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BRO FAMAU GROUP OF CHURCHES

Parish Magazine September 2016

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IN THIS EDITION

• The Parishes Letter

• John Foxlee explains the big changes!

• 'Reader Training --- a personal reflection'

• 'Grace --- it's free!'

• Plus all the usual features

COMING SOON

Coffee Morning in Daniel Owen Centre 2nd September

Gwernaffield Harvest Supper 1st October

See individual parish entries for other related events.

LETTERS: If you wish to submit a letter for publication please use the contact details above. All letters must be accompanied by the name and address of the sender. Letters may be edited and shortened.

The magazine panel welcomes the submission of relevant articles for consideration for publication.

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THE PARISHES LETTER …..from Canon Adrian

Sometimes I find that a particular moment can bring home a vital truth. I was recently conducting a midweek service using the ‘Green Prayer Book’. In the communion service the presiding priest is invited, after the distribution of the consecrated bread and wine, to use a verse or two from the designated psalm. On this particular day the psalm was num- ber fifteen and the indicated verses were…..

O Lord, who may abide in your tent? Who may dwell on your holy hill?

Those who walk blamelessly, and do what is right, and speak the truth from their heart’

I then spoke the usual first sentence of the post communion liturgy- O give thanks to the Lord, for he is gracious , and the faithful congregation responded with the usual words – For his mercy endureth for ever .

At a church I was once involved with, I was approached by a very trou- bled couple. They were devout and serious. They told me that Psalm 15 had been troubling them greatly. ‘We are not blameless, we cannot al- ways do what is right, we are human, but the psalmist tells us that only those who are blameless can share in eternal life with the Lord.’

It seemed to me that in their enthusiasm for grasping the meaning of every word of the Bible they had, as it were, stopped at the Old Testa- ment and were not reading it in the light of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

That moment in the recent service spoke to me powerfully, that we should always remember that God’s gift of grace is offered to each and every one of us because he wills it and not because we have done any- thing to deserve it !

Some of the greatest hymn writers remind us too. The seventeenth cen- tury former slave ship master turned Anglican priest wrote…..

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Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound, That saved a wretch like me. I once was lost but now I'm found, Was blind, but now I see.

The twentieth century worship song composer Gerrit Gustafson in his now famous song asks, Lord, if you mark our transgressions who would stand?, and he continues…

Only by grace can we enter, only by grace can we stand, not by our human endeavour but by the blood of the Lamb .

I heard somebody once say that grace is difficult to define but easy to describe. Perhaps that is because God’s grace is not something we need to define but more to experience . Perhaps also it is because the unde- served love and mercy of God can be experienced in so many ways.

One of the world’s biggest and most successful rock bands, U2, wrote a wonderfully gentle song they called ‘Grace’.

Grace, she takes the blame, she covers the stain, removes the blame, it could be her name. Grace, it’s a name for a girl, it’s also a thought that changed the world. and when she walks on the street you can hear the strings. Grace finds beauty in everything.

In an interview in the magazine ‘Christianity Today’ the band’s singer Bono neatly sums up his feelings about this ‘amazing grace’ that enters a world which may be over bothered by the idea of what ‘I’ or ‘we’ can do …. “ along comes this idea called Grace to upend all that ‘as you reap, so you will sow’ stuff. Grace defies reason and logic. Love inter- rupts, if you like, the consequences of your actions, which in my case is very good news indeed, because I've done a lot of stupid stuff.”

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So many things and so many situations can be vehicles for God’s Grace. It is not uncommon for people to talk about how music or poetry brought comfort or healing at a difficult time. The wonder of nature can turn affect people to wonder at why such feasts for the eye or the ear are given to us. Falling in love or the birth of a baby can or other as- pects of family life and friendships can convey an awareness of the won- der, joy and love that God offers.

Perhaps most importantly, we can find God’s grace simply in ourselves – in a realisation that who we are, what we are like, and the abilities and gifts we have, are far less about how we have made ourselves to be than they are about how God’s grace has shaped us to be.

For all the grace that we have been given, and are being given, and will be given, thanks be to God!

