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Rev John Davies writes

Dear Friends,

Burma Cyclone Appeal
As you will know, Burma (now Myaamar) has been devastated by the worst natural disaster is living memory. On Saturday 3rd May cyclone Nargis struck, and this was followed by a gigantic wave some 10, high which caused devastation over the Irrawaddy delta area, flattening homes and cutting power-lines. The statistics are incredible. The main city, Rangoon, is in one of the disaster zones, sand in Bogolay, a city of some 190,000 people, about half the size of Hereford, about 95% of homes have been flattened. Many villages have been cut off and as I write (in May) no help has reached these areas.

The Burmese regime hasn't got a good reputation - it is a totalitarian regime, suspicious of the West (though one can sympathise with that - I am myself sometimes!) and for many years the Methodist Church has been urging us to boycott Total petrol as this is produced there. Forced labour and forced relocation have caused many deaths. The Christian minority, numbering nearly four million, has been severely persecuted for decades, as has the Karen minority, and people rightly ask how can we help when the regime is adverse to foreign aid and without seeming to support Christian persecution.

One answer is to give to the Barnabas Fund, which has contacts within the country which can channel aid where it is most needed, and which will work through Christian churches and agencies which are already in place.

This is from their website - I hope they won't mind me reproducing it.

"Already the Rangoon-based team is sending out pairs of workers to different areas, taking funds to purchase emergency relief. The greatest needs at the moment are rice, drinking water, salt, medicine and blankets. Costs of items and transport are hard to estimate because the crisis has already hugely increased the price of food, petrol and other commodities. Later it will be necessary to rebuild or repair houses (our partners' initial estimate of the cost is $100 (S51) per household)'

If you would like to help Christian victims of the cyclone in Burma, then you have a choice of methods:­

1. Donate on online using this address: - http://www.barnabasfund.org/support/support_01.php

2. Call 0800 587 4006 and make a donation over the phone

3. Send a cheque to Barnabas Fund, 9 Priory Row, Coventry, CV1 SEX

We pray that aid and relief will reach all who need it, including the persecuted Christian minority. We pray for the churches in Burma - "Pray for us that we will be full of wisdom and understanding of His will to do this work," write Barnabas wad's partners. We pray that the Burmese government will accept outside aid, and they will allow their people greater freedom and in particular that they will cease persecuting Christians and others.

In His Name, every blessing
John Davies

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Rev John Davies writes

Dear Friends,

A recent survey – Religious Trends – reports that church attendance in the U.K. is falling, whilst other religions – especially the Moslems - continue to grow in strength. 

Ten years or so ago about 8 million people attended church about once a month. That number is now 4 million – and falling. This brings other problems in its wake as aging congregations lose the capacity to maintain the infrastructure of the church; to keep the buildings open and the ministers paid, and provide enough volunteers to keep the whole thing rolling. 

Mush has been made of this projection, not least that based on pure statistics, we may see the day in a generation or two when church going Christians are outnumbered by mosque attending Moslems; this process will undoubtedly see the day coming when there will be calls for the Church of England to be dis-established and for Britain to be formally no longer recognised as a Christian country. 

Of particular concern to Methodists is the simple statistic that whilst on the positive side we have a great deal of active lay leadership and involvement in our church structure, on the negative side the age profile of our churches tends to be much greater than most other denominations. Quite why this is is open to question – though a perceived inability to move with the times doesn’t help – but it is noticeable that all too often we have now not one but two missing generations in many of our churches, some of whom are worshipping in other denominations which offer worship and leadership styles more to their liking. 

There is much that can be said about all of this, and undoubtedly one can do anything with statistics. . The figures given for church attendance are hotly disputed – the C of E says by as much as 30%. One also has to remember the famous report in the Methodist Recorder some 25 years ago now that said that within 20 years there would be no British Methodists left! 

But undoubtedly there are going to be big changes in the next few generations, most uncomfortable. Some smaller congregations, struggling to survive, will fold. Other larger or better favoured ones will struggle to find adequate lay leadership due to the increasing age of their congregations. We may in the end become a network of gathered congregations, much larger churches than at present serving a wide area – this is just how the Catholics tend to operate throughout the U.K. 

How we react to this is crucial. It is perhaps tempting to put up a sign saying ‘Will the last one out put the lights’! But it is probably going to be more fruitful to discuss with renewed urgency what God is calling us to in this present age, and to ensure that we are using our resources – including energy and time - to best effect. In particular the burning question must be ‘How do we interface with the non church going generations to convince them that the gospel has something to say to them – to tell them that God loves them and that discovering God’s love can change their lives.’

It is interesting that it is in the main the house churches and independent evangelical churches, with their strong and straightforward gospel messages, which are bucking this downward trend. For me, this underlines the need for simple, intelligible biblical preaching and teaching, and crystal clear communication. We need to learn the language of the world around us – to speak their language so that they can learn ours – and to learn to be upfront about introducing people to Jesus - for why should people, want to come to church at all unless they know – or wish to know – Jesus? 

In His Name, every blessing 
John Davies

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Rev John Davies writes

Dear Friends,

Aldersgate Day 

May marks the anniversary of John Wesley’s evangelical conversion on May 24th 1738. 
So why celebrate it now? Many will say, True, the Wesley brothers founded Methodism – originally a just means of organizing and nurturing their increasing band of converts throughout the country and later the world, rather than a church, but is it not time to move on? 

I am not so sure. I think there is still a lot that we can learn from the Wesleys, and in some ways I feel their message is more relevant now than it was a generation or so ago. 

The Wesleys came on the scene at a time of great moral depravity. There was increasing lawlessness, and a widespread indifference to authority and the Christian faith. It is hard to look at our generation and not see the similarities. In our generation people have more material possessions than ever before – yet we also have increasing immorality, open vice on our streets and TV’s, and increasing indifference within society to authority figures and the Christian faith. 

Recently, perhaps more than any other, the Shannon Matthews case highlights the type of life lived by so many in our country now. Every detail of the family life of that poor girl has been scrutinized at length and it makes for the main part sorry reading. She was born to a mother with a total of seven children by five, possibly six, fathers. As the facts are gone into, there are dark hints of violence and attempted extortion or fraud, amidst a complex network of shifting family relationships that are incredibly difficult to entangle. It is not possible yet to say with certainty what the truth is about the affair – but perhaps the saddest thing is that it is reported that the little girl at the centre of it all does not want to go home. 

During my ministry I have seen the numbers of weddings and baptisms decline year on year as church attendance has also slumped. Hand in hand with this has gone an increasing number of common law marriages, and increasing numbers of children born ‘out of wedlock’, and a growing public tolerance of immorality, pornography and sexual imagery of a kind which would have made even our 18th. Century forefathers blench. Most of the babies I now baptize are born to parents who are not married, whereas I had one or two cases in my entire first five years of ministry – and that in the days when twice as many parents as now had their babies baptized . 

It is not enough to get angry about the slipping standards of society, and totally useless to pontificate about them. In the end, as the Wesleys proved, nothing can change the human heart except the Holy Spirit, and it is only when people, like JohnWesley, have had their hearts ‘strangely warmed’ by the Power of God that they begin to find in Him the capacity to change their lives – and their lifestyles – for the better. 

Nothing else can save this generation from its terminal slide except the power of God. And it is only when people have had their hearts transformed by the knowledge of the love that God has for them that they can truly desire to live useful and respectable lives, and to be enabled to do so.

Wesley preached nothing less than the total transformation of man by God’s grace – His active love. Somehow as a church we need to regain our evangelistic zeal – our concern for the outcasts - and to tell them that God loves them and can change their lives. We need to speak their language, so that they can learn ours. And we need to be once again a people who are seeking to be holy and God centred before we will have anything of worth to offer. 

Every blessing Rev. John Davies

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Rev John Davies writes…..

Seven new sins…..

The Vatican has recently brought the seven deadly sins up to date by adding seven new ones. The original list was laid down in the 6th. century and consists of lust, gluttony, avarice, sloth, anger, envy and pride. Catholics have traditionally been encouraged to pursue the seven holy virtues instead: chastity, abstinence, temperance, diligence, patience, kindness and humility.

Deploring the decreasing sense of sin’ in today’s increasingly secularized world, the Vatican now suggests adding :- polluting the environment, being obscenely rich, dealing in drugs, abortion, social injustice, engineering genes, and cross generational sex – paedophilia. 
One can see where the Vatican is coming from. However, it is interesting to think that in 1500 years the list has changed from personal sins to those affecting society – and to wonder if the list will have to revised in every generation as society changes and alters. 

In the New Testament, St. Paul offers us several different lists of the sins his new churches had to avoid and the virtues the lives of new Christians should be demonstrating. Doubtless his choice was influenced by his knowledge of each individual congregation – the list would have been influenced by individual circumstances. Therefore, I am not sure if it is wise to start offering lists at all, and certainly not if they are to be set in concrete; there is always so much that one could add in, and whilst one can agree in general with the Vatican, not everyone would agree about the sins included in the present list being wrong in every case. If ‘dealing in drugs’ is a mortal sin, what about the old lady growing cannabis to ease her arthritis who sells some to her equally arthritic neighbours? If being ‘obscenely rich’ is a sin, what is the exact threshold? And how about the great philanthropists who give great amounts to charity yet normally retain control of their own purse strings? (Come to that, how about the Vatican’s own riches….) Surely it is what you do with wealth that matters, not simply possessing it. 

Again, although I am anti-abortion, I can think of one or two cases over the years when as a result of rape or because of terrible deformity the Catholic church itself has sanctioned abortion – what is surely undeniably wrong is abortion as a form of contraception. Come to that, if the Catholic church would allow planned contraception within marriage then many women in Catholic countries would not be in the position of having to consider abortion in the first place. 

And why only have seven? There are also other sins that should have been included as well - uncontrolled population growth, political imposition of force on another nation, manipulation of market forces, selfishness, and perhaps even nationalism -or at least fanaticism. 

But what concerns me most about making lists of sins is that the entire approach is contrary to Jesus’ own. When asked to give a judgement as to which commandments in the Jewish Law were most important, Jesus sidesteps this legalistic approach altogether, and instead centres the entire thing on two Laws which he uses as principles – you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength, and you shall love your neighbour as yourself. To these he adds another – ‘love one another’. In the end Christians are to apply these principles to every situation we find ourselves involved in, not just mechanically avoid certain sins. If we are earnestly trying to love God with all that is in us, to centre ourselves on Him, and to think our fellow human beings are equally as important to God as we are then we will not willingly do things which grieve Him or harm them.

May God help us through His Holy Spirit to see sin for what it is – and to avoid it. 

Every blessing 
Rev. John Davies

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Rev John Davies writes

‘All that stuff…..’

