ST ALBAN S CHURCH COPENHAGEN

Transcription

1 ST ALBAN S CHURCH COPENHAGEN MAGAZINE FOR THE ANGLICAN CHURCH IN DENMARK September October

2 St Alban s bi-monthly magazine is published 6 times a year by: JESPERSEN TRYK, Ved Langebro 1,2300 København S. mail@jespersentryk.dk It is available on our website: and Maria Kvan Mortensen kindly distributes it by post to members of our Anglican community who cannot receive it electronically. Copies are always available in church for collection. Saint Alban's Church follows the Danish copyright law. If we have unintentionally published something without permission, please contact us. Managing Editor: Revd Darren McCallig (Chair of Communications Team) Editor: Claire Campbell Clausen Regular photographers: Beverly Lloyd-Roberts, Anita Wales, Pauleen Bang, John Nicholson, Mia Enns and Editor. Contributions, articles and photographs are gratefully received. Cover photo by Bev Lloyd-Roberts ~ 2 ~

3 WORSHIP IN SEPTEMBER & OCTOBER 2017 ST ALBAN S CHURCH, COPENHAGEN The Anglican Parish of Saint Alban's covers the whole of Denmark, with Saint Alban's Church in Copenhagen gathering for the Eucharist at every Sunday and Wednesday. The Chaplain s final Sunday service at Saint Alban s will be Sunday 24 September. If you use a hearing aid, please use the T-switch to connect to the loop system. Coffee and tea is served after the Sunday service. All are welcome. The Sunday school starts at 10:25. Children wishing to join Sunday school will meet at 10:25 at the Font. After opening prayers children will accompany the Sunday school leaders to the Upper Room, returning to their parents in time for communion. Baptisms are held on the 1st Sunday of each month except during Lent and Advent. The services in the next couple of months are as follows: The services in the next couple of months are as follows: Wednesday 30 August at Sunday 3 September at 9.00 Sunday 3 September at Wednesday 6 September at Sunday 10 September at 9.00 Sunday 10 September at Sunday 10 September at Wednesday 13 September at Sunday 17 September at 9.00 Sunday 17 September at Wednesday 20 September at Sunday 24 September at 9.00 Sunday 24 September at Wednesday 27 September at Sunday 1 October at Wednesday 4 October at Sunday 8 October at Wednesday 11 October at Sunday 15 October at Wednesday 18 October at Morning Prayer, Mrs. Jane Passant Morning Prayer Twelfth Sunday after Trinity, The Revd Darren McCallig Holy Communion Morning Prayer Thirteenth Sunday after Trinity, The Revd Palle Thordal Second Sunday Service Holy Communion Morning Prayer Fourteenth Sunday after Trinity, The Revd Darren McCallig Holy Communion Morning Prayer Harvest Thanksgiving, The Revd Darren McCallig Holy Communion Sixteenth Sunday after Trinity Holy Communion Seventeenth Sunday after Trinity Holy Communion Eighteenth Sunday after Trinity Holy Communion ~ 3 ~

4 Sunday 22 October at Wednesday 25 October at Sunday 29 October at Wednesday 1 November at Sunday 5 November at Nineteenth Sunday after Trinity Holy Communion Simon and Jude, Apostles Holy Communion All Saints Day Remember: Second Sunday Service The Second Sunday afternoon service is being continued at Saint Alban s in As its title suggests, the Second Sunday Service it is held on the Second Sunday of each month at Different styles of worship will be undertaken each time, with the Saint Alban s Licensed Readers and Readers in Training taking the lead. STALBAN'S CHURCH IN JUTLAND We also have three English-speaking congregations in Jutland, in partnership with the local Danish Church, that gather on these dates: AARHUS Monthly: Møllevangskirke at Sunday 29th October at 18:00. Sunday 26th November at 18:00 Sunday 17th December at 18:00. Nine Lessons and Carols. Further details from Angela Hansen. angelabream@yahoo.dk Services are also held - in conjunction with the Danish Church - in Løget Kirke, Vejle on the second Sunday of the month at and occasionally at Jellling Kirke. Contact Deacon Christophe Ndikuriyo. chndi2011@gmail.com ~ 4 ~