Adrian

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WORSHIP in SEPTEMBER 2016

Sunday 4 th September 15 th Sunday after Trinity 11.00 Morning Worship 11.00 Morning Worship 18.00 Holy Communion (Healing Service) Llanferres 9.30 Morning Worship Nannerch 9.30 Holy Communion 9.30 Morning Worship 12.45 Holy Baptism

Wednesday 7 th September MISSION AREA WORSHIP Llanferres 19.30 Eucharist

Sunday 11 th September 16th Sunday after Trinity

Cilcain 8.00 Holy Communion Gwernaffield 11.00 Morning Worship 18.00 Evening Prayer Llanferres 9.30 Morning Worship Nannerch 9.30 Family Service Rhydymwyn 9.30 Holy Communion

Sunday 18 th September 18th SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY Cilcain 11.00 Morning Worship Gwernaffield 11.00 Holy Communion 12.45 Holy Baptism 16.00 MESSY CHURCH in the Church Hall 18.00 Evening Prayer Llanferres 9.30 Holy Communion Nannerch 9.30 Morning Worship Rhydymwyn 9.30 Morning Worship

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Sunday 25 th September 18th Sunday after Trinity Cilcain 11.00 Holy Communion

Gwernaffield 9.30 Family Praise (in Church Hall)

18.00 Evening Worship

Llanferres 9.30 Morning Worship

Nannerch 9.30 Morning Worship Rhydymwyn 8.00 Holy Communion

Mid week Holy Communion Tuesdays at Holy Trinity, Gwernaffield 9.30 a.m. Wednesdays at St Mary the Virgin, Cilcain 10.30 a.m.

INFORMAL PRAYER GROUP

The informal prayer group that has been meeting in the resources room at Holy Trinity Church, Llanferres on every other Tuesday will resume after the summer break on Tuesday 4th October at 8pm

PLEASE NOTE The magazine contact email address is now [email protected]

This magazine can be viewed online at http://stmaryscilcain.btck.co.uk/ParishesMagazine

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John Foxlee looks at the big changes

News of a change in the way the diocese is going to be organised came to us from Archdeacon Bob Griffiths. A meeting of the PCCs from each Bro Famau parish had been arranged to discuss how we could go about recruiting Adrian’s successor, and the Archdeacon was invited as facili- tator. Earlier in that week he had been party to a Bishop’s Senior Staff meeting that had made a significant decision on the organisation of all mission areas in the diocese; it made sense to share it with us, and it came as a bit of a surprise!

Since then the Standing Committee of the Diocese has approved a 'decree' which will be used in formally establishing each existing com- missioned Mission Area (as we are here in Mold), and each new one as it comes into being - every current parish will be part of the new Mission Area arrangements by the end of 2016.The decree can be read in the legalistic form it was written, or a version in plain English has been kindly and painstakingly produced by John Prior-Egerton. (These are both available on request.)

So what is a decree? In ecclesiastical terms it is a written order by a bishop which stands as law within his or (in time) her diocese. It does not change the Constitution of the Church in , so one of the chal- lenges has been to make sure the decree is compatible with the Consti- tution.

The main effect will be to form one parish from all the constituent churches of the mission area. There will be one Parochial Church Coun- cil (PCC) which will be the present Mission Area Conference, having on it representatives of each church, all clergy, and lay ministers such as Readers, evangelists and pastoral ministers. This PCC will have two Wardens, who will also act as co-lay chairs with the Mission Area Leader, a Secretary and Treasurer. The Mission Area Conference will meet about as often as PCCs do now, and the day-to-day progression of business will be carried forward by a smaller representative group, the Mission Area Executive. Every minister, clergy and lay, will be licensed by Bishop Gregory to the mission area and will be one of the Shared Ministry Team.

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Churches will have a committee to look after local issues such as main- tenance of the building. In practice, this will be the present PCC of the church, which will become a sub-committee of the new super-PCC. Fi- nances will continue to be administered by local church committees so will be largely retained by the churches. There will be two sub-Wardens, a Secretary and a Treasurer, and each church will have a nominated vicar who will be responsible for priestly functions such as celebration of Communion.

Where does all this leave Mold Mission Area? We are advanced in de- velopment of our mission area which was commissioned by Bishop Gregory last year, and indeed, we are one of the three most forward in the diocese; we expect to receive the decree later this year. We will draw up a covenant, a working agreement between all our churches*. The po- sition of Mission Area Leader will become vacant at the end of Novem- ber when Adrian retires, and it will be advertised in the Church Times in September. Depending upon the response, an appointment will be made in November, so we might expect a new MAL, and vicar of our five churches, to be in post by Easter.