Some time ago now I had a conversation with someone about the faith and they said ‘Of course, you can’t really believe in all that stuff about a virgin birth and bodily resurrection’. I was quick to put them right. Whilst the church has never insisted on belief in the virgin birth, I have no problems with it; as for the resurrection, belief in the bodily resurrection following Jesus’ death by crucifixion was central to Christianity from the beginning, though there are different ways of seeing just how both Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection alter our relationship to God. 

Starting with the crucifixion, there are many theories of the atonement, in other words our understanding of what Jesus accomplished by His death on the cross. However, for the earliest Christians, most of whom had been Jews, the matter was simple. Jesus was the last sacrifice, the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world. As far as the Old Testament is concerned, man’s sin meant that everyone deserved God’s punishment, and only sacrifice would put man right with God. Because Jesus is God’s Son, sinless and perfect, His death on the cross means that there is no longer any need for any other sacrifice – the price has been paid, and ‘by His stripes we are healed’. To some today it seems strange that a good God demands sacrifice, and they find this sort of atonement language uncomfortable. To others – especially those who are painfully aware that their sins have separated them from God and they fully deserve His punishment – this understanding of the atonement is very helpful. 'On the cross God's love has reached down and dealt with human sin; the Man on the cross is the promise and the guarantee that even in the midst of a sinful world God and people can be friends again. Through Jesus that reconciliation, that fellowship, is available to us. (from 'Windows on the Cross' by Tom Small.) 

Jesus could have avoided the Cross, but did not, because of His obedience to His Father’s will, and His own inability to state anything less than the truth – He never, ever pulled His punches, even despite the fact this led to His arrest and trial. Whatever our understanding of the atonement, Jesus’ death therefore demonstrates His loyalty, love and obedience to His Father’s will. 

As to the Resurrection, the core belief of the early church was that Christ was resurrected, in bodily form, and after spending time with His disciples, returned to His Father, and now pours out the Holy Spirit on those who believe. ‘God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses…exalted to the right hand of God He has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear’ Acts 2 vv 32,33. ‘Christ died for our sins ….He was raised…and He appeared to Cephas (Peter) then to the twelve.’ I Cor 15 vv 3-5 

The amazing truth at the centre of our Christian witness is that that crucified Jesus is now our Risen and Ascended Lord, who cleanses, blesses and sanctifies (i.e makes holy) His Church through the Holy Spirit, and whose presence we can feel with us even now, freed from the normal limitations of time and space. As Geoffrey Lampe puts it, ‘When we speak of meeting Christ today, we mean that God, who was incarnate in Jesus and made Himself known in the world of men in Jesus, still encounters us today’ (Epworth Review Vol. 3 no 3) 

This Easter, may we ourselves be encountered by God and find afresh His love for us, and may we know the presence of the Risen Christ with us with all the reality that those in the early Church did so long ago. 

Happy Easter to you all

Rev. John Davies

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Rev John Davies writes

Blessing Manyara is the youth work manager at the Vine, a Christian project in Walsall. Blessing lost contact with his parents in December last year and found out a few days later that his father (both parents were still in Zimbabwe) had been beaten up and seriously burned at the same time as thugs burned down the family business and home. He found out a few days later again that his mother had been seriously sexually abused at the same time.

Both parents are now out of Zimbabwe as a result of assistance from both Christians and secular movements but Blessing is reporting that he now knows of many even worse examples of atrocities being committed by people supporting the current regime.

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Facing the future.

 Yet again we stand at the threshold of a New Year, and I am beginning to find I am old enough to understand what people mean when they say that the years pass more quickly the older one gets!

 It is natural to reflect on the future at the beginning of a New Year – and it can be a daunting thing at times.  However, as Christians we know that we worship one who not only created all that there is but who holds all things in His hands – past, present and future included.  ‘I am the Alpha and Omega says the Lord God, who is, and was, and who is to come, the Almighty’  (Rev. 1 v 8)….in Him we live and move and have our being’ (Acts 17 v 29) .  More than that, we worship a God who knew us before we were born, and who has a plan for our lives – as Jeremiah puts is   ‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ says the Lord. ‘They are plans … to give you a future and a hope … You will find me when you seek me, if you look for me in earnest’ (Jer. 29:11,13) and although His words were written to an entire nation we can do as generations of Christians did before us and rightly apply them to ourselves.  

As to 2008, despite all the pollsters and pundits may write, no-one can tell us accurately what can happen in the future.  I read some years ago that when facing – or facing up – to the future, the bible suggests three principles.

 Consult God before you start setting your goals. 

If God really does know us, then it makes sense to consult Him first. "We may make our plans, but God has the last word." (Pr. 16:1, Good News Bible).  So at the beginning to the year it is sensible and appropriate to pray ‘Father God, what do you want of me in 2008?’

 Live one day at a time.

We all make plans, but these can be overturned, and especially so in these complex days.  Charles Wesley said that Christians were to ‘serve the present age, our calling to fulfil’ – and that still seems to me to be very good advice for today.  We may  plan for the future, but we are to live in the present because although you can plan for tomorrow, you can't live it until it arrives, apart from which your plans may be overtaken by events. As Jesus put it, ‘Don't worry anxiously about tomorrow …..God knows what you need.’ (Matt. 6:34 and 33) In the same vein the Psalmist says ‘Don't boast about what you're going to do tomorrow, for you don't know what a day may bring’ (Pr. 27:1) 

 Don’t procrastinate!

 Because we are meant to live in the present we shouldn’t hold back, or put things off.  Especially, we shouldn’t put off the opportunity to do good to someone. ‘Do not withhold good from those who deserve it, when it is in your power to act. Don't say to your neighbour, 'Come back later; I'll give it tomorrow' when you now have it with you.’ (Pr. 3:27-28)

 Lastly, Trust God.

Although we live in an imperfect world, and bad things happen to good people, neverthleless, we can know the comfort of God’s presence in all circumstances – and we are to trust Him whatever happens. As Jesus said, ‘Surely, I am with you always, even to the very end of the age’. (Matt. 28 v20) – or, as John Wesley put it, ‘The best is, God is with us!’

 Have a Happy and Fruitful New Year. 

         Every blessing, John Davies

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Rev John Davies writes

Dear friends, 

I was rather sad to see that this year there are some areas that just are not bothering to have Christmas lights due to rising costs. 

I am old enough to remember when lights were strung up ad hoc in some areas – especially villages - by local shopkeepers on ladders. More recently in many communities the local Fire Brigade or the Council has tended to step in with platforms or ‘cherry pickers’. But now, life is not so simple, and the growing concern we have in this country with Health and Safety and Risk Assessment means that the whole job has to be done in a professional way and with the appropriate insurance, and many communities just cannot cope with the cost involved. Apart from the cost of erecting lights and decorations, some communities are now faced with an additional one-off bill for the cost of mounting anchor points on buildings where Council- owned lamp standards are reckoned to be unsuitable for the job. 

Whilst I can see that jobs have to be done properly - I can still remember the fuss caused a few years ago when some of the Aldridge lights fell down (thankfully no-one was hurt) - it is all rather a shame. 

So why have lights at Christmas anyway? In the first place, I suppose we all just need a splash of colour once the dark nights come in. There is something about the idea of light in the midst of darkness which strikes a deep chord within us - doubtless ancient man found comfort from the light and warmth of a fire on a dark night as we do, and was glad to have a candle or an oil lamp showing the way on a dark night. Light in the midst of darkness has often been an element in religious celebrations also; in the days of Jesus at Hanukkah, the Jewish Festival of Lights, the Temple was flooded with lights from hundreds of candelabras and indeed the Jews still celebrate Hanukkah today although the Temple is no more, just as the Hindus celebrate their own festival of lights, Divali. 

But for the Christian the Christmas lights are a reminder of the teachings of Jesus, who more than once drew on the imagery of a light shining in the darkness. ‘I am the light of the world; whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of Life’. John, the gospel writer who tells us of this saying, elsewhere says of Christ’s coming at Christmas that that ‘the true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world’ and that ‘the light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it.’ (John 8 v12, John 1 v 9, John 1 v 5)

So the lights at Christmas are more than a splash of colour – to the Christian they can be a statement of faith – of our belief as Christians that God sent His Son into our dark and imperfect world to bring life and light, to bring illumination, to transform our existences and give us fulfillment, strength and a sense of purpose and the capacity to live our lives for God.

This Christmas – whether the lights are up or not - may we know for ourselves the life and the light that Jesus brings for ourselves as we celebrate once again the miracle that ‘the Word became flesh and made His dwelling amongst us’. (John 1 v 14) 

Happy Christmas to you all

John Davies

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Rev John Davies writes…..

Dear friends, 

A land unfit for heroes to live in.

When my grandfather returned from the first World War having fought his way through it, he gave up waiting for the promised home for him and his new wife and built a simple wooden bungalow in which they lived for some years – it remained in the family until the sixties and I remember it well. As we move towards Remembrance Sunday, as an ex officiating Army Chaplain I am increasingly angry about the way in which we are caring for those who return from tours of duty in Iraq or Afghanistan wounded or injured, or suffering from post traumatic stress.

The war against terrorism is probably one of the less ‘popular’ which we have fought. Many people would argue the Armed Forces should not be present in either Iraq or Afghanistan, and consequently there is less of the ‘gung ho’ imperialism which accompanied the brief though bloody battle for the Falklands. Therefore our Armed Forces often feel under supported – nothing new there, one might say, from the days of Kipling onward. But their treatment on their return is often lamentable. They do not receive housing priority - there are still no ‘homes for heroes’- and there is also a lack of nursing care and practical support. 

When I was dealing with down and outs in London a distressing number were ex service personnel who could not adapt to civvie life – some of whom had been mentally scarred by their experiences on active service. With the growing use of TA’s, this is likely to grow – those once used in a support capacity are fighting alongside regular troops without the same mental preparation, having been thrust straight from the civilian world into combat situations. Yet Ty Gwyn, one of the best clinics for dealing with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, was eventually shut last year after a long battles for survival, and those with physical injuries are not well catered for these days either – they have to take their turn in the NHS system, whilst specialised Military hospitals at Catterick, Woolwich, Wroughton, Plymouth and Portsmouth have closed due to MoD cuts, and the expertise they had built up in treating servicemen's – and women's – problems has been largely lost. It has been strongly argued that we dealt with those returning from the Napoleonic wars somewhat better. Meanwhile, we are belatedly pardoning WW1 soldiers shot for cowardice, many of whom were mentally ill though shell shock. It seems somewhat hypocritical to do this whilst failing to adequately support those who return to this country injured in mind or body from current conflicts. 

Apart from be concerned, what can you do? One answer is to write to your MP, for without political attention being drawn to the matter there is little prospect for change. You can also support charities which help ex Service people. The British Legion is perhaps the best known, and currently has an ‘Honour the Covenant’ appeal encouraging people to support returning service people but there are others, the newest of which is ‘Help for Heroes’ which has been set up with the backing of the Sunday Times to raise extra funds to support M.O.D. work amongst the wounded from the current conflict. 

