Dear friends,

I spent my birthday in April exploring some of the Wirral Peninsula, including a visit to New Brighton Lighthouse. Lighthouses are special to me in my faith as they remind me of the light of Jesus which always shines in the darkness. Birthdays are always an opportunity for me to reflect on the year that has passed, and to wonder what the year to come will bring. I have moved from Bristol to Cheshire in the year since my last birthday, and been welcomed into your lives with love - thank you all so much!

What does the year to come hold for each of us I wonder? And for us as a fellowship of believers in Jesus Christ at Frodsham Methodist Church? Well, in the church, some physical changes will take place - which will include the complete redecoration of the church interior, and the upgrading of our visual equipment over the summer. 

And I am hoping and praying for some physical changes in our fellowship too - to move us on from the good place where we are, to a place where we have greater confidence in sharing our faith together and with others who are seeking. So, we will be introducing sermon series on a theme twice this year, plus we hope to begin study meetings for Advent, Lent and Pentecost. And I will be introducing the Church Council to the idea of Class Meetings/Cell Church as a way of growing in our faith and discipleship in Jesus. Will you look forward with me to the year to come, and the physical and spiritual regeneration of our church?

Every blessing in Jesus,

Rev'd. Denise

Do you remember ‘Make Poverty History’?  It was to be the campaign to eradicate world poverty for good.  Well, there has been considerable progress since 2000, but there still remains a lot to do.  It’s a scandal that around the world 870 million people still go to bed hungry every night, and 2 million children die every year from malnutrition.

So over 150 organisations, including Christian Aid and MRDF, have joined together to attack the problems on several fronts.  Their aim is to lobby governments to make radical changes in trade and aid.  The world has the capacity to produce enough food to feed all its people, but there are no simple solutions.

The campaign website tells us that if we all act together, we can make world leaders change the future by tackling four big IFs:

· TAX – IF we stop big companies dodging taxes in poor countries (it doesn’t just happen here in UK!)

· AID – IF we make the right investments to stop people dying from hunger, and help the poorest people feed themselves

· LAND – IF we stop poor farmers being forced off their land, and use crops to feed people, not fuel cars

· TRANSPARENCY – IF we force governments and big corporations to be honest and open about their actions that stop people getting enough food

There is more information on all these issues from Christian Aid or MRDF, or on the campaign website, www.enoughfoodif.org.

The campaign has already clocked up one success, by putting pressure on George Osborne to keep the pledge to spend 0.7% of GDP on overseas aid.  The next step is to lobby the government and other world leaders as they meet for the G8 summit hosted by the UK in Belfast on June 15th.

You can get involved by signing up to the campaign, by lobbying your MP, by wearing an IF wristband (obtainable from the website shop, from the church Traidcraft stall or from Oxfam), even by joining one of the marches arranged to coincide with the G8 summit.  Think what you can do now, to show your support for a world free from hunger.  Remember, there’s potentially enough food for everyone IF.   

Liz Holmes

The Chester Mystery Plays date from the 13th century and were originally performed by monks as a way of illustrating Bible stories to ordinary people who couldn’t understand Latin services. Later they were performed in the streets by the local guilds people. The plays were banned nationally in the 16th century and Chester was the last city to perform them in 1578.

The modern revival of the Chester Mystery plays started in 1951. The Plays are now performed every 5 years with new scripts to remain current. The plays are performed over a period of two weeks by hundreds of local volunteers including children. For the first time ever, this year the Plays will be performed in the Nave of Chester Cathedral.

They will run from 26th June to 13th July. If you haven’t been before I would recommend it - it is an extraordinary community event with music and colourful costumes, which tells stories from the Creation through to the Final Judgement.

I went with my son in 2008 and we both enjoyed it and will be going again this year. For further information and to book tickets online, go to their website.

Carolyn Frayne

Poem written during a recent Lay Employees' Day about the tall pine tree outside the chapel at Foxhill Retreat and Conference Centre, Tarvin Road, Frodsham.

How strong the roots of the tree are,
Holding you firm in the ground,
Anchoring you to the source of life,
Supplying living water to sustain you.

