PARISH OF MAGAZINE OF THE CHURCH OF ST LEONARD

See Pages 8-9 NOVEMBER 2020

With God, nothing is impossible

Matthew 19 :26

3 Reflection ...... ….. Rev. Ken Dunstan 6 The Gardener ….. ….. ….. ….. ….. ….. ….. ….. Brenda Sheppard 8 “It’s still Me!” ….. ….. ….. ….. ….. ….. …A new Jenny Pratt LLM 10 Churches opening again - latest news Prayer for Southminster 11 Rotas, Flower Arranging, A notice about our offerings to God 12-13 Services in November for St Leonard's and Steeple churches 14 Steve Pillinger writes about his Christian Fiction Book Award 15 Weekday activities at St Leonard’s Services for , , Bradwell and St Lawrence 16 My Journey to Confirmation …. A Testimony from Abby Willcox 18 ‘St Leonard’s Together Apart’ Facebook group …….. Karen Flack 19 Second Attempts ….. ….. ….. ….. ….. ….. ….. ….. ...Chris Martin 20 AMOS .. an update about the Charity’s current work .... Dunstans 22 Operation Christmas Child: Shoebox Appeal 2020 24 Who are we? … Details of our normal Church family life.

An Extra Note NOTE FROM THE Archbishop Stephen Cottrell was enthroned at EDITOR : York Minster on Sunday 18th October. Some of us were able to watch the service on line. Articles for the It was good to hear his particular message to December the Church, referring to the story of a young magazine by woman who is not a believer but attends Sunday Nov. 15th Church because she feels loved, accepted and please, to Kath safe. By belonging we can be changed to be the beautiful person we are meant to be. Let Dunstan. the giving and receiving of the love of Jesus New contributors rebuild hope and challenge divisions caused will be welcome . by injustice, oppression and self-centredness.

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Reflection

We’re approaching New Year’s Day. No – not 1 st January; New Year’s Day is on 29 th November this year, and it changes every year. Welcome to the Church’s Year, when, on Advent Sunday we look forward to Christ’s return. The Gospel readings move from Matthew to Mark and we begin the process of following the life and ministry of Jesus until Trinity Sunday (30 th May 2021). Then the readings speak to us of how Jesus’ disciples live in the world.

A clergyman I once served under spoke of “the interminable Sundays after Trinity.” They take up nearly half the year! That period has been shortened, introducing two new seasons. We have just had the “Creation Season” from 1 st September to 4 th October, the Feast of St Francis of Assisi. Now, the Kingdom Season runs from All Saints Day to the Feast of Christ the King on 22 nd November this year. The Church’s Year aims to direct our thoughts. It’s good to know that disciples world-wide are reading much the same Scriptures and exploring similar ideas, problems and aspirations at the same time as ourselves.

The idea of the ‘Kingdom’ Season is itself a bit of a problem. Matthew 25 foretells the Last Judgement. The judge is not the Father, but Christ himself. Our fate depends on whether we served Christ in the shape of the hungry and thirsty, the prisoners, the poor and homeless and the immigrant and refugee. But for much of the Gospels, although Jesus often behaved as if he was in charge, he lived as Paul described him to the Philippians: “Though he was in the form of God, (he) did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death— even death on a cross.” (Phil 2:6-8) Many modern

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“worship songs” emphasise words like “glory”, “majesty” and “power”. We mustn’t deny the importance of these things. The early Church Fathers of Jesus described him as the winner of a cosmic battle which the powers of darkness thought they had won when Jesus died, only to find that he invaded Hell itself (Ephesians 4:8-10). However, Jesus’ Easter victory over death and evil was hard-won, achieved only because Jesus’ unfailing obedience to the Father took him to the Cross. That’s the sort of King we follow.

How, then, do we follow Jesus, the Servant King? Sometimes Jesus said things that strike me as a little odd. John’s Gospel (ch 15v15) reads, “No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.” However, he had just said (v 14), “You are my friends if you do what I command you .” So we can be intimate with Jesus, we can learn from him more of God’s purposes for us, for our loved ones and our world as he speaks to his friends through Scripture and through the Holy Spirit. On the other hand, He is in charge, not us.

