Being Methodist in our Christian Life in Scotland today

All Methodist churches in Scotland, indeed UK-wide, are being asked to consider their future – either a plan for growth or a plan for an end.

We have arranged two meetings –

  • Tuesday 4th December  7pm-9pm
  • Sunday 20th January after worship and lunch

in which we hope as many of our congregation as possible will participate in discussion of our future together.

The Scottish District of the Methodist Church has produced a short leaflet outlining the issues. Please read this, and consider how you see the Methodist community moving forwards.

Church Council brief résumé

Council members and several others attended.

Matters agreed were:

  • appointment for a further year of Council Secretary (Margaret), Church Treasurer (David) & Pastoral Secretary (Jenny);
  • conversation by the whole church on important issues raised in the paper “Being Methodist in our Christian Life in Scotland today” (copies available) – open meetings on Tuesday 4th December from 7pm-9pm and Sunday 20th January (over / after ‘faith lunch’);
  • property redevelopment;
  • Financial Statements formally accepted;
  • increased frequency of Council meetings;
  • note of decision for upstairs worship;
  • Christmas Service on 25thDecember at 10.30am; tree erected 8th December;
  • Council date (before Circuit Meeting) – Thursday 27th February at 7pm.

Communion Offering in November

The Church Council on  Wednesday decided that, as part of the commemorations of the centenary of the ending of World War I, there would be no Communion Offering on 4thNovember but encouragement be given for generous contributions to a Retiring Offering on Sunday November 11t(Armistice Sunday itself); the proceeds would be divided between 2 charities associated with support for victims of warfare (chosen charities to be publicised next Sunday).

All We Can working with partner churches

All We Can recognises that churches have unique strengths that potentially make them ideal partners in the field of relief and development, particularly when working with local communities. These include their closeness to, and legitimacy with, those in need; their long-term presence; their ability to mobilise sustainable voluntary commitment from members; and their potential for local and global advocacy. For many churches and individual Christians responding to injustice and poverty, helping poor and disadvantaged communities to overcome their difficulties and live life to the full are central to their response to the experience of God’s love.

See how All We Can is working with partner churches.

Indonesian Earthquake

Over 800 people are estimated to have died, thousands have been made homeless and over 1.5 million individuals are affected by the recent 7.5-magnitude quake and 18ft tsunami waves hitting parts of Sulawesi.

Appeals for aid are in place with work already being done:

Christian Aid is supporting the delivery of food, shelter, clean water, sanitation and other relief supplies in the city of Paul and the district of Donggala, two of the worst-hit areas.  This is coordinated by YEU and CWS, fellow members of the global ACT Alliance network (a global alliance of 146 churches and related organisations working together in over 120 countries).

Similarly, requests for prayer support have been made by many religious and faith leaders, including the General Secretary of the World Council of Churches, Rev Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, and the President and Vice-President of Conference, Rev Michaela Youngson and Bala Gnanapragasam.

Appeal from the Methodist Church in Britain and All We Can.

All We Can harvest appeal

All We Can Harvest
Harvest donations to support the work of the Methodist Relief and Development Agency can be made through return of envelopes in the offering plate in the next 2 weeks. Total so far (excluding Gift Aid additions) – £68.00.

Piano downstairs

The Stewards Team has undertaken a consultation by email this week to ascertain whether there is general agreement to our passing on the piano in the “L” shape room to the Eagles Wings organisation, a group referring people to the ClothesBank. (The suggestion arose out of a ClothesBank experience.) If anyone has knowledge that the piano was donated by an individual or family (possibly in Ward Road days), please advise Sue Marshall-Jennings or any Church Steward as soon as possible.  Similarly, please express support or concerns about this proposal to the Stewards Team as soon as possible.  Please spread the word to anyone who may have not have been included already by this consultation.

 

Fairtrade – Who picked my tea?

Many British blends include tea from Assam, where people get poverty wages, are scared to speak up and have no way out. The big British brands know this but aren’t doing enough to challenge it.

Traidcraft’s campaign calls on the big UK tea brands to publish their list of suppliers from Assam.

“Twinings have become the second big UK tea brand to publish their list of suppliers from Assam – a key demand of our campaign.  This follows on from Yorkshire Tea’s decision to publish their list in June.  Together Twinings and Yorkshire make up nearly one-third of the UK tea market so these are significant steps forward.

More than seven thousand people have sent in ‘Who picked my tea?’ postcards and taken our online action targeting the big 6 UK tea brands.  This has spurred the brands into action to publish their lists of Assam tea estates in full.

We now need to push the remaining four – PG Tips, Tetley, Typhoo, and Clipper – to do likewise so that British consumers and tea workers in Assam know where the big UK brands buy their tea from.