How tall, straight, magnificently you stand,
Branches bowing downwards, swaying gently in the breeze,
Waded down with fir cones that fall to the ground.
The wind sweeping through gently, swaying the branches,
Lifting, renewing them as the fir cones fall.

The trunk reaching upwards, heavenly, tall and straight,
Like a straight pathway to heaven.

Reminding me to hold fast to your love,
To walk on your pathway, wherever it may lead.
To stand tall, proud of who you are and what you stand for.
To help others release their struggle and be able to feel your life giving
renewing spirit in their lives.

God’s saying, "Come rest in my branches and find peace, be content in
who you are, knowing God accepts and loves you just as you are."

Andrea Ellams
Young Families Worker

On Saturday 2nd February, a small group headed down to Swan Bank Methodist Mission in Burslem for a Children & Youth Conference entitled ‘Unite’. The day consisted of three sessions, with a variety of options to choose from ranging from ‘bongo madness’ to a workshop on the ethical use of social media and a sport workshop to a session on leading worship. This was followed by a fabulous meal shared together. The evening saw performances by two Christian bands and a short talk by the Rev’d. Ashley Cooper, the senior pastor (who was formerly at Helsby Methodist Church).

All in all there were over 160 young people in attendance and it was enriching to see so many gathered together to share, learn and grow in faith. Below are the comments made by those from our Church who attended.

I enjoyed this trip loads. The drumming lesson was fantastic, and I greatly enjoyed the games in the sports hall. I also liked the social lesson, where we watched lots of funny clips. Also, the food there was great and very filling! I especially enjoyed the singing and being part of it.

Eve

This trip was amazing! I loved playing the fun games and activities. We made some cool foam fish and had a lovely dinner.

Emma R.

I loved the activities that went on at Swan Bank. Emma and me were doing sports and made foam fish in the craft room.

Emma H.

I really liked this trip. All three activities I did were really fun and interesting. I did bongo drumming, sports and a social media lesson. I also really enjoyed the bands at the end.

Jodie

I enjoyed the workshops, especially the sports one because it was fun. The bands were really good and Ash was really funny and he used to live in Helsby!

Georgina

This term we have been focussing on what it means to be a member of the Methodist Church. To do this we have used the words on our membership tickets and have taken a theme at a time, looking at Worship, Prayer and Service so far.

Next week is Palm Sunday, and we are breaking this run of membership-related topics to examine the story of Holy Week from Jesus’ perspective. It was such an amazing roller coaster of events and emotions for all involved, yet throughout only Jesus knew what was in store for him.

On Easter Sunday it is a joint service and the 0930 Live! band are looking forward to participating in the music. We will complete our look at the membership ticket after Easter, appropriately with the theme of
Evangelism – and what that means in our lives in Frodsham today.

Socially, we hosted our annual pancake party in February. This was a wonderful outreach event, bringing in so many people from all the four Frodsham primary schools, as as well as families from Messy Church, Toddlers
and Messy Mice. As always, hundreds of pancakes were made and eaten.

A date for your diaries: we are planning to return to our campsite near Beeston Castle again this summer for our annual 0930 Live! away weekend Friday 19th to Sunday 21st July. This is ideal for families who don’t want to camp too, just come along for either day and join in the activities and fun. Watch this space for the theme for the weekend!

Pippa Jacobson
Schools & Community Worker

Firstly, a very big ‘thank you’ to everyone who bought foodstuffs, Christmas cards and items from the Traidcraft catalogue in 2012. In the period from October to December we spent as a Church around £630 – down on last year, but still a good amount and a great help to those whose livelihoods are being maintained and improved by fair trade.

As you no doubt continue to tighten your belts as the economic climate gets no better, do continue to spare a thought for those in real, grinding poverty overseas as you do your weekly shop. Fairtrade Fortnight this year is from February 25th to March 10th. It’s an opportunity to challenge ourselves once again about the purchases we make. Small farmers in developing countries are often the hardest hit when the world economy is in trouble. Fair trade gives these people the security of knowing that they’ll get a fair price for their crop, and the long-term stability of a better relationship with their buyer. We are all invited to see what further steps we can take to support this cause.

And finally … did you see the Real Easter Eggs that were on sale last year? The Real Easter Egg is the first ever to include information about the true meaning of Easter. On the box is a short explanation of what Easter is really about; inside, as well as the fair trade chocolate egg, there is the Easter story, an activity poster, an iTunes download and a sticker set.

