Churches Together in Herefordshire - new County Ecumenical Officer
 
Hello! I'm Emma Wright, the new County Ecumenical Officer for Churches Together in Herefordshire. I'm really looking forward to seeing what God is going to do in this County over this coming year. If you have any events that you like to be publicised in the March 2023 newsletter, please let me know by 25th February. Thank you!
|
|
Churches Together in England – Storytelling Workshops online Churches Together in England and the Council of Lutheran churches are running a series of three webinars in February exploring the art of storytelling in the contemporary church. They will be held on Thursday 2nd, 9th and 16th February 12.30-2pm on Zoom. ‘The art of storytelling’ ; ‘The art of spoken word’ and ‘The art of media engagement’ are the topics of the webinars. ‘For more details, see https://cte.org.uk/storytelling.
|
|
|
The Road to the Cross
The Oddments Theatre Co presents The Road to The Cross: Palm Sunday to Pentecost. This travelling Theatre Company puts on an intriguing contemporary play which portrays the last few weeks of Jesus’ life: including the turning of the tables, the Last Supper, Crucifixion, Resurrection and Pentecost to your community. This play runs from March to May. This show will make you laugh and cry as you explore God’s overwhelming love for mankind.
Suitable for ages 14+ (Please be aware that this performance contains scenes of a graphic nature. Viewer discretion is advised.)
For more information on how to book for your Church, please contact them:
T: 01935 471547 E: bookings@oddments-theatre.co.uk
Oddments Theatre - Taking drama to churches, prisons, schools and more... (oddments-theatre.co.uk)
|
|
|
Do you have an interest in global relationships and global mission?
Join for us for a time of storytelling where we will hear from Mission Partners and about the most recent work of the World Mission Fund at the Radiate webinar.
Wednesday 8 February, 2023 at either 1-2pm or 7-8pm via a Zoom webinar.
|
|
|
Cost of living crisis: A call to prayer
Christians Against Poverty (a Body in Association with CTE) are coordinating a day of free prayer events in London on Wednesday 8th February to respond to the living crisis in prayer and action.
There are afternoon Listen and Pray sessions and in the evening there is a Lament to Hope, Evening Prayer Event. For more information on how to book please visit: Cost of Living Crisis: A Call to Prayer Tickets, London | Eventbrite
This event is taking place at Westminster Chapel Buckingham Gate London SW1E 6BS
|
|
Bridge Building between Churches and Schools
The Diocese of Hereford is putting on an event that allows people to pray for schools across the region: 14th February 2023 from 10am-11am.They meet once a half term for one hour and each session runs from 10am to 11am. This provides a great opportunity to learn from one another, to listen to a talk from a guest speaker and pray together about how we can support our schools.
For more information, click the link here: https://d3hgrlq6yacptf.cloudfront.net/60187623b57f6/content/pages/documents/2022-year-pub.pdf
|
|
Racial Justice Sunday 2023 – Stephen Lawrence
Sunday 12 February 2023
But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!
(Amos 5:24)
22nd April 2023 marks the 30th anniversary of the racist killing of Black teenager, Stephen Lawrence, in Eltham, southeast London. In many respects, Racial Justice Sunday is one of the many legacies of Stephen Lawrence’s life
There are many Racial Justice Sunday resources that are produced by CTBI’s sponsoring churches. The resource for 2023 will provide readers with opportunities to pray and take action on racial justice-related matters.
The link to all of the resources can be found here: Racial Justice Sunday 2023 – Stephen Lawrence (ctbi.org.uk)
RJAF wants to inspire, encourage and empower Black and Brown Christians, especially the younger ones, in British churches to be changemakers committed to seeing “justice flow like a river and righteousness like a never-ending stream” in our society. The RJAF wants to be that prophetic voice which gives churches greater confidence to not only speak about, but also act on issues that are uncomfortable but important to address, in both church and society. The RJAF formal launch on 15th February 2023 will be an evening laced with music, poetry and diverse creative expressions. You can book your place at this event at Bloomsbury Baptist Church.
Racial Justice Advocacy Forum Launch – Churches Together in England (cte.org.uk)
|
|
An online Week of Accompanied Prayer led by Revd Preb Nick Helm
Opening Meeting: Meet together Sunday 26th February 6:00 pm - 7:30 pm on Zoom for everyone involved: the week will be described in more detail; you will meet your prayer accompanier and decide on a time to meet as well as have a ‘taste’ of what may happen.
Meet and Pray Monday - Friday:
- Pray: Set aside 20 – 30 minutes each day at a time convenient for you to have a go at prayer (ways and resources are offered)
- Meet with your ‘prayer accompanier’ for up to 30 minutes on zoom at a time you arrange with them
Meet Together: Saturday 4th March 9:00am - 10:00am, all involved gather to reflect on the week, give thanks and receive ideas for going further.
