Cherry Vann Consecrated Bishop of Monmoth
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
25p CRUX Issue 50 Church for a different world March 2020 CHERRY VANN CONSECRATED BISHOP OF MONMOTH Church for a different world GIVING UP SOMETHING FROM OUR PAST The video we produced last year call afresh, whilst continuing to do (available at https://tinyurl.com/ everything we are already doing in every ukusqgo) shows churches and place where we are already doing it. groups in Manchester Diocese engaging in our three priorities of So this Lent, alongside those things we growing, nurturing and serving. give up as individuals, might I invite churches to reflect on those things that It has proved remarkably popular and they are doing, not because they are encouraging. I’m convinced that is required to do so, nor because they feel because it shows ordinary Christians, called to, but simply out of habit, or from lay and ordained, going about God’s fear of upsetting the memory of those business, and being blessed by who founded those pieces of work, or who the Holy Spirit as they do so. led them in more appropriate times. Watching the video, it becomes clear that And let’s each give up something from our the churches shown are not such shining past, so that we can all more fully focus on lights because they are blessed with where God is guiding us into our future. greater resources, human or financial, than other parts of our dioceses. They share the same challenges as the rest of us. But what they also exhibit is a clear sense of purpose, one to which they are committing themselves wholeheartedly. All too easily we let ourselves be pulled David Walker in multiple directions. We try to add Bishop of Manchester on new things, where we hear God’s LORD, TEACH US TO PRAY Over the last couple of years, a Prayer Walk: Night-time Economy number of Christian leaders have Tuesday 10 March, 7pm: Meet at been gathering in central Manchester Nexus Café, 2 Dale Street, M1 1JW to pray into the different spheres of life that we work and live in. Prayer: Media City Tuesday 21 April, 5pm: Meet at We’ve been asking ‘Lord, teach us Social 7, Salford Quays M50 2ST to pray’ as we wonder how to pray into civic and political life, into sport, For more information email Mark Cowling: into business, into the night-time [email protected] economy, into the media and so on. If you’re interested to ask ‘Lord, teach me to pray into the place I work and live in’, then please join us. Our next walks are as follows: PAGE 2 CRUX March 2020 UNCONSCIOUS BIAS: TRAINING OPPORTUNITY Connecting with the Stranger There are a number of people I can Opportunities for looking at our talk to endlessly about my plant- stereotypes with Unconscious Bias based diet who I know won’t roll Training will focus more deeply at these their eyes or make a quick exit. social constructs and training will be These plant-based diet people get offered in the diocese to PCCs, Synods me, and I get them. All good. or a hybrid group of people or parishes. However, it becomes a problem, when we Think of your most trusted inner circle vegans start to unintentionally exclude of 10 people – those who you socialise the omnivores and the vegetarians and share your life with. Chances are as ‘aspiring vegans’ and set up ‘in’ they are likeminded individuals and groups and ‘out’ groups on this basis. yet the Bible speaks of connecting with For example, ‘demi vegetarians’ as the stranger. When we are able to, developing vegans should not be part of there is such blessing, but too often the vegan scene, might be one prejudice. we disconnect because of our biases, which is always a loss to the Church. These scenarios would be utterly ridiculous, and yet daily, all of us engage This training is challenging but not in some form of unconscious bias and judgemental. It often brings an epiphany sometimes more overtly, conscious bias. moment of self-recognition and training We start to think and behave in terms will also highlight the benefits to our of ‘them and us’, we start to stereotype, vision towards a church that grows, LORD, TEACH US TO PRAY we exclude and confirm our biases. nurtures and serves all people. Scientists believe that stereotypes, If you are interested in joining a team in general, serve a purpose because to set up a training session please clustering people into groups with contact the Archdeacon of Manchester: expected traits help us navigate the [email protected] world without being overwhelmed by information. The downside is Venerable Karen Lund, that the potential for prejudice is Archdeacon of Manchester