Screening the Mission Short Videos Which Showcase Pioneering Mission Work in the Diocese Are Available Church and to View and Share
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Spotlight May/Jun 2018 Screening the Mission Short videos which showcase pioneering mission work in the Diocese are available Church and to view and share. Bishop Michael launched School the four mission projects 12 months ago. Together They explore different approaches to mission parishes, schools, chaplaincies and fresh in Worship expressions of and Mission church. This project seeks to develop links between 4 Rural Youth Small parishes working together can be the schools source of something greater than the sum of and churches in their parts. This project is experimenting with the Stafford Episcopal different ways to grow young disciples and Area. The Wow Factor in provide fellowship in sparsely populated areas Worship offers 24-hour retreats for staff in Shrewsbury Episcopal Area. It is considering and students at the diocesan retreat centre ways to foster rural disciples when they move Dovedale House in stunning surroundings. to secondary The Lighthouse Project in Stoke-on-Trent is schools with a pioneering partnership between Kingsland a chaplaincy CE Academy and a local church. The school’s project in former Children’s Centre is being developed Holy Trinity to provide services in an area with few local Academy, resources. Connect 2 is a small missional Telford. community which meets in a primary school in the Staffordshire Moorlands. continues on p2 -> The Church of England around Staffordshire, northern Shropshire and the lack Country Screening the Mission 2 Toddler prayer marathon People are being invited to pray for one of will provide a space for children and adults to Walsall Heathlands Mission the biggest potential mission opportunities discover themselves and encounter the hope Blakenall Heath has the highest poverty and in Lichfield Diocese – toddler groups. and love of Jesus Christ.” crime rates in Walsall borough. This project is a unique partnership between the local parish, Church-based toddler groups are increasingly Use these diocese and Latimer Minster - a missional recognised as a valuable resource within local points to help Anglican church based in Buckinghamshire. communities. With research showing that you pray for The idea is over half of all under 4s had been part of such each deanery: to move the groups, up to 2 million children and their parish onto families could be reached at any one time. • Pray for a ‘mission families to footing’ ‘Sanctuary, Refectory, Road’ is a guiding June is the National Month of Prayer for find their and enable theme - calling people to worship and prayer; Toddler groups and people are being asked local group, growth. community and eating together; and openness to take part in a prayer marathon for toddler especially and engagement with the wider community. groups across the diocese families who Toddlers and grandparents in action at Little Fishes, run (see below). by All Saints Alrewas and Alrewas Methodist churches. may be struggling. Watch the videos now at www. Laura • Pray for groups to really work hard at giving lichfield.anglican.org/ mission_projects/ Edwards, the a warm welcome; it can be so hard to walk Diocese’s through the door for the first time! Under 5s and Families • Pray for more volunteers to help in the Enabler, said: groups. “Toddler groups • Pray for groups in church premises, that the Chaplaincy At Work provide a church community and church leaders will see Exciting initiatives are breathing valuable gift the huge potential for positive relationships fresh life into chaplaincy. Two make to the community and can create a safe and with the families who come. projects, covering both ‘white’ difficult welcoming space for children and their families and ‘blue’ collar workers, are providing areas decisions well. where they can feel accepted and invited to Further ideas for the National Month of Prayer can for learning. Ministry At Work focuses on the Black Country experience God’s love. During this National be found at www.1277.org.uk. Contact Laura at faith of executives and others in positions of Urban Industrial Month of Prayer, let us pray that toddler groups [email protected] responsibility. It is helping these professionals Mission (BCUIM) navigate their Monday-Saturday life of faith and is a well- Prayer Marathon - daily deanery 14 Cheadle | 15 Eccleshall | 16 Leek established local to pray for through June: | 17 Newcastle | 18 Stafford | 19 partnership Stoke-upon-Trent | 20 Stone | 21 providing 1 Lichfield | 2 Penkridge Tutbury | 22 Uttoxeter | 23 Trysull chaplaincy | 3 Rugeley | | 24 Walsall | 25 Wednesbury to manufacturers, retail 4 Tamworth | 5 | 26 West Bromwich | 27 centres, council offices, Edgmond and Shifnal Wolverhampton | 28 Wulfrun | fire stations, bus garages | 6 Ellesmere | 7 Hodnet | 29 For Toddler church services and many others. Many 8 Oswestry | 9 Shrewsbury | 10 across the Diocese | 30 For the of the chaplains are lay Telford | 11 Wem and Whitchurch | growth of Under 5’s networks to volunteers. 