There are three particular commands to heed. First, the command to love. We are to love God, “with heart, soul, mind and strength,” to love our neighbour, (including our enemies), as ourselves, and to love one another. Loving in the New Testament isn’t about feelings or preferences. It’s about actions . John wrote, “This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.” (1 John 3:16-18)

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We face a whole spectrum of crises needing our attention. I’ll mention three. First , our neighbours in our Partner Dioceses in Kenya are suffering from climate change. Weather is erratic. Increasingly long droughts are punctuated by violent, destructive floods . Marsabit featured in Bishop Stephen’s Lent Appeals; one bought a bowser to take water to thirsty villagers.

Second , hotter seas expand and sea level rise threatens our neighbours in Bangladesh. “By 2050, with a projected 50 cm rise in sea level , Bangladesh may lose approximately 11% of its land, affecting an estimated 15 million people.” (Environmental Justice Foundation ) Do we love our neighbour to the extent of changing our habits in whether, how far and how often we fly? What sort of vehicle we drive? How we insulate and heat our homes?

Third , our neighbours include thousands who fled conflict in Syria with only what they could carry. Does our love for God extend to loving refugees, including those who have left everything they had for the perilous journey across the Mediterranean (and, perhaps later, the English Channel,) seeking safety? We also have many English people sleeping rough, cared for by Crisis and in this area by CHESS. Jesus told us that we should be feeding the hungry. The local Food Pantry does this but needs active support especially during the current pandemic. Can our active love support the helpers?

According to Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus left us with two further commands. “Make disciples” and, “teach them to obey all that I have commanded you.” And in His love, our Servant King added, “I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Ken

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The Gardener

This year I have had the joy of helping Viv Perry in her garden whilst her husband Bob has been in hospital. We have worked alongside her lady gardener who, like us, loves the garden and finds a real sense of God’s presence there. I have often heard the gardener singing and also quietly praying whilst working. It is amazing how Bob has planted the garden over the years so that there are flowers and colour all the time. It is now a time for cutting back and pruning some plants and bushes ready for the Winter. Viv and I are always consulting her gardener as to what should be done so we don’t cut or prune too much!!!

Talking of pruning, Jesus in John 15:1 states that He is the true vine and God His Father is the gardener. The vine is frequently used in the Old Testament as a symbol of Israel and when this imagery is used Israel is often shown as lacking in some way. Jesus, however, is the true vine and lacks nothing. He goes on to say “I am the vine and you are the branches and my father cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit” He prunes so it will be even more fruitful. Jesus is the vine and we are the branches and no branch can bear fruit by itself. It must remain in the vine. Neither can we bear fruit unless we remain in Jesus.

When we accept Jesus into our lives and want to be fruitful for Him, we know that He will show us the parts of our lives that need pruning, so that by His Spirit new life can grow in us and we are able to show the fruits of the Spirit to others - love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. (Galatians 6 v22-23). Let us reflect on what we can prune in our own lives so that we can grow more fruitful for our Lord and to be His witness in this world. 6

The first mention of a garden in the Bible is in the book of Genesis where God planted a garden in Eden and put the man He had formed there to work in it and take care of it. A garden with trees pleasing to the eye and good for food, an idyllic place to be in harmony with God! But of course, we know that man through disobedience, lost this inheritance and was banished. (Genesis 3)

Another garden of great significance mentioned in the Bible is the garden of Gethsemane which is located at the foot of the Mount of Olives, a garden planted with ancient olive trees. Jesus went there frequently for peace and quiet and privacy to pray. We also know that it was in that garden that He was betrayed (Mark 14 v 32-51)

It is indeed a privilege to have a garden to work in, to sit in, to entertain in, to above all enjoy. Let us be mindful of those who don’t have that privilege and share our gardens where we can.

The following 4 th verse from a Poem called “God’s Garden” by Dorothy Frances Gurney sums up how I personally feel whilst working in my garden and Viv’s. The only thing I would love to change is the word “sun” in the first line to “Son” as it’s His kiss that pardons me!