Their first goal is to raise £5 – 8 million to provide a new gym and swimming pool at Headley Court, the Armed Forces rehabilitation centre, which deals with the injured from all three services. It has 66 beds and deals with 4,000 outpatients a year. There is a world-class prosthetics department, where ex-aircraft engineers adapt and modify artificial limbs for amputees. Another worthwhile charity is the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association (SSAFA) – so often there is little support for service families when someone is wounded or is going through hard times, which is where the SSAFA is most active.

This November as we remember those dead and maimed in two World Wars, and in many other conflicts, may we also practically support those currently in need of support. We are well served by our Armed Forces – please give generously. 

Every blessing       John D

http://www.britishlegion.org.uk/     British Legion, 48 Pall Mall, London, SW1Y 5JY, 
http://www.helpforheroes.org.uk    Help for Heroes, Unit 6, Aspire Business Centre, Ordnance Road, Tidworth, Hants SP9 7QD 
http://www.ssafa.org.uk   SSAFA, 19 Queen Elizabeth Street, London, SE1 2LP. 

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Rev. John Davies writes………

Dear Friends,

As many of you know, my last job before entering College was in a Jewellers just off the city of London. I was normally engaged in selling clocks and watches, everything from Timex to Rolex – right up my street, given my love of mechanical objects. There was an unexpected bonus in working with the clock dept., as from time to time if we sold a grandmother or a grandfather clock (a ‘longcase’, to the trade) I would be dispatched with it by taxi to erect it in the purchasers home, and only when it was absolutely even, adjusted and ticking correctly could I come back to the shop – this time by public transport! So I had an afternoon out, a free taxi ride, and the chance for an illicit drag on the pipe I used to smoke on the way there and back – all great fun on the firm’s time, though the manager would sniff me up and down suspiciously on my way back in to servitude to check for tobacco smoke.

We had a good range of stock – from middling quality to positively ostentatious – I well remember having to gently polish a ridiculously expensive diamond encrusted Patek Phillippe watch weekly, and was I pleased when someone sold it. But what used to interest me were the pearl necklaces. We tended to have one or two strings of genuine pearls, rather more cultured pearl necklaces and about the same number of imitation pearls. Could I tell the difference? No I couldn’t – so much so that I dreaded selling the things in case some rogue switched them on me – not uncommon, we had rings switched for cheap copies with fake stones once or twice. To me the fake pearls looked the same as the genuine article – sometimes better in fact as the size was more uniform! 

From time to time the genuine ones would be got out of the window and handled, then put back in. Only afterwards did I find out why - apparently pearls lose their lustre if one is not careful, and the easiest way to keep them beautiful and in good condition is to handle them, so much so that I am told that one particular, expensive, string owned by an heiress and held in safe deposit is worn from time to time by a bank secretary, who goes to lunch in them under the watchful gaze of a security guard. A strange perk of the job.

I suppose there are a few meanings in all this. As we celebrate Harvest we cannot but reflect on the nature of a world in which some starve whilst others buy diamond encrusted Patek Phillippe watches, or get employees to condition their pearls for them. 

And, too, there is the thought that our faith should be like those pearls – it is useless locked away where no-one can see – it loses its shine. Faith is meant to be put into practice, to be worn out in public, put on display where people can see and react. 

Every blessing,

John Davies 

‘All work that is worth anything is done in faith’ Albert Schweitzer. 

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Rev John Davies writes

Dear friends, 

A few Sundays ago I chose the old hymn ‘O breath of God, breath on us now’ by Alfred Vine and I was struck once again by the depth of meaning within it – as with so many of Charles Wesley’s hymns you can find bible verses for just about every line. I said so to someone afterwards, and they said ‘Why don’t you write a newsletter article on it?’ So here it is, with a few biblical references for you to look up! 

1 O breath of God, breathe on us now,
And move within us while we pray:
The Spring of our new life art Thou,
The very light of our new day.

 2. O strangely art Thou with us, Lord,
 Neither in height nor depth to seek:
 In nearness shall Thy voice be heard;
 Spirit to spirit Thou dost speak.

3. Christ is our Advocate on high;
Thou art our Advocate within.
O plead the truth, and make reply
To every argument of sin.

 4. But ah, this faithless heart of mine,
 The way I know, I know my Guide:
 Forgive me, O my Friend divine,
 That I so often turn aside.

5. Be with me when no other friend
The mystery of my heart can share;
And be Thou known, when fears transcend,
By Thy best name of Comforter.

1. John 20 v 22. Genesis 2 v 7, reminding us that just as the Holy Spirit was active in creation, and was breathed by Jesus on His disciples to equip them for their work, so too the Holy Spirit can bless and guide us in our Christian lives also. Especially within the verse the Spirit is seen as giving life and empowering our prayers. When we ask the Holy Spirit to guide our prayers then God is free to control them as He want to and to lead us on. 

2. The best way into this verse is Deuteronomy 30 vv 11,12,13,14, 11 so much so that I print them in full. 
11 Now what I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach. 12 It is not up in heaven, so that you have to ask, "Who will ascend into heaven to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?" 13 Nor is it beyond the sea, so that you have to ask, "Who will cross the sea to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?" 14 No, the word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart so you may obey it. God’s Spirit can lead us directly – so that we hear His voice and walk in His paths. 
See H & P 477, also John’s Gospel 10 v 27

3. Hebrew 4 vv 14,15, which sees Jesus is the Jewish tradition as both the last and only necessary sacrifice for sin, and the last and greatest High Priest, forming the bridge between God and man, and John 14 v 16, where Jesus promises that Holy Spirit will guide us into truth. See also 1 John 5 v 20 

4. Needs no verses really – our own lives bear this out –God’s love to us is unfailing but ours to Him is wavering – we know we should walk in the away but so often turn aside. See Romans 7 vv 14-25 

5. Back to John’s gospel again – John 14 vv 16, 17, 26 – remembering that the old word Comforter when used of the Holy Spirit means ‘bringer of strength’, not bringer of comfort. Also Matt. 11v19.

I haven’t been able to find out much about Alfred Vine. He was born May 1845, in Radford, Nottinghamshire, educated at King Edward’s School, Birmingham, and King’s College, Oxford, and entered the Wesleyan Methodist ministry in 1867. In 1881 he was a Wesleyan Methodist minister near Banbury, Oxfordshire. His works include: The Doom of Saul, 1895 (from which this hymn comes) Songs of the Heart, 1905 Songs of Living Things, 1897 He died in 1917. The tune, ‘Calm’, to which it is normally sung was originally sung in Primitive Methodism but here is allied to a Wesleyan hymn – Methodist unity indeed! 

God Bless,
John Davies

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Rev John Davies writes

Dear friends, 

I write this in a momentous week – the week in which the Pope has allowed the Vatican to issue a document which says that neither the Protestant nor the Orthodox Churches are ‘proper’ Churches, and that ‘it was difficult to see how the word Church could be ascribed to them’, and that other Christian faiths ‘lack elements considered essential to the Catholic Church’. In other words, the only proper Church remains the Roman Catholic Church, and the only true religious leader is the Pope himself. So it seems since the 16th century very little has changed. 

It would be silly if it were not so hurtful and dangerous. The Pope has courted controversy before- several months ago he angered Moslems, and then went on to irritate Pentecostals and evangelical Protestants by saying that the ‘greatest evil affecting South America is the growth of evangelical Protestantism’. Those aware of the poverty, destitution and corruption of South American countries – not to mention the drug culture – may have been rather surprised to learn that evangelical Christians were a bigger problem! Perhaps both of these things should have been a warning, as should have been his backing of the re-introduction of the traditional Latin Mass.

But now he has allowed into a circulation a document which strikes at the heart of the movement towards Christian Unity. Only a few months ago prominent Anglicans were saying that a united Church was just round the corner and now these dreams seem further off than ever. It must be said that to achieve that unity Anglican leaders were willing to go backwards on the issue of the ordination of women, but that did not unduly bother them, or so it seemed! Indeed, where the hopes of the those who wanted to see Anglican Methodist union would have ended up if the Anglican and Catholic Churches united first were debatable, especially as we were one of the first Churches to ordain women and have no intention of going back on it. But now the whole thing has been kicked into touch, and during this Pope’s lifetime it may remain so. 

In one sense this should not bother those of us who have never believed in the possibility or the desirability of one vast organic Church. The unity which matters most is surely a spiritual thing – Christian unity should be centred on the acceptance of a common faith in God, and the acceptance of each other as brothers and sisters. One can have this unity between Churches even where there are denominational differences – and, on the other hand, one can fail to find it between Christians in the same congregation. But the mere fact that a Christian leader can so cheerfully allow the faith of over half of the world’s Christians to be rubbished not only calls into question that person’s understanding but also his compassion. 

It seems appropriate that the collect for the 15th. July – the day I am writing this – is:-

Eternal God, giver of love and peace, you call your children to live together as one family. Give us grace to learn your ways and to do your will, that we may bring justice and peace to all people. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen

God bless, 

John Davies

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Rev John Davies writes

Dear friends,

I was given this inspiring story a while ago now by my mother to put in the newsletter, but had to do some research on it as it had ‘grown a little in the telling’ as it went around the internet. I did a little digging around, and was delighted to discover it does however have a basis in truth. So – after a few months delay – here is my own version of the story of Hattie Wyatt’s 57 cents!

Many year ago now a little girl was turned away from Sunday School in Philadelphia,

Pennsylvania because the tiny building was filled to capacity (those were the days!) The Minister, Dr. Colwell, happened to be passing by, saw her crying, took her in, and encouraged the Sunday School Teachers to make room for her, saying to her that one day he hoped to have a bigger building with room for all who wanted to come and that he was going to start fundraising.

Unknown to him, the little girl decided to save her pennies (as Americans call cent coins) to go towards this building fund, but after two weeks was then sadly taken ill and died. At the funeral, Dr. Colwell was handed her small savings by the girl’s father – 57 cents, all in single cents obtained from running errands. At the next meeting of the Church Trustees, Colwell suggested using the 57 cents to begin a building fund. The Trustees were impressed, and one found a plot on nearby Broad Street. The owner of the property was told the story of the little girl, and although he didn’t attend a church he was deeply touched. He suggested selling the land for twenty five thousand dollars – a large sum of money then, but much less than he had wanted for the land – at 5% - and set the downpayment to be 57 cents!

Even more amazingly, the church received a gift from a church member of the total sum, which left the cost of the building to find – some $109,000. But inspired by Hattie Wiatt’s example the fundraising went on apace.

That original church soon gave rise to a hospital, a college (now Temple University) and has now moved to another site. But it owes its origins to the gift of a little girl.

I think what impressed me about this story is that this church, which has done amazing work for over 100 years now, has trained many ministers, and which has influenced thousands, was only founded because everybody – Hattie, Dr. Colwell, the landowner, and the church members of that day - were was willing to do their utmost for the Lord – and to give sacrificially when there was a need. To me it is a living parable of what can happen when everybody in a church congregation, from youngest to oldest, is fully committed.

