Churches Together in Lancashire

CTL FORUM - 15th JUNE 2011

2011-07-05T03:36:00.000-07:00

To hear BBC Radio Lancashire’s report on our recent
CTL AGM and Forum
Go to

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p00h8525/Joe_Wilson_Assisted_Suicide/

And listen from 2:49:15 in.

In spite of the huge financial issues facing us, we had a very positive evening, focusing on the resources we can draw on from
HOPE TOGETHER
- a national ecumenical initiative which has grown out of HOPE 08, in which many of our churches were involved.
It offers resources and encouragement as we seek to work in partnership in loving service of our local communities. To find out more about HOPE, have a look at
www.hopetogether.org.uk

RE in schools under threat

2011-04-07T03:01:00.000-07:00

In January, the coalition government introduced the English Baccalaureate curriculum to secondary schools in England. GCSE Religious Education was excluded from this despite its popularity and ability to teach young people about a range of faiths and beliefs.
Many in our churches, and many members of other faith communities, are worried about the exclusion of R.E. from the Humanities options. RE has an important part to play in spiritual and moral development, and understanding and tolerance come from learning about difference.

Visit www.reactcampaign.co.uk if you are concerned about this and wish to sign a petition in support of GCSE RE being included in the new curriculum.

Putting Jesus back into Easter

2011-03-31T14:47:00.001-07:00

It's hard to believe that, out of the whopping 80 million chocolate Easter Eggs sold each year, not one of them mentions Jesus on the box. Until now that is.The Real Easter Egg is the first and only Fairtrade chocolate Easter Egg to explain the Christian understanding of Easter on the pack. It also supports charity and development projects - buying everything from medical equipment for new mums here at home, to chickens and securing fresh water for farmers in Africa.
To find out more about The Real Easter Eggs and where you can buy them, visit their website www.realeasteregg.co.uk

What Do We Teach Our Congregations About The Bible?

2011-03-09T12:56:00.001-08:00

92 preachers from a whole range of denominational backgrounds gathered at St Cuthbert’s Fulwood on March 2nd for an inspirational day with Professor Keith Ward. Questions such as “Who interprets the Bible for us?”, “How much do our congregations need to know about Biblical scholarship?”, “What do we really know about Jesus and his teachings?” were explored and debated with great energy, and Keith sent us all home with much on which to refect! Many thanks to him, and to A Company of Speakers and The Diocese of Blackburn, for making this exciting day possible.

Good News for Local Treasurers!

2011-02-25T03:53:00.001-08:00

Just a reminder that there are NO SUBSCRIPTION FEES payable to CTL from local groups as of this year. However, CTL still welcomes any donations towards our work - please send to our treasurer Keith Slater. (Contact details for all our office bearers available from Debbie at debbie.peatman@ctlancashire.org.uk

Good News in a van from Morecambe!

2011-02-17T04:39:00.000-08:00

The Morecambe Good News Van was established in November 2004 by the Good News Trust Christian Library Service.
Unpaid volunteers (the Van Team) operate a visiting Christian library service from a small van. They attend, by prior arrangement, meetings hosted by church Groups and Christian individuals in the local area.
For more information about what the local team do, visit their website

www.morecambegoodnewsvan.org.uk

Or to find out more about the national service, go to
www.goodnewstrust.org

‘Ready to Run’ DVD from More than Gold

2011-02-17T04:37:00.000-08:00

If you joined in with‘Run for the World’ last May, or attended the CTL Forum where Martin Bateman was speaking, then you’ll know what More Than Gold is all about!

A free DVD, 'Ready to Run', is available from More Than Gold which is designed to help your church capture the potential of the 2012 Olympic Games. Fast-moving and with music by Delirious?, the creative production shows what's been done at past Games and what churches like yours could do in 2012
.
There are two versions, each designed for a different audience:

Church version (3 mins 39 secs) for services, home groups, etc, opening eyes to the opportunities the Games offer.

Leaders version (6 mins 24 secs) as above but with additional background and advice on the next steps.

To watch, order or download go to www.morethangold.org.uk/dvd

Shelter in a Pack

2011-02-17T04:35:00.000-08:00

A new resource for churches and communities considering setting up winter night shelters for homeless people has been launched by Housing Justice. Special services to mark the launch were held at Bloomsbury Central Baptist Church, London, and Carrs Lane Church Centre, Birmingham.

The packs, with practical guidance and information, inspiration and more, have been produced by Housing Justice with a grant from the Church Urban Fund. They are available to download at http://www.housingjustice.org.uk/site/publications/hj/Shelters/Shelter%20in%20a%20Pack%20for%20website.pdf

Good news from Churches Together in Leyland...