“The kiss of the sun for pardon, The song of the birds for mirth, One is nearer God’s heart in a garden Than anywhere else on earth”.

Brenda Sheppard 7

It's still me! Jenny Pratt

Thank you to everyone that has helped me get through these last five years (two years at CCS and then three years at LLM). When I started CCS (Course in Christian Studies) in 2015 the end of the two year course seemed to be so far away. Then when LLM (Licensed Lay Ministry) started in 2017 I thought 2020 would never get here. But, 10.10.2020 has now passed and I am a qualified LLM with the badge to prove it.

It wasn't easy, as it was 40 odd years ago since I last wrote an essay. I am a visual kinetic learner and I usually write using a narrative with pictures. But all 20 assignments succeeded in passing. This means I get a

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diploma in March next year. I also found it very difficult doing everything online. When I was at school 'computers' were called an abacus and slate.

But I am so grateful to all of you for your love, encouragement and prayers that kept me going. I don't think I would have made it without you saying "Keep going, you can do it Jen."

I would like to thank God because there were many times when I sat at the computer - sometimes in tears - not knowing what to write, how to write it, or how to make the technology work. But with prayer to God He gave me the inspiration and guided the fingers to the right buttons to get me through. There is nothing that is impossible for God, even if you think "I can't do it... I don't know how to do it!" If He calls you, and you'll know when He does, He will be there for you, giving you lots of lovely people to support you and sending His Holy Spirit to guide you. Thank you God, I love you. Oh, and thank you God for the beautiful sunshine that lit up the cathedral at the end of the licensing service.

Has it changed me? I'll leave that for you to decide. Do I need to do a word count for this? O no, I don't have to do that now.

So here is a joke to finish -

A man walked into a bar - ouch!

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Latest news about churches reopening

Sadly, because of all the regulations during the Coronavirus pandemic, churches were closed for ‘normal’ public meetings, but occasionally open for private prayer with limited numbers and with specific sanitisation arrangements. Reopening our churches for some public worship began during September with all specific sanitisation arrangements (and with further advice for those shielded). This was generally appreciated.

If you would like specific prayer, please contact the vicar. preferably by email but otherwise on 01621 772300

To keep aware of what is happening, and to participate on line with services, log into the website https://www.stleonardsouthminster.org.uk/ and https://www.facebook.com/groups/ stleonardstogetherapart/

Also, we have a WhatsApp group entitled “Together Apart Our Church”. Lots of people are involved in that.

These links have been greatly appreciated by regular Church family members and also by people who have not, to date, attended our church services. In difficult times, like this, we need to ‘allow’ God to point us in possible new directions and then to respond.

PRAY FOR SOUTHMINSTER:

w/b 1 November Central - North-West w/b 8 November Central - East w/b 15 November Central - South w/b 22 November South - West w/b 29 November Central - West

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POSSIBLE ROTA DETAILS: YOUR AVAILABILITY FOR 2 MONTHS We don’t know when we shall be able to start worshipping in church again, but, in order to be well-prepared, please let Paul Lucas know if you cannot be available on any of the following dates. February 2021 7 14 21 28 March 2021 7 14 21 28

PLEASE REMEMBER THAT IF YOU ARE UNABLE TO FULFIL YOUR DUTY YOU SHOULD CHANGE WITH SOMEONE AND INFORM THE WARDENS OF THE ARRANGEMENT.

FLOWER ARRANGING

Despite all the difficulties of the pandemic we have been blessed by some lovely floral arrangements in church, especially for some recent special services.

Thank you, Flower arranging team.

A notice about our offerings to God .

Many of us use the facility of the offering plate to give our gifts to God. As the church is closed for the moment it may be a good time to think about a standing order to the church so that we are still bringing our gift. Many of us are doing this already – Thank you, but those who may be wondering how they can continue their giving through Standing Order the details of the church bank are here:

St. Leonard’s church: Barclays Bank Sort code: 20.54.30 A/c No. 80825107 Made payable to: Southminster Parochial Church Council.

St. Lawrence & All Saints church : Barclays Bank Sort code: 20.54.30 A/c No. 60842494 Made payable to Steeple Parochial Church Council.

May God bless our gifts to Him.

