Welcome
Welcome to the December Yorsay,[Depending on the items received this may also be a joint January edition ] we hope that you enjoy and maybe contribute to it. [Contact communications@yorkhullmethodist.org.uk ] Items to be received before the 25th of each Month.
I produce as much as possible of items but to save space and time downloading, some items will link you to the District Web site for fuller information. It would be nice to have stories from Churches either good or bad that we can let the rest of the District know about. Details of the Christmas Events and Services that have been sent to me are listed on www.yorkhullmethodist.org.uk/news.php?id=176
Yorsay is not only meant for those who receive it via thier e mail address it is hoped that at least one person in each church will copy it and make it available to All members of the congregation via notice boards or through church newsletters.
Stephens Christmas Message
Dear Friends
I trust you will have been as inspired as I was with the visit from the President and Vice-President of the Methodist Conference, or that at least you will take the opportunity to read of what happened during that week. I don't think any of the challenges facing the Church were ducked, but we were reminded of the signs of hope in the life of God's people. For example, did you know that one in four churches is growing? And we visited places within the York & Hull District where there is vibrant life and outreach. When we recognize God's presence, and respond to it, then so much is possible!
Perhaps that's the underlying message of Christmas. Into a world which in many ways is in turmoil, the presence of God breaks in through the birth of a vulnerable child who is to be the Saviour of the world. That isn't just a story of 2000 years ago, it is relevant to today's world. Let's have the courage and commitment to celebrate God's presence now, and to rise to the challenge of living in God's way in our world today.
I hope you have a blessed Christmas.
Stephen Burgess
Visit of Vice-President and President to York & Hull District
“Diary of a President’s and Vice-President’s District Visit”
Tuesday 18th November
President arrives late evening after a courageous journey from Lancashire to Yorkshire. Supper round an open fire provides the opportunity to help him adjust to being in God’s own country – he seems unconvinced.
Wednesday
An early start before being collected by the Synod Secretary for a drive to Ampleforth Abbey for a day with lay workers in the District. Stephen leads a stimulating time for everyone in that wonderful setting and with typical Benedictine hospitality. A meal with David and Vivienne Emison allows for an opportunity to relax and learn something of David’s change of ministry from chairing the Cumbria District to superintendency in the Ryedale Circuit. David’s circuit colleague, Norma Davey, sees fair play.
An open meeting of North York Moors Churches Together sees the President arrive so early at the Memorial Hall in Pickering that he begins organising the chairs (a metaphor which should strike fear into the hearts of District Chairs). Stephen addresses the full hall on “The Grace of Hospitality” and the ecumenical audience is appreciative of both his sharing of Presidential experiences and the challenge to us all to respond to God’s love by being hospitable in all we do. A question and answer session rounds off the evening
Thursday
First port of call today is Haxby & Wigginton Methodist Church in the York (North) Circuit for “Shake, Rattle and Praise” – worship for toddlers and carers in the relatively newly refurbished church. What a difference chairs, cushions and carpet can make. A dozen or so children and accompanying adults were led in worship by Lucy Stirk. We thought about Jesus feeding the great crowd and shared in eating bread together. It’s all part of the church’s outreach to those who have brought their children to be baptised.
Then on to Aroma – the church’s recently opened coffee shop in the centre of the village. Starbucks watch out – it is a wonderful place to meet, drink and eat, and patronised by all ages at varying times of the day. As well as a thoroughly professional approach to catering and hospitality, the underlying intention is to proclaim the gospel message in an accessible way to all who enter. It is an exciting project, supported by the Circuit and District Advance Funds.
Lunch was at Copmanthorpe Methodist Church in the York (South) Circuit where the District Probationers’ Committee had been meeting informally with the probationers. We were well fed and cared for, and our four probationers had the opportunity for a good conversation with Stephen – out of earshot of their own Chair!
A quieter afternoon ended with Evensong in York Minster and a meal out in York. Well, the President had commended the grace of hospitality the evening before.
Friday
An early drive over the North York Moors to Sneaton Castle Conference Centre for a Continuing Development in Ministry day – with supernumeraries, lay workers, ministers in the active work, and partners. We were challenged to think about “The Management of Change”, in what was universally acclaimed to have been one of the best recent CDiM events in the District.
Dinner at the Raven Hall Hotel in Ravenscar preceded an evening reception for those who had assisted in the Methodist Conference which had met in Scarborough back in the summer. The Vice-President had by then also journeyed across the Pennines to join the President in thanking those who had stewarded and worked in various ways behind the scenes to ensure the smooth running of Conference. It obviously went well, as David and Stephen were delivered back to York late in the evening.