5 MESSAGE FROM OUR CHAPLAIN My dear friends, It is with a great deal of sadness, but also with a great sense of thankfulness, that I write my final From the Chaplain piece for our parish magazine. I am very sorry to be leaving Denmark and the many, many wonderful people in our congregations. A little less than three years is not nearly long enough to get the full Saint Alban s experience! However, I am deeply grateful for the support you gave me as your priest during that time, and for the great privilege it was to minister with you and alongside you. In my very first sermon as Chaplain I expressed the hope that Saint Alban s would be a safe place to do risky things in Christ s service. My hope, I said, was that our church community would be a place where we are inspired, supported and empowered to do such risky things as loving ourselves, or loving others as ourselves; risky things like voicing our doubts, or sharing our deepest longings; risky things like drawing a line under our past, and stepping into the future with hope. Now, I find that I myself am in just such a vulnerable and risky place as I prepare to move home, country and job for the second time in three years. It is a situation that many of you know all too well. So, please can I ask you to pray for me, as I will continue to pray for you. May God give us the grace to persevere in taking risks for the Gospel, and may we face the future with faith, hope and love knowing that the future is, ultimately, in God s hands. As Julian of Norwich said, All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well. God bless you all. Darren ~ 5 ~

6 THANKSGIVING FOR OUR HARVEST BOUNTY FAREWELL TO OUR CHAPLAIN This year s Harvest Thanksgiving Service will be held on Sunday 24 September at and will be followed by a bountiful feast. The idea is to thank God for the plenty that is all around us and to share some of it with each other. This year we are asking you to be extra generous. Firstly we would like you to bring non-perishable goods which can later be donated to charitable groups in Copenhagen. These gifts will be used to decorate the church. They will be blessed during the service and later distributed. Secondly, as this will also be the Chaplain s final Sunday service at Saint Alban s it will be followed by a Farewell Feast in the form of a pot luck lunch. Please bring a dish to share, which Claire and Maria will take care of before the service. Drinks will be 'on the house. Please add your name, and what you can bring, to the sign-up sheet in the narthex. If you can help set up and/or tidy away, many hands make light work. ~ 6 ~

7 HARVEST FESTIVAL IN AARHUS and a chance for our brothers and sisters in Aarhus to say goodbye to Darren. Møllevangs church in Arhus was decorated with Harvest Festival offerings of food and toys which were distributed to charities in Aarhus. The congregation had also arranged a farewell supper for our Chaplain Darren, who has done so much to grow the church in Aarhus and to increase the number of services. ~ 77 ~

8 FOR YOUR DIARY: Parish Visit to Hvidovre Mosque Eriksminde Alle 2, 2650 Hvidovre Sunday 29th Oct 2017 at 2:00pm to: 3:30pm Following a visit by Darren to the Nusrat Djahan Mosque in Hvidovre in June 2016, all members of the congregation have the opportunity to visit the Ahmadiyya mosque. It seats only about 120 and is the oldest Muslim institution in Denmark. It is the only mosque built specifically for its purpose, by the architect J Zachariasen. They are opening their doors to us for an afternoon visit on 29th October at The timing means that following our Sunday service on that day, those interested can board the Bus 1A from Churchillparken which stops directly outside the door of the mosque. It is hoped that we will be hosted by Imaduddin Malik who coordinates visits. We will hear about the architecture, Islamic sacred items of interest plus a general introduction on Islam. There is no charge for the visit but individuals will need to cover their own travel and a possible donation towards mosque funds. A sign-up sheet will be placed in the church early in September and the list will remain open until Sunday 17th October. ~ 8 ~

9 ENTERING INTO WHAT IS THERE PARISH RETREAT FOR SAINT ALBAN S CHURCH Time flies and we do not always have the opportunity to find peaceful moments of calm in our lives in which to deepen our relationship with God. This parish retreat is a chance to set aside a couple of days together in a tranquil and beautiful setting with the focus on entering into the Divine presence and reflecting with God on what is important to us. There will be daily services and we will be led into both meditative and contemplative prayer. There will also be time for our own prayer and meditation. The majority of the retreat will be in silence, giving us a chance to connect with ourselves and God in new ways to enter into what is there. I hope that many will want to join in this adventure of discovery which will renew us both as individuals and as a church community. ~ 9 ~

