Greetings from the Provincial President Newsletter No. 61 February, 2016

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1 Greetings from the Provincial President Newsletter No. 61 February, 2016 It all began for us here in New Zealand 200 years ago. On the beach at Oihi Bay, in the Bay of Islands, Northland The Marsden Cross Marking the spot where Missionary Rev. Samuel Marsden preached the first Anglican sermon in New Zealand on Christmas Day 1814 (see page 7)

2 From our Provincial President E te Whanau a te Karaiti, Tena koutou katoa, Oku ou talitali lelei kimoutolu pea malo ho'omou lelei! Dear Members, Families and Friends, Greetings, The inception of Mothers' Union for Christian support and guidance to family and community life the world-over, will Celebrate 140 years of continued service on 22 September this year at Winchester Cathedral, Hampshire. The General Meeting will take place the following day. Let us in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia in our Dioceses celebrate and embrace the journey because 'we are here to stay.' Our Conference : July 2016 in Auckland. Theme: Celebration of Faith. Hank and I travelled to Kaikohe to preside over the New Years Eve Service at my 'Basilica' Aperahama. Being with whanau family and the wider community we grew-up with, as we gathered in the mystic darkness. A time to reflect on the activities of the past year, to give thanks and to welcome the new year. I conducted my first Wedding celebration for a member of my whanau Rua Kapa to Christine Robson at the Matakana Lodge, North of Auckland, on a beautiful hot afternoon in January. I had to prepare well as family can be sharp critics at times so I worked closely with the couple to hear their dreams and plan a ceremony where their values were carefully considered. The service went well and the MU white stole I received as a gift for my Ordination to Priesthood, held a central place in the service. The service went well as did the reception which was attended by over sixty people. When granddaughters reminded me that I had not visited them in a long time because 'you re busy doing your work.' I accepted this call and went off to Napier for ten days to be involved. I attended Rebekah's powhiri welcome to her new High School and had the opportunity to meet her friends, members of staff including a 'look around the school.' Rachel had her tenth birthday at home and I met her friends and whanau. My daughter invited her colleague and family to offer their support and love in their transgender issues. A fun day sharing, talking, eating together and children playing their way. At All Saints, Taradale, I attended the AAW service. Afterwards I spoke Elizabeth Crawley, the former National President of AAW in her new role as a Liturgist at the service. It was good to meet up with her again. Nga Manaakitanga, 2 All this day, O Lord, >> Iritana Hankins

3 Celebrating this and that Our theme for this year is A Celebration of Faith Back in 2014 there were big celebrations to mark the 200th anniversary of Samuel Marsden s first sermon on the beach at Oihi Bay, which took place on Christmas Day in 1814, before many settlers had arrived in New Zealand. (The Treaty of Waitangi was signed in 1840.) During the past two years there have been numerous pilgrimages to this inspiring site. The Mothers Union pilgrimage, led by Katherine McIntyre, went in November This is the official logo being used worldwide, which will appear on all our stationery this year, as we celebrate the 140th anniversary of the Mothers Union formed by Mary Sumner in the vicarage at Old Alresford, Diocese of Winchester. All New Zealand Dioceses will celebrate in their own way. Especially Christchurch, being the first Parish Branch outside of England, formed in There are now several Branches in New Zealand that have existed continuously for over 100 years. This year, around the date of our Queen s Birthday Holiday Weekend in June, we will observe the 90th birthday of our Gracious Queen Elizabeth II, who is Patron of the Mothers Union worldwide. May God bless her in her long service as our Sovereign, and to the Mothers Union. To celebrate the occasion in Auckland it has been decided that each Branch will hold a posh morning or afternoon tea party, inviting prospective members and guests. An 11-year-old boy won a competition in Britain to mark the occasion, and his design shown here will also be used by the Mothers Union throughout the year. (Oh, and also, my croquet club at St Heliers is celebrating Its 100th anniversary this year. I am celebrating the fact that, even though the years are ticking by, I remain fit and healthy enough to keep on playing.) let me touch as many lives as possible for thee; > > Editor 3

