A Life Remembered

November is a time for remembering… on the 5^th November we recall a failed plot to blow up the Houses of Parliament, and on the 11^th November we remember all those who have lost their lives in conflict. As chaplain of Queen’s Court this month is also when, at a memorial service on 27^th November, staff and relatives remember all of the residents who have died during the last twelve months.

At this time of year, however, there is another event which helps us to remember people, and the contributions they have made. The Nobel Prize is awarded in a number of categories, and one of the most significant of these is the Peace Prize. This year three women – Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Leymah Gbowee and Tawakkul Karman – will be given the award for "their non-violent struggle for the safety of women and for women’s rights". These names may be unfamiliar to us, but it is important not to forget those who, in a variety of different ways, work tirelessly to bring peace to our world.

Another winner of the prize, Professor Wangari Maathai, died from cancer in September this year. In 2004 she was recognised for “her contribution to sustainable development, democracy and peace". Although, as a Kenyan, she was the first African woman to win a Nobel prize, her obituary didn’t make many headlines. Wangari, however, had overcome a variety of social and political obstacles to achieve what she did – constantly reminding governments (and anyone else who would listen) that, in our over-consumption, we are borrowing the earth from future generations.

Earlier this year she was listed by Forbes’ as being amongst the ‘100 Most Powerful Women in the world’. Her vision was to leave the world a better place for our children and grandchildren and to this end her organisation has so far planted an estimated 30 million trees. Her environmental achievements, as well as her other work to alleviate poverty and combat corruption, points to the fact that she was someone who wisely used the 71 years God gave her.

The season of advent, the time when Christians remember the coming of the Prince of Peace, begins at the end of this month. Although few of us will win a Nobel Prize, let us, like Wangari, seek to follow the Christ and live as people of peace.

Our Daily Bread…

On Sunday 2^nd October RE:NEW will be joining with Holy Trinity in Bottisham for an all-age harvest celebration. We’ll have representatives from the local charity, Red2Green, and pupils from the Eco-Council at Bottisham Primary School. Both will be sharing with us their experiences of sowing seeds, watching the plants grow, and then reaping the fully grown produce at harvest time.

Throughout the year I often enjoy looking out of my window and watching the farmer tend his crops of wheat, barley or sugar beet. Sometimes, however, it’s only when we see the price of a loaf of bread going up, and hear on the news that this is the consequence of a poor wheat harvest, that we are reminded of the processes that put our food on the table. Yet, in so many places around the world, people are acutely aware of how dependent we are upon the land, and on the rain that waters it.

We were pleased to send a donation to the East Africa Famine Appeal after the ‘Cruising with Noah’ musical staged at our holiday club in July. I want to thank the 40 children who performed, as well as the families and friends who enjoyed the performance and contributed to the offering which was sent to Tearfund. We had a great time on the day of the performance and many of the families stayed afterwards for a picnic, and a bounce on the bouncy castle.

One of the acts at the centre of the Christian experience is the breaking and sharing of bread. Whilst in our churches we celebrate the Eucharist, or Holy Communion, with liturgy and ceremony, the Bible warns us that such religion is worthless if it doesn’t cause us to ‘share our bread’ in more practical ways. In the Bible, when God’s people pretended to be pious, and yet were neglecting the needs of the poor, He told them: 'I hate your religious festivals; stop your noisy songs; instead, let justice roll like a river, and righteousness like a stream that never runs dry.’ (Amos 5, 21 – 24)

Harvest is not only a time for us to thank God for providing us with our daily bread, it is also an opportunity for us to share that bread with others. We hope you’ll be able to join us for our all-age harvest service, or at the school for one of our other services during the month.

Farewell and Welcome

A Farewell…

On Sunday 28^th August we cancelled our normal RE:NEW service at Bottisham Primary School and joined with the Anglesey Group of Parishes in saying farewell to David and Pauline Lewis. They will be missed by us, and by many in these villages, and I wanted to take this opportunity to publicly thank them for all they have contributed.

When I arrived in 2005 as minister of Lode Chapel David warmly welcomed me, and we’ve been meeting formally every month or two ever since. We have chatted together, planned together, prayed together, eaten together and led services alongside one another on numerous occasions. I’ve often admired David’s faith and commitment, but I must say I’ve never envied him in the task of looking after five churches!

David has shared the joys and sorrows of many families within our community, and he and Pauline have both ministered Christ’s love faithfully over the last eight years. As they begin their retirement I know, however, that that neither of them will see this as an opportunity to stop doing the Lord’s work. May God bless them in this new phase of life, helping them to settle into their new home and giving Pauline patience as they both get used to David spending a bit more time at home!

