To substitute the word “world” with “church” would be a challenging exercise of appraisal and assessment. Preaching the word, the celebration of the sacraments, the nurture of young people and the pastoral care for all are important priorities of the Church. The grace, goodness and the love of God are reflected in a tacit invitation of call to worship. However everyone is different in their expectations and responses to this.

For some formal worship and the dignity of the liturgy must remain available. For others, considerable change in worship patterns is constantly called for to ensure that it is real and relevant to them.

There are those for whom the Book of Common Prayer, the contemplative music of Taize, the mystery of Celtic spirituality, the zeal of the charismatic movement – all these emphases and more are needed to meet the diverse needs of the extrovert and introvert, religious and lay, traditionalist and radical, people who are in good heart and those who are broken by life.

Uniformity cannot adequately respond to the spiritual needs of people today. Variety and difference within a common faith are essential. Great themes do not change but the response to them today sometimes seems muted and tepid far short of the enthusiasm that characterised biblical devotion. However it is expressed, let us embrace the challenging concept that it takes all sorts to make a church.

                                                Jean Rae.

I had a quick look at the Church of England’s own website and found the following two articles:

• “Bishops in the House of Lords” – which gives an overview of what our Bishops and Archbishops actually do in the life of the house
• “House of Lords Reform” – which gives an overview of the suggestions for reform and a summary of the submissions by the Church of England in response.

Following Shelia’s request, the PCC are making enquiries about what processes of consultation were being arranged for people generally, and the Church of England in particular, and will report back to you.

 Monarchy has ancient roots and biblical connotations from the time that Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet anointed Solomon King and the people said “God save the King”.

 The Queen ascended the throne sixty years ago on the death of King George Vl. In the words of someone who was with her in Kenya at that time “she seized her destiny with both hands.”

 For a Christian monarch, the whole community includes people of different faiths and none. The Queen embodies not a set of policies but a fully human life lived in the presence and calling of God.

 This anniversary is a time to speak about things, which may once have seemed obvious but which if they are not affirmed will pass into oblivion. Opportunities to do this are taking place in the events of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Celebrations.                             

                                                            Jean Rae.

Summary of the outcomes of the discussion following the APCM on 18^th April 2012

Areas of Agreement

1. The aim of encouraging more lay participation in worship is accepted.
2. Volunteers can be involved in two ways:

• Taking roles in Services at the request of the Ministry Team.

• Helping to organise and lead a Service with ideas and allocation of roles to other volunteers.

1. Lay participation is most likely in Family Services and “Special” Services (e.g. Harvest), but the same approach could apply to other worship settings, including additional Services like Evensong and worship linked to Parish Centre activities.
2. Existing Fellowships could provide teams to lead Services, as has happened in the past, but there would be benefits in involving other people and encouraging them to work together.
3. Guidance should be produced so that people are able to see what roles can be involved. When volunteers have been identified it would be useful to provide some form of training to them as a group.
4. A register should be prepared identifying volunteers and the contributions they believe they can make.
5. Volunteers to take assigned roles are welcome, but a key requirement is for individuals willing to take organisational responsibilities. (One of the main purposes of the exercise is to take pressure off the Ministry Team, not give them more organisation and co-ordination to do.)

Tasks

1. Ministry Team to identify possible Services and dates for lay leadership in 2012.
2. Information to be sent to Fellowships with an invitation to express an interest in participation.
3. Guidance document to be produced.
4. Register to be established and an invitation issued to the congregation to ask for information (the Guidance) and volunteer to go on the Register.
5. When the Register is established, set up a training event.
6. Ideas for participation in other worship settings to be invited.

The balance to be struck is between giving enough leadership to the exercise so that people understand what is expected, but then feel enabled to themselves take initiatives and responsibility.