This is the third year these special eggs have been on sale, and they have sold over 200,000 in the previous two years. (There are 80 million ordinary Easter eggs sold annually in this country alone!) The website has stories of lives that have been changed by people having received one of these eggs and hearing the Easter story, perhaps for the first time. Lives are changed in other ways too, as 15p from the sale of each egg goes to Traidcraft Exchange to support their work with poor communities – as well as the benefits from the chocolate itself being fair trade. The cost is £3.99. OK, so it’s not the cheapest Easter egg you could buy! But it is unique, and is so much more than an egg. It’s an ideal gift for parents and grandparents alike to give.

Elizabeth Holmes

When I introduced Emmaus as the Church Charity for 2012 one Sunday morning I did not expect the result at the end of the year to be as large as the magnificent sum of £1774. Personal thanks to everyone who contributed, either in organising activities or giving financially.

It is often difficult to demonstrate the impact of Charities and funders are increasingly asking for hard financial data. In November I attended a reception at the House of Lords where Emmaus launched a report “Making an impact” which was the result of a Social Return on Investment study which attempted to quantify the social value created each year by an average Emmaus Community. The full report can be found on www.emmaus.org.uk but here are just 2 highlights. For each £1 invested (including donations) £11 is generated in social, environmental and economic return.

Secondly the report forecasts that the value of savings to Government agencies stands at almost £6m per year. However this sort of statistic does not describe the significant impact Emmaus makes on people’s lives. I hope the articles that have appeared in the Magazine during the year have given some appreciation of that impact. There are, of course, many more Companion stories and examples of how Companions have also helped others across the world.

The sum raised in Frodsham has been forwarded to Emmaus Preston which is still working hard to become a sustainable Community. The message below is from Tracy Hopkins, Director Emmaus Preston”.

“I would like to thank you again for the donations you have made to support our Companions in 2012. They have helped us in a number of ways including specific social activities to help build a stable and harmonious Community. You have helped us to refurbish our town centre shop including the recent opening of a café. We have also opened a Superstore adjacent to the Community. All the work in these developments has been carried out by Companions; your donations have helped with the purchase of materials. We are now in a far better position to move towards a sustainable position and continue to provide the essential support required by current and future Companions.

Many Thanks
Tracy”

One final comment: If you have family and friends who live within the area of an Emmaus Community please draw to their attention the opportunity to donate unwanted quality furniture and other household goods and of course the opportunity to purchase good value refurbished items.

Jim Caldwell

Looking Backwards

During our Christmas Celebrations our Travelling Crib Set went to ten families this year and many faces were lit by the candles in the Christingle oranges at our Christingle service, reminding us that Jesus is the light of the world and that light can shine within us. A donation of £40 has been sent to the Children’s society from that service.

Looking Forwards

All of our activities for families and children are running again. Please note the dates in your diary. Thursday morning Toddlers is as busy as ever and we now have two new cars and a bike which are being put to good use, as well as new table and chairs for the play kitchen.

Pippa Jacobson, Community & Schools Workser, and I are continuing to go into Weaver Vale and the Manor House schools for assemblies and a lunch time club. Both of which are greatly appreciated by staff and pupils. There are many other ideas and activities being investigated at the moment. Look out for details.

Dates for your diary

Pancake Party on February 12th. Come and eat as many pancakes as you can! Look out for details on the church website.

Come and celebrate Easter together at a short Family Service on Easter Day, 31st March, starting at 10am.

If you need more information please text or ring Andrea on 07749877823 or e-mail [email protected].

Andrea Ellams
Young Families Worker

Chapel Fields Care Home has welcomed a new Home Manager, Rachael Starkey. Rachael previously managed Claybourne, an MHA dementia care home in Stoke-on-Trent. Rachael replaces Andrew Bradley-Gibbons, who left Chapel Fields at the end of December. I am sure you will join us in wishing Rachael every success in her new post.