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NOVEMBER WORSHIP

Details of the November services which will happen on- line and in our Southminster and Steeple church buildings (with appropriate sanitisation arrangements being managed of course) are listed here - on pages 12 - 13 so please use them so that we can all be involved in worship together, in church or at home, at this continuing difficult time. The set readings of the day and the special prayer (the collect) are shown. If there are any changes they will be shown on the outside church notice-board.

Sunday 1st November All Saints’ Day Holy Communion: 8am BCP & 10.45am CW (Steeple Morning Worship 9.15am)

Isaiah 35 Luke 9 : 18 - 27

God of holiness, your glory is proclaimed in every age: as we rejoice in the faith of your saints, inspire us to follow their ex- ample with boldness and joy; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Sunday 8th November Remembrance Sunday Holy Communion 8am BCP & special Remembrance Services at Steeple 10.30am & Southminster 10.30am (Numbers in attendance will be reduced, singing not allowed and spacing will be necessary inside and outside the church buildings.)

1 Thessalonians 4 : 13 - end Matthew 25 : 1 - 13

God, our refuge and strength, bring near the day when wars shall cease and poverty and pain shall end, that earth may know the peace of heaven through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

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Sunday 15th November 2nd Sunday before Advent

Holy Communion: 8am BCP & at 10.45am CW and (Steeple Morning Worship 9.15am) 1 Thessalonians 5: 1 - 11 Blessing of Shoeboxes Matthew 25 : 14 - 30 ready for their journey.

Heavenly Lord, you long for the world’s salvation: stir us from apathy, restrain us from excess and revive in us new hope that all creation will one day be healed in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Sunday 22nd November Christ the King

Holy Communion: 8am & 10.45am Family Celebration

(Steeple Holy Communion 9.15am) Ephesians 1 : 15 - end Matthew 25 : 31 - end

God the Father, help us to hear the call of Christ the King and to follow in His service, whose kingdom has no end; for He reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, one glory. Amen.

Sunday 29th November 1st Sunday of Advent

Holy Communion: 8am (No service at Steeple) 10.45 am United Service with Steeple and Christchurch URC at the URC

1 Corinthians 1 : 3 - 9, Mark 13 : 24 - end Almighty God, as your kingdom dawns, turn us from the darkness of sin to the light of holiness, that we may be ready to meet you in our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen.

This will be a good opportunity for us to meet the new minister of the URC, Rev’d Anne Sarderson. 13

STEVE PILLINGER WRITES: I’m delighted to share with you that The Mindrulers series has just been given the prestigious ‘Reality Calling’ Christian Redemptive Fiction Award !

The award was granted by well-known Christian fiction reviewer Peter Younghusband in conjunction with author and reviewer David Bergsland of ‘Reality Calling”. Peter describes the series as “absorbing and immersive, highly imaginative, highly entertaining, encourages your faith and relationship with God, action-packed and fast- paced. Should be regarded as a Christian classic in the calibre of Lewis and Tolkien.”

For full details, see the article on Peter’s blog: https://perspectivebypeter.com/p/6582; and for the basis on which the award was made, follow this link to the Reality Calling site.

The Mindrulers is therefore now officially an award- winning series! If you haven’t read it yet, why not give it a go? It’s available on Amazon, either to buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US; or to read on Kindle Unlimited. Enjoy!

And if you have read and enjoyed any of the books, would you consider leaving a short review on Ama- zon? As Peter Younghusband puts it, “Reviews help get the author’s message (and God’s message) to the reader, who may need encouragement and support in their lives while being entertained by the story”. Thanks again to all of you who have shown interest and encouragement for this project!

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ST. LEONARD’S REGULAR MIDWEEK EVENTS HENRY CLUB (Church Cleaning) Our team is hoping to meet fortnightly ‘as usual’ so that means we’ll be busy at 9.15 am on Fridays 6th & 20th November . If you have any questions or offers to help please contact Brenda Sheppard who is ‘in charge’ while Jacky is unavailable.

The Music Group would normally meet in church on Fridays at 7.45 pm & occasional Wednesdays, but singing in services is not allowed yet. Morning Prayer on Mon., Tues, Wed. & Fri. has been suspended but information will be on the notice-board if there is a change.