10 Practical Information There is limited space, so the earlier you sign up and pay the more certain you are to get a place. Time: Arrival noon on Friday, September 29 th, leaving noon on Sunday, October 1st Place: Sct. Birgitta Convent, Refshalevej 81, 4930 Maribo roughly 1½ hours drive from Copenhagen. Close to a lake and within walking distance of the old cathedral. Mostly single rooms two doubles available. All rooms have private bathrooms with a shower. We will try to arrange car pooling so no one should have to go by public transport unless wishing to do so. Price: DKK pr. person. If you would like to come, but cannot afford it, please speak to the Chaplain, as we would like you to attend anyway. If you are able to pay more than the cost, you can enable others to come along by doing so. A deposit of DKK along with the sign-up sheet secures a place as long as there are places left. The remainder of the price can be paid in August. Children: As this is a silent retreat, it is not suitable for children. Hopefully, future years will present possibilities for a variety of parish retreats including children. Payment: Payment can be made into the Saint Alban s Church bank account marking it Retreat and including your name. The account number is: Payment can also be made by Mobile Pay marking it Retreat. The number is If you are prevented from going, you can get your money refunded up until the end of August. Sign-up: The sign-up sheet, which can be downloaded from our website, can be handed to the Chaplain or Ursula Sonnewald by hand, or sent to Ursula by mail: usonnewald@gmail.com Questions: If you have questions about the practicalities of the retreat, please contact Ursula Sonnewald: / usonnewald@gmail.com *** ~ 10 ~

11 THE SAINT ALBAN S STUDENT AND YOUNG ADULTS GROUP The Saint Alban s Student and Young Adults Group has had a make over. It will now be known as the First Thursday Group a group of 18 to 45 year olds who meet on the first Thursday of most months to socialize, read books together, go to the cinema or discuss life, theology and the Church. Our next meeting will be on 14 September at at the Church (Yes, we realise it s not a "First Thursday"!). After that, we plan to revert to doing "what it says on the tin" and meet on the first Thursdays of October, November and December (that's 5 October, 2 November and 7 December). For further information, contact Joakim (Children, Youth and Student Worker) at joakim@st-albans.dk ~ 11 ~

12 BLESSING OUR FURRY AND FEATHERED FRIENDS For those who loved the first service we held last September for the Blessing of Pets, put this date in your diary: 8 October 2015 at (A Second Sunday Service) The tradition of animal or pet blessings is linked to the example of Saint Francis of Assisi and his love for all God s creatures. Francis, whose feast day is 4 October, wrote a Canticle of the Creatures, an ode to God s living things: All praise to you, O Lord, for all these brother and sister creatures. Everyone is welcome to bring their dogs, cats, hamsters, goldfish, etc. to receive a special blessing at this service. ~ 12 ~

13 CHILDREN, YOUTH AND STUDENT WORKER APPOINTED AT SAINT ALBAN S Saint Alban s is pleased to announce the appointment of a Children, Youth and Student Worker. Mr. Joakim Steiner-Johnsen has been selected to grow and develop the Church s ministry with children, young people and young adults. A theology student at the University of Copenhagen, Joakim has previously worked for the Danish Bible Society and as a substitute teacher at Faaborg Sundskole. He has also assisted with confirmation classes and youth services at Faaborg Church and served as a tutor at the University of Copenhagen, integrating new students into the Faculty of Theology. His interests include running, football and table tennis as well as playing the drums, guitar and piano. Welcoming the appointment, the Chaplain, the Revd Darren McCallig said, We are delighted to have Joakim as part of the team at Saint Alban s. He brings many gifts and qualities to this new position, and we are looking forward to extending our ministry to children, youth and students in the months ahead. Commenting on his new post, Joakim said, I'm very much looking forward to working here at Saint Alban's. I'm so glad for the opportunity to be a part of the development of the church, and I can't wait to get started and get to know you all. ***** Luke 18: And they brought unto him also infants, that he would touch them: but when his disciples saw it, they rebuked them. 16 But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God. 17 Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein. Children s Ministry is a central part of the work and witness of St Alban s with our Sunday School meeting most Sundays throughout the year. If you ve had a child at Sunday School and would like to join the mailing list to receive news about upcoming activities, then let us know. The address is: sundayschool@st-albans.dk ~ 13 ~

