From the Registers
Those who have Died.
John Leslie Barron M.m died 15th June aged 95 years
Funeral at St. John’s church on Monday 24th June
Brandon Parish Magazine
July 2013
St. John’s church, Brandon and
St. Catherine’s church, New Brancepeth
MOTHER'S UNION –
Next meeting is on July 8th at 2 p.m. There will be a speaker Kevin Thornhill: subject - “Wedding dresses through the ages”
Liz and David invite you to a strawberry tea at their home, 2
West View, DH7 7ET, 3.00 - 5.00 pm on Sunday 21 July. The aim
of this social occasion is to support the repairs at St. Catherine's
Church. Cost £2.50 per person. Please invite your friends.
Sunday services
St. John’s
- 10 am Holy Eucharist followed by a cuppa
St. Catherine’s - 9 am Holy Eucharist
6 pm – Evensong 7th July
Next P.C.C meeting – Wednesday 3rd July at 7pm
Weekday services
Contact Telephone Numbers
St. John’s – Win – 3781156
St. Catherine’s – Liz – 3731554 Joe - 3739927
Wed. 9.30 a.m. St. John’s
Thurs. 9.30 a.m. St. Catherine’s
website http://www.brandonparish.org.uk/Welcome.htm
email - Webmaster@brandonparish.org.uk
- World Peace
- New Brancepeth
Parish Office in the vestry at St. John’s - Mondays 6-7pm
OR Tel: 0191 3780642 then leave a message and number
Anyone requiring a priest in an emergency :Capt. Ray Bradbury, Church Army – 01388 811430
There for seafarers in over 260 ports worldwide
DON’T FORGET – THE LINDISFARNE GOSPELS
Piracy, shipwreck, abandonment and separation
from loved ones are just a few of the problems
merchant seafarers face. Around the world, the
Mission to Seafarers provides help and support to the 1.3 million
men and women who face danger every day to
keep
our
global
economy
afloat.
We work in over 260 ports caring for seafarers
of all ranks, nationalities and beliefs. Through
our global network of chaplains, staff and volunteers we offer
practical, emotional and spiritual support to seafarers through
ship visits, drop-in centres and a range of welfare and emergency
support services.
In over 100 ports our Flying Angel centres provide a ‘home away
from home’ for seafarers who may have been at sea for up to two
years. Here they can enjoy time away from their ship and use
internet and phone facilities to get in touch with loved ones after
months away.
There are only days to go now before the opening of the keenly
anticipated Lindisfarne Gospels Durham exhibition on 1st July
giving us the opportunity to celebrate our spiritual heritage.
The Lindisfarne Gospels is one of the greatest landmarks of
human cultural achievement and was created by the community
of St Cuthbert, in his honour, on Lindisfarne back in Medieval
times. They will be the centrepiece of the exhibition which will
also include other significant Anglo Saxon artefacts and medieval
manuscripts.
In an emergency, the MtS is often the only help on offer. No
matter what problem a seafarer is facing, be it injury,
abandonment, non-payment of wages or
personal difficulties, they know they can turn to
the local Mission for help, advice and support.
Our chaplains and volunteers offer practical and
financial support, advocacy services, family liaison or simply a
space to talk in a time of crisis.
The Mission to Seafarers was founded in 1856 and is entirely
funded by voluntary donations.
Further information on
www.missiontoseafarers.org 'Sea Sunday is on 14 July'
DH7 Churches Together Awayday to Minsteracres
Dear All, I hope you are all enjoying the good weather June has
brought! We are looking forward to our arranged ‘Awayday’ to
Minsteracres on July 13th. As you will notice from the poster, our
theme for the day is ‘Being and Speaking Good News’.
Father Jeroen at Ministeracres has agreed to lead 2 or 3 short
sessions on the theme.
We are hoping to use our own transport, so if you are able to
offer lifts or require one please let me or Rosemary know and we
will coordinate the arrangements
Please contact me on wguymer@aol.com or 07789341554 or
Rosemary on ROSEMARYJCOX@aol.com
if you would like to like to book a place. We need to know by July
6th at the latest.
PLEASE PRAYERFULLY CONSIDER JOINING US FOR WHAT SHOULD
BE A CHALLENGING AND REWARDING TIME AS WE SEEK GOD’S
DIRECTION FOR DH7 CHURCHES TOGETHER.
Yours in Christ
Bill Guymer
Church of England creating 'pagan church' to recruit members
The Church of England is trying to recruit pagans and spiritual believers
as part of a drive to retain congregation numbers.
The church is training ministers to create “a pagan church where
Christianity [is] very much in the centre” to attract spiritual believers.
Ministers are being trained to create new forms of Anglicanism
suitable for people of alternative beliefs as part of a Church of England
drive to retain congregation numbers. Reverend Steve Hollinghurst, a
researcher and adviser in new religious movements told the BBC: “I
would be looking to formulate an exploration of the Christian faith that
would be at home in their culture.” He said it would be “almost to
create a pagan church where Christianity was very much in the
centre.”