2011-01-22T06:05:00.000-08:00

Help Direct, The Leyland Project and Churches Together in Leyland are working in partnership to provide FREE “Bread and Milk Parcels” for those who may need it this winter.

During the bad weather last year, Help Direct received a number of calls, from those who could not leave their homes due to the ice and snow. These vulnerable people were often left without the basics just when they could least cope with it. This year Leyland folks have mobilised to offer a helping hand.

Anyone in Leyland struggling to get out and purchase the basics of bread and milk is invited to ring Help Direct and they will arrange for someone from a local church to deliver a FREE pint of milk and a loaf of bread!

Well done, Leyland! Is your local Churches Together Group mobilising to help the vulnerable in the current cold snap? Share the story with us if so - and inspire others to follow your example.

Lancashire Sang Christmas!

2011-01-09T10:18:00.001-08:00

An enormous thank you to everyone who helped to make our first ‘Lancashire Sings Christmas’ interactive Carol service with BBC Radio Lancashire such an enjoyable and worthwhile event. I had a great evening at the William Mitchell Pub in Morecambe, and from the brilliant feedback we’ve received I gather the same was true for those at the other 70 + venues taking part across the county. The radio team were thrilled with how it went, and we’re already looking ahead to next year! BBC Radio Lancashire's Joe Wilson has written about the whole experience from the planning to the night itself on the BBC website; to read his reflections click here

'ENABLING CHURCH’ - REPORT FROM THE RECENT ECUMENICAL CONFERENCE

2011-01-09T10:06:00.000-08:00

Churches Together in England were among the organisers of a ground breaking conference last October - drawing together Christians of all denominations to look at attitudes and action around the theme of disability and deafness. One of the delegates was Sheron Hall, from Blackburn Diocese’s Board of Social Responsibility. Sheron writes:
`On Oct 7th a small group of us travelled down to the Friends Meeting House in London to take part in the Enabling Church conference. This was the first time such an event had been organised and was well attended and supported by many of the key people and organisations that support our ministry.
To say the day was well attended was an understatement. There were about 400- 500 delegates who had travelled extensively across the UK and some from our European counterparts. We shared our day together listening to top quality speakers sharing their insight for disability through their own experience or that of their families, offering their Biblical reflections on the subject. The aim of the day was to stimulate a conversation concerning a truly Christian response to disability and disabled people, their inclusion and involvement in every aspect of Church life.
From my own perspective, I found the day to be very uplifting and affirming, and would encourage anyone to learn more about the day by checking out the website; www.premier.org.uk
where the keynote speakers can be accessed. If you would like to discuss how your church can be more inclusive please do contact me, sheronhall@ blackburn.anglican.org. or Tel 01254 503277 or Fax 01254 692373`

Reaching Out - Resourcing Mission to Older People

2010-11-22T02:56:00.001-08:00

It was great to see Lammack Methodist Church packed to the doors for our Day Conference on Tuesday 16th November.

Stimulating addresses, participative workshops, a well stocked bookshop of resources, and people of different denominations from across the North West with a heart for the older generation meeting and networking with each other.

Many thanks to Nick Moxon and the ecumenical team who worked so hard to make the day possible.

SPARK - for anyone who thinks young people aren't interested in ecumenism...

2010-11-22T02:51:00.000-08:00

‘SPARK’
... a new Contemporary Worship event led by a team of Anglican, Baptist, Methodist and Community Church young (and young at heart!) people....

launched with a great evening at
Morecambe Parish Church on Friday 12th November. There will definitely be another event early in the new year! An ideal ecumenical gathering to bring your young people along to - or those of any age who’d like to experience worship in a contemporary style.

To keep in touch, visit their website

www.spark-worship.co.uk

or catch up with them on facebook at

www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=107534102622440#!/group.php?gid=107534102622440&v=info

Inspiration from Mary Colwell

2010-11-17T02:07:00.000-08:00

It was a joy to be present at Lancaster Diocese Faith & Justice Commission AGM
at St Wilfrid’s Parish Hall in Preston on Saturday 13th November, and listen to Mary Colwell enthusing us about the distinctive contribution the Christian community can make on environmental issues.

Mary is advisor on the environment to Bishop Declan Lang, the Roman Catholic Bishop for Environmental Justice. She was a TV and Radio producer with the BBC Natural History Unit for 20 years and is now freelance, working on a major radio series on biodiversity and as a consultant on various projects on the relationship between religion and the natural world. She has won many awards for her podcasts on spiritual issues and last year won a Sony Gold for a podcast on a prisoner in Bristol.

There are some beautiful downloadable resources on her website:

www.curlewmedia.com

which churches of any denomination could use to inspire their people to celebrate and protect creation. Well worth a visit!

The Big Climate Connection!