Bradwell-Tillingham-Dengie and St Lawrence Churches

If our Churches are still closed for public worship our church services will be ‘Joint Benefice Services’ and will be online at; https://e-voice.org.uk/bradwellchurch/sunday-services/

If restrictions are removed and public worship is permitted please see https://e-voice.org.uk/bradwellchurch/ for church services and times for Bradwell, Tillingham, St Lawrence and Dengie.

This website has been adapted to cover all the churches in Bradwell, Tillingham, St Lawrence and Dengie over this coronavirus pandemic period.

We need to keep praying for all the other church folk in neighbouring parishes e.g. Dengie, Bradwell, Tillingham, St Lawrence, , Mayland, Burnham, , , , , , especially those who have no incumbent at present.

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My journey to Confirmation

Abby Wilcox

Being confirmed has been something I have thought about for a few years, but how I came to speak to Rev. Peter about it involves: My hairdresser - Megan The Crown - binge watched on Netflix 2 kittens – Hux and Ani

For the last 20 years I have had long hair, generally tied back in a ponytail, so I was debating having it cut short as it had been during my late teens. This was debated between my husband and I prior to Megan coming. As Megan and I happily chatted away and had a catch up after many months, my husband pops his head around the door and asks ‘so are you going for the chop?’ Megan stops mixing my highlights with a look of mild surprise! ‘Erm, not sure’ is my reply. Megan asked ‘how long have you been thinking about changing style? If it is more than six months then you are pretty committed to it happening.’ ‘About 2 years, let’s do it!’ So I now have short hair.

A few days later I was watching “The Crown”, series 3 episode 7. In this episode it is mainly focussed on Prince Philip and the moon landing, Philip was amazed by the whole thing. At one point his mother, Alice, who was a nun, asks ‘How is your faith, Philip?’ He struggles to respond. Later at Windsor, the Dean of Windsor asked for the use of a building as meeting place for clergy who are having a crisis of faith during their careers to meet and talk – Philip says ‘Yes, if you think a lot of hot air and discussion will help.’ At the end of the episode Philip is sitting in front of several men of the cloth in St George’s House, stumbling along asking ‘Was it IT?’ and finally admits he has lost his faith.

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While watching this episode I had 2 sleeping kittens sitting on me, looking very cute and somewhere in my subconscious I marvelled at these 2 small furry friends looking so peaceful.

A few days later, I noticed the Parish News (September issue) on the butcher’s block at Wibblers Taproom and wondered at the interesting photo on the cover. On page 5 there was the notice about the Confirmation service in October signed off with the line Do it NOW!

So I did it! I contacted Peter, and I will have been confirmed on 18 th October. I am looking forward to exploring my faith more in the coming months and seeing where it leads me.

Peter’s comment when I told him how I came to ask still makes me smile - ‘I don’t think anyone else could have come to confirmation, through those signs, other than you, Abby.’

I am nothing if not unconventional – ask Rev Ken Dunstan about my son’s christening!

We welcome you, Abby, into your new role in the Church family.

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The St. Leonard’s Together Apart Facebook Group began on 20 th March 2020, just a few days before we went into lockdown. The group was created as a way to keep in touch, encourage and support each other during this difficult time. Since then we have shared songs, daily devotions, prayers, church services, Bible studies, Alpha courses etc. At the present time each weekday looks like this; 6am Daily Devotion including a worship song 11.30am Family Time (Tuesday and Thursday) including Little Lions’ singing time, Veggie Tales movies, virtual Sunday School etc. 3pm Bible Study / Reflection 8pm Prayer Saturday is a quiet day and on Sunday we post the church service and weekly bulletin. We also welcome others to share encouraging posts on the page too. Over the last 7 months we have also had several extra events e.g. Spring Harvest at Home, His Presence, Thy Kingdom Come, Alpha course, Testimony. It has been a real privilege and blessing to run this group, and the bonus has been that I have got to know some wonderful people through the group too. Karen Flack