14 HAVE YOU MOVED RECENTLY? More importantly, have you told us? If you are reading this, you are most likely to be a member of the wider St Alban s church family. You are valuable to us. We want to make sure you receive information about activities, news and people. St Albans is facing a time of change while we find a new chaplain. You will want to hear progress and news about this too. Please make sure that any changes to your address, address, telephone, etc. are given to Pauleen Bang, our Electoral Roll Officer. electoralroll@st-albans.dk will find her. St Alban s modernised! We are out there! We are on-line, on-phone and on-tablet! Facebook, Twitter and various other social media outlets are (almost) drowning in their own success, all thanks to Pauleen Bang. The growth is amazing. Since our last edition, Pauleen has received several offers of help, for which she is really grateful. If you enjoy being at the sharp end of the action, and feel this is something you too could help with even just once or twice a week, please contact Pauleen via any of these social media outlets. ~ 14 ~

15 THE DANISH SCHEME. There is a War Memorial on the wall of St. Alban's Church just above the font in the children's corner. It is for the British soldiers who died in Copenhagen on their way back to Britain in at the end of World War 1. An English lady, Amanda Collinson, came to the Remembrance Day Service in the church in November 2016 with her husband Phil. They had come from England solely to attend the service as she had found her grandfather's diary, written when he was a prisoner of war during World War 1, , and he had mentioned St Alban's Church. He was Lance Corporal Walter E. Walker and had been held prisoner on the border between Belgium and France for several months in After the war British soldiers were repatriated to Britain via Denmark with the help of the Danish Scheme. This wonderful Scheme is relatively unknown. It was organised by the British Military Personnel stationed in Copenhagen, the British and Danish Red Cross and the Danish Government. The Danish Scheme arranged for the ships Kong Haakon and Dronning Maud to sail between Copenhagen and Stettin in Poland repeatedly, to bring former British prisoners of war to Denmark so that they could travel to Britain. About 40,000 British soldiers were brought to Denmark in this amazing way in just over two months from November 17, 1918 to January 22, Some of the soldiers were very ill and several died. The soldiers who died are buried in Vestre Cemetery in Copenhagen and the choir of St. Alban's attended some of the funerals. The priest of the church at that time held a service, or services, for some of the soldiers who were on their way back to Britain. It was a pleasure for me to meet Amanda and hear of this fantastic Scheme. Val Kristensen ~ 15 ~

16 SUMMER FETE 2017 Reports of the annual St Alban s summer fete must always begin and end with a warm THANK YOU! Thanks for coordination to Philip Davies and Rosemary Bohr; thanks to all who were responsible for the many stalls; thanks to the tea tent team, many of whom were new to the huge task; thanks to the beer and barbeque team; thanks for the music, for the children s fun, for the generosity of the patrons and visitors, and for the multitude of unsung, unnamed donors of books, jams, cakes, scones, sandwiches, 2 nd hand goods the list goes on and on. Besides being a fundraising event for St Albans, which nets, on average, Dkk 50,000 depending on the weather, this is a social event enjoyed by many in the wider expatriate community and an increasing number of Danes and tourists. It is hard work for the few and great fun for the many. So warmest thanks are appropriate - every year! ~ 16 ~

17 Without the Tea Tent there would be no chance to socialise also with dogs! Produce, cakes, bottles, raffle, jams and of course, no fete without marmalade! Books, books, books galore Books absolutely everywhere! ~ 17 ~

18 Children won the tradtional tug-o-war but the bouncy giraffe was a special treat. Gift Girls have fun selling their old and new wares; the Garden girls do too. The beer and BBQ boys are constantly in demand, esp. if in 17thC costume! ~ 18 ~