The Church Mission Society, which is training ministers to “break new
ground”, hopes to see a number of spiritual people align themselves
with Christianity. Andrea Campenale, of the Church Mission Society,
said: “Nowadays people, they want to feel something; they want to
have some sense of experience. “We live in reflective England where
there’s much more of a focus on ourselves. I think that is something
we can bring in dialogue with the Christian society.” The Church
Mission Society’s webpage advertising their pioneer training scheme
states: “Wherever in the world the mission of Jesus goes on, the
church needs pioneer mission leaders to break new ground.” The news
comes as spiritual seekers celebrate the summer solstice at
Stonehenge today. Pagans and druids will gather to watch the sun rise
following the longest day of the year, celebrating at the historic
monument. The new move could see famous druids such as druid
leader Arthur Pendragon move to Anglicanism. More than 20,000
people gathered at Stonehenge today ahead of a £27 million
transformation of the site. The huge gathering of people marked the
event in a "positive, friendly atmosphere" as they waited for the sun to
come up, but cloudy skies prevented them from basking in a beautiful
sunrise.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion
Questions for Atheists – One more question
Over the past three months we have posed three questions which atheists
should grapple with.
No1: What gets you up in the morning? In other words without God, what
is it that gives hope, meaning and purpose to your life? Without God, is not
life ultimately meaningless?
No. 2: What stops you from eating everyone else’s Easter eggs when
they’re not looking? This is about morality - Can we be good without God?
Is morality dependent on fashion or dictated by those in power?
No. 3: Have you met Mother Theresa? The question is why so many people
live out their lives with humility, grace and compassion, with faith in a loving
God, quite unlike the God portrayed by some prominent atheists.
This last question is: Does the Christian faith provide an adequate basis for
thought and life?
There is more to knowing than rational thought. At its heart Christianity is
about a relationship; we can know God through Jesus Christ and experience
him in the depths of our hearts. As Paul wrote: ‘I pray that you may have
power to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ
and to know this love which surpasses all knowledge.’
This is Christian faith, that we can know God, encounter him in Christ and
know him in the depths of our hearts.
A final illustration: Anthony Bloom was a well-known writer and broadcaster
on prayer and the Christian life. He was a monk and Metropolitan bishop of
the Russian Orthodox Church. He died in 2003. As a young person he was
antagonistic to the Christian faith, but after hearing a lecture by a priest, he
started reading Mark’s Gospel—more as a test than anything else and with
no expectations whatsoever. And then something happened. As Bloom
described it:
“While I was reading the beginning of St. Mark’s Gospel, before I reached the
third chapter, I suddenly became aware that on the other side of my desk
there was a presence. And the certainty was so strong that it was Christ
standing there that it has never left me.” (Beginning to Pray 10)
And so, as Bloom would later explain, the Gospel account didn’t begin as a
story for him, something he could believe or disbelieve, “it began as an event
that left all problems of disbelief behind because it was a direct and personal
experience”.
Archbishop Tutu backs ministry of women and gay rights
Archbishop Desmond Tutu said women bishops have ‘incredibly
enriched’ the South African Church, encouraging the Church of England
to work quickly to do the same. Speaking in a panel discussion at The
Greenwood Theatre, King’s College, London, before collecting the
Templeton Prize last week, the former Archbishop was animated about
the importance of valuing the ministry of women. “It is wonderful to
see in our Church now that we have women bishops,” he said, asking if
anyone in the audience belonged to the Church of England, who
should do the same. “I cannot for the life of me understand why we
have a system that discriminates against people,” he began, speaking
about ethnicity and gender in wider society.
He went on to say it
was a fundamental injustice to penalise people on a basis of gender,
‘as if they could choose whether they were a man or a woman’.
Archbishop Tutu spoke about the gifts women bring, and how the
differences between the sexes were to be celebrated and respected.
The conversation, entitled Who We Are: Human Uniqueness, Value
and Self Determination, also featured Malcolm Jeeves CBE, Ian
Tattershall, Prof Tony Thiselton FBA and Adam Zeman. Each panel
member discussed the topic in turn, from the viewpoint of their
particular expertise, from biologist to brain surgeon to theologian.
Archbishop Tutu was later asked about the issue of gay marriage.
While admitting he knew little about the current Bill before
Parliament, the Templeton Prize-winner said it was a matter of justice,
having campaigned against people being penalised in terms of
ethnicity, then on gender, and now on sexual orientation. He argued in
his acceptance speech that it would be inconsistent to be homophobic
having worked so hard for equality in the past. “If God is homophobic,
that is a God I won’t worship,” he concluded.
Sunderland Minster to host Christian Aid Thanksgiving Service
In celebration of the contributions made to Christian Aid over the last
year, we would like to thank all who offered their time and dedication
for the work of Christian Aid.
In appreciation of this, with the support of Sunderland Minster, we are
holding a thanksgiving service for supporters in the North East, to say
thank you for the part you played in it.
On 21 July, there will be a service of celebration at Sunderland
Minster. The Mark Bryant, Bishop of Jarrow, will welcome the
congregation and lead the service and the Rt Rev Dr Rowan Williams,
Chair of Christian Aid’s Board of Trustees, will be the guest preacher.
We are very excited and honoured as this service is one of the first
regional engagments Rowan Williams has made since joining Christian
Aid’s Board.
There will be a music accompaniment from singer songwriter Gareth
Davies Jones and the Sunderland Minister Youth Choir.
In addition, there will be complementary cream tea and an exhibition
of Christian Aid’s work.
This promises to be a wonderful afternoon of celebration and
reflection, so please invite all your collectors, event organisers and
helpers along, as we would love to thank them in person. Please let us
know if you are able to join us by contacting the Christian Aid North
East team on (0191) 228 0115 or email newcastle@christian-aid.org
A prayer for the people of Syria
Merciful Father, the strength of all who suffer, defender of all who
trust in you, whose compassion never fails; look with mercy upon the
stricken people of Syria, touch the hearts of all who oppress, that they
may be open to the ways of justice and of peace; through Jesus Christ
our Lord who suffered and died for all and who lives with you and the
Holy Spirit now and forever. Amen