Over November and December we raised over £494 with our Bingo & Hotpot supper and our Christmas Fayre. We had a huge response from local businesses who gave us their support by donating prizes. Our Activities Co-ordinator, Sandra, worked very hard to organise everything. She has now been able to use some of this money to purchase an interactive tablet for the residents to use. This will enable our residents to reminisce by looking at online images of places and people that are familiar to them, listen to music and engage with quizzes. We would like to say a big thank you to all of our staff and volunteers who contributed their time and energy to help Sandra with these events. They really helped in making them a huge success.

As well as our fundraising activities, we also welcomed several choir groups into the home throughout December. On the evening of the 20th December, the home had a special visit from two of Santa’s reindeer! We also organised an exciting Christmas party, with festive food and music. None of our events and fundraising efforts would be possible without the support of our volunteers. We now have twelve volunteers at Chapel Fields and we are extremely grateful for all the hard work and dedication that they give to our residents. They are supporting our residents in many different ways. As well as fundraising, our dedicated team help with gardening, befriending, music and activities.

The challenge for 2013 is to gain more dedicated support on our specialist dementia unit through befriending activities. If you are looking to do something new to help your community in 2013, perhaps you could spare some time to help us in your church, circuit, community group or in the home. If so, we would love to hear from you! Contact Ella Turner on 01928 734743 to find out more.

The staff and residents here at Chapel Fields would like to thank the local churches for their continued support. We look forward to building on our close relationship throughout 2013.

Ella Turner
Volunteer Co-ordinator

 Dear Friends,

We are fast approaching Lent – Easter falling much earlier this year than in many others. I hope that might afford each of us the opportunity to take time and space to reflect on our relationship with God and within the community God has placed us.

Some changes are emerging at FMC – perhaps the one that will affect people most of all is the renaming of our Pastoral Visitors/Class Leaders as Pastoral Friends. Why the change you might ask? Each Church member is appointed a Pastoral Visitor – someone who undertakes to offer pastoral support, care and awareness to those on their pastoral list. The problem with the terminology is that very often Pastoral Visitors don’t often have the time to regularly visit people that they already see very frequently at church activities or worship. To rename our Pastoral Visitors as Pastoral Friends is to take the pressure off our very busy but dedicated volunteers, and to redefine the expectations that the church and its members places upon them. Some Pastoral Friends have more than 20 people on their list – can you imagine how long it might take for them to arrange regular visits with people?

So, you might not notice much difference to the pastoral care that you receive from FMC – but I would ask you to be aware of the change in title and in thinking. Why? Because we recognise that all the people who offer their time within and outside the church do so willingly and lovingly (and I place on record my sincere thanks to all our Pastoral Friends, old and new), and who want to continue to offer care in the best possible, but also most realistic, way. It doesn’t mean that they will never visit you anymore (asking them to call to see you is very helpful to the Friends so that they can ensure they are there for you as much as possible in times of difficulty or crisis). But it does mean that if they see you at church and know that you’re ok, they are less likely to make an extra effort to call and see you, which gives them space and time perhaps to spend with someone else on their list who needs some additional time and attention for a while.

The pastoral care system at FMC is the best I have ever seen in my life – there is a desire from all involved at FMC to try to be there, and be caring, and to offer support, and to do it well. This change is a recognition of that work, within realistic parameters for those who volunteer for that work. If you are interested in knowing more, please do come and speak to me about it.

God’s blessings to you,

Reverend Denise Harding

A few months ago now I received an e-mail from the Church Council Secretary saying that Frodsham Methodist Church were in the process of selecting the Church Charity for 2013 and did I have any suggestions for charities operating in China. This is not such an easy task as one might imagine as the Government do not always make it easy for NGO’s to exist and operate.

I suggested the Amity Foundation, a charity I had heard of because of one of their schemes, namely the Amity Teachers Programme, where they provide foreign teachers to some of the poorest and least developed parts of China. As I suggested the charity, I was asked to introduce it during the Covenant Service held on Sunday 6th January. I wanted to introduce the charity under three headings thinking about what the Amity Foundation is, what it does and why I thought their work was so important. As I was still in China, and using the wonders of technology, I recorded a video and below is the transcript of what I said.

What is the Amity Foundation?