The ‘surprise’ noted in the first paragraph was a good one for many. Some have criticised it as being of an imposition of authority when we had been promised consultation. My personal feeling is that whatever the individual response, there is a will amongst the team to drive on and make it work for the good of the Church. The team is not any particular group of people but each one of us whether on a representative body or not. Those who come to church each Sunday and do not have other jobs, such as being on the church committee will not see any difference at first, but should increasingly be aware that they are part of a wider Church that has compassion, and works for, those disadvantaged in our communities.

The term ‘mission area’ (other Church in Wales dioceses calls it ‘ministry area’) was chosen because it expresses a looking out towards the com- munity, and looking after it where necessary. This has started in Mold

Mission area in three separate projects that are at different stages:

Food Banks : All our churches so far as I know, but certainly all Bro Famau churches, collect items of food that are delivered to Mold Food Bank on a regular basis, for distribution to those in need, as determined by laid-down criteria,

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Homelessness : Green Pastures, A Christian social enterprise buys properties and leases them to local churches for housing those without homes. Representatives from our mission area have at- tended meetings with a view to becoming involved.

Debt Counselling : The Archbishop of Canterbury is promoting a scheme to give advice to those in debt to help them manage their finances. There is a local debt advice service and we are talking to them about recruiting volunteer debt counsellors from our churches.

It can be seen that each of these involves cooperation with Christian groups, such as the Trussell Trust, Green Pastures and Money Advice. These are ecumenical in nature and seek to extend the love of Jesus into our communities.

The decree is in itself merely a legislative tool. What is important is what it puts into effect, and the intention is that it will be joint ministry of every- one who wishes to serve.

Our working together as a large group of people (there will be c.500 names on the electoral roll of the Mold Mission Area) will enable us not only to maintain our own worshipping practice, but to offer expertise to like-minded Christians who wish to serve God’s people in the wider com- munity. John Foxlee

Each of the churches in the Mold Mission Area is noted in the website at moldmissionarea.weebly.com

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Trainee Reader from Llanferres, Dr Wendy Shillito looks at Training for Ministry at St Padarn’ s Institute

I have just completed the first induction weekend in training for lay reader min- istry in the weekend of July 1 st -3rd . The weekend was momentous both for me as it coincided with my retirement from General Practice and for the Church In Wales, as it was the first weekend of the new St. Padarn’s Institute.

St. Padarn’s has been set up to undertake all ministry training for all ordained and lay callings in Wales. It replaces all the previous colleges, including St. Seiriol’s and St. Michael’s (confusingly the course actually took place at the old St. Michael’s college, now renamed St. Michael’s centre). It is designed to provide a more flexible way to train the clergy and lay ministers of the future. Most of the training occurs in the home parishes with central co-ordination based at St. Michael’s Centre, and then teaching blocks at St.Michael’s for three weekends and a week’s summer school. In addition there is a degree stan- dard course to follow locally called “Theology for life”- the old “Exploring Faith”.

A candidate for the ordained ministry would previously have had to commit to three years of full time residential training with the resultant personal and fam- ily upheaval. It is still possible to follow this path, but also possible to train part time and stay largely in your own mission/ministry area. There are obvious ad- vantages in this, provided that the candidates are able to study locally and still be supported personally and academically.

All new candidates for training met together for the first time at the weekend. The immediate impression was that there were so many of us! There were 45 students of all age and experience, from a young man fresh out of university to several grannies (I fell into the latter age group!). Some were opting for the full three years residential training for ministry but there were others in training for several lay options including lay evangelist and pioneer ministry. Some were obviously very confident about the impending study and several hadn’t written an essay since secondary school. Some had been in ministry of some form or another for several years; many (like me) had never preached a sermon.