God bless,

John Davies

Rev John Davies writes

Dear friends,

But they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig-tree; and none shall make them afraid; for the mouth of the Lord of hosts hath spoken. Micah chapter 4 verse 4.

Micah lived in troubled times - the rich trod the poor underfoot, there was no fairness, and little justice. And in these verses, Micah looks forward to the day when the Lord reigns - a day when there is peace and justice. And for him this is typified by every man having a home of his own - with comfort, food - they love figs in Eastern countries - and wine. However poor, says Micah, when God reigns, and when things are as they should be, people will dwell in peace and security in their own homes.

It is an age old dream. Home ownership is higher in the U.K. than in many other countries, and we have been from time to time accused of being property obsessed. Certainly, there is a sense in which security and comfort are tied up in the British imagination with having a home of your own. In the 17th. Century, some of the Levellers in Cromwell's England - the earliest Socialists - wanted an acre of land for each man, with a horse and a cow; they were driven by an image of a tranquil and rural England where the poor dwelt in their own homes, in peace and security - a vision not unlike Micah's, and like him their faith was coupled to social concern. For a while it seemed as if this popular dream was becoming a reality, as during the 20th century home ownership in the U.K. crept up year on year as more and more people moved out of rented accommodation and discovered the joy of having a home of their own, though more likely with a back garden and a colour television than a vine and a fig tree, and enjoying the peace and security it afforded.

But with the relentless rise of house prices this has all altered - in thirty years the average house has gone up in price from around three times average income to between six and eight times, and this has led to increasing social instability. Couples now tend to set up home later, because of the need to finish education, pay off student debt and save for a deposit, and this has its own effect on the birthrate statistics; whereas at the age of 30 twenty five years ago most people were married and would by then have two children, now many couples are not able to try to start a family until both are over 30, with the result that more and more couples are having to turn to IVF and similar methods and there is a consequent increase in birth defects due to couple having children at beyond the optimum child bearing age. Now, according to the housing minister, if present trends continue 70% of couples setting up home at 30 will still not be able to expect to move into their own homes - and when they do, many will be unable to pay the mortgage without resorting to both partners continuing to work full time, which has its own social consequences for childcare and quality of life.

To build a stable and content society we need affordable homes set in pleasant communities which are good places to bring up children. The answers to this situation tend to lie with politicians, not theologians. It is therefore encouraging that in his pre-election speech Mr. Brown has said that he intends to back the building of 100,000 new homes. It is also therefore encouraging that the Government is looking at a range of measures to increase house construction, speed up planning applications, release land and ease access to ownership through shared equity schemes. We could go further. Despite being a farmer's son I feel that there is much farmland which could be given over to building new towns - or extending old ones - without great detriment to the countryside as a whole. But to create towns worth having would call for vision and imagination on the part of the architects and planners - there is no point in creating mass-produced, small, people boxes set in a wasteland - that isn't what Micah had in mind either.

Every blessing
John Davies

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Rev John Davies writes

Dear friends, 

Political correctness. 

I made a mistake some months ago, and was instantly put right. I simply referred to something as the ‘nitty gritty’ and was corrected politely by the friend I was with. Apparently the term has to do with slave ships and is no longer used in polite circles. So I spent an instructive hour on a website, and discovered that I must also no longer ask for ‘black coffee’ but ‘coffee without milk’, or refer to ‘master’ and ‘slave’ drives on a computer – these terms can all cause offence these days. 

I could go on – there was a whole list of terms I discovered I shouldn’t use any more – admittedly, some of these seemed fair enough, like ‘cack handed’ – it means left handed but it always seems to be used in a derogatory fashion, which is undeniably unfair. 

PC has become one of the bywords of our day. The trouble is I can’t help feeling that in their efforts to create a fair and just society in which people are treated as equals, some PC campaigners and activists have at times lost their sense of proportion – not to mention their sense of humour! 

The other problem I have with political correctness is that the goalposts change over the years. It was unacceptable for a while to call someone ‘fat’. Now it seems you can again as ‘fat’ is the big ‘no-no’, but on the other hand just try any form of comment which draws in someone’s ethnic background and you are in big trouble – unless it is Welsh, in which case it is probably o.k. with most people - though not with me…………!

And what about the Gospels? I can’t help feeling that in the time of His earthly ministry Jesus would have been branded as politically incorrect for ignoring the norms of his society, which included shunning the disabled (they were viewed as sinners, smitten by God, in the Jewish society of the day) and not having dealings with ‘the enemy’ – Rome. He even included women amongst his followers. But such is social change that in our own society ardent PC’ers would have praised Him for exactly those same things. On the other hand, some particularly ‘PC’ disabled rights activists have been critical of Christ’s healing of the disabled because the very act of healing suggests that they are in some way impaired. Theologically, my own answer to this one is that all fall short of what God would like – some through behaviour and choices, and others through no fault of their own through the weakness of their bodies. God’s wish for all is still wholeness and healing, and if the world was as He intended it to be we would see these things more clearly. 

In the end, I cannot help feeling it is better to live by true gospel principles – and yes, on reflection, this still means modifying my language if it can cause offence simply because that which doesn’t offend one may well offend someone else. As I see it, living as Christians means valuing those we meet as being so significant that Jesus died for them and treating all men as brothers and all women as sisters; therefore, logically, we should also try to avoid insensitive and hurtful language. So, if anyone catches me using the phrase ’nitty gritty’ again, please stop me!

Every blessing

John Davies

‘Whatever you eat or whatever you drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. Do not cause anyone to stumble (by your behaviour)’. 1 Cor 10 v31 (amplified) 

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Rev John Davies writes…..

Dear friends, 

"As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man, dressed in a white robe, sitting on the right side; and they were alarmed. But he said to them, 'Do not be alarmed; you are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has been raised; he is not here. Look, there is the place they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him, just as he told you.'" (Mark 16: 5-7)

It is strange that in an era in which we live longer than generations before us and have so much more materially that so many people can find little to live for . The numbers of people living with depressive illness is going up, family life seems to be fragmenting. The present seems unsettled, and the future seems uncertain. Some are facing job – or pay - cuts, some are facing a future less financially secure than they had hoped. 

It is hardly surprising that depression rates are going up, or that so many seek oblivion in drink or drugs – or the constant anesthetic of the TV. 

Yet to me all this says that so many have put their trust in the wrong things – in their own earning capacity, the stability of their firm, or just in money in general. ‘Put not your trust in princes…happy are they whose help is the God of Jacob!’ (Ps. 146.) It is no bad thing to regard the future as uncertain – or to try and provide for the future – but for the Christian this is not where our focus should be nor should instability in the world around us surprise us. The world is and always has been an unstable place – indeed, it is the relative period of calm and tranquility that should surprise us. 

The bible says to us again and again that we are meant to put our trust in God, not in governments or wealth or our own accomplishments. And if we do so God will bless us and give us hope in the midst of despair, and the strength to meet and deal with our troubles – and rise above them.

Those women who went to the tomb that first Easter morning were hope-less. They must have felt overwhelmed by grief and sorrow – unable to find a way forward, conscious only of the fact that their Leader, their Master was dead and they must anoint His body. Their hopes and dreams must have seemed buried with Him. Yet this was not the end of the story but the beginning – and before long their hearts were brimming with happiness as they realised their Lord was alive, and they would see Him again – and it was not long before they would discover that because of His Resurrection from the dead and His Ascension back to Heaven He could not be separated from them but would be with them always through the Holy Spirit. 

And because of Christ’s continuing presence with us even in our darkest moments we too can have hope as we realise that none of life’s experiences and not even death itself can separate us from God’s love (see Romans chapter 8) – and that we can know the comfort of His presence at all times. This Easter may this become a growing reality for us all. 

May God bless you all this Easter,

John Davies

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Rev John Davies writes…..

Dear friends, 

It is a sad fact that whereas the latter end of both the 18th,. and the 19th. Century was marked by an unprecedented era of church growth, the latter end of the 20th. Century was marked by church shrinkage and closure. This is for me a matter of great personal sadness. Of the five churches I looked after in Telford as a Probationer Minister two have now closed, and one has amalgamated with a church in another section of the Circuit. One that has closed was Wrockwardine Wood – the mother church of Primitive Methodism throughout the area, and the centre of a great local revival with daughter churches as far off as little Hopton Bank which nestles on the side of the Clee Hill. The commitment of those few increasingly elderly people still attending (hang on a minute – do any of us get younger?!) had somehow never managed to commend itself to the local population.

A recent report says that thousands of churches will shut in the next ten years. This in a sense is old news – Methodism is shutting a hundred a year, year on year. It seems to me that we cannot simply say this is due to a failure in mission, or poor preaching, or uncomfortable and inconvenient buildings, although these hardly help. 

Fundamentally, the nature of society has changed in the last generation and we no longer do things together, corporately as we once did. People now talk about self fulfillment as they once talked about family and in a culture where the workplace is increasingly stressful many simply want to relax when they come home and not be tied to anything. 

It isn’t only the churches which are affected – voluntary organizations of all sort have more and more difficulties getting volunteers to run activities , and even pubs are closing as peoples social lives centre more around the home. We sometimes assume that the other faiths are doing better than we are – however, whilst there are indeed new Mosques being built, many Imans will say just the same stuff about falling attendance and commitment ‘phobia’ that a Vicar or Minister would. 
. 
Against all this what can we say? As Christians we believe that God calls us into fellowship with Him and with each other – that when we become Christians we become part of a family and that that might make commitments upon us but it is also very fulfilling – and helps sustain us in our daily life and work. Perhaps where we have failed is that we have tended to centre Mission reviews on improving our premises, installing comfy seats and changing worship – all things which I am in favour of incidentally - but we have not centered on the motivation which makes people come. Essentially, we cannot just rely on tempting people in. The only thing which will lead them in is a personal search for God – which just might be started off by coming into contact with a committed Christian – people like us. What a challenge- and an awesome responsibility. 

And if they do put a toe in the water, what then? All too often those inside the church expect people to ‘fit in’ to what is already there – and – to our shame – sometimes we expect them to ‘be like us’. Especially if they are at the beginning of their spiritual journey they may not be. They will be themselves – they will have some growing to do as we all do – and will also have some new ideas to share and pertinent observations we can learn from. I remember a failing church of mine which prayed for revival years ago – and when the prayers were answered one of the regulars left – she hadn’t realized all these ‘new’ people would want to change things! Tragic. 

For the main part people will only want to come to ‘our’ church if they are genuinely welcomed, accepted for who they are, if they are allowed to grow – and become part of the church – at their own rate, and if they believe we have something here they cannot possibly live without. 

May God bless us all and help us to witness effectively for Him in these new and demanding times. 