It is an independent Christian voluntary organisation headquartered in Nanjing and which has links to the Three-Self Patriotic Movement, the Government-approved Protestant Church in China. It was founded in 1985 by Chinese Christians and until his death in November of last year its president was Bishop Ding Guang Xun—who originally trained as an Anglican priest, but became a bishop in the Three-Self Movement when it was established in the 1950s.

The Foundation’s name in Chinese has two characters. The first character means ‘love’ and is a reference to the verse in I Corinthians 13: Meanwhile these three remain: faith, hope and love; and the greatest of these is love. The second character helps form the word for ‘morality’ or ‘ethics’.

The Foundation tries to form a bridge between the Christian Church and wider society in China, contributes to China’s social development and openness to the outside world, and is an ecumenical forum for the sharing of resources.

What does the Amity Foundation do?

It has a variety of projects and ways of helping and enabling mission in rural communities. Amity is supported by the British Methodist Church and, among other projects, is currently supporting preachers who are poorly paid and cover very large geographical areas to meet their congregations.  They are working to supply electric scooters to enable preachers to make pastoral visits and attend preaching appointments, for example.

Amity is also the largest printer of Bibles and Christian resources in China and I know that the Bibles in use and for sale at the churches I have visited here in Wuhan always come from Amity’s Nanjing Printing Press.

As well as this Christian outreach and missionary work, Amity also run a variety of humanitarian and development activities ranging from the teachers programme & Children’s Homes (classroom pictured below) to environmental protection (a serious problem in China I know) and disaster relief to the running of clinics and HIV/AIDS awareness projects.

Why do I think the work of the Amity Foundation is so worth supporting?

There are two aspects to Amity’s work that I want to highlight.

There are 23 million registered members of the Protestant Church in China, though there are said to be closer to 100 million Christians in the country.

It seems that more and more people are turning to faith once again after the repression of the Cultural Revolution in the 1960s and 1970s. People are desperate to learn more and to worship together but there is a real lack of information and understanding on how to lead worship or set up cell groups or even on how to read the Bible. A Singaporean Methodist I know here says that one of the dangers of this lack of information is that people may be sucked in by cults or fads and that it is more important than ever that the mainstream established churches, like The Methodist Church, are at work here to provide resources, Bibles, pamphlets and to equip preachers.

The second thing I want to mention briefly is their humanitarian work and in particular the HIV/AIDS awareness programme.

From talking to my students, I know there is a real lack of awareness regarding HIV/AIDS and many of my students tell me that AIDS does not even exist in China. Of course, the contrary is true and it is estimated that 740,000 people are living with AIDS in China.

According to Amity, in the poorest parts of China people who have no income are forced to sell their blood to survive. This has resulted in widespread HIV/AIDS infections, where whole villages are ravaged by the infection. Amity has thirty-four village programmes, which include setting up household groups for mutual support, information sharing and the services of health professionals.

Other charities are working on this problem too and one of the British Red Cross’ AIDS programmes is in China. It is more important than ever that awareness programmes are pioneered, especially in rural countries where awareness is even lower than amongst my students.

Conclusion

Of course China is a huge country and there is a lot of work to be done. We hear how China now has the world’s second largest economy and it is perhaps easy to think they no longer require aid money and to forget it is still very much a developing country. If, for example, Frodsham Methodist Church were to raise £1000 this year, that is equivalent to about 10,000 RMB or a year’s salary for many workers in Wuhan—and more in rural areas. Quite small amounts can make a huge difference and Frodsham Methodist Church’s support for a project, such as the one mentioned earlier providing electric scooters, will make a big difference to Christian mission and humanitarian work in China.

More information about Amity can be found on the following web pages:

The Amity Foundation

Churches Together in Britain and Ireland                                                                                                    

Matthew

Reverend Denise Harding would like to wish all members and friends of Frodsham Methodist Church a joyful Christmas, and God's blessings for 2013.

Many thanks for your welcome and friendship in these first few months, both to myself and to my mum Janet too. I am looking forward to celebrating Christmas and to welcoming in a New Year in a lovely part of God's Kingdom with you all.

Mr. Graham Evans, M.P. for Weaver Vale, commented on the wide variety of local talents and creative skills when he opened an Art Exhibition at Frodsham Methodist Church on November 30th 2012. Over 200 entries were exhibited at the event, which was titled “Creative Winter”. The exhibition was curated by Liz and Alun Evans and included paintings, photographs and stitchcraft, quilting and patchwork. Sixty children from Overton CE Primary School sang four cheerful Christmas songs at the opening ceremony.