There will be many challenges ahead- and notably for the teachers who have to co-ordinate the training of students who are diverse in character, experience and geographical situation. They too have to clock up many miles of travel lo- cally and to South Wales. It will be an interesting journey in all meanings of the word and I am excited to be a part of it

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PRAYER DIARY SEPTEMBER 2016 ON THESE DAYS OF THIS MONTH LET US GIVE THANKS AND PRAY FOR...... 1 God’s healing power, and all who attend the monthly healing service at Gwernaffield 2 Ian Gough and Sharon Davies to be married at Cilcain today 3 Gwernaffield’s Coffee Morning at the Daniel Owen Centre in Mold 4 Idris McDonald being baptised at Rhydymwyn today 5 Young people who are changing schools 6 Retired clergy living in the area 7 The Mission Area Holy Communion service at Llanferres this evening 8 Young people starting jobs for the first time or going to college or university 9 As the advertisement appears in the Church Times for Canon Adrian’s replacement, pray for a leader with a heart for building teams and collaboration. 10 Tom Jones and Ellie Yeardley to be married at Nannerch today 11 Local journalists and others working in the media and commu- nications 12 Those who work based at home 13 Launch of the diocesan LGBT chaplaincy this evening and those from this area involved

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14 For those preparing for the handover of responsibility for the period of vacancy after Adrian’s retirement 15 All those who keep our church buildings open 16 Those who are lonely or housebound. 17 Worm Charming and Afternoon Tea at Nannerch 18 Woody Parry to be baptised at Gwernaffield today 19 The Editorial Panel of the Parishes Magazine meeting this evening 20 For Adrian and for Sue Sawyer from Rhydymwyn at the Diocesan Standing Committee 21 Worship leaders and for their meeting this evening 22 Community councillors 23 Rhydymwyn Speedy Harvest Service 24 School Governors 25 Shopkeepers and other local retail businesses 26 Forestry workers and sawmill workers in the area 27 Mold Mission Area Conference, for our local church represen- tatives and for the Conference meeting this evening 28 All those who work in local quarries 29 Llanferres Harvest Supper 30 Farmers and horticultural workers.

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The Bible version used in our crossword is the NIV. Crosswords reproduced by kind permission of BRF and John Capon, originally published in ‘Three Down, Nine Across.’ by John Ca- pon (£6.99 BRF)

Across 3. Underground literature (including Christian 8. Where the ark of the covenant was kept books) circulated in the Soviet Union (8) for 20 years (1 Samuel 7:1) (7,6) 4. Lo, mash (anag.) (6) 9. One of the parts of the body on which 5. The Bible’s shortest verse: ‘Jesus — ’ (John blood and oil were put in the ritual cleansing 11:35) (4) from infectious skin diseases (Leviticus 6. ‘Can a mother forget the baby at her — 14:14–17) (3) and have no compassion on the child she has 10. Uncomfortable (3,2,4) 11 ‘Yet I have borne?’ (Isaiah 49:15) (6) loved Jacob, but Esau I have — ’ (Malachi 1:3) 7. Can be seen in a dying fire (Psalm 102:3) (5) (6) 13. Where Paul said farewell to the elders of 12. ‘Send me, therefore, a man... experi- the church in Ephesus (Acts 20:17) (7) enced in the — of engraving, to work in 16. ‘Jesus bent down and — to write on the Judah and Jerusalem’ (2 Chronicles 2:7) (3) ground with his finger’ (John 8:6) (7) 14. Second city of Cyprus (8) 19. Prophet from Moresheth (Jeremiah 15. United Nations Association (1,1,1) 26:18) (5) 16. One of the women who first heard that 22. Comes between Exodus and Numbers (9) Jesus had risen from the dead (Mark 16:1) (6) 24 and 2 Down ‘Then Elkanah went 17. Braved (anag.) (6) home to Ramah, but the boy ministered be- 18. — of Evangelism, outreach initiative in fore the Lord under — the — ’ (1 Samuel the 1990s (6) 2:11) (3,6) 20. ‘Woe to those who are wise in their own 25. There was no room for them in the inn eyes and — in their own sight’ (Isaiah 5:21) (Luke 2:7) (4,3,6) (6) 21. ‘Neither — nor depth... will be able to Down separate us from the love of God’ (Romans 1. Rough drawing (2 Kings 16:10) (6) 8:39) (6) 2. See 24 Across 23. What Jesus shed in 5 Down (4)