Every blessing, John Davies

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Rev John Davies writes

Dear friends, 

Can we believe the bible? 
(or The Da Vinci code - not worth breaking………)

The recent film 'The Da Vinci' code has caused a lot of people to say, 'How can we know the bible is an accurate representation of 1st. century belief?' and 'How do we know it is true?' I have been asked this so often lately I thought it was worth coming back to the subject! 

Basically, Dan Brown argues that the council of Nicea in 325 a.d. created both an infallible scripture and a divine Christ, and that before this Christ had been viewed simply as a human teacher . However, a look at scripture will quickly disprove this. For example, 1 Corinthians 8:6: "Yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ." We should also note that the term Lord was often used by Jews of God - it is far more than an honorary title. It is putting Jesus on the same level as God. And from the beginning Christians were baptised - as commanded in Matthew's gospel - in the name of the 'Father, Son and Spirit', thus again leading us to the point where we have to say that from the beginning people believed in 'God in three persons' - neither does 'I am in the Father and the Father is in me' or 'we will come to them and make our home with them' (both in John 14) sound exactly modest, unless Jesus believed he and the Father were truly one being!

But Brown goes further than this. Basically he argues that to bolster up the idea of a divine Jesus the Emperor Constantine had a paid staff to 'doctor' texts. Now it is true that shortly after Constantine made Christianity the state religion of the Roman Empire he called in many of the scriptures then in circulation. This was simply because as scriptures in those days were copied one from another, errors had crept in over the years and there was a desire that the documents of the faith were to be as accurate as possible. But the point is that his requisitioning of scriptures was not complete and that over the years a good number of scriptures, some complete, some only fragments, have some to light, and that whilst some may have detail differences from the 'received text' - the texts from which our bible is translated, all the main facts tally, word for word, as does the teaching of the Didache, the earliest Christian teaching manual. The bible as we have it is as close to the original text as makes no difference. 

But how do we know it is true? I suppose it means what we mean by 'truth'. If we mean 'is it historically true' then we have a number of ancient authors such as Tacitus and Josephus who mention the growth of Christianity and state it was centred around a crucified Jesus. The existence of Annas and Ciaphas is documented, as is the existence of Pilate, and Herod - indeed, a large stone inscribed with Pilate's name turned up in the middle East last year. There is more evidence for the existence of Christ than most historical figures. 

But if the question is 'How do I know the claims in the gospel are true?', then that cannot be answered objectively. We have the gospels, which are probably based on eye witness accounts. However, there is no-one who can 'prove' that Jesus died and rose, or that he turned water into wine or raised the dead. And one has to ask, what sort of proof would be acceptable? If it was now, what sort of proof would be accept? Film? Photo? Eyewitness account? All could be fabricated! In the end, the best proof is that of changed lives - the changed lives of those in the early church who found the reality of the risen Christ so compelling that they were willing to go to their deaths of martyrs rather than renounce Him, and the changed lives of those Christians who down through the ages have found forgiveness, new life, new hope, new strength through praying the simple prayer, 'Lord Jesus, come into my life - cleanse me, bless me, purify me, let me walk in your paths now and for ever. Amen.' What other truth would count? Or could count?

May God bless us all and lead us into deeper knowledge of His truth. 

Every blessing, John Davies

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Rev John Davies writes

Dear friends, 

Christianity in a Secular (University) Society

When I was at Bristol University it was a delight to belong to the University Methsoc. - (short for Methodist Society) - the Methodist version of Christian Union. We were a mixed bunch - some of us were committed Christians (not all of whom were Methodists - we simply had the most active Christian society!), some were non Christians, and some were 'honest enquirers after truth' as Mr. Wesley would have called them. Of the Christians, some were liberals, some were evangelicals, some high and some low church. As you can imagine we had some very lively debates (and once a near fight!).

The range of speakers was incredible - from the famous scientist Fred Hoyle to Bishops like Graham Lennard and theologians like Morna Hooker. All had something to say, all informed us, all stretched our minds. Now and again Methsoc. speakers gave us something to be angry with - it didn't matter, the process of reflection led to our faith being strengthened and tempered. Methsoc. produced several local preachers and Ministers, and reinforced many in their faith.

So it was with great dismay that I read that at several Universities Student Unions have now banned Christian Unions (there are fewer Methsocs. in these ecumenical days) from membership, sometimes on the strangest of grounds, such as refusing to have non Christians on their Committees, or (in the case of Exeter) for refusing to have the word 'Evangelical' incorporated in its title. In Edinburgh the Christian Union faces sanctions for being non inclusive - they had organized a series of Bible studies that had deemed homosexuality to be unacceptable for Christians.

In the last few years we have witnessed great changes in our national attitude to Christianity. Whilst fewer than ever come to church, or see baptisms, weddings or even Christian funerals as essential, nevertheless, the decline in Church attendance is slowing and there seems a greater interest in spiritual matters in society in general, perhaps because materialism too has been tried as an alternative and found wanting.

The Charismatic movement too has had its effect - there is more emphasis on the work - and on the active presence - of the Holy Spirit within the Churches than there once was, and there is also probably a tendency for young Christians to be more fervent than their parents' generation when it comes to their faith, and more likely to seek to convert others. Perhaps this is why at Exeter the Student Union thought it was right to want 'Evangelical' added to the Student Union title.

Nevertheless, Universities are meant to be a place where people can debate, and question, and be angry; and a close-minded secularism is as bad as the theological dogmatism which governed our country at times in past centuries. There should be freedom of thought and action as long as people aren't hurt by the actions of others. One can't help feeling that Christians are being particularly singled out for this sort of treatment - no-one seems to be calling those of other faiths exclusive, or trying to limit them in any way. Perhaps it is because they are not evangelical, and are therefore not such a threat.

Many of our charities in this country are led and run by Christians; many of our teachers (and lecturers) at all levels of education are led into teaching because of their Christian belief. Without committed Christians our society would be very much the poorer. Please pray for all those who live out their faith in our schools and Universities - pupils and teachers alike.

Every blessing, John Davies

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Rev John Davies writes 

Dear friends,

Something (else) to celebrate 
It was pointed out to me after I had written last month's letter that I too had something to celebrate - my 50th. birthday!

May I begin by thanking all those who have sent cards, letters and gifts - though how everybody knew was a mystery! Your kind wishes are much appreciated.

I must admit that apart from my 40th I haven't paid much attention to birthdays since becoming an adult - but these is something special about approaching - or being - 50.

Those who are older than you tend to look at you with a certain grim delight and say - You are catching us up - but wait until you get to OUR age! THEN you'll know about it.... Gee, thanks. It's like being a junior member of a Club one is not too sure about wanting to join! This was reinforced by the young lady sales assistant who helpfully told me the other day that if I came back to Focus on Tuesday. I could get Senior Citizens Discount!!

Likewise, those who are younger than you - especially your children - merely regard the fact you have got to such a landmark as a confirmation that you really are ancient and that doddering old age is just round the corner. This was reinforced by a friend of mine who was born on the same day of the same year and phoned me up and said Do you realize that between us we are a hundred? `

But I suppose my main reaction to being 50 is that I have a lot to be thankful for; friends and family especially, but other things as well - I am doing a job I love, amongst people I find it easy to work with, and I am in far better health than I was just a few years ago, thanks to the grace of God.

And I suppose that is the other thing. One of my aunts used to say that you are as young as you feel. To a certain extent I have come to realize that we are all as young as our health and strength allow us to be, and since being healed a few years ago I have learned to be very grateful for the health and strength I have, and am very conscious that it is a gift from God and is intended to be both enjoyed and used for my own benefit and that of others.

I suppose I am beginning to learn what St. Paul meant when he said in Colossians `I have learned in whatever circumstances I may find myself to be content.' I am not always even tempered - there is too much of the Celt in me for that - but I am normally content. It is a great blessing.

Every blessing John Davies 
50 years ago

Beer was 1/8 a pint (8.5p), petrol was 4/10 per gallon (24p) Road tax was £12/10/00 (£12.50) If that is good news, now the bad news - a teacher earned just £1, 275 per annum

Meanwhile, I share my birthday with Mel Gibson, Tom Hanks, Andy Capp(!) and Bo Derek - some of whom are wearing better than I am!

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Rev John Davies writes

Dear friends,

Something to celebrate 

2007 is a very special year in the Methodist Calendar.

It is 300 years since the birth of Charles Wesley. Charles was the brother of our founder John Wesley, and writer of so many of the hymns which helped shape the worship and teaching of early Methodism.

200 years since the first Methodist `camp meeting' - open air evangelistic meetings which led to the founding of Primitive Methodism, which sought to take the Gospel to the masses at a time when it was felt the mainstream Wesleyan Methodist church was becoming too staid and ineffective

150 years since the first assembly of the United Methodist Free Churches - another breakaway movement by those who found Wesleyan Methodism constricting.

100 years since the United Methodist Church was formed, uniting some of the breakaway strands of Methodism.

75 years since Methodist Union - forming the church we now have, when Primitive Methodists, United Methodists and Wesleyans came together.

For those who are interested there will be leaflets available soon of special events to mark all of these events - it would be good if some of us at least could make a point of attending one or two. It is worth noting that there are still other Methodist Churches in this country which have not yet come back into the fold - notably the Wesleyan Reform Union - and there are also some offshoots of American Methodism which have taken root over here such as the Free Methodist Church

But all this gives me cause for thought. Methodist divisions arose not from a wish to break up what was there but, normally,* from a wish for religious freedom, from a wish to respond to a movement of the Holy Spirit in a way which the mainstream denomination - normally Wesleyan Methodism - was not flexible to allow. These divisions are often seen now as a failure - as something which weakened us - and yet at the time were seen as a sign of vitality, growth and life, even if later there was a yearning to be one so that our witness could be more effective.

Finally, although I will join in these `backward looking ` events - it is important to know where you have been - I cannot help but ask the question 'What is the best way of honouring the memory of John and Charles Wesley'.

To which the answer comes back - to discover the forgiveness and love of God, to discover Jesus as a personal Saviour and. Friend, to discover the empowering of the Holy Spirit enabling us to live our lives for Him - and then to tell others of what we have found and seen and experienced. We are then being true to our heritage not just as Methodists, but far more importantly, as Christians.

Every Blessing
John Davies

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Rev John Davies writes

Dear friends,

It was my privilege in June this year to attend Methodist Conference in Edinburgh to assist in the ordination of Rev. Mark Sherman, who was for a long time one of our Local Preachers in this Circuit, and an ex Lay worker at Central Hall. I went with Paula, and we had a lovely time - both during the service and over the whole weekend. Not for nothing is Edinburgh called the `Athens of the North'- a lovely city. Mark asked me to pass on hi~ good wishes and thanks to the people of this Circuit for their support and prayers down through the years, which I gladly do.

During Conference several debates took place which are of immense concern to many people; perhaps the most significant of these was the one on human sexuality, and I promised at Church Council that I would bring people up to date as soon as the matter had been discussed.