Proceeds from the Exhibition will be shared between the church and the Amity Foundation (www.amityfoundation.org/eng), which is the Church charity for 2013.

Mr. Graham Evans will make the Church website his “Website of the Week”.

Ros Caldwell
Church Council Secretary

The exploits of the 4th Century Bishop of Myra, the city in modern day Turkey, S. Nicholas—who had a reputation for secret gift-giving, for helping the poor and for kindness to children—have given rise to the legend of the British Father Christmas and the North American Santa Claus.

Such stories are not historically true in the sense that we understand historical. How then, are they useful? The answer lies in their power to illustrate the truth of the good news of Jesus Christ. As aspects of the Church’s tradition, they bear witness to God’s love.

There is, of course, biblical precedent for such use of legend: the book of Jonah is an obvious example of a legend which illustrates truth. When we speak of the trustworthiness and truth of Holy Scripture, we speak not just of historical verifiability, but of divinely inspired witness to the truth of God in Jesus Christ.

In the same spirit, we can accept the stories of Father Christmas as witness to the truth of God, regardless of the historical verifiability of the legends which surround them.

This raises a thorny question for us: does our tradition of Father Christmas illustrate the gospel or obscure it?

When Father Christmas becomes the focus of our Christmas celebrations instead of Jesus Christ, it surely obscures it. In particular, the idea that Father Christmas only gives presents to good children entirely perverts the good news that God is generous to all who believe in his Son, regardless of good works. In the well-known Christmas song we learn that:

He's making a list,
And checking it twice;
He’s gonna find out
Who's naughty and nice.
Santa Claus is coming to town.

To place this idea of justification by good works at the centre of Christmas is nothing short of a scandal. Jesus Christ is given to all.

God does not only save those who are holy already, in fact far from it. For what would be the point of forgiving a saint?! In our Holy Communion service in the Methodist Worship Book we are told that ‘the Lamb of God takes away the sins of the world’ not that ‘the Lamb of God takes away the sins which were taken away before or do not exist’.

Father Christmas is here to stay, but a Christian need not necessarily see any conflict between Father Christmas and Jesus Christ. We can be stirred by the legends and stories of Father Christmas, give gifts and enjoy this time of hospitality, welcome and friendship, to pass on the good news about Jesus Christ to others: not just a hollow greeting, but the message of salvation by God’s grace through faith in the incarnate Son of God, Jesus Christ our Saviour. 

Matthew

Another two months have passed by, and we are closer to Christmas than ever… only 4 weeks to go now to 25th December. In the midst of the busyness of the month of December, perhaps it would be good for all of us to take time during the season of Advent (which somehow seems to lose its effect with preparation in the shops beginning in September!) to prepare ourselves for the arrival of someone special in our lives.

Jesus came into the world as a baby – completely dependent upon the care of his human parents Mary and Joseph. He needed to be nurtured and loved and fed and changed. He also needed preparing for – in the case of Mary and Joseph it meant a long journey from Galilee in Nazareth to Bethlehem, with the hope of finding somewhere to stay when they arrived and trusting that the pregnancy would go to plan and the baby Jesus would arrive safely.

When a couple are looking forward to the arrival of a child into their family, all sorts of things are done to prepare beforehand. Clothes might be bought, and nappies, and various furniture like a cot and changing table, a pram, etc. And then there is preparing the physical space the baby will inhabit – choosing the colour for the walls in the nursery room, clearing it of all the rubbish dumped there over a long period of time (that usually can’t be found a home elsewhere in the house), and decorating it with lovely things ready for it to become home to a precious infant. We need to make a similar space in our full and chaotic and unprepared lives for the arrival of a special gift this Christmas. 

We already decorate the space (with bright and cheerful decorations around our home), and buy gifts recognising love for each other, and tidy up our homes ready for the arrival of special guests. So we are already used to preparing for the arrival of something significant in our lives at Christmas…perhaps this Christmas we can also take time together and individually to make space in our hearts and lives for the most precious gift we can receive – a new life emerging alongside us and within us. We have all the rest prepared already – what we need to recognise is the knowledge of Jesus being here with us and within us personally.