…and a Big Welcome!

As a new school year starts we’d like to invite you to join us for a special service on Sunday 25^th September. It’s an opportunity for you to come and see what we get up to at Bottisham Primary School every Sunday morning, and you’ll certainly receive a Big Welcome. At this service we’ll also be introducing our Autumn Series which seeks to answer the question “Why on earth am I here?” During October and November we’ll then be proposing five key purposes for our each of our lives based on Rick Warren’s book ‘The Purpose-Driven Life’. These goals exist in all of us, whether we believe in God or not, so why not come along and find out more. Don’t forget, all ages are welcome, and we have a crèche and groups for children every week.

Cruising With Noah

Why not send your children on a cruise this Summer? We’re once again running a holiday Bible club with a week full of the usual craft, games, challenges, songs, and general silliness! But this year there’s a musical twist as we’ll also be rehearsing for a musical production which will be performed on the Sunday morning. Just like the successful Amazon Adventure, Waste Watchers and Summer Knights holiday clubs of previous years, all local children aged 5-11 are invited to come along and join in the fun.

‘Cruising with Noah’ takes place at Bottisham Primary School during the first week of the school holidays. The club itself runs 9.00am until 12.30pm from Monday 25^th until Friday 29^th July, and we invite a donation of £2 per day per child as a contribution towards our costs. The performance of the musical is being held at 10.30am on Sunday 31^st July and admission to this is free, although we will be taking an offering towards the work of Tearfund. We’re inviting families to bring some snacks and sandwiches and to join us on the school field afterwards for a picnic lunch – there’ll be a bouncy castle and an ice-cream van in attendance too!

We have 9 principle acting roles available (no speaking required) and we will be auditioning for these at the beginning of the week. All children, however, will be involved in the singing of all the songs, and will be invited to dress up as one of the animals on the ark and we’ll also be making masks as one of the craft activities during the week. The musical itself explores in a fun way the tensions between the animals who are ‘Cruising with Noah’ and helps the children to think about issues like conflict, hunger and poverty. The club has been organised by RE:NEW and the team members will be people from this and other local churches. As always, the club is operated in line with our child protection policy – the welfare of the children at the club is very important to us.

Registration forms should already have gone into all of the local schools – please do send them back swiftly as places are allocated on a first come first served basis and we have to limit the number of children we can take for health and safety reasons. If your child doesn’t give you a registration form, or if you want to ensure your child’s place by booking early, then you can contact me directly or download a form from our website. All aboard – Noah’s Ark will be leaving very soon!

Family Friendly

At RE:NEW we call ourselves a family friendly church, and that is what we hope to be – but our definition of ‘family’ is a very broad one! Although we make provision on a Sunday morning for those with children (we have a crèche, a group for primary aged children, and a group for teenagers) we also welcome a number of people who are now enjoying retirement. This includes one of the members of our music team who bounces up and down to some of the livelier songs we sing more than those of us who are half his age! “To be seventy years young is sometimes more cheerful and hopeful than to be forty years old!” (Anon)

Indeed, the ministry of RE:NEW, at the school and with Queen’s Court, proudly reaches across the age spectrum. I like to describe life in four stages: the first phase (ages 0-19) is filled with energy, the second (20-39) is characterised by idealism, the third (40-59) are years defined by maturity, and the fourth (60+) is marked by the wisdom of those who have reached it. Our society often seems to value one stage above another (the majority of TV presenters, for example, fall in the second age bracket), but any community suffers if it misses the contribution of one or another of these groups. Where no children are present there is a lack of joy and energy, but equally, when we ignore the older people in our society, we are all the poorer for it. As Proverbs 16:31 tells us “Grey hair is a crown of splendour”!

Each year I hold a special service at Queen’s Court to celebrate the role that older people play in our society, and this year’s event is being held at 3pm on Sunday 5^th June. Based on the census theme it’s called ‘Count Me In’ and encourages us to recognise that the accumulation of years is no reason for the contribution of older people to be rejected or overlooked. There will be an offering for the work of MHA (the charity who run the home) and after the service there will be refreshments and an opportunity to find out more about volunteering at Queen’s Court. As someone who spends a number of hours at the care home week by week I know that it not only the resident who benefits from the occasional visit! I do hope many of you will come along and show those at Queens Court that they are still loved and appreciated by the local community.