4 WAIKATO-TARAKI DIOCESE The St Mary s MU committee were commissioned during the closing service in the Taranaki Cathedral on 31 January with the Feast of the Presentation of Christ in the Temple (Candlemass) moved from Tuesday 2 February. With a large congregation, an augmented choir and an orchestra, plus a significant input from the Cathedral Kaumatua and local iwi it was a momentous occasion. In his sermon Archbishop Philip Richardson spoke about his recent visit to Myanmar and mentioned the tremendous work Mothers Union members do in that country. Hopefully some members of the congregation will make the connection between them and our members here. The sadness at the closure (albeit not forever) was also tinged with the news Dean Jamie Allen has announced his resignation and will leave in April. As a Mothers Union member himself he has always been very supportive of us and we wish him well in his next venture. Sunday services will be held in the Peace Hall opposite and midweek celebrations in the Upstairs room in the Hatherley Hall. This room has been made into a chapel and will be available for quiet prayer times during the day. The committee met at the beginning of February to plan the year s programme. There will be a focus on children/youth at risk and finding out about various agencies at work in the community. Some discussion took place at the AGM about the format of meetings, whether the service needed to be altered or any other changes and a small group was set up to look at this. The committee decided it would be good to meet at 1.00 pm rather than 1.30 to allow enough time for discussion, reports etc as well as a guest speaker. This will be tried at the March meeting. Membership is dropping with some elderly members unable to attend meetings once they move into a retirement home all of which are a distance away from the Cathedral. A plan needs to be made to make time to keep in contact with them on a regular basis. After a promising number of new members in 2014 there were no new ones last year. Two of our Link Branches (1 in UK and 1 in Australia) have written to say they are unable to get a leader and with dwindling numbers they are thinking of closing. 4 and every life I touch, do thou by thy spirit quicken >>

5 The St Peter s Cathedral, Hamilton group prefer not to have regular meetings as most are busy young women with young families. I send information to them regularly and this is passed around to members. One of our Diocesan members has been a member for 50 years this year and I look forward to giving her a Certificate when we can arrange a celebration service. With our theme of Celebration of Faith it will be fitting to arrange this around the 140 th anniversary celebrations. WELLINGTON DIOCESE Whether through the word I speak >> Rosemary Bent MU has had 140 years as a Christian mission organisation working with people of all faiths and none. Firmly rooted in a voluntary ethos centred on mutual respect and collaboration. It is 130 years in NZ! We need to celebrate this. The theme for the next 3 years in AAW is Grow in Discipleship Dreams and Dedication. I have started with Dreams I asked Tric Malcolm, our Wellington City Missioner if the UK project of sleeping bags for the homeless would work in Wellington. Tric replied The City Mission doesn't do sleeping bags for the homeless. The social services of Wellington City work hard to get people off the street so try not to do projects that enable it. We could do blankets - which can go to those sleeping on the street but also to mothers and children in low quality housing etc. (a broader range of people). Duvets would be accepted too. The City Mission can also redistribute them to the Night Shelter & Wellington Homeless Women's Trust and other networks. (Night shelter would take 40 new blankets alone) People could make blankets, as well purchase blankets. Used blankets of a high quality that have been dry cleaned might also be able to be given out. We can start collecting blankets over Lent and bring them along to our service on Lady Day, The Annunciation of Our Lord, Service at 11 am on Monday April 4 th at St Mark s Raumati Beach where Rev Jenny Dawson, our Diocesan chaplain, will bless them. Mary Driver of St Paul s Waiwhetu is now MU Literature and Stationary Convenor. Mary with MU in the subject line to her daughter s family, rodgersfamily@clear.net.nz. We enjoyed a family day on Kapiti Island for John s birthday. It is a superb outing as you see and hear so many birds. I was amazed at how many thousands of Kiwi live there now that there are no possums. Love from, HeatherDawson 5

6 6 AUCKLAND DIOCESE President Joan dishing out the gifts at our AGM on 28th February. Flowers to Margaret Wilson, retiring Secretary, and chocolates to Bishop Kito, AGM Chairman. A celebration of Faith Faith has been at the heart of the Mothers Union since it was founded by Mary Sumner in Throughout our history our members have changed lives and transformed communities by offering practical action and showing Christian Care. Members are encouraged to be prayerful and loving in every situation they face, being Christ-like in thought, word and deed. Groups have been meeting up, sometimes at large Mothers Union events, and sometimes in small groups, spending time sharing fellowship and worship. We celebrate the huge range of activities that members are already involved in by supporting marriage and family life. It affirms us, helping us really believe that together we can make a difference and be open to considering new ways of engaging with families in the future. The Clergy are our closest allies, with clergy and laity each called on to serve families, both within the church and in our local communities. As we share our gifts, talents and time, we believe that working together, God will use us to achieve so much more for the benefit of those he calls us to care for than we would by each working alone. We give thanks to God for the wonderful events shared in the past year. Lynne Tembey s visit to New Zealand and Tonga; Margaret Wilson s attendance at the AGM in Nottingham; Parading our banner at the Cathedral Commonwealth Day service; the Quiet Day at St John s College with Rev. Katene Eruera; attendance by Iritana Hankins and Joan Neild at the Taranaki Women s Service at St Mary s Cathedral in New Plymouth; formation of the MU Prayer Circle at the home of Vera Green in Selwyn Village; Joan and Katherine attending Auckland Synod; MU Centenary service and lunch at All Saints Birkenhead; Margaret Wilson and Belinda Greenwood representing MU at the NCW Conference; all Branches participating in the Worldwide Wave of Prayer; our Council Meeting in October held at ATWC; the Diocesan pilgrimage to the Marsden Cross; and last, but not least, letting our hair down at the Christmas party barbeque lunch with singing dancing and happiness, attended by about 60 members and friends at the home of Margaret Wilson. The prayer I breathe >> Joan Neild