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SECOND ATTEMPTS

After a trip to Spain I was eager to try to cook a Tortilla. This of course is not to be confused with the Mexican Tortilla – this is the one that is an omelette, typically a potato omelette. I cooked the potatoes and sliced them and added and eggs and seasoning...and on serving it up to guests the whole thing fell apart. The next time I visited a certain Spanish friend on a subsequent trip, I watched carefully how she made her Tortilla and so when I had another go at making one at home, albeit this time NOT for guests, it came out perfect! It seems to be a natural law that dishes always come out better when you don’t have guests and if they are going to go wrong, it’s when you do! But that’s a secondary observation. (Tuesday and Thursday) including THIS observation is about how things can be better on the Second Attempt.

Once again we are finding ourselves in something close to “Lockdown”. It’s supposed to last only 2 or 3 weeks and maybe it will be over before you even get to read this. But now we are ex- perts at it! We have learned how to handle it because we have had to do it before and found out how to live within the restrictions. This time we should not go into a panic because we can’t keep to our usual routine, because we know it won’t be for very long and anyway, we can manage. We hope that nobody will go out “panic buying”, and that there will be no shortages in the supermarkets be- cause now we know there never WAS a shortage in supply last time, only an unnecessary increase in demand. This time we can all be calmer about the whole thing and just get on with it.

We can face up to the next few weeks having learned how to keep in touch with each other, how to take care of ourselves and each other and how to cope. I for one will still probably be whingeing for about it, in order to let off a little steam, and I hope that’s allowed! But it won’t be as bad as in March….because this is our Second Attempt at dealing with it and it will be fine.

Chris Martin 19

AMOS 5: 24: “Let justice roll down like waters” Kath and Ken Dunstan

A year ago, we wrote about the Amos Trust and its work, particularly about a new partnership with evangelical Christians in Nicaragua. Nicaragua is the second poorest country in the Americas and has suffered badly through climate change. In 2019 the annual Amos Day in focussed on that, on the plight of Palestinians in Gaza, and on the work of local partners dealing with people forced to live on the streets. Sometimes they are children forced out of their families, sometimes whole families.

Amos Trust enables local partners to help one another and to learn from one another. “ Climate Justice ” works with CEPAD – the Nicaraguan Evangelical Alliance. “ Palestine Justice ” works with a number of Christian and Jewish peacemaking organisations seeking a just solution to the ongoing and illegal occupation of territories taken over during the Six Day War in 1967. “ Street Justice ” works with Um Thombo in South Africa, Cheka Sana Founation in Tanzania, Karunalaya in India and New Generation in Burundi. In particular, Amos works with these organisations, rather than dictating English wisdom and priorities.

Girls are especially vulnerable when they live on the streets. Amos’ partners work with them is under the banner, “ On Her Terms .” There isn’t a mould the girls must adapt to. They get fed, they get an audience for their stories, they get education and opportunities. Most of all, they get undemanding love.

“Palestine Justice ” is particularly important because to advocate it in the current UK climate is to be the target for allegations of anti-Semitism. Amos is not anti-Semitic (Palestinians are Semites too). It is anti injustice at the hands of the Israeli Government and 20

Military. Amos works with the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions . Its founder and Director is Professor Jeff Halper, formerly of Ben-Gurion University. Alas, his opponents tend to call him “a self-hating Jew” because of his work against arbitrary house demolitions, often used as punishment (a practice that was adopted from British rule). Amos works with Palestinian- led Christian organisations like the Near East Council of Churches , which runs practical vocational courses in Gaza; the Holy Land Trust , which fosters understanding, healing and empowerment of individuals and communities affected by the Israeli occupation, and the Wi’am Centre for Conflict Resolution . The Centre aims to strengthen local communities and to support them in tackling increased family breakdowns and community tensions created by the occupation and lack of freedom. Situated next to a main checkpoint, and overlooked by a military watchtower and the Separation Wall, the Centre provides a joyful act of peaceful resistance through its cultivation of community gardens complete with children’s play area.

In Gaza Amos supports the Christian Al Ahli Arab Hospital in the centre of Gaza City, which treats over 45,000 patients each year. Restrictions on movement and imports mean that the Al Ahli Hospital is often without basic medicines and often suffers from power cuts.