Closing date for booking: Sunday 12 February
To register for this event, please use the Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85994635265?pwd=VTFQS1YwdHFuRWNsTUVRcldwMXFOZz09
|
|
Just Pray
Join us for ‘Just Pray’ - on the 22nd of every month - online for 20 minutes. Come and pray for people to come to know Jesus. We will be on Facebook Live!
Could you mobilise a prayer group from across churches to pray together for your area - a ‘Just Pray’ group? Just choose a time and place.
You can also join the 'make prayer a habit' team. What do you do every day that could remind you to pray for a friend or family member to come to faith?
Hope Together : Pray With Us
|
|
Review of A Week of Prayer for Christian Unity: 18th-25th January
I was able to speak to James Lowther of Christian Life Church in Ross about what he thought of this week of prayer.
James said: "I was delighted to join Christians in Ross to pray together with themes of the marginalised in society and Christian unity. I have recently moved to the area and it was pleasing to meet with Baptists, Quakers, Anglicans, Roman Catholics and Free Churches in different locations for a week of short lunchtime prayer gatherings, plus a joint “bring and share” lunch. I hope that Christians is Ross can build on this by praying together regularly and taking our prayerful fellowship deeper."
|
|
|
Pioneering Parishes: Starting Out
Tools to help parishes become more pioneering
Here is a reminder that the last of four evening webinars presented by Tina Hodgett and Greg Bakker, hosted by CMS and the South Central Regional Training Partnership is on 27th February from 7:30pm to 9pm on Zoom.
This webinar will focus on a number of tools to help parishes become more pioneering in their outlook and approach.
Who’s it for?
PCC members, parish clergy, people exploring a pioneer call, diocesan parish support staff, anyone searching for tools to help them shift the energy of the parish outwards beyond the church walls.
What can I expect?
A space for sharing practical wisdom, an entry to a community of practice, informality, warmth and fun, a set of fresh lenses for viewing parish life and there will be stories from practitioners.
What content will we cover?
Over the 4 evenings we will have conversations about the key strategic tasks for parish life:
- Adopting shared values with the church and community as a basis for all decision making
- Shaping a missional consensus and prioritising principles over personal preference
- Enabling a re-directing of resources towards those who are unconnected
- Enabling those with a specific call to pioneering and advocating for pioneering
- Fostering a permission-giving, risk-taking culture, and letting go of control
How much does it cost?
The basic cost is a total fee of £10 for all four sessions (£2.50 each).
If you bring a team from your church the maximum you need to pay is £50, any additional participants are free.
The real cost for the facilitation is much higher, so if you feel able to contribute a little more you are helping to support the continuing growth of this work. But please come and join us either way. We’d love to see you.
Pioneering Parishes: Starting Out - Church Mission Society (CMS)
|
|
Roger Smith leads an on-line Revival prayer Group every Tuesday at 7:15pm and would welcome others to join our Zoom link-up, even if they can only manage a few moments with us now and then - for details email Isaiah-56@hotmail.com.
|
|
Street Pastors
Our dedicated Street Pastors team works on the streets of Hereford to provide a safe and caring presence in our community’s night-time economy. We partner with CCTV, door staff and emergency services to keep people safe on the streets, whether they are on a night out or in other situations where they may require help. In teams of three, we walk through the city and respond to many different situations that those in our city at night-time may encounter, from hailing a taxi for someone to reconnecting them with loved ones or dealing with safeguarding issues. We are always willing to lend a listening ear to anyone who may need support. We also regularly give out items that those on a night out may find helpful, such as flip-flops, water bottles, and blankets.
Our mission is to help Hereford get home safely. We take this mission very seriously and provide intensive training to our volunteers so that we can be prepared for a wide range of situations in which we may need to offer support. Our volunteers come from diverse backgrounds, working together as a team to support and encourage each other. We are committed to our community and seek to bring practical meaning to the ‘power of Jesus’ love.’
Volunteers
We’re keen to recruit considerate, caring, trustworthy volunteers who are good decision makers, can stay calm under pressure and work well in a team.
If you fit the bill, are 18 years or over and can commit to volunteer for at least a year, we’d love to hear from you. No previous experience is necessary, all our volunteers are given full training by professional teams.
For more info, visit Street Pastors – Vennture
|
|
|
Christians Together in Ewyas Harold & District have another planning meeting coming up on Monday 20 February at 7.30pm at St Michael’s Church Hall.
|
|
Save the date! Dignity for all: come together to end UK poverty
|
|
10 June 2023
Leeds
We’re excited to be joining with Church Action on Poverty and the APLE collective to run a joint conference on 10 June 2023!
At this one-day conference, we’ll come together to build new relationships, listen and learn from each other about how we can end poverty in the UK. Then, we’ll plan how we can take action together to reclaim dignity, agency and power. We’ll be led by the real experts - people with experience of poverty.
Our aim is to particularly build links between activists who are based in churches and other organisations and campaigners with lived experience of poverty. By working together, we can do so much more to move towards a UK where everyone can thrive.
More information will be available soon, and tickets are available via Eventbrite!
|
|
|
|
|
|
