CommunityCSJD C S J of Saint John D the Divine Making Connections Annual Report 2012 - 2013 The Community of St. John The Divine The Mission Statement The Community of St. John the Divine, An Anglican Religious Community, live under the threefold Vows of Religious Life, establishing a centre of worship and prayer under the patronage of St. John the Divine, the Apostle of Love, and together with the Associates of the Community form a network of love, prayer and service. Within the ethos of healing,• wholeness and reconciliation, we exercise a ministry of hospitality for people to come for times of rest, retreat and renewal and to share in the life and worship of the Community. We seek to offer a ministry of spiritual accompaniment and pastoral care, and to respond to the needs of the poor and marginalised. The heart of our call• is to be a praying Community seeking God in our daily lives and serving Him in reaching out as channels of God’s love to others. Front cover photograph : Cloister Garden Inset : Sisters – Shirley Hart, Christine Hoverd, Elaine Knight, Margaret Angela King, Ruth Cooper, Ivy Patten & Teresa French (seated) 2 | Making Connections | 2012 - 2013 • Bishop David’s commendation for CSJD Annual Report: Making Connections 2012-2013 It is a privilege and a pleasure for me, as Episcopal Visitor, to write a few lines commending Making Connections, the 2012-2013 Annual Report of the Community of St John the Divine. imagine that if you’re reading both to Christ and to the life of prayer, this you won’t need me to tell you the Sisters are an encouragement to us I what a blessing the members of all to enter deeper into a relationship the Community are to the Church with the God who knows us by name of England in Birmingham and and calls us, day by day, to follow him. beyond. You will doubtless know the The renewal of prayer and the value of their prayerful presence and religious life feeds into Archbishop have experienced for yourself their Justin’s other priorities: reconciliation wonderful ministry of hospitality, and evangelism. The praying presence spiritual accompaniment and pastoral of the Community in one of the most care. They nourish and support deprived areas of our city region is a the Church in this city region of powerful witness to the reconciling Birmingham, and for this, as Bishop, I love of God in Christ Jesus. In the am truly grateful. pages that follow, you will doubtless Archbishop Justin, speaking read many examples of how this love Bishop David about the priorities for his new ministry, is made manifest in a ministry of So let us pray for Christine, places “the renewal of prayer and the prayerful hospitality and practical Margaret-Angela, Teresa, Elaine, Ivy, religious life” at the top of the list. action. You may also read, of course, of Shirley and Ruth, as they pray for us, Those of us who know the Community the connections and opportunities that and let us rejoice with them in all that well can perhaps understand why this continue to arise following the BBC’s God has done in them and through is so. One of the great gifts offered to Call the Midwife series. Although them over the last twelve months. us by the Sisters is prayer. Knowing the Sisters no longer engage in this that they are committed to holding us particular work, the series has provided With my prayers for you all, in prayer before the God of love is an a fascinating insight into the history of Bishop David essential source of spiritual sustenance. the Community, and is a testament to The Rt Revd David Urquhart In their modelling of commitment, its pioneering spirit. Bishop of Birmingham Celebrating Relationships Welcome to this year’s ‘Making Connections’, our Annual Report for 2012-13. We decided that the theme of our report this year should be ‘Relationships’ – this is an opportunity to share with our readers and to celebrate the many kinds of relationship we are involved with as a Community. This includes relationships with people and places, with individuals and with groups, with new friends and old, with our neighbours and our families, with Associates and Alongsiders, with people of different faiths or no faith, with staff and volunteers who help us care for the house and garden – and not forgetting our relationship with God’s creation too. Underpinning and enfolding all these is our relationship with God in Christ and through this with each other in community – a relationship we seek to strengthen day by day, following the example of our patron, John the ‘beloved disciple’. Making Connections | 2012 - 2013 | 3 Relating to our neighbours “The Community of St John the Divine welcomes not just friends and families into our lives but also our neighbours. We aim to provide support to the people of Alum Rock, those of any C faith or no faith, by making connections with our neighbours S J and building trusting relationships and local partnerships that D will support people in their lives here.” In this past year we have been to-door survey to collect information above comes from the leaflet, which engaged in some practical projects from the people who live in our also mentions a new facility offered by which represent positive steps in how neighbourhood. With the Alum Rock CSJD: a much-needed neutral space we relate to our neighbours. Sister Interfaith Group, she has also been for local people to meet, study, think Ruth, following her involvement with responsible for producing a leaflet and plan things through - an annexe the Nehemiah Foundation and the distributed to homes in the area, known as the Bakery. Near Neighbours Programme last keeping people in touch with local year, has been undertaking a door- events and facilities. The quotation Christina sanding down an old table a generous grant from the Anglican Religious Communities Development Trust to begin the work (you can read more elsewhere about our trip The Bakery to Lambeth to apply for the grant). In January we began the monumental task of clearing our 37 years The Clearing of clutter, sorting out and retaining that which was operations hen the Sisters moved to Alum Rock in good and would be useful, reorganising our own 1976 we bought the house from the All Work Room in the main house, and disposing WSaints Sisters of the Poor who, amongst of what was not needed and finding good homes other things, made Altar Breads. This industry took for other good materials that might be of use to place in an annexe of the main house and it was others. We provided for cooperatives in the North, called ‘The Bakery’. Since that time the Bakery, as it filled a skip and had several visits to the local civic continued to be called, became a good place in which amenities tip! we could have hobby and craft days. Ruth’s daughter Christina, who is an interior We saw that this annexe could have a new designer, drew up the plans, and we enlisted our use as a space to bring people together in our electrician, who in turn introduced us to an excellent neighbourhood, but first it required a great deal of painter and decorator. Our plumbing engineers refurbishment. We were very fortunate and received installed a W.C. for the disabled, and we found 4 | Making Connections | 2012 - 2013 Ruth and Christina working on the chairs Friends Jacqui and Catherine working on soft furnishings Interior of the Bakery New Fire Exit with ramp. a firm that was able to supply and lay the proper flooring for the W.C. Installation of new hot water boiler and sink and refrigerator gives practical touches to the space. By late April we were well ahead with the programme, and some dear friends gave us their time and artistic expertise to make the space aesthetically pleasing and comfortable, with cushions, curtains and other crafty delights, so that by the end of July everything was in place. All regulations have been observed and precautions have been taken, with the installation of ramps front and back and a fire door. We are confident you and our neighbours, groups and individuals will find the space pleasing and practical, with our local shop’s provision and fitting of blackout blinds and our installation of WiFi for people with laptops. The one outstanding item for which we are currently saving is new lighting which we hope to The work completed – interior of the Bakery have installed by the end of this year. But for now the annexe is a comfortable, warm, well-appointed room of welcome. We have of course begun to use the space but our main first event was the Alum Rock Interfaith Group Lunch on 11th October, when local groups came and shared their work with local people, shared food and we got to know a bit more about one another! Making Connections | 2012 - 2013 | 5 Visit to Lambeth Sister Christine Reports n the autumn of 2012 an invitation was received to attend a Reception for the Anglican Religious Communities Development Trust (ARCDT) Iat Lambeth Palace on Friday 5th October 2012. This Trust has been recently set up by the Advisory Council (the Advisory Council for Relations of Bishops and Religious Communities) so that in the event of an existing Community completing its work, there would be an accountable body within the Church able to receive any residual funds that could be used as grants towards planned developments in other Anglican based Religious Communities which were recognised or acknowledged by the Advisory Council The Trust also welcomed donations from anyone to help with this purpose.