Saturday
The Vice-President was whisked off the Pocklington Methodist Church in the Pocklington & Market Weighton Circuit for a day with Local Preachers. Some of the topics which are easily avoided in sermons were identified and considered.
The President’s day was to include an ecumenical outing to the North York Moors Railway – in the company of the District Property Secretary (Dr Nigel Hardwick), the Ecumenical Officer of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Middlesbrough (Father Tim Bywater) and the Associate Diocesan Director of Ordinands in the Anglican Diocese of York (Rev Peter Bowes). Actually the three of them are regular passengers on the railway, so we were in good company. A picnic on the way from Pickering to Grosmont built up the President’s energy for his return trip on the footplate, even shovelling coal like an experienced fireman. The Yorkshire Post reported on his “whistlestop tour” of the District! An evening fund raising event for the Fund for World Mission, in Central Methodist Church in the York (South) Circuit began with sung Evening Prayer at which the Vice-President preached. Dinner was provided by Carol Carter and her team, followed by the President’s reflections on world mission – from his own experiences and recent travels. A silent auction brought the total raised to over £1000.
Sunday
The President was first away in the company of the Deputy Chair, the Rev Richard Andrew, to Ripon Cathedral for the Parish Communion. Stephen had been invited by the Dean to preach at a service attended by the normal cathedral congregation together with the congregations of Harrogate Road and Allhallowsgate Methodist Churches. The young people from all three places were at a café style service at Allhallowsgate. It was a wonderful morning, with plenty of opportunity for ecumenical fellowship rounded off with lunch with the Dean and other invited guests.
The Vice-President and Chair of District headed for the Hull (West) Circuit and Derringham Bank Methodist Church’s 75th Anniversary service at which David preached. Lunch with the Revs Viv and Luke Smith and Vanessa, and Deacon Peter Ogle provided an opportunity to hear something of the work of both the Hull (East) and Hull Mission Circuits, before a magical mystery tour up the coast towards Filey. There, David preached at a circuit service which celebrated the encouragement we can feel to start new things in God’s service.
The President shared in a circuit service at Selby Methodist Church in the Snaith & Selby Circuit in the evening. They were joined by people from other circuits in a packed church.
Monday
David Walton was safely delivered to York Station for an early train back to Manchester. Just how he manages to continue his demanding day job is a wonder to us – we are so grateful for what he is offering to the life of the Methodist Church this year.
For the President it was a day of Farming, Fishing and Flying. Well, it started with a visit to Intake Farm, close to Littlebeck Methodist Church in the Whitby Circuit. The Church building is open everyday, especially for walkers on the Coast to Coast Walk. Then to the Magpie Café in Whitby for their famous fish and chips in the company of Circuit Stewards and the URC minister, Rev Helen Drummond. The afternoon was spent at RAF Fylingdales with a fascinating insight into the early warning station there. A major part of their work is tracking satellites, including the International Space Station and Shuttle. Dense fog that afternoon just added to extraordinary atmosphere up on Fylingdales Moor. In the evening, an informal meeting with members of the District Policy Committee and Circuit Stewards provided the opportunity to look at the future direction of the Church in the light of Mapping a Way Forward. We were even given an insight into how the North Lancashire District tackles the issue, which was regarded as a gracious and helpful part of the evening.
Tuesday
It had been a long week for Stephen Poxon, and at long last he could pack up and look forward to heading back across the Pennines. But not before at visit to York St John University where the York Institute for Community Theology is embedded as a Methodist training insititute. The Director of the Institute, Richard Andrew, accompanied the President on a tour of the campus and a meeting with the Vice Chancellor, Prof Dianne Willcocks. Lunch with senior members of the Faculty of Education and Theology and the Archdeacon of York rounded off the President’s visit to the York & Hull District.
Just typing up this “diary” of Stephen and David’s visit makes me feel exhausted. All those of us who had the opportunity of meeting them would want to express our admiration of what they contribute to the Church, and wish them godspeed for the rest of their travels this year.
Stephen Burgess, Chair of District
Photos from the Visit on http://www.yorkhullmethodist.org.uk/news.php?id=178
The Midlands Training Forum seeks to appoint a full time Training Officer for the Lincoln & Grimsby and Nottingham & Derby Methodist Districts.
We encourage applications from people who:
• have experience in one or more of the following: training, course design, adult education, training of trainers, theological education.
