Church Drive December 2011

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1 Church Drive December 2011 The Rector Writes Christmas Around the World Our Mission Partners Monthly News from St Giles West Bridgford In this edition Latest News from the Boys Brigade St Giles Directory Christmas at St Giles

The Rector Writes However you dress it up, Christmas starts with Christ. My children tell me I am getting old and grumpy, Scrooge-like you could say. I suspect they might be right.

2 The Rector Writes However you dress it up, Christmas starts with Christ. My children tell me I am getting old and grumpy, Scrooge-like you could say. I suspect they might be right. Increasingly over the last few weeks I ve felt myself becoming irritated by the subtle removal of Christ from the Christmas season. It could just be me, but there seems a growing tendency to advertise events, fundraisers and even menus as festive occasions rather than Christmas celebrations. Bah humbug! Perhaps picking up on this trend the Church Ads Network - a group of Christian professionals who work in advertising (yes there are some, they don t all leave to become vicars) have produced the Christmas starts with Christ poster and radio advert. It caught my attention, and prompted me to think well does it really. I mean really, for me and us as a church? It is easy to play the part of Scrooge, and to moan at the follies of the world. It is easy for us as Christians to complain about the secularisation of Christmas in our nation, but as we read in 1 Peter Judgement must begin with the house of God; as Jesus said let he who is without sin cast the first stone. I know I have a secularising tendency myself, and it is easy for Christ to subtly move from centre stage in my own festive celebrations. This is why I ve made it a practice each year to make time and space to slowly read through the accounts of the birth of Jesus in Luke and Matthew s gospels, and ask God to re-enchant me with the story of the birth of his Son, before I become too cynical. This year, why don t you do the same? Rev Lee Proudlove - Rector 2

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Christmas Around the World These days, Christmas seems to have become a universal celebration.

In a global world, our symbols of Christmas are blending into one broad, commercialised Christmas imagery. Yet Christmas is all about particularity.

particularity. One time, one place, one culture, one gender, one race, one hair colour, one set of facial features, one language... The list could go on.

4 Christmas Around the World These days, Christmas seems to have become a universal celebration. No matter where you are, you re likely to see Santas with fur (whether his sleigh is dragged by reindeers or, as they do in Louisiana, by alligators), some pretty cribs, images of mother and child. In a global world, our symbols of Christmas are blending into one broad, commercialised Christmas imagery. Yet Christmas is all about particularity. About God, the God of the universe, the God who created the amazing array of creation in all its richness, its differences, its diversity, this God taking human form, in all its limitations and particularity. One time, one place, one culture, one gender, one race, one hair colour, one set of facial features, one language... The list could go on. The infinity of divinity contained in one particular human being. Yet the writer of the epistle to the Colossians tells us that God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him (Col. 1:19). All his fullness? How can this be? Somehow the incarnation did not limit God, did not contain God, but instead revealed all of God s fullness. A bit like a prism an amazing array of light concentrated on one point, then spreading out in all kinds of colours, some of which we can see, some of which we cannot. We, as limited human beings, only glimpse a fraction of the fullness of God that dwelt 4

5 in Christ, and seek to let it speak to our own lives, our own culture, time, language and place. And the only way we can see this fullness of God is by letting God, once again, inhabit the specific spaces we know, letting God shed light onto the realities of our lives and cultures, in their joys and their brokenness. If we listen to and see the way in which Christians all around the world celebrate Christmas, speak of the incarnation, then we see Jesus born again and again in every place and every time he is made welcome. And this can go from the sublime to the ridiculous I once read an Australian version of the twelve days of Christmas: On the twelfth day of Christmas my true love sent to me - twelve shearers shearing, eleven sportsmen winning, ten roos a-leaping, nine emus running, eight lifeguards saving, seven kookas laughing, six opals gleaming, five platypi, four koalas, three surf boards, two parakeets and a possum in a gum tree. Somehow the symbolism of the original may have been a bit lost here... All renderings of Christmas do not equally reflect the glory and truth of the original. But in the two following prayers, humanity and divinity meet again: A Christmas prayer from Uganda: Blessed are you, O Christ child, that your cradle was so low that shepherds, poorest and simplest of earthly people, could yet kneel beside you, and look, level-eyes, into the face of God. 5