19 Sermon preached by the Chaplain on Sunday 27 August 2017, the Eleventh Sunday after Trinity, Peter: The Rocky Road to Sainthood. Matthew 16: 18. Jesus said, You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it. This morning I want to talk to you about Peter the Apostle Peter, Saint Peter. Now, the first thing to say is that Peter wasn t Peter s original name. No. Peter started off life with the name his parents gave him which was Simon. Or, to be more precise, Simon, son of Jonah because that s how they usually named people back then, after their father Simon, Son of Jonah. And, as you know, Simon son of Jonah was like his brother Andrew a fisherman by trade, a fisherman on the Sea of Galilee. That s to say that Simon was a fishermen until that fateful day Jesus walked by and said those immortal words Come Follow Me. Come follow me, and instead of fishing for fish, I will make you fish for people. And so the Gospel of Mark tells us Simon and his brother Andrew immediately dropped what they were doing, put aside their fishing nets and went and followed Jesus. Then, fast forward a bit well, fast forward a fair bit! and we come to today s Gospel and one of the great high points in the life of Simon Son of Jonah. You see, by this stage in the story, Jesus was gaining quite a reputation for himself. Jesus had been preaching and teaching and healing and gathering enormous crowds eager to see what he might do next. And people were also beginning to wonder, Who exactly is this guy? Is Jesus a prophet maybe, like Elijah or Jeremiah? Is he perhaps another of those prophets sent from God to remind us of how we should be living? Or is he perhaps John the Baptist come back to life come back to life to finish the work he d been doing before King Herod had him put to death. There was lots of such speculation. So as we just heard in today s Gospel reading one day when they were at Caesarea Philippi, Jesus asked the Disciples, Well, what do you think? Jesus said something like and I m paraphrasing here Jesus said, You ve heard what other people are saying. But I want to hear what you think. After all, you are the closest people to me. You know me more than most. So, what do you say? Who do you say that I am? Now, the Gospel text doesn t say this, but I imagine that that big question was followed by a few seconds of uncomfortable silence. I picture the Disciples standing there, each one of them not wanting to be the one to say the wrong thing. I picture each one of them shifting uneasily from foot to foot, keeping their eyes down and scuffing the ground with their sandals. Anyway whether after an ~ 19 ~

20 uncomfortable silence or not Simon did speak up and give an answer: You are the Messiah, he said to Jesus, You are the Son of the Living God. And that was the moment when according to the Gospel writer Matthew that was the moment when Simon Son of Jonah got his new name. Blessed are you, said Jesus, For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it. Now, I should explain that there s a little word play, a lovely little pun in that sentence which gets lost in the English translation. You see in the original Greek, the word we translate as Peter and the word we translate as rock are one and the same word Petros in the masculine form and Petra in the feminine. So, the original Greek goes something like this: Jesus says, You are Petros (Rock) and on this Petra (Rock) I will build my church. Clever eh? Anyway, basically, from now on Simon is Peter, Simon is Petros, Simon is the Rock. Now, it was quite a thing for Jesus to call Simon Peter a Rock, don t you think? Even today, to say to someone You are my rock is quite a compliment, isn t it? You are my rock. In other words, you are the one I can always rely on to be there rock solid, dependable, unwavering, steadfast. You are my rock. Yes, it was quite a thing for Jesus to call Simon Peter a rock. But there s always a but. The thing is that Jesus may have called Peter a Rock, but as we know from the rest of the New Testament Peter was rocky, very rocky, much more often than he was rock solid. I m sure you remember some of Peter s rocky moments. There was the time, for example, when Peter asked Jesus how often we should forgive someone maybe as much as seven times suggested Peter, trying to be all magnanimous. No, said Jesus, not seven times, but seventy times seven times. And that s just for starters yikes! Or there was that other time, at the Last Supper, when Peter initially refused to allow Jesus to wash his feet the Master washing the feet of the Disciple no way, never, said Peter. Well, said Jesus, and again I m paraphrasing here Get over yourself Peter, we all must wash each other s feet around here. Or, perhaps most famously of all, there was that time later that same night when Peter said that there was nothing he wouldn t do for Jesus, in fact he would lay down his life for Jesus. Only, the thing was, just a few hours later, Peter denied, angrily denied three times, that he even knew him. Oh dear, not so much rock solid as rock bottom! And yet, and yet, as we also know, Peter did come good in the end. Peter did go on to give his all, give his life for his Faith. Church Tradition tells us that Peter was put to death crucified upside down by the Roman Emperor ~ 20 ~