Finally, perhaps some of you can share more physically in the Nativity story – if you would like to be a part of receiving and passing on the travelling Nativity scene that goes from home to home this Advent, please do talk to our Family Worker Andrea Ellams at church, or send her a message through the Church website. How lovely to know that we are part of the journey together of welcoming Jesus into our midst this Christmas season.

Sending each of you love and best wishes during this wonderful Christmas season, and for the beginning of a New Year in 2013.

Reverend Denise Harding

The Amity Foundation is an independent Chinese voluntary organisation that was created in 1985 by Chinese Christians. Their aim was to promote education, social services, health and rural development in some of the poorest areas of China.

The Foundation’s Chinese name has two characters. The first character means “love” and is a reference to the verse in I Corinthians 13:13 “Meanwhile these three remain: faith, hope and love; and the greatest of these is love”. The second character helps form the words for “morality” and “ethics”. The Foundation continues to form a bridge between the Christian Church and society in China.

The Methodist Church work with Amity and among other projects are currently supporting preachers who are poorly paid and cover huge geographical areas to meet their congregations.  They are working to supply electric scooters to enable preachers to make pastoral visits and attend preaching appointments.

“Churches Together in Britain and Ireland” work with Amity, particularly on English teaching programmes for universities in the developing provinces. Other current Amity projects include:

·        Church-run hospitals and clinics
·        Facilities for the elderly
·        HIV/AIDS prevention projects
·        Sanitation and clean water projects

In the poorest parts of China people who have no income are forced to sell their blood to survive. This has resulted in widespread HIV/Aids infections, where whole villages are ravaged by the disease. Amity has 34 village programmes, which include setting up household groups for mutual support, information sharing and the services of health professionals.

Thanks to Matthew for suggesting this charity. We look forward to learning more about the Amity Foundation in the coming year.

Ros Caldwell
Church Council Secretary


The Amity Foundation
Churches Together

At Christmastime we reconnect with people that perhaps we don’t see very much. The first Christmas was about God connecting with people here on earth in a way that hadn't been done before. Jesus, God’s son, came to help us understand God in a new way. Jesus shows us a new way to live and that God loves us so much he wants to be our friend always.

Three ways to share God’s love this Christmas:

1. Share with others.
2. Surprise someone by being helpful.
3. Be cheerful.

Andrea Ellams
Young Family Worker

During the 0930 Live! service on Sunday 14th October, we presented the Junior Mission for All (JMA) Medals and Certificates to our young collectors who between them and collected £179-56p. Well Done! During the 10.45am service, led by Teleri Parry, we presented certificates to our adult collectors; they had raised £362-23p. We thanked them for their generosity and Teleri led us in prayer for JMA.

The history of JMA goes back to 1812 to one Joseph Blake. Blake and a Mr Hill, a local preacher, decided to hold a missionary meeting, they were asked to work out a plan to train children to collect for missionary work. The children were given a book for one year and people were asked to give ½d per week. They were given a lead pencil, a small bag to hang in their bedroom, if 1d was offered, another book was given to another child to encourage other collectors. When a child had eight names in their book they were given a copy of 'Juvenile Missionary Prayers'. Meetings were held to learn about missionary work.

The 'Blake System' started in Manchester , a list was published for the amount raised. In the 1st year £16-15-1d; in the 2nd year £28-11-2d; in the 3rd year £64-0-0d and in the 4th year £75-1s-51/2d, which compared with today, was a great deal of money! In 1903 Stanley Lowton had an idea of issuing medals to all children who collected over £5-0-0 in a year, then a 'Juvenile Missionary Collectors and Distinguished Service Order ' was born. In 1980 over 60,000 medals were awarded plus 30,000 bars to their Medals. JMA has raised a tremendous amount of money for World Mission, education, prayer and service have a great  importance in their work.

Jesus spoke about a mustard seed and from a tiny seed a great plant grew. Joseph Blake would have been surprised and with joy to see how the seed of JMA grew to what the work is doing in so many places in our world  today.

Praise the Lord!.

Pat Worrall
JMA Secretary