2010-11-07T02:46:00.000-08:00

Supporters from more than 100 organisations are coming together in their communities for the Big Climate Connection. People from all walks of life – from environment to development groups and unions to local community and health groups – made 5th /6th November a time to call on their MPs for action on climate change. It was great to know that members of the churches of Lancashire were amongst those making their voices heard on this vital subject.

And of course, this is a conversation that must continue to go on. For helpful tips on talking to your MP get a briefing pack from Stop Climate Chaos at www.stopclimatechaos.org. We'd love to hear and share stories of any events that you've been involved in.

Trident - is it the Churches’ business?

2010-11-07T02:45:00.000-08:00

Churches Together in Lancashire have added their voice to the growing numbers who believe that it is. Lancaster Diocese’s Faith and Justice commission encouraged us to look at this issue, and Bishop Geoff, in his role as CTL’s Chair, has now sent letters to all our Lancashire MPs - and all Liberal Democrat MPS - asking them, on our behalf, to “call on the Government to include Trident in the planned Defence Review, and to use this opportunity for a radical evaluation of security policies. “
The full text of the letter is available to view and download on the Resources page of the Churches Together in Lancashire website.

More Than Gold!

2010-11-03T10:14:00.001-07:00

More than Gold...

You may remember Martin Bateman from the CTL Forum back in May, when he inspired us to begin thinking about how churches could use the 2012 Olympics as a catalyst for missional and community building initiatives.

Martin has written to tell us about a great roadshow that is planned to come to Wigan Football Club on October 22nd.
The More Than Gold Roadshow is specifically for church members and leaders who want to know more about the many opportunities that are being planned by the Christian community around the 2012 Olympics in London. The Olympics (to quote Lord Coe) is not just for the capital city and in previous games churches have found it easy to reach out and serve their communities because of the great interest that is generated through the Games.After the Roadshow we plan to host a meeting in Lancaster to share more about how we can partner around the Games in 2012 and before then through sports activities.Please get in touch with Martin at batemans@generalmail.ch to find out more.

A New Church for Great Harwood!

2010-10-04T03:08:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to the congregation of Great Harwood Trinity URC / Methodist Church, which celebrated its first Sunday as a united Single Congregation LEP on 26th September. Debbie was delighted to join the new church’s minister, the Revd Pat Brown, and the Revd Rob Pickering to lead worship at 10:30am. The church was packed and there was a great sense of hope and new possibility in the air. May God bless you richly in these first weeks and months.

Meeting God in Friend and Stranger

2010-09-30T05:36:00.000-07:00

Meeting God in Friend and Stranger is a document fostering respect and mutual understanding between different world religions and clarifying the Catholic Church’s stance on interreligious dialogue.

A lively ecumenical and interfaith crowd gathered to explore its implications at the Burnley & Pendle Faith Centre, Barden Lane, Burnley on Tuesday 28th September 2010.

Guests from Leeds Diocese gave a presentation and led the subsequent conversation. Read more about what happened in this week's edition of the Faith Centre newsletter.

Interview with Romy Tiongco

2010-09-01T08:08:00.000-07:00

Listen Again while you can to
Radio 4’s ‘The Choice’
Thursday August 19th at 9am

Many thanks to Arton Medd from Churches Together in Lancaster for alerting us to this interview with Romy Tiongco. Arton writes:

“ Romy Tiongco was the Christian Aid Northwest Coordinator who returned to the Philippines after his retirement 'to plant trees', but became involved in political life there. Linda, his wife, now has the Christian Aid job.

He is beginning his second stint as mayor of his community, Damulog, in the Philippines but his first election was not without its dangers to his life, and his agent was assinated. He is the subject of 'The Choice' on Radio 4, Thursday this week (19 August) at 9.00am. Michael Buerk interviews him on his decision to stand despite death threats.

Reports on his return to the Philippines haves also appeared in the URC Reform magazine.”

MISSION ON WHEELS!

2010-08-12T11:05:00.000-07:00

The Revd Richard Church, moderator of the North Western Synod of the United Reformed Church, has spent a month of the summer getting on his bike and cycling around the North West, visiting communities, churches and projects the length and breadth of the region.

Talking about the reasons for his trip, Richard says, “Often people describe the church as an out of touch and staid part of society – far removed from the dynamic movement Jesus started. I’m hoping that my mega ride, and the places I visit, will clearly show people that the church is not stuck but a vibrant and loving part of many communities throughout the North West, working for good and offering hope to people through the gospel.”

Better together? We were!

2010-06-12T02:49:00.001-07:00

A good crowd from across the county turned out to support Bp Geoff as he was sworn in as CTL’s new Chair, and to hear a range of inspiring presentations, at the CTL Forum on May 12th. Wonderful hospitality was provided by Fulwood URC, and Radio Lancashire’s Joe Wilson was there to talk to contributors, Church Leaders and members of local congregations about their vision for working together across boundaries of denomination and tradition. WE enjoyed hearing the reports on Joe’s Sunday Morning show over the folowing few weeks!