• would welcome the strategic opportunity to develop training across the whole of the church’s life.
• would value working ecumenically and in partnership with theological training institutions.
Salary £33,615 pa for a lay person. For a ministerial appointment standard terms and conditions will apply.
Closing date: Friday 12th December 2008 Interview Date: Thursday 15th January 2009
For further information please contact Rosemary Maskell
e-mail: r.maskell@queens.ac.uk or tel: 0121 452 2600
The Weaver, the Word and Wisdom Ref: PC475
Worshipping the Triune God
Michaela Youngson
A new collection of prayers, poems and reflections by Michaela Youngson, beautifully illustrated with paintings and textiles by Denise Wheeler. Ideas for worship and action throughout the year.
978 1 905958 18 4 150pp (P)
Price: £12.99 Available from MPH https://secure2.cyberware.co.uk/~cb537/acatalog/Celebrating_Sasons.html#aPC475
Coffee Mornings
in aid of Methodist Relief and Development Fund
Everybody is welcome to the Chair’s Manse for the
opportunity to get together, see the new District Office and support MRDF
You may join us on any of the following dates, between 10 am and noon, but we are hoping that friends from the
following Circuits might consider these dates:
Saturday 6th December Whitby, Sherburn, Scarborough, Filey
Saturday 14th February Pocklington & Market
Weighton, Beverley, Driffield,
Bridlington
Saturday 7th March York Circuits, Snaith & Selby, Tadcaster, Goole
Bring and buy table available – including any(reasonably) new paperbacks
Paperless Christmas
In 2007 BRF (The Bible Reading Fellowship) launched the first ever paperless Christmas. With funny and thought-provoking videos and easy-to-use Advent calendar-style doors for each day leading up to Christmas, all put together by Jerusalem Productions, paperlesschristmas 2007 was a roaring success. Many people logged on to the site on the first day and enjoyed a video that suggested, with the cows, sheep and other animals, not to mention shepherds traipsing in, it was perhaps not quite a 'silent night'!
The good news is that paperlesschristmas is back this year and it is better than ever. With a whole new quirky design and even more videos and content on offer from the folk at Jerusalem Productions, it promises to be as popular as last year.
BRF and Barnabas are helping churches and schools get involved in the paperlesschristmas phenomenon with a range of innovative resources to go alongside the website content. There are activities, reflections, word quizzes, discussion starters and, most importantly, the whole set of clips is available ahead of time on a CD-Rom so you can plan how to use the material in school lessons or church group sessions and services during Advent.
The paperlesschristmas website goes live at 10am on 30 November and in the meantime you can visit www.brf.org.uk/paperlesschristmas to sign up for a reminder of the launch, daily reminders throughout Advent, to order the CD-Rom or to check out links to the resources available through Barnabas.
So why not sign up for a reminder, send on to your friends and family, and enjoy Advent in a truly innovative - and paperless - way!
Paul Field in Hull (15th-19th October)
90 venues, seen by over 50,000 people since it premiered in Hull, Paul Field’s musical Cargo has travelled many miles to tell the slavery story. This visit, supported by Clowes Methodist Church took Cargo into Schools as a shorter presentation (50mins) linking into the national curriculum on slavery studies. Ca. 1800 yr 7, 8, 9, and 10 pupils from Hull, Cottingham and Withernsea engaged with the performances and had an opportunity to ask questions.
In the evenings Paul ran song writing workshops at Clowes which produced two songs which were sung in his concert on Saturday night. It was great to see a list of what seemed like random words gradually becoming a song. The first one written, a moody number called ‘Till you come home’ talks about the trauma of human trafficking on all the family. The second is a much happier song entitled ‘Never give up on hope’. The audience enjoyed this one so much they insisted on an encore, and we were all amazed when the young people who helped to write it came on stage to help Paul to sing their song. In the concert we were also treated to a taster of Paul’s new project, being co-written with Dan Wheeler, called ‘Rites of passage’, which uses songs and poetry to lead us on life’s journey from its beginning to it’s end with all the milestones we encounter in between.
Huge applause and big smiles all round!