21 Nero during a persecution of Christians in the year 64. So, Peter did come good in the end. Peter became Saint Peter. All of which makes we wonder, what happened? What happened to change Peter from oh so rocky to rock solid? Well, there are many answers to that question. But here s one answer for you. Here s my hunch. You see, one day in Caesarea Philippi Peter did indeed give the correct answer to the question of who Jesus is. But, I think that it took more than one day. In fact I think it took many, many days, for Peter to even begin to understand what that correct answer might mean. For example, I think it took Peter many days to realise that keeping a count of how often we forgive others is a waste of time. God doesn t keep a scorecard and neither should we. I think it took Peter many days to realise that we are linked not ranked. Linked to each other, and not ranked above and below each other. And so we all must wash each other s feet. We must all serve and be served. And I think ultimately that it was only when Peter saw how Jesus gave his life away in love for others, that he himself found the courage to do the same. And I think that what was true for Peter is also true for us. In a few moments, we will stand rather like Peter did that day in Caesarea Philippi and we will give the correct answer to the question of who Jesus is. We ll say the Nicene Creed. We ll say that Jesus is the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, true God from true God. We will give the correct answer. But I suspect that, rather like Peter, it will also take us a lifetime to begin to understand what that correct answer really means. I suspect that it will also take us a lifetime to grow into our calling to love God and to love each other. And I suspect in fact I guarantee that we will have many, many rocky moments along the way. So, let me say this to you: Whether you are here this morning because your faith is rock-solid, or whether you are here this morning because you are going through a rocky patch, please know that you are not alone. Please know that there is Grace, a Power, a Love within, beneath and beyond all things, which is the Ultimate Rock which holds us all when we hit rock bottom. Please know that there is as the old hymn puts it a Rock of Ages, an Eternal Rock which holds fast no matter what. Peter through all his ups and downs Peter came to know and trust that Steadfast and Unshakeable Love. I hope and pray that we will too. In Jesus s name. Amen. ~ 21 ~

22 WHO IS THIS MOTELY CREW??* No, they haven t hired this three-master ship ready for their holiday. This is the Church Council, captained by our Archdeacon, Colin Williams (centre front), about to embark upon a busy morning working on the Parish Profile and the other important documents for the Diocese, so that we can find (another) perfect priest! * A motley crew is an informal expression for a roughly organized assembly of individuals of various backgrounds, appearance, and character. Typical examples of motley crews are pirates, college fraternities, Western posses, rag-tag mercenary bands, freedom fighters, and IT support teams (and us? ). ~ 22 ~

23 UNITED PARISH AID ecumenical cooperation in DK Earlier this year Saint Alban s Church was accepted as a member of Samvirkende Menighedsplejer, or United Parish Aid (UPA) as it is known in English. This development was a wonderful example of ecumenical cooperation as Saint Alban s is the very first non Folkekirke parish to be a member of UPA. About 370 Danish Church parishes are affiliated to the organisation. Established in 1902, UPA aims to offer help and support to anyone experiencing personal or social difficulties. It does this through a series of programmes which focus on the needs of the elderly, the housebound, those with disabilities or chronic illness, and those with significant financial challenges. UPA also has 35 second hand shops throughout Denmark and total volunteer numbers are estimated at around For information on UPA and its range of services and supports please get in touch with either: Jane Passant (jane.passant@yahoo.com) or the Revd Palle Thordal (palle@thordal.com) as they are our designated contact persons. DMcC ~ 23 ~

24 As many of you listen to, and watch DR (Danmark s Radio) transmissions, I thought you might like to read the following open letter, which I have translated. Our Ecumenical Officer, Anne-Marie Sweeney, will keep us posted on the outcome of this media approach. CCC Open letter to the management of Danmarks Radio - DR: (and the press) THE DANISH COUNCIL OF CHURCHES EXPRESS CONCERN OVER DR S COVERAGE OF FAITH AND CHRISTIANITY Over the years DR has provided serious coverage of faith and Christianity, which has made a considerable contribution to the general publics understanding of these issues. Lately however, we are now experiencing that this coverage has been watered down, which we find worrying. Specific programmes about faith and Christianity with knowledgeable, qualified hosts, who ask significant and intelligent questions, are being scrapped to make room for more general programmes where faith, existence, history and cultural heritage are being poured into the same melting pot. This leads to a gradual and unnoticeable down-prioritisation of faith and Christianity. The number of hours given to faith and existence material on P1 is, according to DR s own status reduced from 320 hours in 2010 to 262 hours in Nevertheless DR continues to maintain that spiritual issues in particular, religion and existential questions are so important for P1, that there should be greater focus on them. But this must only take place as part of the general/public broadcasting programming. This causes us to ask the following four questions for which we would like an answer: 1. How can one scrap programmes on specific subjects, and at the same time maintain that there will be increased coverage of them? 2. How can one ensure that faith and Christianity will continue to feature regularly on the general transmission platforms, and at a level that is not random and sporadic? 3. How will it be possible to retain knowledgeable and competent hosts on a programme platform where faith and Christianity no longer have their own programmes? ~ 24 ~

