship Leaders in Scotland's churches;
• members of the Circuit's churches' Pastoral Committees;
• work in the Southampton District (Methodist Homes);
• staff and students of the Nazareth School of Nursing (BibleLands);
• The Leprosy Mission's work in Nepal and Uzbekistan;
• COC Bless, working in Egypt with victims of Female Genital Mutilation (Christian Aid);
• Bible Society work in Democratic Republic of Congo;
• we pray with and for the peoples of Belgium, Luxembourg, and The Netherlands (WCC Ecumenical Calendar);
• we remember fellow Methodists in the Birmingham City Centre Project (Birmingham District) and all in Grahamston United Church, Falkirk (Central Scotland Circuit).

• 30 January 2011
• 13 February 2011

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