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FROM THE REGISTERS

Holy Baptism

On Sunday 19 June at Holy Trinity, Gwernaffield, Lia Eluned Griffith

On Sunday 31 July at Holy Trinity, Gwernaffield, Mia Anne Longton

On Sunday 7 August at Holy Trinity, Gwernaffield, Daisy May Annabelle Longworth

On Sunday 7 August at Holy Trinity, Gwernaffield, Willow Grace Owen

On Sunday 14 August at St Mary the Virgin, Cilcain, Mali Lloyd Williams

On Sunday 21 August at St Mary the Virgin, Cilcain, Margo Dot Hilton

Wedding

On 20th August at Holy Trinity, Gwernaffield Jonathan Harrison and Lynne Bowen

Funeral

On 19th July: the late Michael John Powell from Rhydymwyn at Pentrebychan Crematorium

On 28th July: the late Kathleen Margaret Ruth Williams at St Michael's Church, Nannerch and St Asaph Crematorium

On 15th August: the late Bert Richardson At St Berres, Llanferres

‘Grant them O Lord, eternal rest, and let light perpetual shine upon them’

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AROUND THE PARISHES

CILCAIN

Community Cafe The recent Community Cafe in the Village Hall hosted by the Church, raised £157.00 for Church Funds. A good time to enjoy Tea, Coffee & Cakes & to catch up with friends.

Joint Service We were invited to share our Morning Service with Capel Gad on 17th of July. The Service was very well supported & we received the usual warm welcome from our friends at the chapel.

New Portable Lectern The new Lectern in memory of Julian Hughes was dedicated at the Communion Service on the 24th of July by Rev. Andy Millar. We were joined by members of the Chapel for this service. It was followed by re- freshments & fellowship in the North Aisle, a lovely occasion where we caught up with old friends and some new ones.

Open Church Our Open Church draws many visitors as can be seen by the entries in the Visitors Book, and we also have groups visiting from time to time. In July we were visited by the Clwyd Archaeological Group & in October the Chester & NE Wales Organists & Choirmasters Association are visit- ing St Mary's. To learn more about them go to cnewoca.org.uk.

Soup & Sandwiches and Mens’ Breakfast These monthly activities resume in September – Soup and Sandwiches th th 6 Sept and Mens’ Breakfast on 8 Sept.

Cilcain Show Many thanks to all those people who have put a lot of time and effort into the preparations for this annual event on Bank Holiday Monday

GWERNAFFIELD

Congratulations and Thank You This is to all who help keep our lovely church open for visitors every day of the year: Shirley, Carol, Harvey, Kath, Julie, Carol, Harbans, John, Pat, Jennifer, Bruce, David, Carole, Yvonne, Sue and Madge. We have had visitors from Canada and more locally. Having our church open is

18 much appreciated, not only by those who sign the Visitors' Book, but also by others who need to come in to pray & be still. IT IS OUR FOURTH ANNIVERSARY ON AUGUST 1ST. Well done!

Mothers’ Union New members are always welcome – we meet on the last Tuesday of every month at 7pm in the Church Hall. Please telephone Mrs Gaynor Morgan (secretary) on 01352 741515 for more information.

Church Notelets Our church notelets are now available to buy. There are two different sets with six cards in each pack at a cost of £3.00 per pack. Please consider buying some to help raise funds for our church – you will not be disappointed with them!

Strawberry Tea The Car Boot sale and Strawberry Tea held in July raised £464.74 for Church funds. Thanks to everyone who helped and for donations re- ceived.

Coffee Morning We will be having a coffee morning in the Daniel Owen Centre in Mold on Saturday 3rd September from 9.30 to 12.00, to include a cake stall and sales table.

Harvest Supper This year’s Harvest Supper is due to be held on Saturday 1st October from 7.30pm onwards. This will be a hotpot supper and there will also be entertainment for you. Tickets are £5.00 each (children under 12 - £2.50); please contact 01352 740550 or 01352 740068 for further infor- mation on what is always a popular and fun evening

Gardening for Butterflies and Bees: A How To Guide Betty Lee, who tends our conservation gardens, has kindly donated the above book. Details of Holy Trinity Church are on page 225 and well worth a look. The book is on the back table- please feel free to borrow it if you wish, but kindly leave your details so that we can keep tabs on it.

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Warden Vacancy We have a vacancy for a Church Warden and would be interested to hear from anybody wanting further information on this very important role. Please speak to Adrian or Peter Davies if you are interested or have any questions about this role

LLANFERRESS

Harvest Supper The biennial Harvest Supper will be held in the village hall on Thurs 29 th Sept at 7pm. All parishioners are welcome and it would be great to see lots of people there.

Harvest Service Advance notice of the Harvest service on Thursday 6th October.