A Christmas prayer from north India: Do not let our souls be busy inns That have no room for you and yours, But quiet homes of prayer and praise where you may find good company; Where the cares of

6 A Christmas prayer from north India: Do not let our souls be busy inns That have no room for you and yours, But quiet homes of prayer and praise where you may find good company; Where the cares of life are tended and tidied as well as may be, And wide sweet spaces are kept for you; Where hospitality greets every visitor, And longing eyes and hearts watch for your coming. And so Christmas is a time to invite God again to dwell among us, to reveal new dimensions of his love and glory into the ordinariness of our lives, and recognise the miracle that God not only does not despise the small things of our lives, but instead, as in that day in Bethlehem, chooses to hide his glory within it. Isabelle Hamley Our Mission Partners this Christmas Update from Ha Fusi It is now a year since Elizabeth and David Dunford left Lesotho after two years working to help establish a secondary school in the village of Ha Fusi. They left with hope and prayers that the school would continue to grow and become an integral part of the local community. Since then, the school roll has increased and looks set to achieve the target of 150 students (3 classes of 50) in January It is run and staffed by local people and the villagers are very proud of their school. There have been exciting developments with the buildings. A new classroom is being built to cater for the new intake in January. Furthermore, the Japanese government has promised to build several classrooms and a 6

However, the Lesotho government is still not honouring its pledge to pay all the teachers so we are still having to support the school financially to compensate for this.

7 science laboratory, and work for these has just started. A condition of providing the science lab was to have a water storage system fed from the pump and this has also been installed by the current principal. However, the Lesotho government is still not honouring its pledge to pay all the teachers so we are still having to support the school financially to compensate for this. Furthermore, the Japanese donation is for buildings only, so funds are still needed to pay for more desks, and to buy science equipment for the new lab. Christmas at Friends International Each of the Globe cafes will have a focus on the real meaning of Christmas during December. There will also be opportunities for the students to find out more about the traditions and customs of Christmas. We have planned an outing to the Lincoln Christmas market on Saturday 3rd December for the International Student Discipleship Group. This is an opportunity for them to invite along non- Christian friends to just enjoy hanging out together and hopefully lead on to taking part in some of the Christian activities during the Christmas period. "Reason for the Season" Friday 2nd December evening is an outreach organised jointly by the International Christian group called Solid Rock, and the Christian Union. This year the Mandarin Christian fellowship will also participate. It's a wonderful opportunity for inviting along international students to hear more about the real reason for Christmas. Sunday 11th December pm - Christmas tea party for international students, followed by a Carol Service at Cornerstone Church. 7

8 Hopefully many local families will offer hospitality to international students during the weeks around Christmas and the days of Christmas week as this can be a very lonely time for students who are thousands of miles from home. In addition it's a wonderful opportunity to share with international students about the real reason for Christmas. News from Christian Aid Bring JOY this Christmas The people of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have had a lot to fear. Despite huge deposits of minerals (such as diamonds) and an abundance of natural resources (such as timber), 80% of the population live on less than 13p per day. Fragile leadership In the Democratic Republic of Congo, it costs: 85p to feed a child for a day at the CBCA centre. 9 to provide medical care for one child for six months of their stay to provide the total lodging cost for one child for six months. The angel said to them, Do not fear; for see I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people. Luke 2:10 and escalating conflict over recent years have resulted in large-scale civilian massacres, widespread rape and sexual violence, and many thousands of people forced to abandon their villages. And yet, while the DRC has sometimes been publicised in our media as a place of nothing but despair, Christian Aid partners are telling stories that speak of deep joy and profound hope, even within this challenging context of poverty and violence. This Christmas, we re sharing the inspiring story of 129 children who, in 2008, were successfully reunited with their families after they were separated when rebels attacked their villages in the DRC. The refugee children found their way to Christian Aid partner Central Africa Baptist Community s (CBCA) door after running from terrifying attacks on their home. During their time with CBCA, they 8