In the early 1990's amongst other things the Derby Conference reaffirmed the traditional teaching of the Church on human sexuality; namely `chastity for all outside marriage and fidelity within it', and stated that `Conference, affirming th joy of human sexuality as God's gift and the place of every human being within the grace of God, recognizes the responsibility that flows from this for us all. All practices of sexuality, which are promiscuous, exploitative or demeaning in any way are unacceptable forms of behaviour and contradict God's purpose for us all and also a person shall not be debarred from church on the grounds of sexual orientation in itself.

Therefore at Derby Christian Marriage and traditional values were upheld; nevertheless a person who was not heterosexual could hold office and enter the ministry etc as long as their lives were chaste - i.e. as long as they were not in a sexual relationship.

In the last few years the legal possibility of Civil Partnerships has led most mainstream churches to look afresh at their understanding of human sexuality. The matter was discussed in full at Conference and it was decided that we would stick by the Derby Resolutions, which would now fully be included within our Standing Orders.

So, whilst there is nothing preventing Methodists from entering into Civil Partnerships, as they are not marriages and no sexual relationship is assumed or required, nevertheless we will be not allowed to bless same sex partnerships in church as it is felt this goes against the spirit of the Derby Resolutions. Conference also felt that there should be a wide consultation on whether the Derby Resolutions should be revisited, and that this would be discussed in 2008.

We do not make decisions about matters like this in a vacuum, and even as I write the Church of England wrestles with the same issues. We continue to pray for the whole Christian church as it continues to seek Gods will on this subject and we pray also for those who find themselves torn between their human desires and their Christian convictions.


Every blessing John Davies

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Rev John Davies writes

Dear friends,

When I first came into the Ministry I was probably taking somewhere between twenty and thirty weddings a year - these days it is something closer to twelve. This is a different Circuit - nevertheless from the wedding registers I see that your previous ministers were about as busy as I was. I wish I could say that I have noticed having the extra time!

On reflection, there are many reasons for this. A main one has to be that living together has lost its stigma - even when I started in this job twenty five years ago, `respectable' people didn't live together, and if they lived together before marriage they often tried to make sure this wasn't c Tear from the wedding registers! Another is the growth of wedding packages where couples get married and also have their honeymoon abroad all at the same resort - I tend to have two cancellations every year from couples who have arranged a wedding in the U.K. and then decide to do this instead.

Other reasons would include those situations where living together was seen as a `trial marriage', and the trial went on a rather long time `We always meant to get married but decided to leave it until our last child got married, and also the fact that quite a few people just don't expect to stay with their partners long term - and therefore don't get married because they assume (rightly) that the Church looks at marriage as a lifetime commitment.

But undoubtedly it does not help that successive Governments have made it less and less attractive for couples to commit themselves to each other. Measures like the abolishment of MIRAS (Tax relief on mortgages) and Income Tax concessions for married couples have diminished marriage as a social institution. The growing ease and acceptance of divorce may have meant that, on the positive side, people do not stay in marriages which a living hell any more, but they also mean on the negative side that people often seem to opt of relationships which could have been fruitful if greater attempts had been made to sort them out.

Now, we have seen further changes in the law concerning division of property following a divorce, which are currently being extended to those in long term relationships.

On the surface this is a good idea -- why should, say, a woman (wife or not) who has sacrificed her career to bring up a family to support her businessman husband not have a fair share in his wealth when the relationship goes west? O.K., But why (last week) should a penniless man have been awarded half his wealthy wife's house after a brief, unsuccessful marriage? Whilst one must always be careful about generalizing, something is wrong somewhere when judgments like this are made without obvious good cause.

Neither, now, is it a `safer' option to live with someone as increasingly the same rules will apply. I fear the tendency will now be for couples thinking about commitment - not just marriage - to look at each other and say to themselves 'Is this the person who will make me poor - what happens if it all goes west.: Hardly the best start to any relationship. I fear also that there will be an increasing tendency for couples to end relationships within the two year threshold limit beyond which partners start having rights - and two years in some relationships (especially second or third ones) is sometimes not enough to see how things will work out. If I am right, the overall effect of all this will be to destabilize society and move away even further from Christian ideals. I very much hope I am wrong.

Every blessing

John Davies

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Rev John Davies writes

Dear Friends,

The scrawny African kid.

Once upon a time in Uganda there was a scrawny African boy who walked twelve miles (yes, twelve miles!!) to and from his home to school in Kampala each day, one of thirteen children raised in a simple home. Despite his obvious poverty he was intelligent and confident, with a rich sense of humour. His intelligence, personality and determination to get an education inspired a missionary, John Morris, who somehow found the money to buy him a bicycle and kept him in inner tubes so as to enable him to get to and from school more easily. On Sunday Mr. Morris took him to the local Anglican Church, Sunday by Sunday.

In later years he went on to study law, and became first a barrister and then a High Court judge; however, he fell foul of Idi Amin's regime when he ignored an order to deliver a 'not guilty' verdict on one of Amin's cousins, was badly beaten up by a hit squad and was able to escape with his life only because he already had a place arranged at Cambridge to read Theology.

That African boy is of course John Sentamu, ex Bishop of Birmingham and recently enthroned Archbishop of York. His religious calling dates from the time when his friend Archbishop Janani Luwum was murdered by Amin's regime. During his time in the West Midlands he delighted us with his common sense approach to applying the teaching of the gospels to everyday life, and now he is setting the church on its heels in York!

Like many Africans I have met personally over the years, Sentamu sees much that is good in British culture, and really appreciates the fact that missionaries took the gospel to his homeland.

At the time of his enthronement, he said 'The gospel I got in my country was so good - I am simply telling the English, it is my job now to simply remind you of what you taught me.'

As for Mr. Morris, the missionary whom saw such potential in that thin African kid with the wide smile so long ago, he is now ordained himself and serving in the diocese of Winchester. He says, 'Dr. Sentanu's qualities are leadership and straight talking. The Church ....is in great need of straight talkers!

At a time when so many are untouched by the teaching of the church and unaware of basic Christian beliefs and principles, we wish him well in his mission to put Christianity back on the agenda in British society, and pray that God will help him to does what he does best - talk about God, straight from the shoulder.

Every blessing

John Davies

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Rev John Davies writes

Dear Friends,

1984 has finally arrived - in 2006.

Those who have read George Orwell's atmospheric book '1984' may remember that in 1985 we heaved a sigh of relief that despite all our worst fears '1984' hadn't actually come true. Big Brother wasn't watching us, and Orwell's strange government controlled and security-obsessed world had not come about. It seems now that the sighs of relief were rather early, as 1984 has got here at last, simply having been delayed; worse, in 2006,it isn't just Big Brother that is watching us but the rest of the family also.

On the road we are monitored continually for motoring and speed offences, and may shortly be charged by the mile - which will also tell that State where we are, all the time. Off road things aren't much better = Closed Circuit TV has made stars of us all, including the policemen suspended for calling criminals 'pond life' within the seeming security of their own station. Apparently the criminal in question may have been offended had he/she been present, say Nottinghamshire police. I seem to remember that this was the under achieving force which recently admonished the copper with the best arrest record in Britain for arresting too many drug dealers close to a rehabilitation project.

Meanwhile, not so many miles away a Registry Office has taken down all signs relating to marriage in case it offends all those becoming hitched under the new laws permitting civil relationships; this follows hard on the heels of the crematorium which took down the cross in case it offended atheists and changed the name of the Crematorium Chapel to Community Hall.

Even more worrying, apart from this phenomenal increase in social monitoring and rampant political correctness, our right to freedom of speech is being constantly eroded. Sir Iqbal Sacranie, the moderate head of the Moslem Council, is now being investigated for homophobic comments by the police following a radio interview in which he merely said in a very balanced way that homosexuality was not acceptable according to Islam, and that same sex partnerships are harmful. In the same talk he also urged people to give their views within the democratic process, and said that people should be tolerant. Hardly inflammatory stuff, but apparently worthy of investigation.

One of our most cherished freedoms in Britain has been freedom of speech, despite the fact that this means that all too often we have had to put up with the political and religious ranting of people who knew that the UK was a safe base from which to operate. We are now moving with frightening rapidity towards becoming a state in which we are not allowed in any way to challenge the status quo - a state in which tolerance is the new religion (unless it is shown towards speeding motorists). Our society criminalises the trivial and yet ignores immense evils - the growth of the acceptance of homosexual practice amongst them. And I fear that before long the day will come in which it will be virtually impossible for anyone to stand up for their faith publicly, without being found guilty of a public offence.

And, finally, it seems that even writing articles for Church newsletters isn't as safe as it used to be, for in Italy a Fr. Righi has appeared in court following a newsletter article which has been accused of being defamatory by a local atheist. So I had better watch my step 

Every blessing
John Davies

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Dear Friends,

During the Twentieth Century as the Methodist Church came to resemble the other mainstream churches more closely, we gained much that other churches had taken for granted - the use of a service book, for example, and a greater understanding of the sacraments; the Eucharist in particular was very understated as in the Methodist Church of my youth, churches only had Communion (or 'The Lord's Supper' as it was invariably called in those days) just once a Quarter.

However, we also have lost something of our unique approach as a denomination - the role of lay people has often become subsidiary to a paid ministry, and churches no longer celebrate some of the annual services which marked Methodism out as different - or at least don't make so much of them. Lovefeasts - a form of communion service celebrated with water and cake or bread as opposed to bread and wine - were once common, dating from the days when Methodism was simply a group of religious societies. When these Methodist societies met it was normally for 'preaching services' as it was assumed that the sacraments were being attended at the local Parish Church, and in any case Methodism had no ordained Ministry of its own in the early days.

Another traditional service which is now no longer held is the Watchnight service. The Watchnight service began as a time of praise and worship, often starting at nine and going on until midnight. It often took place at full moon, so that members would be able to see their way home! As the years went on it tended to take place just once a year, on the last day of the year, as a time of reflection and prayer, asking God's forgiveness for the failings of the past and His blessing on the future. During this century fewer and fewer Churches have celebrated Watchnight services - this may have to do with increasing numbers of people spending Christmas and New Year with families living away, and may also have to do with concern about drunkenness on the streets when people are going home.

Instead, in most areas the Covenant Service has in most places been moved to the first Sunday in January, thus still giving us an opportunity to reflect and pray together at the threshold of a New Year and to re-dedicate ourselves together to God's service - and to His safekeeping - but to do it during the day!

At those first Watchnight Services those early Methodists would sing a Charles Wesley hymn:

Come, let us anew O that each in the day
Our journey pursue, Of His coming may say;
Roll round with the year, I have fought my way through,
Roll round with the year. I have fought my way through.
And never stand still I have finished the work
- till the Master appear. thou didst give me to do! (HAP 354)

May we echo those sentiments, and may God bless our work and witness for Him in 2006. A happy - and blessed - New Year to you all.

