Home Minister's Letters From Barry Weetman
OUR MINISTER'S LETTER Previous letters
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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To all Senior Church Stewards:
It is worth asking whether we could find in each church someone or a
couple of people who would be willing to do 'Readers Services' perhaps once a Quarter -
I would undertake to find materials and issue a suitable Order of Service with suggested hymns. In some cases those who have already been on a Worship Leaders course may wish to do this.
Warmest Regards
John Davies
FROM BARRY WEETMAN...
God is not interested in statistics. He has all the facts and figures. He is interested in souls. I am interested to hear this when the Methodist Church experiences a surprising dichotomy. The distinctive voice of the young is so powerfully heard at the Methodist Conference at a time when there is shockingly so few people between the ages of 13 and 25 in our churches. Does the Gospel mostly go untold and unheard among the young? Was it ever "cool" or have we just lost the art of gossiping the Gospel among all ages? At the 2003 Methodist Youth Conference I heard our preaching described as "pants" and a suggestion that all preachers should retire at 65. However, I have interviewed young people from the former "Iron Curtain" countries who told me they were Christians because, although their parents were Communists, they had learned from their grandparents what it was to belong to Jesus Christ. Dare we then blame everything on the age gap?
It was in order to do something about bridging this "gap" that I invited the Methodist Youth Executive to send representatives to speak at the circuit service celebrating my 40 years as a local preacher. If we claim to be an inclusive Church we cannot allow so-called age differences to drive us apart. I wanted young Methodist leaders to help us understand what is "cool" about the way they worship and engage in ministry and mission. Eventually, the then Methodist Youth President and her predecessor agreed to take part in an afternoon interactive workshop and evening service. A youth evangelist with the Rob Frost Share Jesus
Missions team also agreed to take part and it was his plan to use the "cafe service" style as a vehicle for a sharing of ideas. Unfortunately, the Youth President, Nikki Wilkinson, was taken ill and could not take part in the programme at Walsall Central Hall. She also failed to notify the planned preacher, Ellie Griffin, from Darlington, in time for her to be at the service. Consequently, we were left with Mark Williamson, of the Rob Frost team, to lead both the afternoon and evening events. A major dimension, youth, was largely missing from the programme.
By promoting this 40 years' celebration I have been shocked, more than I ever believed possible, by the lack of young people in our churches both in circuits and across the Wolverhampton and Shrewsbury District. I do know there are notable exceptions. I had suspected the situation was dire, but what I found was worse than I imagined. There are so few aged between 13 and 25 in the Walsall circuit and neighbouring circuits. We need to find some answers to why this is the case. Is there an
unbridgeable gap in what is becoming the age of the pensioners? What do we do about the situation? On what terms and on whose terms are we ready to welcome young people? Are both the young and older people too quick to discriminate, to ready to exclude and too closed of mind? There can be a lot of whingeing and moaning among us all. Could a group of circuits in the Black Country join forces in organising an event in which young people can help us sort out these differences?
May I suggest should an event might form part of the mix of events and projects for the 2005-2006 year of 24/7 non-stop prayer being embarked upon by the Methodist Church and launched at the Conference in June. This initiative is a product of the Methodist Youth Conference. The Great North Prayer has already been tested in the Newcastle Upon Tyne District. Reflecting on this, one of the co-ordinators, Andy Murphy, told me: "Were prayers answered? Yes. Were people brought closer to God? Yes. However, only God has the facts and figures, and he is not interested in statistics. Even the side effects were a real blessing. For instance, working together as a District, young encouraging the old, circuits meeting just to pray, people awaking to meet God at times they never knew existed, new prayer groups formed, Christians being brought close together and many people realising an hour spent with God is not an hour wasted. It is a timeless hour... like a glimpse of eternity."
Inevitably, with two principals missing, the cafe service to mark my 40 years as a local preacher lacked a planned ingredient. However, such was the co-operation from circuit staff and members I felt there was an extraordinary spiritual dimension evident throughout the day. It was certainly not a "gimmick" service and it would be folly to rule out God, through the Holy Spirit, working through different forms of worship in a wide variety of ways. This cafe service, I think most suitable for evening and weeknight worship perhaps linked to an Alfa course, was effective for many people there and not least among my own family. I thank God for this.
A news item from the June Walsall Parish Magazine
THE CARPENTER'S SHOP
Some of you may know the recent history of what was arguably one of the most successful local Church initiatives ever started in Walsall. Hilson Carter's vision was to collect surplus furniture from those who did not need it and give, yes GIVE it, to those without and it ran for 20 years.
We started with a Mini Bus, volunteers took seats out to collect furniture and put the seats back on each occasion, so it could transport mainly youngsters to events. Over the years the Shop it kept getting better and bigger getting better premises and finished up not only recycling furniture but training people in the carpentry skills needed to mend and renew the furniture before it was passed on to a new home.
It always depended on grants and donations to enable it to run, and over the years the money had always come in, although sometimes not as smoothly as others.
Now unfortunately the Carpenter's Shop has had to close, make staff redundant and inform creditors, as grants that had been promised on paper have not been forthcoming and so the decision has been taken to cease 'trading'.
It is the opinion of the Editor that like many other similar projects who also have had their funding withdrawn or drastically reduced (as at The Vine) it is due in no small way to help pay for the cost of the war in Iraq.
Points for Prayer
· There are outstanding debts..
· The staff who have been made redundant as they seek or start new work
• Trainees who have had their training disrupted
Give Thanks
For 20 years ministry to some of the most disadvantaged people in Walsall
For all who have already found new positions
For trainees who have been able to continue their training elsewhere
What Now?
One aspect of the Carpenter's Shop and probably that which most people are aware of is the collection of unwanted furniture etc. Obviously they can no longer do this, but there is another organisation called Tool Box that can offer the same service (although not on the same scale)
Toolbox is based in Willenhall c/o New Invention Methodist Church, Lichfield Road, Willenhall Tel 01922 - 40 33 22 (yes - a Walsall prefix) They receive referrals from Social Services, Refugees and other statutory bodies, but at the moment don't have a lot of storage space. They, too are also trying to raise funds so if you supported the Carpenter's Shop in the past, you might like to consider how you can help them.
M.R.B