AGENDA

Opening prayer

PARISHIONERS MEETING

1.         Minutes of the meeting held on 10th April 2011

2.         Election of Churchwardens

ANNUAL PAROCHIAL CHURCH MEETING

1.         Apologies for absence

2.         Minutes of the meeting held on 10th April 2011

3.         Reception of the Electoral Roll

4.         Acceptance of the Annual Report (Inc. confirmation of the Child Protection Policy)

5.         Acceptance of the Annual Accounts and Examiner’s Report

6.         Appointment of the Independent Examiner

7.         Reception of the Inventory 2012

8.         Election of Members of the PCC

• 2 Deanery Synod representatives (ex-officio PCC members)
• 1 Vacancy from 2011 (two year term)
• 3 Members completing their terms of office.

9.         Election of Sidesmen

10.        Any Other Business

APCM 2012 Agenda Minutes and Reports

2011 End of Year Financial Statements

Joyce Bedingfield writes…

A long time ago I read these words: “I said to the almond tree, ‘Sister speak to me of God’, the almond tree blossomed”. It was like that when we went to the convent of St. Mary the Virgin.

Rosemary Weekes writes…

A shared silence can be a profoundly beautiful experience, and the silences we shared in St. Mary Magdalene’s Chapel instilled in me a feeling of deep peace and quietness of spirit.

Sister Valeria chose to meditate on three Stations of the Cross, carved by a sister of the community and placed in that Chapel in special alcoves. Two of the Stations made a deep impression on me. In one, Jesus, carrying the heavy cross on his lacerated shoulders, meets his mother. You can sense Mary’s deep suffering for her son in his pain, and her longing to share some of the burden, as with all mothers when their children suffer. Another Station shows Simon of Cyrene and Jesus gazing at each other and, as Sister said, Simon’s life changed completely at that moment. But what has stayed as my deepest impression was what Sister pointed out must have been in Jesus’ eyes as he looked at Simon – ‘please help me’. That the God of Life by whose grace we draw our next breath should seek help in his pain and suffering from another, touched my heart. It reminded me that I see such pleas for help sometimes in my fellow human beings where God himself chooses to reside, and I am called to respond in any way that lies open to me.

 Gillian Wilson writes…

I was very unsure what the day would be like, but I signed up on the strength of my enjoyment of Rosemary’s Quiet Space on Friday afternoons in the Parish Centre.

The atmosphere of the Convent was calm and welcoming and Sister Valeria, who led the three periods of meditation, was extremely helpful in the way she introduced each of the three stations of the cross – the focus for the day. I found her quiet, undogmatic guidance quite inspirational. I have gained immeasurably from the experience and have been able to take a peaceful certainty into my everyday life.

During his ministry Jesus had much to say about the place of true humility and the parable of The Pharisee and the Publican (Luke 18 vs. 9-14) is a challenge and cautionary story to those who think highly of themselves. The Pharisee is obsessed by his own virtue whereas the Publican is conscious of his own shortcomings and seeks forgiveness from God. In coming to God in humility the Publican receives mercy and reconciliation whereas the Pharisee asks for nothing and gets nothing.

The famous American Samuel Morse who contributed to the invention of the single –wire telegraph system was the co-inventor of the Morse code and an accomplished painter and was thus described as a man of many talents. When asked if he ever encountered situations where he didn’t know what to do, Morse responded “more than once and whenever I could not see my way clearly I prayed to God.”  Morse received many honours but felt undeserving “I have made a valuable application to electricity not because I was superior to other people but solely because God who meant it for mankind, must reveal it to someone and He was pleased to reveal it to me.”

A close friend of mine who combined a busy and successful professional life with the role of a Non-Stipendiary Minister kept the following text from Micah on his desk: “What does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God?”

The character of Jesus encapsulates many qualities including compassion, kindness, meekness, long suffering and humility. The famous Bible scholar Martin DeHaan once said, “humility is something we should constantly pray for but seldom appear to display.”

                                                            Jean Rae.

• Easter 2012 newsletter

I would like you to come with me to three countries. First to Ethiopia. It’s 1985. In one village I noticed a gully where it seemed to me that a stream once flowed. I spoke with local farmers who told me that yes, that stream had flowed for years, but was now dry for most of the year. They said that the climate had changed, that they used to get two rainy seasons a year, a long and a short one, but the short season rains had completely disappeared, and they were too poor to afford irrigation. For people living on the margin of existence anyway, the change meant even less food.

