Join us for Carols in the Pub tomorrow eve (Friday 4th Dec) @ 8:30pm – Waggon & Horses #Meltham. It’ll be warm & cosy by the real fire, and we’ll be singing all your favourite carols!
Carols in the Pub!
Parish
Start December with Ale Talk!
We know what God’s love is like! Or think we might!
As we start the run up to Christmas at AleTalk on Tuesday 1st December at the Waggon we are looking at “Love” at 7.30
We have had lively discussions on Vulnerability and Courage – and last time Alistair Storey showed his courage by singing to us- so how would we answer the question “I love when I…?”
Join us and share your thoughts, ideas and answers!
PS Don’t forget Carols in the Pub on Friday at 8.30 and Carols in the Park on Sunday at 4.00 – please let Nigel Priestley know if you can steward or help in any way.
Parish Magazine – Nov 15 – Read it online now!
The #Meltham Parish Magazine for Nov 15 is now available on our website. Take a look and catch up with all the latest Parish news.
The hard copies are available for distribution.
Link below:
Operation Christmas Child – 45000 extra shoeboxes needed for refugee children
Operation Christmas Child – 45000 extra shoeboxes needed for refugee children.
Could you, as an individual or as a corporate group, help us to achieve this target?
This year has seen many tragedies across the world with families forced to leave their homes, children orphaned, and many thousands fleeing from war and terror, seeking refuge in other countries.
Every year Operation Christmas Child sends over 10,000,000 shoeboxes to needy children in 120 countries with 850,638 sent from the UK in 2014.
This year, with the refugee crisis in Syria, Operation Christmas Child aims to send 45,000 extra shoeboxes from the UK to the refugee children, this is in addition to the boxes that will go to children in other parts of the world!
Shoeboxes are gifts of love containing educational supplies, hats, gloves, scarves, a small toy, toothbrushes, toothpaste, facecloths, soap, small cuddly toys, sweets, jewellery, hair accessories etc. (please NO war toys, scary animals or broken toys). We would also request a donation of £3 to help with the transport costs of sending the boxes to their recipients.
If you are able to donate filled shoebox(es) please drop it off at St James’ Church, Meltham Mills on any Friday between 10am and 3pm or anytime from 2nd November to 27th November 2015 or at the Crossroads Shop in Meltham.
If you would like an Operation Christmas Child volunteer to come and talk to your group or business or would like any more information please contact Judith Powell on 01484 859460 or Grace Dronsfield on 01484 850955
5-Alive Report – September
5 Alive – Sept 2015
The people of God were on the move – but how were they to live? What principles were going to guide them? We sang talked and prayed through these questions.
We explored through Godly Play the Ten Best Ways to live story (otherwise known as the Ten Commandments!)
Mandy Aspland organised the materials – we had sand and people -and we gathered in front of the altar with floor cushions and chairs/choir stalls forming two squares. And together both the adults and the children wrestled with the way the 10 Commandments impacted on our lives today.
When the people of God escaped through the waters into freedom, they didn’t get the happy ending they wanted. In fact they found a lot of things to complain about. Life was still difficult but in a different way.
The refugees escaping from Syria and neighbouring countries have fled one kind of oppression and find themselves in a different kind of ‘desert’ with no place to call home. So we talked together : What should Britain do? Together we explored the issues around the tables. We had newspaper clippings available with different views to help the discussion. We asked the question ‘What can we do?’ both as individuals and collectively. We reflected on Meltham’s response at the Carlile Institute
We then had Footprint prayers.: People were invited to draw around their own feet (with or without shoes). Some foot-shaped outlines were available for people who may find this difficult or just not want to do it. They wrote or drew inside the outline those things that they find difficult in their own life. Outside the line wrote or drew the things that we imagined the refugees will be finding difficult. We asked the questions: “What do you want God to do for you? What do you want God to do for the refugees?”
We then Invited people to place their feet along the walkway across church as a symbol of our joint prayers. It worked! There was a wonderful path of footprints from all ages!
At the last Five Alive, we committed ourselves to support the Campaign to End Child Slavery. Photographs of the children with the letters spelling out End Child Slavery were taken. Liz Ryan put them onto postcards. We had a list of names and addresses of people we could write to protest against child slavery. They’ll be posted this week and hopefully we’ll have a response by October’s Five Alive!.
A PRAYER FOR ASYLUM SEEKERS AND REFUGEES
Merciful God, your son was a refugee and shared the suffering of people fleeing from danger in fear and repression. You know what it is like to be hungry and afraid and have nowhere to call home.
God of the displaced, we pray for the safety of the refugees and ask that they will find a place of security. Protect them from those who would seek to exploit them and from danger.
God of hope, we thank you for those organisations who are working to bring relief and comfort to those displaced, showing glimpses of grace in the darkness of despair. God, give them strength.
God of justice, guide the nations and the leaders of the world towards peace; stir hearts to be generous and compassionate. God, help us to play our part in bringing about the change that we want to see.
Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