12 Wrockwardine | 13 Alstonfield | support volunteers Follow us on Twitter @Lichfield_CofE 2 Regular updates on our website www.lichfield.anglican.org 3 Join our Facebook Group “The Church of England’s Diocese of Lichfield” The Church of England around Staffordshire, northern Shropshire and the Black Country Music be the food of calling The Lion, Archbishop The Vocations team are getting ready for the Anna Pitt, author of Leftover Pie: 101 Encourage Festival which will take place on 7 Ways to Reduce Food Waste (Green July at Shallowford House. Lanes publishing 2017) will be speaking and the Falls Rd and sharing some of her tips and there The Revd Julia Cody, Vicar at Perton, reflects “Beforehand, I’d been The day festival celebrates God’s call to us all will be live cooking challenges and on a visit to Northern Ireland: moved learning of and encourages participants and attendees to demos from a range of chefs including the ministry of Fr. think about what they are passionate about Sanjeev from the award winning “’Are you trying to mess with our heads?’ A Alec Reid who and how we want to live as Sanjeev’s restaurant in Stoke. question levelled at Archbishop Justin by one of served at Clonard Christians. the group of pilgrims during our time with him Monastery, Director of Vocations Lindsey Hall said: in Northern Ireland. His response? ‘Yes’. These between the Falls Festival 2018 CELEBRATING GOD’S C In addition to range of live music, a mini music and artsALL festival TO US ALL at “The festival really draws together some days messed with my head and, even more and Shankill Roads, Shallowford House, Stone Saturday 7th speakers, poetry, crafts and other encouragefestival.co.uk July 2018 of my favourite things: deeply, with my heart. by the ‘peace-wall’. activities that were enjoyed by FEATURING music, food, discussion He spoke of the importance of getting his hands festival-goers last year, this and the firm belief that “My husband is Dublin born-and-bred, faithfully dirty. He facilitated secret meetings between year there will also be a focus God calls everyone to going to Mass, yet unaware of that ‘Catholic’ SDLP and Sinn Fein and ministered to dying sally phillips on food. We will be celebrating goat roper rodeo band abundant life in Christ. label until he moved to England and was asked British Soldiers. His life was a deeply challenging March madness:TICKETS adult £15 / family ticket £30 April onwards: adult £20 / family ticket £40 abundance with local food (family tickets: 2 adults and 3 children under 14 w/£5 per extra child) With a menu full of stuff his denomination. Whenever we’ve talked example of incarnational ministry; being a tickets available online from 1 and drink and thinking about st March at encouragefestival.co.uk for kids and adults, it looks about ‘The Troubles’, he’s sought to distance sign of hope and light in the darkest of times. tackling food waste. set to be a great day.” himself. Yet, the complex history of this island To visit Clonard, to meet, talk and pray with Tickets and further details are still available at www.encouragefestival.co.uk and its peoples are part of us as Irish and British members of the community, and experience citizens respectively. When visiting Irish tourist their profound hospitality, reduced me to tears. sites, to the amusement of my in-laws, I find myself apologising for being British. I keenly feel “As a priest I desperately wanted to speak of Could you Lent a hand? the legacy of what’s been done in the name of hope, but to do so felt trite, unconnected to real my birth country, especially deeply in N. Ireland. lives. But there were glimpses of hope - in the The Bishop’s Lent Appeal raises thousands of volunteers who mail out leaflets, posters, letters legacy of Fr Alec and the on-going ministry at pounds every year for good causes thanks to and gift aid envelopes each year. A new team - “The broken table in CS Lewis Square, Belfast, Clonard; in former paramilitary members saying the generosity of local churches, schools and led by two main volunteers - is needed to carry spoke powerfully to me of the brokenness they do not want to return to violence. others throughout the diocese. out the mailing in 2019. of N. Ireland. The Good Friday Agreement is 20 years old - 20 years of fragile peace. Yet, “While prayer walking along Shankill Road, I This year’s appeal focused on supporting The exercise takes roughly three days and as we listened to such differing voices, the reflected on hopelessness, and someone simply families in need at home and food, including a hot lunch on the final day, is uniting thread was fear, particularly with 30% stated, ‘but there’s you’.