John Davies

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Rev John Davies writes

Dear Friends,

The other day I was talking with someone who came out with the old chestnut, 'Well, of course, all religions are the same anyway, aren't they? It's all a matter of personal choice, after all.'

I could only disagree, saying that the unique thing about Christianity was that it was not based around the teachings of a holy man (like Confucianism, Buddhism, or Sikhism), and was not man made (Scientology) but was based on direct revelation from God - God disclosing His nature, His purpose and His will.

Only in Christianity does God Himself descend to be with His people and take our humanity fully upon Himself, to become frail, weak and vulnerable as we are, 'contracted to our span' . The ancient Greeks had tales of the gods descending to be with humans but they remained gods, free of normal limitations, and as far as I am aware there was no attempt to say that these appearances had been literal events, tied to a specific place and time. They seem always to have been regarded as just fables. And, just to complete the comparison, only in Christianity does God Himself pay the price of our reconciliation to Him. Only in Christianity do we see God becoming fully human and then dying for us, and being raised to life again for our sakes.

Perhaps it is because of reasons like these that although I love the traditional Christmas bible readings centred round the birth in the stable, with the familiar story of Kings and Wise Men coming to pay homage - every year the Christmas message gives me cause for wonder at God's love afresh - my favourite reading is nevertheless from John's gospel, which places Christ in His true cosmic setting, which reminds us of his uniqueness, which reminds us that His primary purpose in coming is to actively reconcile us to God.

'In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.... Through Him all things were made in Him was life, and that life was the light of men... to all who received Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to be children of God - children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision, or a husband's will, but born of God. The Word became flesh and lived among us.... from the fullness of His grace (viz. active love) we have all received, one blessing after another'. (From John's Gospel, Chapter 1 v1, 3a, 4a, 12, 14a, 16.)

Powerful stuff, and about as far from shepherds and wise men and stables as we can get!

A happy and joyous Christmas, and a peaceful and blessed New Year to us all.

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Rev John Davies writes

Dear Friends,

Wallace and Gromit rule - gently and nostalgically

Undoubtedly two of the most successful characters in the history of animation have
been Nick Park’s characters, Wallace and Gromit, who are moulded painstakingly in
plasticine and then filmed by a freeze frame method. Amazingly it can take a day’s
work to get three seconds of film. Wallace is a quietly spoken, Northern inventor,
British to the core, eccentric and addicted to cheese - preferably Wensleydale.
Gromit is is his sidekick, a dog who although he cannot speak manages to convey a
great deal of expression through one carefully lifted eyebrow or the flap of an ear.
Gromit often suffers because of his masters various inventions and schemes, but
holds no malice and indeed very often manages to snatch victory for them both from
the jaws of defeat.

I suppose part of the attraction of Wallace and Gromit is the understated and very
British sense of humour, coupled with a use of slapstick that would get applause from
any 1920’s silent film director, especially in their masterpiece The Wrong Trousers.

Their world too is an attractive and nostalgic one, set in a time warp somewhere I
guess between 1957 and 1963. It is a comfortable place, where people wear cable
knit sweaters and live in cosy terraced houses, with neat front gardens and vegetable
gardens at the rear and flying ducks an the living room wall. Transport is by BSA
motorbike or A35 van, and Wallace’s idea of a really good time is a nice cup of tea
and a piece of Wensleydale. As there should be in such a world, there are heroes,
who always win in the end, and villains who always lose by a hairsbreadth.

To one who grew up in that era (as did Nick Park, who is just a bit younger than me), it
is all very pleasant and nostalgic. It is the world of Miss Marple, the world of
'Heartbeat', where values axe fixed and certain, and people have time for things, and
each other, and go to church on Sunday. It is easy to forget that in 1960 World War
Two was only 15 years behind us and the shadow of nuclear war hung over us.

I suppose that for many people in our society going to church is in much the same
category as the world of Wallace and Gromit - it is something nostalgic and
comforting, and removed from the pressures of 21st. century life. People come into
our church and say, ‘Isn’t it nice here - isn’t it tranquil. And yes, there is a sense in
which we can and should feel God’s peace and presence in church, but to me,
although faith should be a comfort and although there are times when the fellowship
we share as Christians can give us much needed uplift, nevertheless our Christianity
should never be merely a refuge. Instead it should be something which gives us
strength to face the demands of our everyday lives, to cope with the pressures. If I
meet people for whom Christianity represents something pleasant and nostalgic, I
also meet those who have gone through tough times and who will say, It’s only my
faith which enabled me to cope. Without God I'd have gone under’.

May God help us to find effective ways of communicating to people the news that God
loves them and can help them find fulfillment and meaning in life and cope with life’s
pressures, if only they turn to Him and confess their need of His strength and Love.

Every blessing, John Davies

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Dear Friends,

Yes, I really did enjoy my long holiday! The beach was perfect, the sun warm, and the water clear. Nothing to do for a whole 98 days. Bliss! Long may sabbaticals continue!

The truth was a little less extraordinary. I spent most of my time in Walsall, though we had two short holiday periods in Wales and Cheshire. I studied a course called 'Communion with God' on prayer and listening to God, which was very helpful and inspiring. I read about thirty books, just enjoying the freedom of following a rabbit trail from author to author, on personal development, management, social trends, pastoral theology, psychology, and new ways of being church. I worshipped with the Orthodox, the Pentecostals, the Charismatics, the Word of Faith folks and a few Methodists.

I also found time to cook a lot, decorate, refurnish the house, get rid of loads of rubbish, lose some weight and get fitter, and relax because there was generally nothing more pressing than to think about what we might eat tomorrow. Probably the greatest benefit of a time like this is simply escaping from deadlines.

So thank you for the gift of a very special time. Thanks, too, to my colleagues and to those people in my churches who took on extra responsibility to cover my absence. Thanks also to Chris, who went to work every day trusting that I wasn't at home watching Lord of the Rings on DVD while she wrestled with the ups and downs of teenagers' lives. (I didn't watch it even once!)

The fact that September is here again is a reminder that life is more than a Sabbatical, but wouldn't it be good to be able to live out of our rest rather than out of our work, at all times to feel the well-being and freedom that is part of the fullness of life? As a new Connexional year begins, I hope we will take it as an opportunity to Ism more about how to live as the people of God's Kingdom who experience day by day the Fathers blessing.

Shalom,
Dave Bonny.

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Rev. John Davies writes

Dear Friends

In the last few days the bomb outrages in London have rendered anything else I was going to say irrelevant. Upwards of fifty people have had their lives taken away by the appalling actions of four young men. And, to pile horror on horror, these are 'homegrown' terrorists, born here, and raised here, in Leeds streets which look very similar to some of those in Caldmore, Pleck or Palfrey.

It is very easy to put the blame on religious fundamentalism, but there are other factors which I am sure have a bearing on this, and one has to be the separation of such communities into their respective faith groups, including the white, nominally Christian minority who are the remnant of the original population. Effectively we have a situation in Britain in which so many of our 'inner city' communities are divided into 'faith ghettos' where people co-exist with as little real interaction as possible, and where there is sometimes deep suspicion and sometimes real and active dislike between the various groups.

As a Christian I do not really believe in inter faith groups, or interfaith worship, as my belief in the supremacy of Christianity is too great to allow me to worship with other faiths on an equal footing, so at first sight it might seem add for me to be saying what I am about to say - but I will say it.

We need to approach those in other faiths as brothers and sisters 'in Adam', sharing the some common humanity. We need to find out what makes each other tick and do our best to help dismantle some of those barriers of mistrust. For if we do not, then the price will be increasing polarization of our society, and that will be a terrible thing - whatever happens to Al Queda.

Moreover it seems to me that the onus is on Christians to begin bridging the barriers - and Methodists should be in the lead on this, as this has been part of our mission since the days of John Wesley. Describing the character of a Methodist, he says, 'As he has time, he does good unto all men, unto neighbours, strangers, friends and enemies'.

My own experiences of trying to bridge the barrier have occasionally served just to remind me how deep it is - yet they have often been worthwhile, and I find that most Moslems, Sikhs and Hindus are very pleased to be approached by a white Christian Briton, and will respond in a friendly manner, even at first they maybe hesitant. In my first job there was an Indian girl, who told me I was one of the first whites' to talk with her like a fellow human being -that has stuck with me all these years. What an appalling indictment of our society!

Lastly, we should remember in our prayers not just the victims of this appalling carnage and their relatives but also the relatives of those who committed this atrocity, and who are having to come to terms with the fact that their loved son could have done such a terrible thing, and we should especially remember all who work for and pray for peace and for a growth of understanding between different cultures in our society.

Every blessing, John Davies

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Dear Friends,

Times they are a' changin (Duke Ellington)

Recently there have been two stories in the medic which have given some Christians cause for concern. One concerned the Cornish District Council which wished to remove the cross from its Crematorium Chapel, which they now term a "community hall'. This seems like an affront in the name of political correctness, especially in an area which is still predominately Christian - whatever was to stop them removing it for humanist funerals and the funerals of those of other Faiths and then replacing it for the rest - those who still wish a Christian, religious service when they die, even though they might not have attended a place of worship regularly?

The second news item concerned the recent Anglican report which says that due to a continuing decline in finance and church attendance up to 1/3 of Parish clergy may be cut; should this happen the church will become more dependant on lay workers and non stipendiary priests than ever before, and the nature of the Church of England will alter considerably as congregations become more dependant on their own resources - as Methodist congregations already are in many ways.

To me, both these topics highlight a far bigger issue: that an increasing number of people in our society no longer feel that any form of involvement with organized Christianity is for them; indeed, in some households it is now three generations since any member had any significant attachment to a church. In many ways we are now living not in a Christian culture but in a missionary situation, and as far as I can see this means that we are facing a bigger challenge than the church has faced in the West since the 18th century.

Nevertheless, there are some 'green shoots' - some signs of recovery and growth. Apart from the increasing numbers of traditional evangelical churches with growing numbers attending, there are also new forms of church growing up which speak powerfully and successfully to modern culture:­ cell churches, cafe churches and alternative worship communities to name but three.

Cafe churches encourage people to sit around tables - as at a cafe - and eat and drink in a relaxed atmosphere - there may well be hymns and a short address, but the atmosphere is informal throughout, and structured to meet 'non church' folk on their own ground. Cell churches are simply small groups of Christians who meet - often in a home - for prayer and worship, and seek to draw others in For Methodists this very much strikes a cord, having many similarities to the original 18th century class meetings around which our church was built. Alternative worship communities tend to be churches without a building' often arising out of a house church or else a 'church plant' - a daughter church of an established church. They often meet in schools or community halls and tend to have a style of worship which again is far more free and easy than most of us are used to.

