Greenbank Parish Church, Edinburgh
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Greenbank Connecions April 2019 Issue 678 Scottish Charity SCO11325 It’s that time again – the Greenbank Scout Group Annual Jumble Sale (see pages 9 and 16) Greenbank Parish Church, Edinburgh Online version: www.greenbankchurch.org/about/the-newsletter/ www.greenbankchurch.org Contents Minister’s Letter Dear Friends Minister’s Letter 2 Communion at Home 3 ‘Bunnies and Eggs’ 4 Monday Bible Study 4 Connections Feedback Form 4 Castle Community Bank 5 Message from the Treasurer 5 New Faces – the Haddens 6 Heart and Soul 7 Morlich House Coffee Morning 7 YACHT News 8 It hardly seems a year since my ordination Greenbank Running Group 9 and induction – the time has fairly flown Scout Group Jumble Sale 9 by! It was lovely to be reminded of the anniversary at worship on Sunday 17th Pre School 10 March, and I was very grateful for Valerie’s Greenbank Easter Appeal 11 kind words, the warm applause of the congregation, and the promise of cake World Mission Team 12 afterwards – two pieces were smuggled The Guild 13 out to me at the door, just in case you wondered!! The Friendship Club 13 One of the delights of Greenbank is how the congregation gets behind things. In Flower Rota 14 particular, we are thrilled with over 70 Contacts and Deadlines 14 people taking part in our Community Bi ble Experience during Lent. This is really Welcome Teams 14 wonderful, and I’m so grateful to all of our Coffee Rota 14 hosts and facilitators for making it happen. As we head through Lent towards Holy Greenbank Calendar for April 15 Week, thoughts turn to our joint services Congregational Register 15 with Morningside Parish Church – this time taking place at Morningside. I hope Book Sale for Christian Aid 16 that many of you will be able to help us Scout Group Jumble Sale 16 to follow Jesus through the “Art of Holy Week”. Each service will feature a different 2 April 2019 work of visual art inspired by Holy Week, especially pleased to have two candidates which is the focus for our worship each for baptism, which will take place along evening. On Good Friday, we’re going to side the Braid Burn at the “tree theatre”. be welcoming Bishop Richard Holloway I am assured that the burn is cleaner than to lead The Three Hours service from 12 the River Jordan currently is, so maybe the noon to 3pm. Richard is still an incred water isn’t too risky! It’ll be a very special ibly powerful speaker and one of the most service, and I hope that many of you will moving conveyors of the power of the Pas come to support the candidates and then sion narrative. The three hours is div ided to join us for breakfast in the church halls into 30 minute segments, enabling people afterwards. There are rumours of bacon to come for 30 minutes or more at times rolls and other delights… to suit them. You can be part of it for 30 The following Sunday, 28th April, will minutes or as much of the rest as you can be our confirmation/profession of faith manage. Each section will include a read Sunday, when we give people the chance to ing, prayer, reflection from Richard, poetry, formally commit as followers of Jesus and and some beautiful music from the won to receive confirmation of God’s loving derful cellist, Harriet Davidson, niece of action towards them in their baptism. our members Ralph and Gillie Davidson. Please contact me if you are interested in On Easter Day itself, we are excited being part of either of these programmes. to be following in the footsteps of the I hope that your walk through Lent is filled early church by holding a dawn service with plenty of time for reflection and the in Braidburn Valley Park at 5.30am. As chance to draw closer to God as you do we see the light of the rising of the sun in that. May the journey make our destina the east, we remember Christ the Son of tion of Easter all the more glorious. Christ Righteousness, rising from the tomb, and is risen – alleluia! we light the new fire to symbolise his res With love and best wishes, urrection. The Easter vigil was tradition ally the time for adult baptism and con firmation / profession of faith, and we’re Martin Ritchie Communion at Home I wonder if you realise that we share communion with some of our members in their homes? This is particularly the case where they are unable to get to church for health rea sons. We view home communion as an extension of what we share in church at the