There hasn’t been an Amos Day in London this year. Instead, its reach has extended by Zoom webinars in which representatives of the various organisations are interviewed by the Rev’d Chris Rose, Director of the Trust and some of his tiny but formidable staff. One of the early meetings was graced by the Trust’s Founder, the Rev’d Canon Garth Hewitt As a long-time troubadour, he was able to perform live and his song was “One day, the Wall will fall”.

The webinars are available on the Amos Trust website, to be found at https://www.amostrust.org/ Get informed! 21

Operation Christmas Child Preparing for this year’s offerings at a service on 18th October in church Guest Speaker: Diane Nicholson

Diane is in charge of the SS postcode (and now the CM postcode too) and works at the Cricket Club premises in Rayleigh where shoeboxes are received, sorted and sent off to Tunbridge Wells for final transmission. She reported that last year 6007 boxes were sent to Belarus, and she hopes that this year’s number will be at least similar. She explained that OCC started in 1990 in Wales where a man called Dave Cook had decided to help orphans. He collected medical supplies and clothing and then when extra supplies were collected locally the operation grew. In 1993 it became a separate but valuable part of the Samaritan’s Purse Charity and since then millions of children have been helped, worldwide.

It was great to watch some videos from recent years and hear particular stories from different parts of the world.

In Macedonia there was a Day Centre for homeless children set up by a Church . Often the children stayed at the centre safely because if they returned home their parents would have sent them out to beg on the streets. In the Centre they had warm food, clothing and education. The shoeboxes were kept at the Centre so the children could keep using the contents and it prevented the parents from using them and selling them. One little girl, who was so sad that she couldn’t smile was enabled to do so when a helper showed her how to use a tiny spinning top from her shoebox. 22

A boy in Zimbabwe had been playing football with a ball made of plastic bags and rubber bands. When he opened his shoebox there was a real football with the appropriate pump! Wow!

In Panama a lady arrived with twin girls. She said only one twin had been able to come, so asked whether the other could come too. However, when the first box was opened it contained two of everything! Wow!

In a very mountainous area people had to walk long distances to reach the place where the boxes were being distributed. A man and his daughter had walked a very long way, the daughter’s shoes were rotten and to crown it all there were no boxes left when they arrived….. Well there was just one. In it was a pair of boots which fitted the little girl. Wow!

God uses the boxes in different ways - always appropriate to the particular situation. OCC expresses the love of God, sharing the Christmas Spirit in a true way. OCC opens doors to the greatest gift of all - Jesus Christ. Good news! Great Joy!

The boxes contain little books in the relevant language for the recipients. Many Muslim countries are helped too. Please don’t put Christian things into the boxes. Appropriate sorting will happen. By all means put in a greeting card. Above all, pray about your box’s journey and its recipient.

Boxes and labels with advice about contents are in church. Boxes should be brought to church ready to be blessed on 15th November before transmission.

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WHO ARE WE? Mission Statement “To be a people offering praise and worship to God and serving him by being the Good News by our words and actions”

Web Site www.stleonardsouthminster.org.uk

Contact: [email protected]

NORMAL PUBLIC WORSHIP IS STILL A BIT DIFFERENT. See page 10 and pages 12-13 for some details.

Weekly notices, covering any changes, will be available to read on the outside church notice-board

Sunday Services - will continue on-line, but with opportunities for a limited number of people to meet in the church. (See pages 12-14 for details of special days and readings) 8:00 am Holy Communion (Book of Common Prayer 1662) 10:45 am Holy Communion or Morning Worship Steeple Services similarly continue at 9.15am (Our Prayer ministry for any needs will continue even though it happens ‘at a distance’.)

Children and Young people are always welcomed especially for the Family Celebration Services

MESSY CHURCH is monthly on Mondays at 3.45 pm in church. The next one will be publicised as soon as it is allowed to happen.

‘LITTLE LIONS’ usually meet on Wednesday mornings in the Memorial Hall during term-time only. It is for babies/toddlers & their carers.

Home Groups are obviously not gathering at the moment.

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