Next, to Jordan, some 15 years ago, where I talked with farmers on land where cereal crops such as barley and wheat had grown for some
10,000 years. But climate change has again changed everything. There was no longer enough rain to grow cereals, said the farmers. They had to replace them with olive trees which need less rain. They sell the olives and hope they fetch enough to buy food they once grew themselves. And it had all happened so quickly, within the last 30 years. The crops that had grown for thousands of years had become unviable in one generation.

Next, more recently, to Senegal in west Africa, where I stood with an agriculturalist on parched land where there was nothing. “There used to be a village here,” he said, “a village where over a thousand people lived. Now there’s nothing, not a stick left, The villagers left a few years ago and took everything with them”.

The problem, he said, was water, the lack of it. Gradually lower rainfall, over the last ten years especially, had left them with not enough rain for themselves, their crops or livestock. Those villagers had done nothing to cause their plight. Rather they are innocent victims, victims of us in the West, emitting carbon through our buildings, through the way we travel, through the way we live, through lifestyles that are leading to serious changes in the climate.

Love your neighbour as yourself, said Jesus. And our neighbour is hurting. This is now a huge problem. In 2010, according to the Norwegian Refugee Council, 38 million people were forced to flee their homes because of hazards related to climate change – almost three-quarters of a million people every week.

The desert is taking over good land, severe droughts, flooding, cyclones and tornadoes all look set to intensify. This is not just about global warming, it’s about the extreme weather that climate change brings.

It’s the poor today who are affected. it could be us tomorrow, our children, our grandchildren. The latest World Energy Outlook warns that if do not change, then the world headed for irreversible climate change in five years. By 2017, there will be no room for manoeuvre, we will have reached a tipping point where no one knows what might happen.

A Christian environmentalist Wendell Berry says: ‘We will discover that our destruction of nature is not just bad stewardship, or stupid economics, or a betrayal of family responsibility; it is the most horrid blasphemy. It is flinging God’s gifts into his face, as if they had no worth. We have no entitlement from the Bible to exterminate or permanently destroy or hold in contempt anything on earth”.

Where is the hope in all this? In lies in all of us, in recognising that business as usual is not option. We need to reduce out carbon emissions. I like to suggest 3 things:

Firstly, do a personal audit of the way you live, the energy you use in your home, your transport, the goods you buy. Secondly, and more specifically, we have to end our love affair with the motor car. Look for alternatives. Public transport takes longer, but provides opportunities to meet people. Cycle, walk, enjoy the richness of creation.Thirdly, only fly if you really have it.

Your personal audit may uncover many more things you could do. And finally….spread the word. if we do the right things there is hope.

Just as we are part of the problem, so we can be part of the solution.
What is at stake are the lives of some of the poorest people on earth today, all our children tomorrow, and the future of a world that God loves so much that He came among us to save.

John Madeley is author of “Let Live: a bike ride, climate change and the CIA”, stocked by Waterstones, Broad Street, Reading.

This used to be called ‘Thanksgiving Sunday’ and always seemed to be related to the financial aspects of running the church.  This year we tried to look beyond what is required to keep the Church functioning Sunday by Sunday to the development of our Christian lives together.

Bill Harper wrote and delivered a very good presentation but the sudden snow fall that day kept many people away from Church. St Barnabas has many reasons to celebrate and the text of Bill’s presentation is reproduced here:

MISSION & RESOURCES 2011/12 – REASONS TO CELEBRATE

At this time of year we try – as a Church – to take stock of activities over the last year, to look forward to what is in prospect and to understand how the contributions of Church members are essential to all that is achieved. We look beyond the (necessary) things required to keep the Church functioning Sunday by Sunday to the development of our Christian lives together, to what is done to reach out to people and how the Church can raise its profile in the community.