To some of us, raised in the established churches, all this seems very strange and sometimes a little threatening. Nevertheless, it is all part of reaching people for Christ, and to do this effectively means finding new ways of making the gospel relevant. In our own Circuit, at Bentley, Sunday Morning Breakfasts are proving very popular, as people meet together for toast, coffee bacon sandwiches and a chat before morning service - and hopefully bring their, friends as well - whilst at Aldridge on 26th June we are going to begin 'Chilled Out Worship' , which will be an informal Sunday service meeting not at the usual times but on a Sunday afternoon, at 3.30 p.m. to begin with just once a month. This, we hope, will meet the needs of those with young families who often find that Sunday afternoon is a convenient time for them to be out and about. Please pray these new ventures, and for all local churches who are seeking new ways of reaching out to the communities around them.

Every blessing John Davies

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Dear Friends,

It is difficult to think of anything that could banish both a Royal Wedding and the Grand National from the front pages of our newspapers - much less the collapse of Rover - and yet the unthinkable has happened,. as the Times gives up its front page today to a full page picture of the funeral of Pope John Paul II.

When you think about it, given that in developing countries especially much of the population is under 25, having led his Church for 26 years he is the only Pope that a vast number of the world's population has known, so such a reaction amongst the faithful is hardly surprising. What is far more incredible, at least to me, is the reaction from non Church goers - so many of whom had a lot of time for him - and also Protestants and those of other faiths.

In his early years he was a prime mover in the fight against Communism, courageously encouraging those behind the Iron Curtain - especially his own people, the Poles - to stand firm against a corrupt system which eventually collapsed, perhaps partly due to his efforts. The assassination attempt on his life may have been a revenge attack caused by this uncompromising stand against a system he saw as evil.

He toured more than any Pope before Him, giving us the word `Popemobile', and became a visible sign of peace and unity. His personal courage and personal integrity was second to none; we will not forget the way in which he coped with the attempt on his life, his quiet dignity and good humour in his last days, nor the effort made to conduct `business as normal' and to continue to bless and encourage his people even when in the closing stages of a terminal illness.

Yet there was much that I personally found unsettling about him, especially that in so many ways he was an arch traditionalist. He was devoted to the Virgin Mary - always a rather strange thing to a Protestant, especially when she is seen by many Catholics as reigning with Christ, something most Protestants would consider unbiblical. Perhaps stemming from his devotion to Mary, he venerated women, and set them on a pedestal - but only when they fulfilled a traditional, supportive role. Therefore, any movement towards women Priests in the Roman Catholic Church in his time was impossible, and moves towards the acceptance of married Priests also came to nothing. His archaic views on contraception have led to chaos in the Roman church, with many Catholics either leaving the church, going against his teaching or else facing unwanted and unaffordable babies. Some even condemned his teaching on contraception as encouraging the spread of AIDS. Yet one has to recognize that here too his stance came from his high moral values and his belief that men and women are more than sexual objects but are made in the image of God.

We commend him to a loving God, and wait to see if his successor will follow in his footsteps or in the more liberal ones of his predecessor John Paul I. May God help the College of Cardinals to make the right choice and select a man of whom He approves.

Every blessing, John Davies

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Dear Friends

Rev. David Sheppard - Lord Sheppard of Liverpool - Cricketer, Priest and Peer.

One of the greatest Christian influences on me as a teenager was Rev. David Sheppard. Firstly, he was a cricketer - something all boys of my generation looked up to - he was right up there with Colin Cowdrey, Denis Compton, Don Bradman, and Fred Truman. One of the all time greats, and as a boy that was important. Secondly, though, he was famous as a man who had `given it all up' for his faith. After being Captain of Cambridge, Captain of the English Team, he quietly went into the church and become a Parish Priest. Or at least, he tried to. From time to time through the fifties and the sixties he still got called in to play for England - which is why my generation became so familiar with him, I suppose. He remains the only parish priest to have played Test Cricket.

But it is was most as a Christian that he inspired me. In part it was because of his `giving it all up for God' - as a young and idealistic Christian that made him very impressive, though it was the way in which he was content to find his ministry amongst the `poorest of the poor' in British society that inspired me most. He moved quickly from the well heeled St. Mary's Islington to the Mayflower Family Centre in Canning Town, amongst the poor of the East End. In due course he became Bishop of Liverpool, and remained a champion of the urban poor for the rest of his life. He worked tirelessly to build bridges within his own diocese, not least between English and Irish, and he published several reports on Christianity and the City which were studied earnestly when I was at College and which are still significant even now - `Built as a City', `Bias to the Poor', and `Faith in the City'. His publications sought to argue the case from the bible for a fair and equal society, and proclaimed that a truly healthy nation proved fairly for all its citizens. Not surprisingly, this somewhat left wing message - though from a conservative evangelical - brought him into conflict with Mrs. Thatcher, on one occasion personally when she harangued him at Chequers!

He had foreseen the dangers to society if the gaps between rich and poor widened, and he could have been forgiven for saying `I told you so!' when the urban riots in the early eighties, including the Toxteth Riots, began. During that time, he and Derek Warlock, his Roman Catholic counterpart, and our own Dr. John Newton worked tirelessly to try and maintain calm during the riots and to rebuild relationships afterwards.

In some ways many of the battles which David Sheppard fought for have long since been won. It would be unthinkable today, for example, for any churchman or any politician to come out publicly against such a publication as `Bias to the Poor' or `Faith in the City' ­ the concerns of the poor and the marginalised have a far higher place on everyone's agenda. That they do so has a great deal to say about the effectiveness of Sheppard's ministry. We thank God for his life - and may' we learn from his example.

Every blessing,

John Davies

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Dear Friends,

Weddings seem to be the very much in the news at the moment.

There is of course the wedding of the year - for the Davies and Tootill household this means of course our Peter and their Kerry in July, which was originally a comfortable three years away and is now just round the corner, so to speak. As a Minister it is interesting seeing wedding preparations from the secular side for once!

Then of course there are Charles and his Camilla, who have created a positive furore this week. To me the big issue is not so much 'Are they entitled to marry in church?' - legally he has as much right to marry in church as any widower marrying a divorcee - as `Should the monarch be head of the Church of England?'

Prince Charles said several years ago now that when he becomes King - and he said when and not if - he would like to be known as 'Defender of Faith 'rather than 'Defender of the Faith '. By the change in title Prince Charles means us to understand that he wishes to be the monarch of a truly multi cultural society, and one who has the concerns of all Britons at heart.

There is much of value in this line of thinking, and it is doubtless welcomed by the religious minorities in Britain. The Prince has a great respect for people of differing religious backgrounds, and some years ago he launched `Respect', an organization dedicated to increasing religious tolerance and understanding in schools.

When our Queen come to the throne some parts of the world were still coloured pink on world maps, and even if Empire was slowly giving way to Commonwealth the people of this country were still at least nominally Christian - usually Anglican. There was therefore some validity in the monarch being the head of the Church of England and for Church and State to be intertwined. During Elizabeth's reign, though, much has changed, and in some parts of Britain Christians are now in a minority. Perhaps therefore it is time for the Church of England to become dis­established, divorced from the State, which would mean that the monarch would no longer be its head and the Government would no longer have a say in appointing bishops.

This would mean that the church would become truly free from state control - as all other British churches are, including the Methodist Church - and it would also have a further benefit - it would stop us expecting too much of our monarchs, and in this particular case it would mean that there could be no more objection to the monarch marrying a divorcee than if any other person did so.

Every blessing,

John Davies

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Rev John Davies writes

Dear Friends,

Just after Christmas this year a terrifying new word - new to many of us, anyway - entered our vocabulary. Tsunami. At a stroke, through the flexing of tectonic plates, hundreds of thousands have lost their lives, and the lives of the survivors will never be the same again. Many have lost relatives, and will also in many cases have lost their livelihoods, and even those that have not have lost a settled way of life, and will live in fear of such a thing happening again.

And faced with such terrible devastation, people have asked me over and over - Where was your God? or else they have just said, with finality, There is no God.

I cannot agree. The bible makes clear that we live in a fallen world, a world which is not as God created it to be, and therefore a world in which bad things can happen to good people - from famine to flood. But because bad things happen, that is no reason to either doubt the existence of God or to think that He is powerless. We are never promised in the bible that bad things will not happen - rather, we are promised that God will be with us when they do.

Years ago now I went to see a Christian family who had suffered a cot death - their firstborn son. I was just out of college and had no idea what one said in such circumstances, or what sort of comfort one could - or should - give. When I went to see the parents, I was amazed when they said to me that their son had died, but it was in the nature of all created things to die and whilst as human beings they were in shock and mourning, and feeling strongly their sense of loss, and a sense also of unfulfilled potential, nevertheless as Christians they had a firm belief that no human life was ever wasted, and that their son was with the Lord and they would see him again. I came away humbled at their faith in a loving God who was bearing them up through all their troubles. They then suffered a second death, a miscarriage, before eventually having a healthy boy, who it was my great pleasure to baptise - the entire congregation wept tears of joy. A second child followed.

Bad things undoubtedly happen to good people - it is how we cope with them that counts. When John Wesley crossed over on the sailing ship Simmons to America in 1736, there was a violent storm, the mainsail was split, and the sea began to pour over the decks. Crew and passengers alike thought they were lost, but Moravian Christians aboard continued to sing praises to God. This greatly impressed Wesley, and he asked one of them afterwards, ‘Was you not afraid?’ The man answered that he wasn’t. Wesley pressed him: ‘But were not your women and children afraid?’ The man replied, ‘No, our women and children are not afraid to die’ This must have made a tremendous impression on Wesley, given his lack of assurance at the time about God’s love and his fear of death. Such confidence in God seems very much the right attitude for Christians to adopt in the face of misfortune .

We can be confident also in the compassion of God. And so when people ask - Where Is God in this situation? - I can only say - He is behind every act of compassion and kindness that has taken place in these last days, behind the efforts of everyone who has sacrificed their lives for the sake of another - there has been much heroism displayed - or who has put their life at risk. He is with those who are comforting the mourning, and the widows, widowers, childless and orphans. And He is doubtless moving the hearts of men and women throughout the world to compassion. Apart from the official, national responses to the disaster the financial giving by individuals is so far very impressive and it is to be hoped that even in the midst of devastation and distress people will experience something of God’s love and care through the kindness and compassion of others.

Every blessing,

John Davies

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Rev John Davies writes….

Dear Friends,

When we were buying our house this Summer this seemed a very big step for two people in their forties to do for the first time, so it was important to make the right choices;  to buy the right house,  at the right moment.   Therefore, I spent some months researching the house market, reading the financial pages in the Sunday Times and so on, and eventually came up with two very distinct opinions from the media on what was going to happen to house prices in the near future.

There was one very definite body of opinion that house prices would hold steady and perhaps fall back a little next year. We found that rather comforting.  The opposing view was that they were totally unsustainable and would go into freefall sometime soon, and the wise would do well to look somewhere else to sink their cash.  Oh, brilliant!  In the end we bought