Welcome to the September 2013 newsletter from Inclusive Church. Cost: Priceless! 2013 Inclusive Church Annual Meeting The Inclusive Church Annual Meeting took place on Saturday 7th September. This provided an opportunity to reflect on the past year, and to lay plans for the future. A full copy of the 2013 Annual Report is available here as a PDF The annual meeting provided the opportunity to express thanks to the trustees, especially to Robert Key and John Plant who have stepped down from this role. We are very pleased to welcome Alex Gowing Cumber and Dan Barnes Davies as new trustees. More information about our trustees can be found here. “We depend on our members and supporters to help shape and facilitate our work… to make the love of God known and seen in our world.” In this 10th Anniversary Year Inclusive Church has had a strategic look at the landscape of the church. We have identified those places in our shared life in which some of God's people are missing and in response to these gaps have developed and devised resources to enable full inclusion. At the heart of who we are as an organisation and as individuals is our faith in Jesus Christ and our commitment to Jesus' call to make the love of God known and seen in our world. The resources we develop are varied and range from study materials and sign-posting through to engagement with the structures of the church, in all situations seeking to act prophetically and courageously in furtherance of full inclusion of all Christians in all parts of the church. Our Annual Report contains a snapshot of the amazing work done by our part-time National Coordinator, Bob Callaghan. It's important to notice that Bob is part-time, because he does achieve full time production in part time hours. Bob has been fundamental to the development of the work of IC as he has met Christians around the country both in his travels and electronically. The study and liturgical resources we have developed are in response to requests from churches and individuals. Our first Annual IC Lecture this year was to set the scene for the development of theological material which will contribute at a structural level to a greater awareness of those who are missing and at a practical level to rectify this. We are planning, with a major publisher, a series of six books each with a different focus for those who are not fully included. The first two are concerned with Disability and with Mental Health. The other areas of our work: poverty, gender, sexuality, BME are outlined below- and they really are works in progress. We depend on our members and supporters to help shape and facilitate our work. Thank you so much to all who contribute to the work of IC- financially, by keeping in touch, by holding us to account when we've missed the mark, through prayer, and your own courageous work. In this 10th year we have identified an opportunity for 1000 people to make a contribution of £100 each in order to secure our work for the next three years. Please consider whether you might be one of these 1000 and get in touch with our Hon Treasurer, [email protected] quoting GIVING as the subject. 1 There is plenty opportunity for volunteers to contribute to the work of IC. If you have particular skills and a few hours a month or week to offer please get in touch with Bob Callaghan Our hardest working volunteer is our Honorary General Secretary, Keith Elliott. Keith is the embodiment of the phrase, 'if you want something done, ask a busy person'. He is a constant source of knowledge, particularly with regard to governance issues, a constant support to me as Chair and to Bob in his work, and a constant worker for the gospel. I thank him, David Hancock and all the Trustees for their work during the past year and commend our Annual Report to you. The Reverend Canon Dianna Gwilliams Chair of Inclusive Church Disability Conference: Places of Belonging Inclusive Church in partnership with St Martin in the Fields will be holding a Day Conference about Disability, Mental Health, God and Inclusion on Saturday 19th October. The conference will be at St Martins, Trafalgar Square , London, from 10.30 am to 4.30 p.m. Speakers: Professor John Swinton. Chair in Divinity and Religious Studies University of Aberdeen. Rachel Wilson and Mims Hodson The conference will provide people with lived experience of different forms of disability and mental health issues to meet and share together. Spaces will be limited to provide a positive experience as possible on the day for those attending. The day will include accounts from lived experience of disability and mental health, worship, as well as input from John Swinton and other key speakers. We are seeking to make Places of Belonging accessible to everyone. there is step-free access, wheelchair-accessible toilets and an induction loop. A quiet room will be available. We are able to provide additional support or adjustments if requested in advance (Notice of large print materials and BSL interpretation by 5 October please). We would be glad to know how we can enable your participation. Both the on-line form and flyer allow you to specify requirements. Cost: £10 (payable on the day) Please complete the on line form or download and return this flyer. Inclusive Church Sunday Inclusive Church Sunday was celebrated by many churches on 15th September. Some churches are planning events in the next few weeks. A rainbow flag adorned the tower at St Mary's Church, Halesworth, Suffolk – where a series of events took place through the day. St Brides Liverpool hosted a diocesan event to explore issues of inclusion and share some of what is going on in the diocese, in Gloucestershire the parish of St George’s Falfield held a special service as did Ludlow and Hereford Cathedral. We used resources that had been specially drawn together for the day – these are available for churches to use on other occasions. 2 We would love to hear stories and see photos of some of what went on – so email them in to Bob Callaghan . Inclusive Church Sunday was part of our 10th anniversary events. We are considering making Inclusive Church an annual event. To help us think about that please go to our short survey – only 3 questions! Donald Barnes Memorial Lecture The Hampstead Christian Study Centre, London, NW3, founded in 1976, is inaugurating an annual lecture in memory of the Revd Prebendary Donald Barnes who was one of its founder members. Donald was also a member of Inclusive Church from its beginning. His wife, Sally, extends a warm welcome to Inclusive Church members and friends to this event. The lecture will be given by: The Revd Lucy Winkett Rector of St James’s Church, Piccadilly On: Prophetic imagination: living with what is, in the light of what’s promised. At S Peter’s Church, Belsize Square, London NW3 4HJ At 8.00pm on Wednesday 6 November 2013. Tickets (£5) at the door. Refreshments will be available after the lecture. For further information please contact either: Revd Claire Wilson: [email protected] or Sally Barnes: [email protected] St Peter’s Church, Belsize Square is the church where Donald Barnes was vicar for 17 years. Directions to the church can be found on:www.spbp.org.uk Inclusive Church and Poverty Church Urban Fund: Tackling Poverty Together Conference:13th November 2013 With Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury, as the conference keynote speaker. The conference will inspire and equip Christians and churches who are working with the poorest people to transform their lives and communities. We want to celebrate and showcase what the church is doing to tackle poverty, and explore how we can respond effectively and appropriately to the needs around us. The day will include workshops on key issues such as asset-based community development, credit unions, urban theology, responding to universal credit and how to recruit and retain volunteers. Venue, the Old Town Hall, Stratford, home of the Olympics. Tickets are £10 each, which includes lunch and refreshments. Booking is now open. Spaces are limited so please book straight away at https://tacklingpovertytogether.eventbrite.com/ Soul Marks Making and Using Visual Art in Prayer and worship. A day workshop with Carol Marples of Soul Marks at St Bride’s Liverpool Sat 19th Oct 2013 10am – 4pm Soul Marks is a charity based in Edinburgh, using the visual arts as a tool for prayer, worship & community. Carol Marples has been running art and prayer workshops across Scotland and around the world for the past 15 years. Tickets cost £25 and include lunch and refreshment and can be purchased from www.soulmarks.eventbrite.co.uk . Click here for a flyer for this event. News from WATCH WATCH is delighted at the result of the vote on allowing women to become bishops passed by the Governing Body of the Church in Wales. In the end the vote was a 3 straightforward one, either yes or no to allowing women to join the episcopate. The House of Laity voted For, 57, Against, 14, Abstentions, 2, in the House of Clergy For, 37, Against, 10 and Abstentions, 0 and in the House of Bishops For 6, Against, 0 and Abstentions, 0. The Archbishop of Wales, the Most Revd Dr Barry Morgan said before the vote that if it was a yes vote, the Bishops would consult widely on a code of practice and that there would be discussions about it at the Governing Body in April 2014.