It is pleasing to report – in contrast to much of the national and international news – that many things are going well. There is always room for improvement, but sometimes it is right to celebrate what has been achieved and to give thanks for the effort and dedication that has made it possible.

In terms of finance, both the Church and the Hall are in good shape financially. The accounts for both have satisfactory balances in hand, even after some substantial expenditures during the year. Of the £45,000 of loans that were taken out to finance the construction of the Parish Centre only £15,000 remains outstanding. This is thanks to the continuing giving of many Church members, some generous donations and some extra effort in fundraising. All are very much appreciated.

Our buildings are in good condition. Repairs and maintenance are pretty well up to date, and some improvements have been made – notably to the acoustics in the Centre. The five-yearly independent inspection (Quinquennial Review) found some minor repairs to be carried out, alerted us to some possible issues for the future but otherwise said that the building was well maintained. In the Hall the floor was sanded and resealed and the kitchen roof replaced. A keen volunteer – externally recruited – has made real difference to the appearance of the grounds.

But the Church is about much more than budgets and buildings. Last year we tried to think about how to grow and develop as Christians and how we could raise our profile in the local community. This can be referred to as the Church’s Mission.   Much has been done:

• The Parish Centre was always central to our hopes of becoming a more accessible Church, and its pleasing to report that the numbers of people coming into the Centre have been steadily increasing.
• We wanted to improve our communications. The web site is now in full operation, and we produced two “public” newsletters distributed in Emmer Green. It’s always difficult to know whether the messages are getting across, but it may be relevant that the attendance at our Christmas services was up by just short of 30% up on 2010.
• An Alpha Course was anticipated, and this has been running in January and February.
• There was an aim to extend the provision for children and young people. The “Three Tier Structure” of age group meetings has been reintroduced, and there has been even more music activity. The Puppet Ministry remains popular both internally and externally.

All this does not happen because the PCC writes strategies and resolutions. Things generally work because one or more individuals say “I can make this happen” and put time and effort into it. They are too numerous to mention individually (we try to do this at the APCM), but we are grateful to them all.

The problem with introducing new ongoing activities is that they need continuous effort to sustain them. This is in many ways more difficult that a building project, where there is a lot of effort for a period and then it is done. The effort needs to be continuous, but inevitably people come and go, or just need a break. So what do we need to do to keep going – and maybe still go further?

Money is important – but not central. We are managing financially, but can always make good use of more money – with any increase mostly going to Mission-related activities. Two points can be made:

• Weekly collections have been reintroduced – not to ask regular givers to donate more – but to establish the principle that giving is an integral part of Church life and to reach everyone who participates in our worship.
• Inflation eats away at donations.  £1 pledged in 2007 is worth about 80p today. People rarely consciously reduce their contributions, but that is effectively what happens if they are not kept up to date.

What really makes a difference to Church life is the time and talent its people give.  There are several areas where we know more input would be valuable:

• The top priority is to involve more people in the work with children and youngsters. We have had some additional support for our team but they are stretched to keep the current arrangements going.
• Behind the scenes someone is needed with some computer skills to help with leaflets, displays, etc.
• We are concerned as a Church to have a good record on our care for the environment, but we do need someone who could act as our environmental “Champion” and carry this work forward.
• We need lay representatives for St Barnabas at Reading and Caversham level.

Please speak to Derek, the Wardens or any PCC member if you think you can offer some time.

Acknowledging the challenge involved in just keeping everything going has not prevented the PCC identifying two areas where more could be done:

• The REInspired initiative is coming to our local schools. The local Co-ordinator spoke to the congregation recently about this work and how local Christians could be engaged. Some volunteers have already come forward, but more would be welcome.
• We want to get increased participation from Church members in our worship. Some people are keen to bring this about, and the Ministry welcomes support, but the trick is organising this effort effectively. More time will be spent exploring and discussing this at the APCM.

In summary, we have had a good year, with much to celebrate and give thanks for – especially the commitment and active participation of so many members of our Church.