RIPON CATHEDRAL
ST WILFRID’S LECTURES 2009
To mark the 1300th anniversary of the death of St. Wilfrid and as part of a whole year of celebration, the Cathedral Chapter are pleased to announce the inauguration of the St. Wilfrid’s Lectures in conjunction with York St. John University. This will be the first of an annual series of six lectures and the 2009 theme will be “Re-thinking Mission – The role of the people of faith in contemporary society”. Please would you be kind enough to mark the dates in your diary and to disseminate this information through parish magazines, etc and as widely as possible. All Lectures start at 7.00pm
The 2009 dates and speakers are as follows:
Thursday 19th February The Most Revd & Rt Hon Dr John Sentamu
Archbishop of York
Rethinking Mission: The Role of the Church in Contemporary Society
Thursday 23rd April Professor David Jasper
Glasgow University
The Church and the Arts
Thursday 18th June Revd Dr David Wilkinson
Principal, St John’s Durham
Title to be confirmed
Thursday 9th July Dr Catherine Cubitt
University of York
St Wilfrid: a saint and his mission
Thursday 17th September Revd Janina Ainsworth
Church of England’s Chief Education
Officer and Chair, National Society
Reflecting on Education and Mission
Thursday 19th November Dr Inderjit Singh
BBC Radio 4 ‘Pause for Thought’ &
Editor, Sikh Messenger
The Role of the Church in Contemporary Society – a Sikh perspective
The Lectures are free but a plate for voluntary donations will be at the back of the Cathedral on each occasion. Tickets will be required and will be available from the Cathedral Office, Liberty Courthouse, Minster Road, Ripon HG4 1QS Tel: 01765 603462; email: judithbustard@riponcathedral.org.uk. Full details will be on the website www.riponcathedral.org.uk. Given the calibre and experience of each of the speakers, we need to make these events known as widely as possible so as to fill the Cathedral on each occasion. Everyone welcome.
Wedding Couples
We are currently making a new series about weddings for Channel 4. We are looking for newly engaged couples, who come from different backgrounds and are about to commence plans for their big day. Our programme will follow the couple during the lead up to the wedding. It is an observational series, so we are not looking to intervene in any way with the couple's plans for the wedding. We will be offering an incentive for people who wish to take part.
I would be enormously grateful if you could forward this information onto the relevant people. If you like, I can send on some leaflets or posters that could be distributed to couples who are interested.
If you would like any further information, please don't hesitate to contact me on 0207 534 2008.
Many thanks and look forward to hearing from you.
Kind regards,
Chloe
Chloe Sarfaty| Assistant Producer STUDIO LAMBERT LTD | 42 Beak Street | London | W1F 9RH
O +44(0)20 7534 2008| M +44 (0)7967 731 998 | F +44 (0)20 7432 3142 | E chloe.sarfaty@studiolambert.com
www.studiolambert.com STUDIO LAMBERT LTD (company no: 06461004) is registered in England and Wales at Berkshire House, 168-173 High Holborn, London WC1V 7AA
The period for signing the Church Water Bills' petition on the Downing Street website has been extended due to continuing popularity and support.
It is now available for signature until April 6th 2009 which will give it the maximum period of a year allowed for these petitions. It also means that it will be 'live' during the February 2009 General Synod when my Private Members' Motion is scheduled for debate.
The Archbishop of York is still awaiting a response from the Prime Minister to his July letter on the matter.
The petitition currently stands at 37,175 signatures and lies in 2nd position.
http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/ChurchWaterBills/
Martin Dales General Synod Diocese of York
DIOCESE OF YORK
‘SPIDIR’
A Two Year Ecumenical Course in Spiritual Direction
BACKGROUND TO THE COURSE
Spiritual Direction is a ministry deeply embedded within the Christian tradition. It is one of the many ways in which we share in the ministry of Jesus Christ within the life of his body, the Church. The story of the Emmaus Road where Christ revealed himself to the two disciples walking along together is a helpful model for this ministry of walking alongside others in their journey with God.
Within the Church and indeed outside of it, there appear to be a significant number of people who are searching for meaning to their life. They may feel a need to ‘go deeper’ – to explore a relationship with the God who loves them, even if they cannot always put this into words. The Church has responded to this need by developing a number of courses on Spiritual Direction, which are designed to help those called to this ministry to deepen their knowledge and understanding of prayer and discipleship, and to develop their gifts and skills so as to walk alongside others.
The Course we offer is not designed to give an academic evaluation of spiritual direction. There are no exams or essay writing. Rather, we aim to explore the relationship between God and his people in our daily life and work. The Course will challenge you to explore your own relationship with God in order that you can be a ‘life servant’ to others. It will be a mixture of learning through listening, sharing, personal reflection and developing practical skills.
COURSE DETAILS
The Course is facilitated by the York Diocese SPIDIR Support Group, with a number of visiting speakers leading various sessions.