We send our best wishes for a speedy recovery to Ian Humphreys, who was due to talk to us about the Street Pastors - we’ll hope he can be with us on a future occasion. Many thanks to all who came and helped to make the Forum a stimulating and worthwhile event. For a full list of those who contributed presentations go to the resources page on the CTL website

Celebration Praise!

2010-06-12T02:46:00.001-07:00

We were thrilled that so many of you joined us for

“Celebration Praise”

our commemoration of the centenary of the 1910 World Mission Conference, at Lancaster on May 21st, and Leyland on May 22nd. The two services were very different in terms of content, and yet equally joyful and enjoyable celebrations.

At the Lancaster University Ecumenical Chaplaincy, our organiser and conductor, Christine Medd, had put together a programme of congregational hymns and choral pieces which had all been written during the last 100 years, by composers from a wide range of denominations. The Chaplaincy team entertained us with a sketch which owed not a little to ‘Father Ted’, and yet succeeded in telling us an enormous amount about the work they do together.

In Leyland the following day, no less than 13 choirs had come together under the wonderful organisation of Robert Haydock to fill St Mary’s RC church with music. Contributions from Ian Birnie, one of those involved in setting up Lancashire’s first LEP in Lytham in 1984, and Terry Garley, a former County Ecumenical Officer for Lancashire, helped us to give thanks for the road we have travelled together thus far. (To read Terry’s reflections in full, go to our website resources page ).

To quote an email I received after the weekend , “Songs of Praise ... was absolutely wonderful, and totally inspiring!!!
More please!! ”

An enormous thank you to everyone who worked so hard to make it so!

We ran 4 the world!

2010-05-27T11:29:00.001-07:00

We Ran For the world!

Geoff Pearson, Anglican Bishop of Lancaster, the Revd Robert Canham, URC minister and member of CTL’s Enabling Group, and CTL’s Ecumenical Development Officer, the Revd Debbie Peatman, were among the 240 runners on Morecambe promenade on Sat 8th May, raising money for a range of causes and enjoying a great Ecumenical Day Out! We were running in tandem with hundreds of others across the world in what is fast becoming a global phenomenon!

Martin Bateman, R4TW’s organiser was one of our guest speakers at the CTL Forum ‘Better Together!’ at Fulwood URC on Wednesday 12th May. He inspired us all on how sport can be used to draw communities together, and how the churches can use major sporting events like the world cup as a way of building bridges and promoting friendship.

Lancashire Church Leaders speak out against "racist political parties"

2010-04-28T09:27:00.001-07:00

Leaders of all Churches Together in Lancashire's partner denominations have issued a statement in advance of the General election on May 6th. To read the statement in full, please visit the CTL homepage

Climate Change - does anyone care?

2010-04-28T08:11:00.001-07:00

Climate Change - does anyone care?
The good news is that many Christians across Lancashire do, and are working together to find ways to channel concern and encourage action. On October 3rd, an excellent awareness raising event with Operation Noah was hosted at Christ Church URC Morecambe, at which petitions were presented to local MP Geraldine Smith.
On Dec 5th, the Lancaster Diocesan Faith and Justice Commission organised transport from Lancaster to THE WAVE - The National Climate March in London ; and on Dec 10th, a coach departing from Lancaster was amongst the many taking part in the Christian Aid Journey to Copenhagen.

For an excellent study resource to help local groups reflect and pray about the issues surrounding climate change, why not try
Hope in God’s Future
- a report and study guide produced jointly by the URC, Methodist Church and Baptist Union of Great Britain. For details click here

Join in 50 days of prayer!

2010-04-28T08:05:00.001-07:00

The Methodist Church in the North Lancashire District invites you to join in
Fifty Days of Prayerwhich will run from Easter Sunday through to Pentecost Sunday 2010 (4th April - 23rd May).
The theme - finding sanctuary: building a house of prayer - has been inspired by Abbot Christopher Jamieson’s book of the same name. This is a great opportunity to journey in prayer with others . There are resources to use at home each day, and an invitation to join in Saturday mornings of prayer together around the district.

To find out more, go to www.northlancsmethodist.org.uk

New Ways of Working for Churches Together in Lancashire

2010-04-14T07:53:00.001-07:00

Our 2008 review recommended some important changes in CTL’s structures to help us work more simply and efficiently. We’re now well on the way to getting our new simpler structures in place. To find out more, click here.

CTL Blog Launched

2010-04-12T13:27:00.000-07:00

This is the new Churches Together in Lancashire blog, which will provide a regular feed of items of news, interest and information relating to ecumenical activity in Lancashire.