hard-wired into human cognition. Stereotypes show no regard for individual differences or unique circumstances. They are often negative, but can also be positive: an older person will either experience a time of ill health and loneliness, or contrastingly, will be wealthy and full of wisdom. PAGE 3 Church for a different world GREATER MANCHESTER CHURCHES PRESERVATION SOCIETY The Greater Manchester Churches Preservation Society (GMCPS) aims to raise awareness of the rich variety of church buildings in Greater Manchester and to raise funds to allow the Society to make grants for repairs to those buildings. The Society invites individuals, GMCPS Local Grants of up to £500 churches and corporate bodies to are available for any sort of work on become members on payment of an the building. annual subscription. It issues a regular Newsletter and invites members to a Advice on grants available from series of evening or day events which the National Churches Trust explore and explain some of our rich For further details about the GMCPS, stock of buildings of all denominations. including the grants available, visit Events are held around Greater www.manchesterchurches.btck.co.uk Manchester in the buildings themselves. or email the Grants Secretary, GMCPS can assist in the following: Ian Hamilton: [email protected] A great way to share the Easter Story - Buy Now The Real Easter Egg was launched in 2010, with the help of Manchester churches and schools, as a way to share the Easter story and support Fairtrade. Ten years on, out of the 80 million Easter eggs sold in this part of the world every year, The Real Easter Egg is still the only one which has a copy of the Easter story in the box, is made of Fairtrade chocolate and which * * 10 *10* *10* YEARS YEARS YEARS supports charitable projects. 2 0 1 0 - 2 0 2 0 2 0 1 0 - 2 0 2 0 2 0 1 0 - 2 0 2 0 Buy your eggs today see below for details. OrderPAGE 4 on 01948 831 043 or at www.realeasteregg.co.uk Easter 2020 Manchester line 8 90*120.indd 1 1/29/20 9:56 AM CRUX March 2020 BAGS OF HOPE: HOPE IN UNEXPECTED PLACES Bags of Hope is a simple idea to bless Manchester, Salford and beyond, bringing hope in unexpected places and help make a practical difference to someone’s life. Any church, workplace, school If you would like to make a donation or friendship group can become to bring hope in unexpected places, an unexpected place of hope to visit www.saintphilips.org.uk/ people experiencing brokenness bagsofhope and click ‘Donate’. or poverty in these four different areas: asylum seekers, vulnerable And that’s it! 10 items, 1 bag: bags of women, the homeless, and hope. Hope in unexpected places. deprived local communities. Each bag of hope has a shopping list of ten items appropriate for the person you’re buying for. On the back of this, APPOINTMENTS you can write a message to the person The Revd Jeffrey Clawson, who will receive it. Once you’ve put currently Priest-in-Charge of St. Anselm it all together, you can post your bag of Canterbury Episcopal Church in the Diocese of Los Angeles, has been on Instagram, tag @spchapelstreet appointed to the three year post of with the hashtag ‘#BAGSOFHOPE’ and Interim Minister in the Radcliffe Team. show your unexpected place of hope. The Revd Jason Powell, The bag should then be returned to currently Curate of Middleton and Saint Philip’s, Chapel Street, Salford Thornham, has been appointed M3 6FR where it will be passed on Incumbent of St. Paul’s Norden with St. James’ Ashworth and to the vulnerable people we are St. Michael’s Bamford. working with and other charities. Someone who has received a Bag of RESIGNATIONS Hope and wants to refill it can visit The Revd Eugeniah Adoyo, currently our Refill Station at Saint Philip’s Incumbent of St. Luke Longsight and Church, Salford, M3 6FR on Priest-in-Charge of St. Agnes Birch-in- Rusholme with St. John with St. Cyprian Tuesdays between 1-2pm. Longsight, is to retire on 1 July 2020. If you would like to fill a bag, or your The Revd Dorothy Hawkins, retired church would like to run this simple as OLM Curate in the Benefice of project, please contact Lizzy or Janet Worsley on 31 December 2019. at hopeinunexpectedplaces@ gmail.com or on 0161 839 9709. PAGE 5 Church for a different world WELCOME TO OUR SCHOOL During Autumn last year, Karen Beal, Children’s officer joined a Diocesan trip to Lahore to visit colleagues and friends in Education Department there. I joined the Diocesan trip to the Diocese On Sunday morning, it was an of Lahore as part of our continuing absolute privilege to be invited to educational links with them.