25 4. Why hasn t faith and church not been included in the forthcoming, preannounced re-prioritisation of cultural material in 2018? In the general community we are experiencing a growing interest for faith and spirituality. 76 % of Danish people are members of the state church (Evangelical Lutheran Ed.) and over 100,000 people go to church every week. This should be reflected by DR in weekly programmes which focus on faith and discuss it on its own merits. Minister of Culture, Mette Bock, has previously spoken out that she is puzzled and concerned that DR needs to be dragged, pushed, cajoled and threatened to deliver the form of basic public service that deals with faith and existence and that it is clearly considered by DR as sour, boring obligation material. We agree with her and are also concerned. In the forthcoming Media negotiations this cultural requirement be clearly and unequivocally defined, in order to prevent coverage of faith and Christianity from quietly and finally crumbling out of existence. The Danish Council of Churches is the national advisory council in Denmark with 15 church communities and 41 religious organisations affiliated to it. This approach to DR has been approved by a majority of all member churches of the Council at a meeting help on 20 August Read more at For further information please contact Secretary General Mads Christoffersen at mc@danskekirkersraad.dk or phone him on *** SAFEGUARDING IS OUR RESPONSIBILITY Safeguarding is a priority here. We are committed to following government and Church of England guidelines on safeguarding children and vulnerable adults and good working practice, including safer recruitment of volunteers and paid workers.we work to a formal safeguarding policy and procedure it can be seen on request from our Safeguarding Officers (contact details below). If you have any concerns regarding the safety or welfare of a child or vulnerable adult you can speak to: Ian Carter, Safeguarding Manager for the Diocese in Europe Diocesan Office Telephone: +44 (0) Or either of the two Saint Alban s Safeguarding Officer: Christopher Osborn byfieldb@gmail.com Telephone: ~ 25 ~

26 THE FUTURE OF THIS MAGAZINE The last edition of this magazine asked you the following questions: 1. Would you like to continue to receive this magazine as a printed booklet every two months? 2. Would you be unhappy if it appeared quarterly instead of bi-monthly? 3. Would you be happy to receive a monthly printed sheet of A3 paper, folded, which only contained the main, up-coming events and a message from the Chaplain? 4. Should we agree to stop production of a hardcopy magazine or leaflet altogether? First of all I should like to thank all those who responded, for their encouragement and their informative messages. It was heart-warming to read that people still enjoy holding the magazine in their hands, and that they enjoy reading about what St Alban s has planned, and reports of what our church has been doing over the previous months. Results: -In general people want to continue to receive, or take and read, a magazine. -It would seem that a quarterly magazine would be sufficient. -Some felt they could manage with a folded sheet of paper but found that the website and weekly pew-sheet was sufficient to inform them of forthcoming events. -No-one, and some quite emphatically, said we should continue to produce a magazine, and ensure that copies are available for interested visitors. With that in mind and as promised last time, we will continue to produce a magazine for September and October and again for November and December, but next year we will look into producing a magazine at the beginning of every quarter in early January, early April, early July and early October CCC ~ 26 ~

27 Saint Alban s Church Churchillparken 11, 1263 Copenhagen K Under the Patronage of H.M. Queen Elizabeth II Weekly Eucharists: Sundays and Wednesdays at 10:30 All are welcome Sunday School for children almost every Sunday. Please call the Chaplain on if you are seeking baptism, confirmation, marriage or have any other pastoral or prayer request. You can also contact the churchwardens see below. Contact Details Chaplain The Reverend Darren McCallig (St Alban s House) Chaplain@st-albans.dk (Until end Sept then see Churchwardens) Affiliated: Diocesan Director of Training Canon Ulla Monberg Ulla.Monberg@churchofengland.org Permission to Officiate: Deacon Christophe Ndikuriyo chndi2011@gmail.com Licensed Readers: Mr Graeme Lloyd-Roberts graemelr@aol.com Mrs Victoria Wadsworth-Hansen victoriawadsworth@hotmail.com Ms Ursula Sonnewald usonnewald@gmail.com Churchwardens Mr. Christopher Parker Mr. Nigel Rowley churchwardens@st-albans.dk St Alban s receives no subsidy from the state or national Church and is funded by the generosity of the congregation and visitors. To support the mission and ministry of the Church, contributions can be made to St Alban s Church to Bank account no or for UK tax payers by Gift Aid, increasing the value of their gift by 25% Printed by Jespersen Tryk + Digital

28 St Alban s viewed through shady trees in summertime. Photo: Bev Lloyd-Roberts