The Course begins with a 24hr residential, which will introduce participants to the Myers Briggs Personality Test Indicator. This will be held from Friday 20th to Saturday 21st March 2009 at the St Oswald’s Pastoral Centre, Sleights.
Subsequent sessions will be held once a month as follows:
Tuesday 21st April 2009
Tuesday 26th May 2009
Tuesday 23rd June 2009
Tuesday 21st July 2009
Tuesday 1st September 2009
Tuesday 6th October 2009
Tuesday 3rd November 2009
Each of these sessions will begin at 10.00am and finish by 3.30pm, with a majority taking place at Wydale Hall.
You are asked to bring a packed lunch to each session, but drinks will be provided.
The annual cost of the Course, including all materials and the residential, is £180.00.
At the end of the first year there will be an opportunity to review ‘where you are’ with a member of the Support Group. This will enable us to see whether it is right for you to move on to the second year.
For Church of England members of the Diocese of York, at the end of the second year participants names may be given, if appropriate, to the spirituality advisors in their archdeaconry. These advisors help people looking for a spiritual director to find someone suitable to their needs.
For more information or to obtain an application form
please contact:
The Rev Adam Reed,
St Andrews House, 15 Carr Lane, Middleton, Pickering,
North Yorkshire, YO18 8PU.
Tel: (01751) 474858
Email: bilpop@btinternet.com
A Couple of items from the Churches Regional Commission that may have relevance.
The Yorkshire and Humber Faiths Forum are doing a survey of places of worship to discover what the economic impact is in terms of volunteers, staff members, projects run etc. They are sending a questionairre to every place of worship they can; if you are the minister of a church and have not received one, or you want to fill it in on behalf of your church, you can access the details and questionnaire http://www.yorkshireandhumberfaiths.org.uk/activites/Economic_Impact_Assessment_of_Faith_Communities/. They are also going to run workshops to discuss motivation and values underpinning the places of worship. If you are interested in taking part contact anthonygray@heresearch.co.uk
The Yorkshire and Humber Assembly will cease to exist on March 31st, and there will be no statutory place for voluntary, community or faith, it seems, in the new proposals. It has just been anounced that scrutiny of quangos like Yorkshire Forward, the regional statutory health authority and the Learning and Skills Council will be through a select committee of up to 9 regional MPs.
Item forwarded from the Portsmouth Circuit
So many of our Churches need to raise funds. When I saw this opportunity I felt it worth sharing. . It seems a great idea and worth exploring.
A BIG OPPORTUNITY
This email is to let you all know about a really important opportunity to raise money for church/circuit funds every time you shop online.
HOW IT WORKS
We need to have an account with www.easyfundraising.org.uk - a website dedicated to helping charities raise money. Basically if you do any shopping of any kind (that counts all of us really) then you can raise money at no extra cost to you!
Choose from over 600 of the UK's best-known retailers including many popular names such as Next, Argos, Debenhams, John Lewis and HMV, and when you shop using the links on our site up to 15% from every purchase you make will be donated to Family Church. It doesn't cost a penny extra to shop and raise funds for us this way, and as many retailers now give extra discounts when you buy online, you can even save money! You can get anything from books, CDs, DVDs, fashion, electrical, games, gifts, health & beauty, DIY, insurance, jewellery, phones, sports, tickets, toys, hotels, holidays and loads more!
As it is cheaper for shops to sell their products online (no overheads, staff costs, etc) they give back some of the extra profit to us!
IF WE OPEN AN ACCOUNT.
HOW TO START SHOPPING.
Just go to this page: http://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/....../ in this space will be the name we use (may be portsmouth circuit) and register as a new user, which is free to do. Then whenever you want to buy something, log in at easy fundraising first, enter retailers websites through the links provided and shop as normal.
We will often let you know about great offers available to help raise even more money. There are many FREE ways to raise money and some great deals that make a big difference.
If you have never shopped online before then now is a great time to start, especially with Christmas just around the corner.
Any questions you have can all be answered here: http://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/faq
Yorsay is sent on behalf of the York & Hull Methodist District by the Communications Office
Bob Lawe 27 Ryde Avenue Hull Hu5 1QA communications@yorkhullmethodist.org.uk
Please note that some of you may receive this and other mailings from a Karoo e mail address – Please do not reply or use this address as it is for mail delivery only
The views expressed in this newsletter are not necessarily the official views of the Methodist Church or of the York & Hull Methodist District and no inferred support for any of the items or organisations should be taken as granted.
Newsletter © 2008 York & Hull Methodist District – All rights reserved.