quar terly celebration of the Lord’sCommunion Supper. Home communion at Home is a chance to share in the sac ramental life of the whole congregation, even if you can’t be in church in person. Sometimes communion will be shared between myself and the member, but on other oc casions there may be a few members and friends, and perhaps one or two elders taking part. Each situation is unique, and we make arrangements to suit. If I offer home communion, please don’t think it’s got anything to do with “the last rites” – a common misconception! If you would like to share communion at home, I’d be de lighted to do that with you, so you just let me know. Martin Ritchie 3 www.greenbankchurch.org ‘Bunnies and Eggs’ Monday Bible Study Why eggs? Why bunnies? They feature so The group meets fortnightly in the Pent prominently around Easter. The short an land Room to learn and develop our Chris swer is that they were symbols of rebirth tian fellowship and discipleship. We are and fertility. The shape of the egg alluded currently using Christian Character (Life- to the circularity of the seasons, but not in builder), ISBN 9781859993750, which is an quite the same way as before. Often, this inductive Bible study, designed to help us idea swelled beyond its proper boundaries. discover for ourselves what Scripture is The temptation, even today, is to reduce the saying. We start and finish each study with resurrection message of Easter to the ebb prayer, and follow our study period with and flow of the seasons, ro to a closed cir refreshments. cle of life and death, good and evil, a season Future dates and Bible passages are: to plant and a season to reap. It’s just part of 29 Apr Trusting God ‘how the world is’. But this is, I think, to insu Genesis 22:119 late us from the shocking message of Easter. 13 May Living Holy Lives The Gospel of Mark, (in)famously, may have Ephesians 4:175:7 ended: ‘and they said nothing to anyone, for 27 May Showing Compassion they were afraid.’ Luke 10:2537 This Shorter Ending, some think, is due to For further information please contact Joan an early manuscript tearing and us losing Ritchie or(Tel Gillian 447 3192) Sweetman. or Gillian Sweetman a final part of the Gospel! It was shocking, (Tel 447 1048). Joan Ritchie the prospect of a grave robbery… or per Joan Ritchie haps a genuine bodily resurrection. This is that shocking message: that the ‘old’ way of ‘how the world is’, that closed circle of life Connections and death is remade. The stillness of the graveyard is interrupted. Feedback Form Often enough, you’ll not be surprised Thanks to the 27 readers who took the to read, teens tell me Jesus was a zombie. trouble to complete our recent Question Granted, that would be shocking too. But naire. The responses are currently being more of the same, really. We expect that considered by the Kirk Session Communi bodies decay, and are less than they were cations Committee. in life. We don’t expect that risen bodies One of the responders was our old friend, are more than their former lives. Yet that is Susan Cowell, who wrote as follows: the Jesus who shocked those first men and women who followed him. “As an old and ex probationer That is the Jesus I follow, who reveals to us (1985-87) I am very grateful to that we can be more, that we can grow, and receive news of Greenbank. Thank that ‘the way the world is’ will not always you for including me in the mailing. be. Yet while it is, we have work to do, and Greetings from one who never forgets good news to tell. Thank the Lord for that! the welcome, encouragement and love of Greenbank. Susan Cowell” Steve Chaffee 4 April 2019 Castle Community Bank The Rev Iain May, Minister of South The Bank is a highly regulated business Leith Church and chair of Castle and is looking to raise further reg Community Bank, gave a ulatory capital in order to ex presentation to the Kirk pand its operations. Capi Session in November 2018 tal requires to be lent for at about the Bank at our least 5 years and redemp invitation. The Bank’s tion of funds requires the raison d’être is to reduce approval of the Regula financially vulnerable individuals’ reliance tors, so is not guaranteed to be available on high cost pay day loans, and to provide on demand of the investor for its release. access to more affordable finance so that Because Greenbank does not have access people can pursue realistic aspirations to funds of the type that could be used for their lives.