7 Pilgrimage to Paihia and a Rose by Other Names On a damp day in November a group of Mothers Union members met at the Inter-City bus depot for their Marsden Cross adventure. The ride through the gentle rain and the beauty of the Northland countryside brought us to a cosy retreat hotel on the approach to Paihia. Fellowship and friendship was the order of the whole excursion. Life s experiences were shared, laughter, prayer and praise were raised spontaneously as we boarded the Heritage Tour boat the following sunny morning to take us out past the Black Rocks to Oihi Bay, site of the Marsden Cross, our focus. Our lady skipper negotiated the craft up to the beach which we stepped onto from a ladder dropped at the bow. Once ashore we spread out to read the information boards, soak up the site, and envisage the buildings and life 200 years ago. As we cruised away toward the Kerikeri Inlet our guide gave us an informative commentary on the Maori history and the later move of the Mission Station to more fertile ground. We toured Kemp House, and saw the large pear tree and magnificent heritage roses that had been planted there. The Rev. Margaret Williams with some of the Heritage Roses that she is nurturing. Pilgrimage Leader Katherine McIntyre (rear) with Pilgrim Beverley Berket On our return to our motel we were joined by the Rev. Margaret Williams who shared with us her father s passion for the roses sourced from the site of missionary homes, showing us some specimen blooms named after local identities, e.g. Samuel Marsden, Ruatara, Dinah Hall, Scarlet Crimson China etc. a living history of this important time. On the evening of our pilgrimage we dined at the Swordfish Club in Paihia. As the sun set across the bay we feasted in comfort and contrast to the life the missionary wives led. May the Mothers Union keep the legacy they laid for us by supporting family life with prayer and fellowship. Katherine McIntyre Or the life I live. Amen. 7

8 The Provincial Conference July 2016 The programme will be centred on the Parish church and facilities at St Barnabas, Mt Eden. A variety of units are available for a reasonable price at a local motel owned by one of the St Barnabas parishioners. These are walking distance from St Barnabas and also the Mt Eden shopping centre. Some private billets are also available. Thursday starting at 7 p.m. Welcome service and dinner at Holy Sepulchre Church. Friday, starting at 9 a.m. Programme headlined by our keynote speaker the Rev. Libbie Crossman, Provincial President MU Australia. Getting to know you and coming to grips with our theme A Celebration of Faith. During the day, a selection of group studies and exchange of leadership ideas for growth and effectiveness of MU. Followed by dinner at St Barnabas. Saturday, Morning starting at 9 a.m. Formal meeting, to include a review of the MU New Zealand Constitution, and guidelines for the future. Level of subscriptions in relation to costs. The PP newsletter (new editor). General discussion. After lunch, sightseeing, places of interest around the region. Evening, surprise party with entertainment. Sunday, attendance at Holy Trinity Cathedral morning service 10 a.m, followed by return home. Neither the Auckland Diocesan nor Provincial funds will be able to cover the cost of this Conference. All attendees are to be enrolled financial MU members who will need to budget for their travelling expenses and accommodation, plus a minimum contribution to other expenses. Observers and friends are welcome to the church services, and the general meeting (without voting rights). At this stage, as a guideline to numbers involved, we would appreciate expressions of interest to be addressed to Diane Chapman, the Provincial Secretary (address below) asap., together with any requests and/or suggestions. In reply, a more specific agenda and costings will then be supplied. Iritana THE PROVINCIAL TEAM Provincial Chaplain: The Most Rev. John Paterson, P.O. Box 87255, Meadowbank, Auckland Provincial President: The Rev. Iritana Hankins, 20 Mataroa Road, Otahuhu, Auckland 1062, i.hankins@xtra.co.nz, Ph. +64 (0) Secretary/Treasurer: Mrs Diane Chapman, 20 Mataroa Road, Otahuhu, chapmad_01@hotmail.com, Ph+64 (0) or News Editor: Mrs Margaret Wilson, 301 St Heliers Bay Road, Kohimarama, Auckland 1071, maggies.mill@xtra.co.nz Phone +64 (0) or News: follow us on facebook, Mothers Union NZ Twitter, Margaret@NZmaggiesmill Web-site,