Grave modifications A reminder that any modifications made to graves need to comply with the churchyard regulations. The full copy of the regulations is on the noticeboard just inside the church door. However, in summary, this in- cludes no artificial flowers (except for Remembrance Day poppies), no shrubs, trees, gravel, chippings, paving stones, permanent flower con- tainers, ornaments or kerbs around the edge. Please can people make sure that any modifications they have made are in keeping with this.

School Visit On 13 th July pupils from the infants of Bro Famau school visited Llanfer- res church. They enjoyed hearing about the church from Adrian, and the children were talking about seeing the bell ring for a long time after- wards!

Log Book and Terrier Secretary We are still looking for a volunteer to keep the logbook and terrier up to date. The terrier is a record of the land owned by the church and the logbook is a record of all the alterations made to the church, its land and its contents. If anyone is interested in keeping these documents updated or wants more information, please contact Gay Headley on 01352 810224 or [email protected]

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Open Church The church continues to be open during daylight hours. Visitors are also welcome to use the selection of free books at the back of the church.

Flintshire Foodbank There is a collection box at the back of church for the Flintshire food- bank. All donations are welcome.

RHYDYMWYN

Craft Group. This group meets twice a month on Thursday 2-4pm. At present we are making small knitted items for several baby premature units at various hospitals. If interested in coming please phone Sue 741921.

Harvest Service Our 'Speedy Harvest' service takes place this year on Friday 23rd Sep- tember at 7pm. Food items donated will be sent to Flintshire Foodbank.

Flintshire Foodbank. There is a box at the back of the church for food items. A list of re- quired items is in the box.

Open Church . Our church is open every day from 10am until 4pm for everyone to visit.

NANNERCH

Nannerch and Rhydymwyn Mothers' Union Mothers' Union members attended the Deanery Quiet Evening held at Christ Church . A time for reflection and fellowship that was much appreciated by all who attended. Also appreciated by all those first time visitors was the church which has been transformed - what a wonderful hospitable space.

The July meeting had a representative from Flintshire Food Bank who talked about the conception and development of this worthwhile enter- prise.

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The next meeting will be on September 20th in Nannerch Memorial Hall at 2.00 pm. The speaker will be Mr. David Wright - "From St Mary's to St Michael's via St John's".

The Mothers' Union will be holding a Harvest Supper on 7th October in Nannerch Memorial Hall at 7.00. Entertainment will be provided by the folk group “Blaise”.

Nannerch VP School Nannerch VP School held a pupil wedding ceremony in the Church at the end of the term when all the children dressed as guests, brides, grooms or bridesmaids.

They also held their Leavers Service on the 15th July when pupils leav- ing for Secondary School had a chance to reflect on their time at Nan- nerch School.

Autumn Afternoon Tea The Church will hold its main fundraiser - An Autumn Afternoon Tea with added attractions on the 17th September at 2.00 pm in Nannerch Memorial Hall. Further details to follow.

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SUNDAY BIBLE READINGS PREVIEWED

Please use these introductions to prepare for worship. If you are a reader at home who is unable to come to church, you might like to use these pages, with your Bible, to join the congregation on a Sunday in the reading of the same passages.

Sunday September 4th - 15th Sunday after Trinity

Deuteronomy 30:15 -20 Everyone has one big choice to make, says Moses. Either you acknowledge God, obey his will, and find true life; or you can choose to reject God’s ways and go your own. It is literally a life or death choice.

Philemon 1 - 21 This reading gives us almost all the short and moving letter from Paul to a friend in Colossae whose house was the church meeting-place. Philemon’s slave had run away; Paul pleads as one Chris- tian to another that Onesimus now be received back as a brother.

Luke 14:25 - 33 Jesus often makes it clear that to choose between his way, bringing joy and life, also has a cost. In this passage he uses exag- gerated language to speak about the radical nature of his demands.

Sunday September 11th - 16th Sunday after Trinity

Exodus 32: 7 - 14 In Moses’ long absence, the Israelites made a golden calf to worship instead of God. Moses asks God to forgive them, and is shown the same grace and mercy that Jesus says id shown to every peni- tent sinner.

1 Timothy 1: 12 - 17 The letters addressed to Timothy, which we will read over several weeks, concern pastoral matters in a young church, and the responsibilities of oversight. A Familiar doctrine is quoted here, as a reminder that all can be forgiven, and Christian leaders receive grace suf- ficient for their task.