9 were fed, clothed and looked after but still, they yearned to be home with their families. An established and trusted presence in the community, CBCA broadcasted children s names over the radio and in church services and within a year all the children were returned to their families amid scenes of great rejoicing. Update from Friary Drop In The last six months have brought with them new challenges to Friary Drop-In as the anticipated progressive effects of the nationwide financial crisis continue to further disadvantage those most vulnerable. Friary Drop-In has encountered, first hand, the real life cost of the recession and the cost has been substantial. In July 2011 we catered for 269 advice sessions with people of no fixed abode. Contrast this figure to that of July 2010, which was 190, and you will see that there has been an increase of 42% in the number of homeless people accessing our advice. This has a knock-on effect to our service, as people without accommodation often require more regular support as a result of not having the security of a home. For example, in July 2011, we supplied 259 non-cooking food parcels to those in crisis without any access to cooking facilities. Contrast this figure with the same month the previous year, which was 138, and you begin to comprehend the extent of the crisis. The challenge for us at Friary Drop-In is not simply to observe the nature of the need, but rather to be responsive to it in how we develop and deliver our services. It is an arduous task to cater for an increasing need, when we are operating within a sector that is encountering many service closures. However, we are determined that, with the support of the local community and the commitment of staff and volunteers, that we can work together to make a real difference in the lives of those who need the services provided by Friary Drop-In. It is my hope that this time next year I will be able to quote a reduction in the number of people needing food parcels, because less people are in crisis. 9

10 8th Nottingham Boys Brigade The first competition for the Junior Section was the Edgar Spencer Trophy in which the boys had thirteen indoor activities to complete and these included various word searches and some physical games. Thirteen teams took part and we had two teams, Cameron Darkin-Price and Nicholas Kerry were one team and the other was Martin Cahill, Liam Dobinson and Jack Birch. All of them had an enjoyable evening and at the end the team of Cameron Darkin-Price and Nicholas Kerry retained the trophy they won last year by one point. The Company Section had a team of five boys enter the Battalion Bible Knowledge Competition and the passages were from Acts Chapter 22 and 23. There were eighty questions the boys had to answer and although finishing with around 70% they came fourth of the five teams that took part. Team: Joseph Kerry, Reece Bensley, Niall Hughes, Stanley Hanson and Oliver Kerry We entered a team in the National Masterteam Competition and competed against five other Boys Brigade Companies. They had ten rounds to complete on various topics such as Bible Knowledge, Boys Brigade Knowledge, the Natural World, USA state nicknames and capitals. Overall we came fourth but with another 5 points they could have finished second. TEAM: Joseph Kerry, Reece Bensley and Niall Hughes After a bye in the 1st round of the National Chess Competition we were drawn to play the 2nd Sutton in Ashfield Company. The boys did well to progress to the next round winning 5.5pts to 2.5pts. Keith Whitaker Captain 10

11 St Giles Directory Rector Lee Proudlove Tel: Curate Isabelle Hamley Tel: Church Caroline Harper Tel: Wardens Richard Crawley Tel: Administrator Karen Clingan Tel: Youth Worker Tom Devas Tel: Pastoral Care Daphne Carter Tel: Co-ordinator House Groups Katie Conley Tel: Seniors Johanna Langheld Tel: PCC Secretary Adrian Cudmore Tel: PCC Treasurer Eddie Pearce Tel: Sacristan Maureen Swann Tel: Dir. of Music Andrew Rootham Tel: Junior Church Sarah & Iain Moppett Tel: Sunbeams Debbie Keown Tel: Toddler Group Caroline Crew Tel: Wedding Caroline Harper Tel: Co-ordinator Church Hall Eileen Else Tel: Lettings Church Cleaning Helen Jarvis Tel: and Flower Rota 11

Church Drive February 2013

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