H​elping Others This Christmas

We all know that Christmas is a time of giving, and that as Christians we want to give not just to friends and family, but to help those less fortunate than ourselves. At Frodsham Methodist Church we are supporting several charities in different ways.

Our Advent candle lighting ceremony is based this year around words from All We Can, the Methodist Relief and Development agency (formerly MRDF). The emphasis of their work is on small-scale projects, working in conjunction with local partners in poor communities overseas, to improve quality of life and create positive, long-term change. This Christmas they are inviting individuals, groups and churches to buy Extraordinary Gifts, practical presents that help some of the world’s poorest people, not just at Christmas but for years to come. Booklets with information about these gifts are available in the church and hall foyers. Our collection on Christmas Day will go to All We Can, and Gift Aid envelopes will be available.

For several years now, we have invited people to send just one Christmas card to church friends, which is displayed on a board in the Hall. A donation can then be made to Christian Aid in lieu of money spent on cards. Again, Gift Aid envelopes are available alongside the display in the Hall. Christian Aid was founded 70 years ago in response to the crisis of refugees and displaced persons following the second world war. Although the scope of their work has changed and broadened over the years, concern for refugees is very much part of their ethos. This year, they have a special Christmas appeal. They continue to help impoverished and displaced people in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan, and other places from where the refugees landing in Europe are fleeing. But in response to this crisis, Christian Aid is also working alongside partner organisations in the Greek islands of Chios, Samos and Kos, and in Hungary and Serbia, to bring help to those thousands of people who have fled war, violence, and persecution but now find themselves in dire straits in Europe as winter closes in. Please help if you can – even if you don’t join the Christmas card scheme, you could still make a donation in the box in the Hall.

Finally, don’t forget our Sock Tree in the church foyer. As well as socks for Chester Aid for the Homeless and the Salvation Army, we are again having ‘undercrackers’, a place under the tree for knickers and underpants! This is always a good talking-point for visitors to the church! And very much appreciated by the recipients.

​Liz Holmes