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Luke 15: 1 - 10 Two parables about recovering lost things demonstrate God’s persistence and initiative in seeking to restore all who are lost, and the joy in heaven over penitent sinners.

Sunday September 18th - 17th Sunday after Trinity

Amos 8: 4 - 7 The prophet rails against all who fail to show the virtues of honesty and compassion. What appear to be our best interests may well be only selfish sins.

1 Timothy 2: 1 - 7 In phrases that were probably part of an early Chris- tian liturgy, the church is called to prayer for the peace of the world and its leaders, because God’s will is salvation for all.

Luke 16: 1 - 13 This parable seems to praise dishonesty, but we must hear it as a challenge to perceive where our best interests lie, and to pur- sue the truest good.

Sunday September 25th - 18th Sunday after Trinity

Amos 6: 1a, 4 - 7 This prophetic condemnation of those who live in lux- ury without a care for others prepares us for our Lord’s familiar parable of the rich man ignoring a beggar at his gate.

1 Timothy 6: 6 - 19 This letter to a Christian pastor concludes with some advice about handling wealth, and a powerful plea for faithfulness n lead- ing the church.

Luke 16: 19 - 31 This parable of Jesus is one of his severest warnings to

those who go carelessly about their own selfish and sinful ways.

20, Clever. 21, Height. 23, Tear. Tear. 23, Height. 21, Clever. 20, Decade. 18, Adverb. 17, Salome. 16, UNA. 15, massol.

, Wept. 6, Breast. 7, Embers. 12, Art. 14, Li- 14, Art. 12, Embers. 7, Breast. 6, Wept. , 5 Shalom. 4, Samizdat. 3, Priest. 2, Sketch. 1, DOWN:

Leviticus. 24, Eli. 25, Mary and Joseph. Joseph. and Mary 25, Eli. 24, Leviticus.

22, Micah. 19, Started. 16, Miletus. 13, Hated. 11, ease. at Ill 10, Toe. 9, Jearim. Kiriath 8, ACROSS: ANSWERS ANSWERS

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The Bro Famau Parishes Magazine is produced by the Edito- rial Team: Tracy Baker, Adrian Copping, John Foxlee, Charlotte Jaggard, Kathleen Mason, Liz Thomas, Lindsay Wilding. Please contact team members individually in parishes

Articles printed in this publication may not represent the views of the church or all of its members. Final date for receiving material is 15th of each month at 12 noon. The right is reserved to edit submissions and the editorial team’s decision about the content of the magazine is final.

Advertisements : Advertising in this magazine costs £30 for a quarter page, £60

for a half page, £120 for whole page for 10 editions.

email to [email protected]

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CONTACT INFORMATION

VICAR / RECTOR

REVD CANON ADRIAN COPPING, Tel: 01352 810936 THE NEW RECTORY, RECTORY LANE, LLANFERRES CH7 5SR Email: [email protected] USUAL DAY OFF: FRIDAY

READERS MR. JOHN FOXLEE, Tafarn-y-Gelyn, 01352 810677 MRS. VALERIE SALVONI, Rhydymwyn 01352 741150

CHURCH WARDENS :-

GWERNAFFIELD

MR. PETER DAVIES, Ardwyn, Cae Rhug Lane. , 01352 741826 Subwarden MRS. MADGE NEWTON, , 7 High Park, Gwernaffield 01352 740649

LLANFERRES MISS ANNE WOODWARD, Cysgodfa, Tafarn-y-Gelyn 01352 810270 MR ROB ARMSTRONG, The White House, Rectory Lane, Llanferres 01352 810259

CILCAIN MR. JOHN PRIOR-EGERTON , Ty Gwyn, Cilcain 01352 741042 MRS. AMANDA GRIFFITHS, Tegfa, Hendre. 01352 740872

RHYDYMWYN MRS. SUE SAWYER, Winwood, Vicarage Rd, Rhydymwyn. 01352 741921

MRS. ELIZABETH THOMAS, 5 St. John’s Park, Rhydymwyn 01352 741405

NANNERCH MRS. CATH YEARDLEY, Nannerch. 01352 741128

MRS. LINDSAY WILDING, Beck Cottage, Nannerch 01352 741289

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